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Illustration for “A bridge without a river”

Spanish dialogue with translation · A2 · 12 lines

Un puente sin río A bridge without a river

Comic · 12 panels

Panel 1 of 12 for “A bridge without a river”: “Pablo, there's one thing I don't understand. We're under a bridge, but there's no river here.”
  1. Ana

    Pablo, no entiendo una cosa. Estamos debajo de un puente, pero aquí no hay río.

    Pablo, there's one thing I don't understand. We're under a bridge, but there's no river here.

Panel 2 of 12 for “A bridge without a river”: “There used to be one. The Turia ran right through here.”
  1. Pablo

    Antes sí había. El Turia pasaba justo por aquí.

    There used to be one. The Turia ran right through here.

Panel 3 of 12 for “A bridge without a river”: “Seriously? And where is it now?”
  1. Ana

    ¿En serio? ¿Y dónde está ahora?

    Seriously? And where is it now?

Panel 4 of 12 for “A bridge without a river”: “Outside the city. In 1957 it rained a lot and the water got into the houses.”
  1. Pablo

    Fuera de la ciudad. En 1957 llovió mucho y el agua entró en las casas.

    Outside the city. In 1957 it rained a lot and the water got into the houses.

Panel 5 of 12 for “A bridge without a river”: “Wow! Did you see it?”
  1. Ana

    ¡Qué fuerte! ¿Tú lo viste?

    Wow! Did you see it?

Panel 6 of 12 for “A bridge without a river”: “Ana, I didn't exist yet! My grandfather did see it: he was eight.”
  1. Pablo

    ¡Ana, yo no existía todavía! Mi abuelo sí lo vio: tenía ocho años.

    Ana, I didn't exist yet! My grandfather did see it: he was eight.

Panel 7 of 12 for “A bridge without a river”: “Sorry. And what happened after that?”
  1. Ana

    Perdón. ¿Y qué pasó después?

    Sorry. And what happened after that?

Panel 8 of 12 for “A bridge without a river”: “They moved the river somewhere else. They wanted to build a road here, but people wanted a park.”
  1. Pablo

    Llevaron el río a otro sitio. Aquí querían construir una carretera, pero la gente quería un parque.

    They moved the river somewhere else. They wanted to build a road here, but people wanted a park.

Panel 9 of 12 for “A bridge without a river”: “And who won?”
  1. Ana

    ¿Y quién ganó?

    And who won?

Panel 10 of 12 for “A bridge without a river”: “The people. In the end, city hall made this park, with trees, fountains and bikes.”
  1. Pablo

    La gente. Al final el ayuntamiento hizo este parque, con árboles, fuentes y bicicletas.

    The people. In the end, city hall made this park, with trees, fountains and bikes.

Panel 11 of 12 for “A bridge without a river”: “Thank goodness! So we're walking through a river.”
  1. Ana

    ¡Menos mal! Entonces estamos paseando por un río.

    Thank goodness! So we're walking through a river.

Panel 12 of 12 for “A bridge without a river”: “That's right. A river without water, but with the same bridges.”
  1. Pablo

    Eso es. Un río sin agua, pero con los mismos puentes.

    That's right. A river without water, but with the same bridges.

Grammar for this text

Hay and había. Aquí no hay río — "there's no river here" (now). Antes sí había — "but before, there was one". The word sí adds emphasis here, like a stressed "there was".

How things were — the imperfect: el Turia pasaba justo por aquí — "the Turia ran right through here", tenía ocho años — "(my grandfather) was eight" (age in the past), querían construir una carretera — "they wanted to build a road". Yo no existía todavía — "I wasn't born yet", literally "I didn't exist yet".

What happened — the preterite (units 7–9): llovió, entró, llevaron, hizo, vio. ¿Tú lo viste? — "did you see it?": lo means "it" (unit 5).

This really happened. After the 1957 flood, the Turia river was moved around Valencia. The city planned to build a road in the dry riverbed, but the people of Valencia got a park instead. Today it's a garden about nine kilometers long, and the old bridges still cross it.

Words and grammar of the unit: Describe how your neighborhood used to be.

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