[FITZ]

A guy from here who is hispanic and was stationed in the military in Panama told us of a very funny story ---- they were doing an exam on a prim and proper Panamanian woman and needed a translator --- they chose a Chicana woman who claimed she spoke Spanish but she only knew the most vulgar street terms for anatomical parts and of course used them to describe a procedure and ask questions of her.

[DeFault User]

That sort of street Spanish is to Spanish as Ebonics is to English.

My wife is currently teaching Spanish to some doctors and nurses. Even with their minimal knowledge so far (this semester), they tell her they get a lot of gratitude from their hispanic patients. It could also avoid mistakes in directions regarding diagnoses, medications, etc.

[archy]

A guy from here who is hispanic and was stationed in the military in Panama told us of a very funny story ---- they were doing an exam on a prim and proper Panamanian woman and needed a translator --- they chose a Chicana woman who claimed she spoke Spanish but she only knew the most vulgar street terms for anatomical parts and of course used them to describe a procedure and ask questions of her.

Not to mention the 8th Special Forces guys in Panama in the 1970s who got a new boss, and a couple of the guys assigned as bodyguards to the new Colonel's wife killed a little time by helpfully teaching the Colonel's missus a little of the local language.

Though they made a few slight errors, like confusing the term for the the local currency, the balboa and centisimos, which came out chingaderas in the version she learned.

She was most surprised when she asked a local vendor how many of them it would take for a new hat. And the Sergeants got a new job. A much less pleasant one.