Pass the ‘Baporup’!

December 15th, 2011 | Odds & Sods

Now, I know that I am not really in a position to criticise, as even after ten years of living here, my Spanish is still pretty appalling. This little anecdote is however, not really about grammar or vocabulary, but more just a note about pronunciation.

In Spanish the letter ‘V’ is pronounced like the letter ‘B’ in English, so in effect they have two letter ‘B’s in their alphabet. This can sometimes cause misunderstandings, or just plain hilarity…..

For the last couple of days I have been a little under the weather, trying to shake off a bit of a cold. I usually stay at home and dose myself heavily, as I quite simply don’t want to pass it on to others.

In a conversation with Angela, she suggested that I should use some Bip-Bapo-Rup, or at least that’s what it sounded like to me. For some reason I start to think about music – Be Bop a Lula, or perhaps even Be Bop Deluxe, but whatever I was thinking it simply didn’t make any sense, or at least until she explained. It was actually Vicks Vapor Rub that she was suggesting! From now on, in our house, this will be known as Bip-Bapo-Rup.

This example however, is not my favourite. Have you ever heard of that well known American actress Guppy Gulper? Sorry, that’s Woopi Goldberg to you and me – this is simply Angela’s take on it.

Now, I know that I am not really in a position to criticise, as even after ten years of living here, my Spanish is still pretty appalling. This little anecdote is however, not really about grammar or vocabulary, but more just a note about pronunciation.

In Spanish the letter ‘V’ is pronounced like the letter ‘B’ in English, so in effect they have two letter ‘B’s in their alphabet. This can sometimes cause misunderstandings, or just plain hilarity…..

For the last couple of days I have been a little under the weather, trying to shake off a bit of a cold. I usually stay at home and dose myself heavily, as I quite simply don’t want to pass it on to others.

In a conversation with Angela, she suggested that I should use some Bip-Bapo-Rup, or at least that’s what it sounded like to me. For some reason I start to think about music – Be Bop a Lula, or perhaps even Be Bop Deluxe, but whatever I was thinking it simply didn’t make any sense, or at least until she explained. It was actually Vicks Vapor Rub that she was suggesting! From now on, in our house, this will be known as Bip-Bapo-Rup.

This example however, is not my favourite. Have you ever heard of that well known American actress Guppy Gulper? Sorry, that’s Woopi Goldberg to you and me – this is simply Angela’s take on it.

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