The January sales
A short in Spanish text at level B1. The translation sits next to it: reading with a dictionary is still too early at this level, and without support it will not happen at all. In January I went to the shopping center for boots and came back with two things I did not need. The first was an…
Text
- En enero fui al centro comercial a por unas botas y volví con dos cosas que no necesitaba. La primera fue un jersey de lana buenísimo, rebajado a la mitad, que resultó ser de una talla que no me valía. La segunda, un bolso de piel que en el escaparate parecía de buena calidad y en casa se vio que era plástico. Guardé los tickets, y a la semana siguiente volví a la tienda a tramitar la devolución de las dos cosas sin ningún problema. De las botas, que era a lo que iba, ni me acordé: estaban en la planta de arriba y me daba pereza subir.In January I went to the shopping center for boots and came back with two things I did not need. The first was an excellent wool sweater at half price, which turned out to be a size that did not fit me. The second was a leather bag that looked good quality in the shop window and turned out to be plastic at home. I kept the receipts, and a week later I came back to process the return of both things without any problem. As for the boots, which was the whole point, I did not even remember them: they were one floor up, and I was too lazy to go up.
Comprehension questions
The questions are asked in Russian on purpose: we test your understanding of the text, not your ability to read the question.
- Why did the narrator go to the shopping center?
- What was wrong with the sweater?
- What did the bag turn out to be?
- Why did the return go smoothly?
Frequently asked
What level do you need to read this text in Spanish?
B1. That means: you know the letters and have a stock of everyday words — about two or three hundred.
How to read a text in an unfamiliar language usefully?
First all the way through without peeking at the translation — just to catch the familiar words. Then with the translation. Then all the way through again: the second pass brings noticeably more, and that feeling matters more than any rule.