Beyond Colombia es una empresa innovadora de turismo que busca dejar experiencias memorables en los extranjeros que visitan el país.

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“Uy, ¿quién pidió pollo?” en inglés

Para que los extranjeros sepan de qué hablamos, Ricardo Suárez se dio a la tarea de traducir los más llamativos y simpáticos colombianismos. ¿Cuáles son?

16 de diciembre de 2014

Los extranjeros que estén de visita en Colombia querrán conocer cuáles son las expresiones populares en Colombia para no dejarse –justamente– ‘meter los dedos en la boca’.

Si quieren saber un poco más de las tradiciones locales y si quieren evitar que los ‘tumben’ o que los ‘casquen’, van a tener que ‘estar pilas’ al blog y a la página de Beyond Colombia.

El equipo de este proyecto busca generar impactos positivos y distintos en los turistas. “Nos encanta compartir nuestras tradiciones y estamos dispuestos a dar lo mejor de nosotros por dejarle una experiencia memorable al viajero”, dicen.

Recientemente, Ricardo Suárez, creador del blog, se dio a la tarea de traducir al inglés las palabras y expresiones colombianas que, advierte, “nunca encontrará en un diccionario”.

Aquí algunas de ellas con su traducción literal y su explicación:

Más tragado que calzoncillo de torero”: More swallowed than bullfighter’s underwear. Can you imagine what this stands for? Yes! When you are deeply in love! You are as lost as the bullfighter’s underwear, that we can’t even see you around (a friend of you will say you this).

“Me gustan las cuentas claras y el chocolate espeso”: I like clear accounts and thick hot chocolate. Colombians use this expression meaning we like honesty when speaking.

“Uy, ¿quién pidió pollo?. Uy, who ordered chicken? This is a funny one, because I use it when I joke around with my friends and it’s used to flirt with a handsome/pretty (man or woman) who approaches to you or passes by.

“No me abra los ojos que no le voy a echar gotas”: Don’t open your eyes like that, I am not going to put eyedrops for you. We say that when someone looks at us in a very derogatory way.

“Colgó los guayos”. Hang the soccer shoes. This expression refers to death. In soccer when someone dies, soccer shoes don’t belong to the owner anymore. In normal life, it means you are screwed, or death!

Abeja: Or in English ‘Bee’, is used in a negative way to refer someone who is always taking advantage over someone. We say that someone is Abeja when this person wants to skip the queue, leave without paying or cheat during an exam.

Paila: This is a flat kitchen utensil for making Arepas (traditional Colombian food, flatbread made of ground maize dough) but we say this every time when something goes wrong or someone is screwed. We point our neck with one hand and say “Paila!”, as you are dead.

Guayabo: Is the Colombian expression for Hangover. It comes from the word Guayaba, an exotic fruit that has little clean worms inside and seems they went up to your head and you can’t stand anymore!

Guachafita:
Is the moment when you have created a mess during a party. This is used by old people referring to the disorder of young people. If you are living inside an apartment complex and you decided to give a party, the most probably thing is that the old people call to the Complex Administrator to leave a complaint about the Guachafita you are doing!

Líchigo:
I love this word, sound very strange and it has different meanings. In Antioquia and Caldas region it is a little purse for keeping money, a pocket knife or a handkerchief. But in Bogotá we say this for a very stingy person, the one that doesn’t leave a penny on the table. We scratch our elbow like we were going to find something (money) on it!