Conversation

Real English Conversation: Lesson 1 – The Wedding

Real English Conversation: Lesson 1 - The Wedding

Joe: Hey, Will, how’s it goin’?

Will: Hey, what’s goin’ on? Not a lot.

Joe: Man, I don’t, you know what, now that I see you right here, I don’t think I’ve seen you in probably like six weeks.

Will: Yeah.

Joe: Where you been hidin’?

Will: I don’t know, long time no see though.

Joe: [laugh] Yeah.

Will: How, how have you been?

Joe: Yeah, I’m doin’ really well. I, I don’t th-…you know what, I haven’t seen you since your wedding.

Will: I know. I know, I want to, uh, I want to tell you all about it. I can’t believe you didn’t make it.

Joe: Yeah, you know what, I told you the only reason I didn’t make it is because my uncle was getting married back east. So, y’know, I was gone the entire week. But I was super bummed about it.

Will: Well you missed a good one.

Joe: Yeah, yeah, I know. I mean I was bummed that I couldn’t be there with all our friends. And, y’know, I’d never had a chance to meet Isabelle’s family. So, y’know, I’m really bummed that I missed that, too.

Will: Yeah, yeah, it was really nice having everybody out here from Spain.

Joe: Yeah.

Will: And, we had a good time.

Joe: How long had you, how long were you and Isabelle together before you guysgot married?

Will: Two years.

Joe: Wow, oh my god, time flies.

Will: Yeah.

Joe: I remember that, y’know, when she first, uh, answered the ad you had for a roommate, so…

Will: [laugh]

Joe: …you guys broke the golden rule, y’know, as far as roommates go, which is don’t sleep with your roommates when they move in.

Will: That’s right.

Joe: [laugh] But it’s all worked out.

Will: It was worth it. It was worth it this time.

Joe: Yeah, it’s all worked out. So I’m glad to see that, y’know.

Will: Absolutely.

Joe: Yeah. So, uh, y’know, you’ll have to give me some details on, y’know, I, I haven’t seen any of the pictures or anything, I don’t, maybe you didn’t get them back yet from the photographer.

Will: Well I can’t wait to, uh, show you the pictures, of course, but, uh, yeah, do you have a second? I’ll tell you about the wedding.

Joe: Yeah, yeah, totally. I wanna hear about it.

Will: Alright, well, we had kind of a, uh, do-it-yourself wedding. We, um, got married at, uh, City Hall which was easy. And then we had our real ceremony at Stern Grove. You know where that is?

Joe: Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, right on 19th.

Will: Here in San Francisco.

Joe: Yeah.

Will: Underneath the redwood trees.

Joe: Oh, it must have been beautiful.

Will: It was very nice.

Joe: Did the weather cooperate?

Will: Actually we, uh, had a really beautiful day which is very unusual for summertime in, uh, San Francisco.

Joe: Yeah.

Will: As you well know.

Joe: Totally.

Will: We were planning on fog but we had really nice weather.

Joe: Oh that’s great. So everyone made it in okay? Because I know that, uh, her family had a long way to come.

Will: Yeah. They, uh, they all made it. Her mom and dad, uh, their friend, uh, her brother and sister, of course, and, uh, her best friend from Spain came to represent all her, all her friends… We’re gonna go there, uh, soon and we’re gonna see her, uh, family and friends, y’know, th-, who couldn’t make it. But it was nice to have a group of her family and friends here in San Francisco for the wedding.

Joe: Oh that’s great. How, what, where is she from in Spain?

Will: Um, she’s from Bilbao.

Joe: Oh yeah, y’know, she told me that before but I can’t say that, y’know, I could recall the actual town ‘cause I’d never heard of it before.

Will: Yeah, it’s actually a very large city. Uh, it’s an industrial city. And it’s, uh, got uh, a new museum so it’s become more famous. But, uh, it’s been there a long time. And it’s a big city. But it’s not one of the most, um, uh, known cities in Spain perhaps…

Joe: Yeah.

Will: …like Madrid and Barcelona.

Joe: Yeah.

Will: So, uh, yeah. But they were all there and, uh, her brother, uh, read a medievalSpanish love poem, uh. And, uh, that was really nice. And, uh, parts of our wedding were in Spanish, uh, for the people, um, you know our friends here who, uh, um, speak Spanish and also, uh, y’know, for her friends and family from Spain, yeah.

