h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

"Spanish has less grammar than german. Oh, OK...less complicated grammar. You don't have to get all your pesky genders and cases to agree."

How I wish that were so.

Alfster, it's worth remembering that language acquisition is far from the whole story - there are also the cultural, gastronomic, historical, artistic, etc, elements that contribute to its formation.

I've lived in Spain for 15 years and the language is quite complicated enough (still) for me - mind you, that's probably due to my not agreeing with it all too often.

It's a bit disconcerting that although the Spanish have similar idioms to ours, they have different ways to express them - for example: to put the cart before the horse = empezar la casa por el tejado http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7HzFddVZYs

Ed, you said something 'bout horses for courses. I dunno which racetrack I'm on though, it's really for for a wee bit intellectual exercise, nothing business related.

Either, then.

No, not either!


Not when you consider:
>> there are also the cultural, gastronomic,
historical, artistic, etc, elements <<

Clearly either the richness of Andalusia or the
treasures of Alhambra alone outweigh the dark angst
of the beer-guzzling sausage-sucking dwellers of the
Black Forests that swallowed three Roman Legions.

OK, maybe Goya cancels out Goethe but in the main,
Spain reigns plainly.


~jwf~