Medellin Reports

[QUOTE=Zeos1;2893705]It was translated correctly. Don't know how it could have said anything close to being on time. Something else was going on with that conversation. Perhaps what she saw was "No puedo esperar para encontrarte." That would mean what she thought she read or heard.

But does translation sometimes get it wrong. Yes. And mainly when the same word has 2 completely different meanings and the translate app picks the wrong one. One trick you can use is to reverse translate and then reverse again. If all of the results stay the same chances are it is accurate.[/QUOTE]I don't think you understood the point. No puedo esperar means I can't wait.

The app doesn't know that you are using an English idiom. The way to express your excitement is to say "Estoy emocionado conocerte".

The app also interjected para which is wrong. Esperar is the verb "to wait for" The preposition is baked in. Also true for buscar (to search for) so adding para was bad Spanish.

Lastly there are at least three verbs that can be used to say "to meet" conocerse, encontrarse & reuinirse. There are subtle shades but use any of the three and you will be understood.

So in the example I gave, I know for a fact the girl considered his statement to be rude when in fact he meant it to be reassuring. This is the problem using idiomatic phrases with a translator.

Here's some information on Colombian Cedulas (ID Cards) for people who may find this information useful.

[URL]https://youtu.be/3ePPf9EcZew?si=ZF2VkJNCpMabEUkj[/URL]

[QUOTE=TraveLight;2893694]No girls are hanging out by the pool. A girl you're bringing yourself can still visit you. I have very limited Spanish myself and, I got by pretty well with google translate.[/QUOTE]So how is it any different than any other mediocre hotel with a pool?

[QUOTE=Villainy;2893788]I don't think you understood the point. No puedo esperar means I can't wait.

The app doesn't know that you are using an English idiom. The way to express your excitement is to say "Estoy emocionado conocerte".

The app also interjected para which is wrong. Esperar is the verb "to wait for" The preposition is baked in. Also true for buscar (to search for) so adding para was bad Spanish.

Lastly there are at least three verbs that can be used to say "to meet" conocerse, encontrarse & reuinirse. There are subtle shades but use any of the three and you will be understood.

So in the example I gave, I know for a fact the girl considered his statement to be rude when in fact he meant it to be reassuring. This is the problem using idiomatic phrases with a translator.[/QUOTE]I agree. In Spanish if you say I can't wait (no puedo esperar) it actually means like I don't have the time to wait like I cannot wait on you. They will think it means you are in a hurry and do not ha e time to wait. What you mean to say is "estoy emocionado para conocerte" or I am excited to meet you. This conveys the meaning of "I can't wait to meet you" and they will understand it.

[QUOTE=MoonShot;2893635]If you're using Uber, you have to set aside some time for Uber to find a driver and for the driver to get there. Sometimes it would take more than 10 or 15 minutes before I got picked up. Sometimes a driver would cancel and then you would have to start over. I had a doctor's appointment and I was late due to Uber. Uber is reliable but you just need to give yourself additional time if you need to get somewhere by a certain time.[/QUOTE]This is most likely because you are using the lowest cost Uber tier, competing against Didi and other services. When its busy, I spend the extra dollar or two to get a Comfort or Green Uber. Then they come right away as they are getting more money. Never have to wait more than 5 minutes, if that. Again, I really like the pre-estimate, live-tracking, and such. So I mostly stick to Uber.

[QUOTE=Robotron;2893742]I'm reading that you should take Uber everywhere (How does that work if it's "illegal."[/QUOTE]Uber is illegal, but just a ticket, so it's everywhere. No uncommon for a driver to ask you to sit in front or have really dark rear windows to not attract enforcement. There's no penalty to the passenger, just the driver gets a ticket.