Joe: Sure, yeah that’s great. I know that you’ve been trying to learn a lot of Spanish lately.

Will: Yes I have, yes I have…well, y’know, I learned a lot of Spanish when I was in Chili but I’m learning a lot more with her now.

Joe: Oh that’s great. Yeah, because the only way you’re gonna really, uh, y’know, get more fluent in it is to use it pretty much every day.

Will: Absolutely. Yeah.

Joe: So, uh, I bet her father was happy to see that you made an honest woman of her.

Will: [laugh] I guess, I guess so, yeah.

Joe: I would imagine that, uh, maybe her, was her family pretty traditional and old-fashioned? Or…

Will: Uh, no actually they’re more, um, uh, progressive in a way than, uh, Americans are. Americans actually, it seems, uh, are more into the church wedding and everything. We had a, uh, um, we had a very, uh, European wedding. They’re not as, uh, religious as people think. Americans are pretty religious.

Joe: That’s true.

Will: Yes. So, uh, they, uh, they loved everything we did and, uh, it was a really

good time. Yeah.

Joe: That’s great.

Will: Yeah, so, uh, I gotta run.

Joe: Okay, well, uh, Will let’s get together for drinks sometime soon, it’s been too long.

Will: Sounds good.

Joe: Alright, I’ll talk to you soon.

Will: Alright, ciao.

Joe: Bye.

The Wedding Vocabulary

The Wedding Vocabulary Lesson: Conversational English Explained

Welcome to our vocabulary lesson centered around a dialogue discussing a wedding. This lesson is designed to help you understand colloquial English phrases as used in everyday conversations.

Introduction to the Conversation: Joe initiates the conversation with Will by casually asking how things are going, using common conversational phrases like “How’s it goin’?” which translates to “How is it going?” or simply “How are you?” This is a typical example of conversational English where contractions and informal phrasing are prevalent.

Dialogue Breakdown:

  1. Greetings and Catching Up:
    • Will responds with “Hey, what’s goin’ on?” another informal greeting which means “What are you doing?” or “What’s happening?”
    • Joe expresses surprise at seeing Will after a long time, using the phrase “Where you been hidin’?” which is an informal way of saying “Where have you been hiding?” It’s used here not to imply actual hiding but to indicate they haven’t seen each other for some time.
  2. Discussing Personal Updates:
    • The conversation shifts to personal updates where Joe mentions not seeing Will since his wedding and uses “I don’t think I’ve seen you in probably like six weeks,” to make a point about the time elapsed.
  3. The Wedding Discussion:
    • Will invites Joe to speak more about the wedding, using “Long time no see,” a common phrase meaning it has been a long time since they last met.
    • Joe uses the term “wedding,” explained as a marriage ceremony or the act of getting married.
  4. Expressions of Regret:
    • Joe regrets missing the wedding due to another family commitment, illustrating real-life prioritization and obligations.
    • Phrases like “I was super bummed,” and “You didn’t make it,” are discussed. “Super bummed” means being very upset, and “You didn’t make it,” is a casual way of saying someone couldn’t attend an event.
  5. Casual Conversation:
    • The use of “How long had you, how long were you and Isabelle together before you guys got married?” showcases a curiosity about Will’s relationship timeline, where “guys” is a casual reference to Will and his partner, Isabelle.
  6. Cultural References and Personal Sharing:
    • Will shares that the wedding had elements from both American and European cultures, noting differences in traditional wedding settings.
  7. Concluding the Conversation:
    • The dialogue ends with both parties expressing a desire to meet up soon, using phrases like “I gotta run,” meaning needing to leave, and “Let’s get together for drinks sometime soon,” which is a proposal to meet again.

Final Thoughts: The lesson closes with Joe using “Alright, ciao,” indicating a friendly and informal farewell. The term “ciao” is borrowed from Italian, used both for greeting and parting.

This dialogue not only teaches specific phrases but also offers a glimpse into the informal and fluid nature of English conversation, particularly around personal and significant life events like weddings. It emphasizes understanding context, emotional nuance, and cultural subtleties in everyday English usage.

 

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