The wall that separates us in Valencian
Neighbors argue about noise and come to an agreement in Valencian. 6 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Veí, necessitem parlar. Els teus convidats canten fins a la una de la matinada i els xiquets no poden dormir.» — Neighbor, we need to talk. Your guests sing until one in the morning and the children cannot sleep. 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: neighbors argue about noise and come to an agreement. 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.
- Veí, necessitem parlar. Els teus convidats canten fins a la una de la matinada i els xiquets no poden dormir.Neighbor, we need to talk. Your guests sing until one in the morning and the children cannot sleep.
- Ho sento, de debò. Però dissabte passat era l'aniversari del meu pare, no pas un costum setmanal.I am truly sorry. But last Saturday was my father’s birthday, not a weekly custom.
- Ho entenc, i et vaig felicitar. Però repetir cada cap de setmana és un altre cantar.I understand, and I did congratulate you. But repeating it every weekend is another matter.
- Tens raó. Proposo un pacte: festes fins a les dotze i avís sempre amb un dia d'anticipació.You are right. I propose a pact: parties until twelve and always a warning a day ahead.
- M'agrada. I quan tinguis gent, avisa'm tu també: així ningú no se sorprèn.I like it. And when you have people, you warn me too: that way nobody is surprised.
- Tracte fet. Demà t'ho porto tot per escrit i oblidem la discussió.Deal. Tomorrow I bring it all in writing and we forget the quarrel.
Lines one by one
| Valencian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Veí, necessitem parlar. Els teus convidats canten fins a la una de la matinada i els xiquets no poden dormir. | — | Neighbor, we need to talk. Your guests sing until one in the morning and the children cannot sleep. |
| Ho sento, de debò. Però dissabte passat era l'aniversari del meu pare, no pas un costum setmanal. | — | I am truly sorry. But last Saturday was my father’s birthday, not a weekly custom. |
| Ho entenc, i et vaig felicitar. Però repetir cada cap de setmana és un altre cantar. | — | I understand, and I did congratulate you. But repeating it every weekend is another matter. |
| Tens raó. Proposo un pacte: festes fins a les dotze i avís sempre amb un dia d'anticipació. | — | You are right. I propose a pact: parties until twelve and always a warning a day ahead. |
| M'agrada. I quan tinguis gent, avisa'm tu també: així ningú no se sorprèn. | — | I like it. And when you have people, you warn me too: that way nobody is surprised. |
| Tracte fet. Demà t'ho porto tot per escrit i oblidem la discussió. | — | Deal. Tomorrow I bring it all in writing and we forget the quarrel. |
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 Valencian in this situation?
“Veí, necessitem parlar. Els teus convidats canten fins a la una de la matinada i els xiquets no poden dormir.” — Neighbor, we need to talk. Your guests sing until one in the morning and the children cannot sleep.. 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.