[QUOTE]As for girls in public, as a non-Spanish speaker who will rely on Translate, is the goal to notice a girl you like, chat her up and take her back to your room ASAP? So spend maybe 5 to 10 minutes introducing and discussing personal interests, then mention "Sexo?" , and head back to your short term hotel or your main Hotel (Which is saved for later if you want to see her again?[/QUOTE]Girls use the word "cita" (appointment) a lot. No need to mention sex, it's implied. You can ask "Cuanto por una cita?" (how much for a date) or offer an amount "te puedo ofrecer 300 mil por una cita?" (can I offer your 300 mil for a date?) If you have preferences you want to discuss in advance, just state them (I want.). If you have no idea if a specific girl is a "prepaga" (pre-paid aka hooker/escort/etc.) then you can ask "sin ofenderte, eres muy linda, tu ofreces citas?" (without offending you, you are very pretty, do you offer dates?) or something to that variety. They love verbal compliments, so throw extra ones at the start and end of every sentence if you can (my dear love, could i interest you in a date? you are so pretty). Whatever comes out of translator will work well.

[QUOTE]Trying to figure out a strategy since you don't want to be seen holding a phone out and bringing attention to yourself.[/QUOTE]Everyone has their phone out in Medellin like anywhere else. Just hold it tight and close, don't play with one on a street corner too close to the street, I. E. Look like everyone else when they use their phone. You can ask a girl to "ven aca" (come over here) to talk more intimately away from a street or crowd.

[QUOTE]Lastly, keep walking on the street or being in a public place to a minimal and only Uber exactly to where you need to go? Club, Red Light Districts, Etc?[/QUOTE]I order my Uber from inside wherever I am, place a marker where I want to be picked up. I go out when car is arriving. I have it take me directly to where I am going. I don't usually linger outside.

[QUOTE=DiscoverFL;2893838]
Girls use the word "cita" (appointment) a lot. No need to mention sex, it's implied.[/QUOTE]Cita, servicio, un rato, un ratico, quiero verte, etc.

These newbie questions are unreal.

Migracióand Colombia should make you pass a basic Spanish test before allowing entry to Colombia.

Uber isn't illegal in Colombia, because technically, you are renting a car which comes with a driver. As you click through the acceptance screens when requesting a ride, you'll notice one that mentions this. Also, I recommend, as have others, using something besides the base level of Uber like UberComfort. Less chance of getting cancelled.

[QUOTE=CatBert55;2893855]Uber isn't illegal in Colombia, because technically, you are renting a car which comes with a driver. As you click through the acceptance screens when requesting a ride, you'll notice one that mentions this. Also, I recommend, as have others, using something besides the base level of Uber like UberComfort. Less chance of getting cancelled.[/QUOTE]It's better to use Indriver or Picap and Didi Moto.

This is correct. Uber is no longer illegal in Colombia; it hasn't been illegal since the time of the pandemic. Drivers prefer you sit in the front seat to avoid conflicts with taxistas. Taxistas are very anti ride share, even though all the ride share apps now have a taxi option. Reasons uber and the other ride share apps are good options are: GPS routing so you don't have to communicate the destination or route to the driver, a fare you agree to in advance, various payment options including foreign credit cards, vetted drivers (less so for indriver than for uber and didi), safety options including real time location sharing and panic buttons, lost and found service for belongings you leave in the car, no risk of falling victim to the counterfeit bill scam. I resort to taxis only when no other option is available.

[QUOTE=CatBert55;2893855]Uber isn't illegal in Colombia, because technically, you are renting a car which comes with a driver. As you click through the acceptance screens when requesting a ride, you'll notice one that mentions this. Also, I recommend, as have others, using something besides the base level of Uber like UberComfort. Less chance of getting cancelled.[/QUOTE]

Does anyone here know how far the closest subway stations are to the following daytime casas -- New Life, Energy Spa and Loutron? I heard that Loutron might be further out so maybe Uber or taxi required to get there and back. By the way, how far is the hotel M (mansion) to any subway station?

[QUOTE=MrEnternational;2893659]Just let the chicks bring it. They are going to have to spike it anyway.[/QUOTE]LOL. Nah not the ones I have coming over. These are repeats from some time.

