Around the flat
Besides el salón, la cocina and el dormitorio, many Spanish flats have el comedor (the dining room) and el balcón (the balcony). In the kitchen you find el frigorífico (the fridge) and often la lavadora (the washing machine).
| The flat has a small balcony. | El piso tiene un balcón pequeño. |
| We eat in the dining room. | Comemos en el comedor. |
| The milk is in the fridge. | La leche está en el frigorífico. |
| The washing machine is in the kitchen. | La lavadora está en la cocina. |
La tele is the everyday short form of la televisión — it stays feminine, like la foto.
| My children watch the telly in the living room. | Mis hijos ven la tele en el salón. |
Housework with hay que
Hay que + infinitive says what has to be done, without saying who does it. Spanish puts on the washing machine with poner:
| One must put the washing machine on. | Hay que poner la lavadora. |
| One must clean the fridge. | Hay que limpiar el frigorífico. |
| One must pay the rent today. | Hay que pagar el alquiler hoy. |
Renting and sharing
Young people in Spain often live with their parents until about thirty; when they leave, most rent: they pay el alquiler (the rent) and often live with a compañero de piso (a flatmate). The feminine is regular: mi compañera de piso.
| I live with two flatmates. | Vivo con dos compañeros de piso. |
| On the outskirts the rent is cheap. | En las afueras el alquiler es barato. |
Las afueras (the outskirts) is always plural: vivo en las afueras.
Where is it?
| word | meaning |
|---|---|
| arriba | upstairs, up |
| abajo | downstairs, down |
| al fondo | at the end, at the back |
| The bedrooms are upstairs. | Los dormitorios están arriba. |
| The kitchen is downstairs. | La cocina está abajo. |
| The bathroom is at the end, on the right. | El baño está al fondo, a la derecha. |
Add de to say of what: al fondo de la calle, los vecinos de abajo (the neighbors downstairs).
| The neighbors downstairs make a lot of noise. | Los vecinos de abajo hacen mucho ruido. |
