A l'oficina de correus in Catalan
A client sends a package at the post office in Catalan. 6 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Bon dia! Vull enviar aquest paquet a la meva germana, que viu a València.» — Good afternoon! I want to send this package to my sister, she lives in Valencia. The conversation is predictable: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: a client sends a package at the post office. The conversation is short and predictable — which is exactly what makes it good for a first try: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
- Bon dia! Vull enviar aquest paquet a la meva germana, que viu a València.Good afternoon! I want to send this package to my sister, she lives in Valencia.
- Poseu-la a la bàscula: pesa un quilo i mig. Ho vol per correu ordinari o per correu certificat?Put it on the scales: it weighs one and a half kilograms. Regular mail or registered?
- Certificat, si us plau: vull el rebut amb el codi per seguir-lo.Registered, please: I want a receipt with a number, to track it.
- Són quatre euros i vuitanta. Em falta el codi postal del destinatari: el té?That is four euros eighty. I lack the postal code of the recipient: do you have it?
- Sí, el 46001. I és una sorpresa: arriba demà?Yes, 46001. And it is a surprise: will it arrive tomorrow?
- Amb enviament urgent, demà al matí mateix. Aquí té el rebut i el segell: ja pot marxar.With express delivery — as soon as tomorrow morning. Here are your receipt and stamp: you may go.
Lines one by one
| Catalan | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Bon dia! Vull enviar aquest paquet a la meva germana, que viu a València. | — | Good afternoon! I want to send this package to my sister, she lives in Valencia. |
| Poseu-la a la bàscula: pesa un quilo i mig. Ho vol per correu ordinari o per correu certificat? | — | Put it on the scales: it weighs one and a half kilograms. Regular mail or registered? |
| Certificat, si us plau: vull el rebut amb el codi per seguir-lo. | — | Registered, please: I want a receipt with a number, to track it. |
| Són quatre euros i vuitanta. Em falta el codi postal del destinatari: el té? | — | That is four euros eighty. I lack the postal code of the recipient: do you have it? |
| Sí, el 46001. I és una sorpresa: arriba demà? | — | Yes, 46001. And it is a surprise: will it arrive tomorrow? |
| Amb enviament urgent, demà al matí mateix. Aquí té el rebut i el segell: ja pot marxar. | — | With express delivery — as soon as tomorrow morning. Here are your receipt and stamp: you may go. |
How to prepare for a conversation like this
Memorizing the lines is not enough: the other person will say their own thing, not what is written. What helps more is catching the key words by ear and keeping three rescue phrases ready: “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”, “slower”.
And one more thing phrasebooks do not mention: awkwardness gets in the way more than not knowing the words.
- Fear of making mistakes gets in the way of learning a language, and it gets in the way badly. It is one of the most reliably measured findings in the entire field.checked many timesTeimouri, Goetze & Plonsky, 2019, Studies in Second Language Acquisition 41(2) · 19,933 participants from 23 countries; correlation with results r = −0.36.
- That fear can be dealt with — the methods have been tested and they work.checked many timesXiong et al., 2024, Journal of Language and Social Psychology · 37 studies, anxiety reduced by −0.61. Of the seven conditions examined, only age turned out to matter.
Frequently asked
How do you start a conversation in Catalan in this situation?
“Bon dia! Vull enviar aquest paquet a la meva germana, que viu a València.” — Good afternoon! I want to send this package to my sister, she lives in Valencia.. The first line in such a conversation is almost always the same, and that is the one worth learning: the other person will carry it from there.
What if you did not understand the reply?
Say “I don't understand” and “repeat, please” — both are in the rescue set. Admitting your language is still shaky almost always makes the other person more patient.
Should you memorize the dialogue?
No. It is more useful to catch the key words by ear: the other person will say their own thing, and a memorized line will not always fit their reply.