The short version
- Your first month is mostly the same few situations: appointments, the flat, shopping, the health centre and meeting people.
- For appointments, prepare three lines: why you're there, what you've brought and one question.
- Take one situation a week and practise it out loud before you need it.
Most advice about Spanish for moving to Spain says "learn the basics". That's not much help when you're standing at a counter with a folder of documents, or trying to explain to the internet company that nobody has come to install anything.
The good news is that the first month is fairly predictable. You'll go to some appointments, set up your flat, do a lot of shopping, maybe visit the health centre, and meet your neighbours. Each of those is a small conversation you can prepare for.
When I moved to Spain, I'd studied for years and still found these everyday conversations hard. What helped was taking them one at a time and practising the words out loud before I needed them. That's what this post sets out to do.
Appointments and paperwork
Your first weeks will probably include a few appointments: getting your foreigner's number, registering at the town hall, opening a bank account. The exact steps change from place to place, so check the official information for your area. The language, though, is much the same everywhere.
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| la cita previa | an appointment (booked in advance) |
| el NIE | foreigner's identity number |
| empadronarse | to register at the town hall |
| el ayuntamiento | the town hall |
| el justificante | the proof / receipt |
| rellenar el formulario | to fill in the form |
| una fotocopia | a photocopy |
| abrir una cuenta | to open an account |
| domiciliar | to set up a direct debit |
In offices, people will usually speak to you as usted, and it's polite to do the same. So it's ¿Me puede ayudar? rather than ¿Me puedes ayudar?
Before any appointment, write three lines on a card or your phone. What you're there for: Vengo a empadronarme. What you've brought: Traigo el pasaporte y el contrato de alquiler. One question you need answering: ¿Me puede dar un justificante? Say all three out loud on the way there. Most appointments only need those three things from you, and the rest is listening.
When you arrive, Tengo cita a las diez (I have an appointment at ten) tells them who you are. If you don't understand something, Perdone, ¿me lo puede repetir más despacio? is fine. People in these offices deal with learners all the time.
Setting up the flat
Once you're in, there's usually something to sort out: the electricity, the internet, a tap that drips. These phrases cover most of it.
- Quiero dar de alta la luz. (I want to set up the electricity.)
- ¿Cuándo pueden venir a instalar internet? (When can you come and install the internet?)
- La lavadora no funciona. (The washing machine doesn't work.)
- Hay una fuga de agua en el baño. (There's a water leak in the bathroom.)
- ¿A qué hora viene el técnico? (What time is the engineer coming?)
For the conversation with your landlord, including the contract and the deposit, there's a full post on Spanish for renting a flat in Spain.
Shopping
You'll shop every day, so this is where you'll get the most practice. The supermarket needs very little Spanish. The market, the bakery and the deli counter need more, and they're where you'll really use it.
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| ¿Quién es el último? | Who's last in the queue? |
| Yo. / Soy yo. | Me. |
| Ponme un cuarto de kilo de… | Can I have a quarter of a kilo of… |
| Cien gramos de jamón, por favor. | A hundred grams of ham, please. |
| ¿Algo más? | Anything else? |
| Nada más, gracias. | That's everything, thanks. |
| ¿Quiere bolsa? | Do you want a bag? |
| ¿Puedo pagar con tarjeta? | Can I pay by card? |
At markets, bakeries, the butcher's and the chemist's in Spain, there often isn't a neat line. People stand around the counter and know who they're after. When you arrive, ask ¿Quién es el último? or ¿Quién da la vez? Someone will say yo, and you go after them. When the next person asks, you say yo. It's one of the most useful questions you'll learn in your first week.
Once it's your turn, a trip to the deli counter goes something like this:
The health centre and the chemist's
It's worth learning a few health phrases before you need them, because that's exactly when you won't feel like looking things up.
- el centro de salud (the local health centre)
- la tarjeta sanitaria (the health card)
- Quiero pedir cita con el médico. (I'd like to make an appointment with the doctor.)
- la farmacia de guardia (the chemist's that's open out of hours)
- Me duele la cabeza. (I've got a headache.)
- ¿Necesito receta? (Do I need a prescription?)
Chemists in Spain are a good first stop for small problems, and staff will often give advice. There's much more in Spanish for the doctor and the pharmacy.
Meeting people
In your first month you'll meet neighbours, the people at the bar on the corner, other parents, colleagues. The same questions come up again and again: where you're from, why you came, how long you've been here.
- Soy nuevo en el barrio.I'm new to the area.
- Soy nuevo en el barrio. Llevo dos semanas aquí.I'm new to the area. I've been here two weeks.
- Soy nuevo en el barrio. Llevo dos semanas aquí. Me he mudado por trabajo.I'm new to the area. I've been here two weeks. I moved for work.
If you're a woman, it's soy nueva. For the chats in the lift and on the stairs, see Spanish small talk with your neighbours. Being able to say who you are, where you're from and why you're here, without hesitating, will make a big difference to those first weeks.
A plan for your first month
Don't try to learn all of this at once. Take one situation a week and practise it for about 15 minutes a day, out loud.
| Week | Focus | Practise |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Shopping | The queue, ordering by weight, paying |
| Week 2 | Appointments | Your three-line card for each appointment |
| Week 3 | The flat | Reporting a problem, arranging a visit |
| Week 4 | Meeting people | Who you are, where you're from, why you came |
Swap the order if an appointment comes up earlier. The point is to prepare the conversation you're about to have, so that when it happens you've already said most of it.
Trying to learn "general Spanish" before you arrive.
Prepare the specific conversations you'll have in the first few weeks.
Using tú with officials.
Use usted in offices and follow their lead.
Standing silently at a market counter.
Ask ¿Quién es el último? as soon as you arrive.
Going to an appointment unprepared.
Write your three lines and say them out loud on the way.
Recap
- The first month is mostly appointments, the flat, shopping, health and meeting people.
- Use usted in offices and prepare three lines for each appointment.
- Ask ¿Quién es el último? at markets and counters.
- Learn a few health phrases before you need them.
- Take one situation a week and practise it out loud.
If you'd like the conversations for everyday life in Spain ready to practise, 100 Spanish Conversations covers one theme a week, from shopping to meeting the neighbours. Plenty of people in the Skool community have just moved too, so it's a good place to ask about anything you run into.
Leeroy studied Spanish for years before moving to Spain and finding he couldn't hold a conversation. He built Basically Spanish around the method that fixed it. Questions? leeroy@basicallyspanish.com