Food idioms - cakes and pies podcast Hello and welcome to this podcast brought to you by That's English!, the Spanish Ministry of Education's official distance learning English course. To find out more about That's English! go to www.thatsenglish.com or contact your local Official School of Languages. Kate: Hi Drew! How are you? Did you have a nice long weekend? Drew: Yeah, it was great, though it was hard getting up this morning. Kate: Yes, I know what you mean. I nearly overslept as well. Drew, I wanted to run through a few more idiomatic expressions with you. Drew: Are you still working on your collection of idiomatic expressions and their equivalents in Spanish? Kate: That's right. Now I am looking at food idioms...Well, to be more precise, with idiomatic expressions related to cakes and pies... Drew: I see. So how can I be of help? Kate: Well, as your Spanish is much better than mine... Drew: Ah, flattery will get you everywhere! Kate: No, I really mean it... Drew: Okay, okay... Kate: I'll give you some of the idioms that I've thought of and you tell me how we could translate them into Spanish. Drew: Okey-doke! Fire away! Kate: Right...I'll start off with to sell like hot cakes, you know, when something sells really well. An example could be: Every time Apple launches a new iPhone, they always sell like hot cakes. Drew: Ah, that's quite straightforward. In Spanish we could say: "vender como churros." Kate: Yeah, you're right! Next one: a piece of cake, you know, when something is easily achieved. For you, for example, translating English into Spanish is a piece of cake. Drew: Again, you're flattering me! Well, in this case I think we could use the expression: "ser pan comido." Kate: There you go, you see? I'd have said: "está chupado"... Drew: Well, that's another possibility, but I think it's a bit too colloquial. Kate: OK. Then we have the cherry or icing on the cake, meaning the best part of something that is already good. We could say, for example: Our holiday in Miami was fantastic, but swimming with dolphins was the icing on the cake. Drew: That's right, but don't forget that this expression can be used ironically to mean just the opposite. We could say, for example: I couldn't attend the job interview because my car broke down on the freeway, and the icing on the cake was when it started to pour down with rain. Kate: That's true...And can you think of an equivalent in Spanish? Drew: I think you can use "la guinda del pastel" in the same way, with both the positive and negative meanings. And have you included to take the cake, when you refer to something really incredible, with both a positive and a negative meaning? Kate: Yes, I have, though in British English we say to take the biscuit. We could say, for example: I was furious with my brother for borrowing my car without asking but when he told me he'd scratched it, that really took the biscuit. Drew: Hahah, yes I can imagine! In Spanish, I think we could say: "ser el colmo" in this type of situation. Kate: I've also included can't have one's cake and eat it, which we usually use to express the idea that it's impossible to enjoy the advantages of two conflicting alternatives. We could say, for example: He wants to work full time for the multinational company and keep on running his own business at the same time. But it's totally incompatible - he can't have his cake and eat it. Drew: Yeah, that's a good one, and in Spanish we could say: "estar en misa y repicando" or "nadar y guardar la ropa." Kate: All right. Then I've got to have one's finger in the pie... Drew: Oh yeah, or have a finger in every pie. That's like my boss. He has to be involved in every project whether they are related to his department or not. He likes to have a finger in every pie. Kate: That's probably because he wants to make sure he gets his piece of the pie... Drew: Absolutely! He's always quick to make it clear how much he works so that he gets his share of the bonus, his piece of the pie. Kate: Are there any Spanish equivalents for these idioms? Drew: Well, maybe we could say: "A mi jefe le gusta estar metido en todos los fregados para asegurarse su trozo del pastel." Kate: OK...Then we have pie in the sky, you know, when you dream up ideas that are highly unrealistic. For example, we could say: My daughter's always saying she wants to be a top model, though she knows she has no real chance. It's just pie in the sky. Drew: Yeah, and in Spanish I think we could use "castillos en el aire." Kate: Fantastic. OK, we've nearly finished. I've included: That's the way the cookie crumbles, which we use when we have to accept a situation whether we like it or not. Drew: Oh yes, that's a useful one. It's just what I said to my sister over the weekend. Kate: Why's that? Drew: Well, 'cause her neighbourhood association has decided to build a tennis court that no one is going to use but she and others who oppose the project are in minority, so I told her not to waste any more time and energy protesting as that's the way the cookie crumbles. Kate: "Es lo que hay" or "así son las cosas" as the Spanish would say. Drew: Indeed, but my sister is a real tough cookie, she's very adamant and won't give in easily. Kate: Thank you Drew. I didn't have tough cookie. How could we translate it? Drew: Maybe we could say: "Un hueso duro de roer." Kate: And if she's like her brother, she'll be a smart cookie too. Drew: Ah, she's much more intelligent than I am! Though I think her neighbours think she's as nutty as a fruit cake as well. Kate: You mean they think she's crazy? Drew: Well, let's just say a little eccentric. You know she has about 17 cats, and if she comes across a homeless person on the street, she'll invite them round to her flat for a coffee and something to eat... Kate: Well, she doesn't sound like a fruit cake to me, just a kind person. Drew: Well, some of her neighbours wouldn't agree with you. Anyway, let's get on. Do you have any more idiomatic expressions for us to look at? Kate: Just one more. The proof of the pudding is in the eating, meaning that you can only judge something's value from practical experience. Drew: OK. Do you have an example? Kate: Yes, we could say: I've seen a second-hand sports car I really like the look of but I've asked for a test drive to try it out. You know, the proof of the pudding is in the eating. Drew: I don't think there's an equivalent expression in Spanish. Maybe we could say: "Uno no sabe si algo es bueno hasta que no lo prueba." Kate: Well, I think that's it. We seem to be over and done with cakes, pies, puddings and cookies! Thanks for giving me a hand. Drew: My pleasure. Now let's go and get something to eat. I just feel like having some cake. These idioms have made me feel really hungry. Kate: Me too. I could eat a scabby horse! Drew: We hope you have found this podcast useful. See you later! We hope you have enjoyed this podcast, brought to you by That's English! Please follow us on Facebook and Twitter. We look forward to hearing from you. Bye for now!