But seriously, trying to see if a liquor store is within walking distance in that plaza. I see on Google Maps a Carulla supermarket is nearby so I guess I'll have to use an Uber.

[QUOTE=Villainy;2893788]......The app doesn't know that you are using an English idiom. The way to express your excitement is to say "Estoy emocionado conocerte".

....[/QUOTE]Villainy's post, is, as usual, well written and helpful. (Full disclosure: he's a buddy of mine.) The example he cites in the quote above ("Estoy emocionado. ") represents one half of a notably coupled, "falso amigos / false friends" --defined as two words in Spanish and English that sound as if they should mean the same thing (i. e. are "cognates" of each other, or in spanish, "cognados") but actually have completely different meanings, sometimes amusingly so.

These "Falso Amigos" pose a notorious peril for the beginner Spanish speaker or the user of Google Translate. As in Villainy's example, the English word "excited", in most of its uses, is translated as "emocianado". But if you happened to be introduced to your girlfriend's parents for the first time, and instead should happen to exclaim "Estoy muy excitado de conocerlos", it could be understood to mean "I'm very sexually excited (aroused) to meet you. " Como dicimos en la calle, tenga cuidado. " Take care.

[QUOTE=Gabacho;2893807]So how is it any different than any other mediocre hotel with a pool?[/QUOTE]Gabacho. Why so off-the cuff, dismissive? I'm responding as someone who benefited from a 3 or 4 day stay at Hotel M on my first visit here five years ago, and has returned a few times for special events in the bar. (I quickly moved to a Laureles apartment and haven't looked back.).

Even with the pool closed to chicas, (and granted that the hotel's over all physical set up is just "decent" but nothing special), I'm confident in saying that Hotel M (aka: the Mansion) remains an excellent choice for the first-time, monger visit to Medellin for several reasons--all of them unique to the joint when compared to any other hotel / apartment option in the city.

1. An in-house bar, populated with a good number of independent chicas willing and ready to service you on the premises (at least on Wednesday / Thursday through Saturday evenings). Best to time a visit to arrive mid-week if you can. The pickings in the bar may be sparse earlier in the week. (A caveat: If you're super selective like me, no guarantee that you will find a chica in the bar that turns you on. But this can be true of any casa or strip club in town on any given day or night).

2. 100% of the guests are staying in the hotel for the same reason that you are: to bang nubile Paisas. You don't have to be cautious or tentative about sharing your sex tourist story with anyone you meet, and it's easy to find companionship both for hanging out in the hotel / bar and for venturing out on the town.

3. To my surprise, when I was there, a number of the guests were guys who had been coming to Medellin for years and just liked staying at the Mansion. From other posts, that seems to still be the case. These are guys who know the Medellin mongering ropes and can provide good advise on venues and pricing, or even accompany you on a first trip to a casa, strip club, or El Centro. (When I was there, the hotel had a pleasant, communal-style breakfast set-up that made it easy to meet these and other guests.).

One asterisk to the above: the closure of the pool to chicas may somewhat reduce the number of clientele from previous years choosing to return. Too soon to tell. Although my Mansion stay was years ago, from the gadzillion Hotel M related posts on this thread, I'm pretty sure my above observations remain valid. If not, someone with more recent experience please chime in.

[QUOTE=NilAdmirari;2893866]

As in Villainy's example, the English word "excited", in most of its uses, is translated as "emocianado". But if you happened to be introduced to your girlfriend's parents for the first time, and instead should happen to exclaim "Estoy muy excitado de conocerlos", it could be understood to mean "I'm very sexually excited (aroused) to meet you. " Como dicimos en la calle, tenga cuidado. " Take care.[/QUOTE]Very good point and an embarrassing pitfall to avoid. We could also distinguish "A ella, me gusta" vs "A ella, me cae bien" but I doubt anyone here knows. Or cares.