A Study in Scarlet — Page 3
So alarming did the state of my finances become, that I soon realized that I must either leave the metropolis and rusticate somewhere in the country, or that I must make a complete alteration in my style of living.
El estado de mis finanzas se volvió tan alarmante que pronto comprendí que debía o bien abandonar la metrópolis y retirarme a vivir en el campo, o bien hacer un cambio completo en mi modo de vida.
Choosing the latter alternative, I began by making up my mind to leave the hotel, and to take up my quarters in some less pretentious and less expensive domicile.
Optando por esta última alternativa, empecé por decidirme a dejar el hotel y a instalarme en algún domicilio menos pretencioso y menos costoso.
On the very day that I had come to this conclusion, I was standing at the Criterion Bar, when some one tapped me on the shoulder, and turning round I recognized young Stamford, who had been a dresser under me at Barts.
Precisamente el día en que había llegado a esta conclusión, me encontraba en el Criterion Bar cuando alguien me dio una palmada en el hombro y, al volverme, reconocí al joven Stamford, que había sido ayudante mío en el Barts.
The sight of a friendly face in the great wilderness of London is a pleasant thing indeed to a lonely man.
Ver un rostro amigo en la gran jungla de Londres es algo verdaderamente grato para un hombre solitario.
In old days Stamford had never been a particular crony of mine, but now I hailed him with enthusiasm, and he, in his turn, appeared to be delighted to see me.
En otros tiempos, Stamford nunca había sido un amigo íntimo mío, pero ahora lo saludé con entusiasmo, y él, por su parte, pareció encantado de verme.
In the exuberance of my joy, I asked him to lunch with me at the Holborn, and we started off together in a hansom.
En el desbordamiento de mi alegría, lo invité a almorzar conmigo en el Holborn, y partimos juntos en un hansom.
"Whatever have you been doing with yourself, Watson?" he asked in undisguised wonder, as we rattled through the crowded London streets.
«¿Qué diablos ha sido de ti, Watson?», me preguntó con asombro manifiesto, mientras traqueteábamos por las concurridas calles de Londres.
"You are as thin as a lath and as brown as a nut."
«Estás delgado como un listón y moreno como una nuez.»
I gave him a short sketch of my adventures, and had hardly concluded it by the time that we reached our destination.
Le hice un breve resumen de mis aventuras, y apenas había terminado cuando llegamos a nuestro destino.
"Poor devil!
«¡Pobre diablo!
Vocabulary
- estado
- State or condition of something or someone.
- finanzas
- Personal or business financial matters and money management.
- volvió
- Became or turned into something; past tense of volverse.
- tan
- Adverb meaning 'so' or 'such' before adjectives.
- alarmante
- Alarming; causing worry or concern.
- pronto
- Soon; quickly; in a short amount of time.
- comprendí
- Understood or realized something; past tense of comprender.
- debía
- Had to; was obligated to do something.
- bien
- Well; used in 'o bien' meaning 'or else/or rather'.
- abandonar
- To abandon or leave a place behind permanently.
- metrópolis
- Large, major city; metropolis or urban center.
- retirarme
- To retire or withdraw oneself to a quieter place.
- vivir
- To live; to reside or exist somewhere.
- campo
- Countryside; rural area outside the city.
- hacer
- To make or to do; very common Spanish verb.
- cambio
- Change; alteration or shift in something.
- completo
- Complete; total or entire without missing parts.
- modo
- Mode or manner; way of doing something.
- vida
- Life; the existence or lifestyle of a person.
- Optando
- Opting or choosing; gerund of optar meaning to choose.
- última
- Last or final one in a series of options.
- alternativa
- Alternative; another option or choice available.
- empecé
- I began or started; past tense of empezar.
- decidirme
- To make up my mind; to decide for oneself.
- dejar
- To leave or to let; to abandon something or someone.
- hotel
- Hotel; establishment providing lodging for travelers.
- instalarme
- To settle or install oneself in a new place.
- algún
- Some; indefinite adjective indicating an unspecified one.
- domicilio
- Residence or home address; place of dwelling.
- menos
- Less; fewer; comparative adverb indicating reduction.
- pretencioso
- Pretentious; showy or overly elaborate and expensive.
- costoso
- Costly or expensive; requiring a large sum of money.
- Precisamente
- Precisely; exactly at that moment or in that way.
- había
- Had; auxiliary verb in past perfect constructions.
- llegado
- Arrived; past participle of llegar meaning to arrive.
- conclusión
- Conclusion; final decision or outcome reached by reasoning.
- encontraba
- Was located or found myself; imperfect of encontrarse.
- cuando
- When; conjunction indicating a point in time.
- alguien
- Someone; an unspecified or unknown person.
- dio
- Gave; third person singular past tense of dar.
- palmada
- A slap or pat given with the palm of the hand.
- hombro
- Shoulder; the joint connecting the arm to the torso.
- volverme
- To turn around; to face the other direction.
- reconocí
- Recognized; identified someone known from the past.
- joven
- Young person; youth; adjective meaning young.
- sido
- Been; past participle of ser meaning 'to be'.
- ayudante
- Assistant or helper; someone who aids another person.
- mío
- Mine; possessive pronoun indicating ownership.
- Ver
- To see; to perceive visually.
- rostro
- Face; the front part of a person's head.
- amigo
- Friend; a person one knows and likes.
- gran
- Great or large; adjective before noun indicating greatness.
- jungla
- Jungle; dense wild area; metaphor for a chaotic city.
- Londres
- London; the capital city of England and the UK.
- algo
- Something; an indefinite thing or somewhat.
- verdaderamente
- Truly or really; adverb emphasizing sincerity or truth.
- grato
- Pleasant or agreeable; something that brings pleasure.
- hombre
- Man; an adult male human being.
- solitario
- Solitary or lonely; a person who is alone or isolated.
- otros
- Other or others; referring to different people or things.
- tiempos
- Times; periods or eras in the past.
- nunca
- Never; at no time; negative adverb of frequency.
- íntimo
- Intimate or close; describing a deep personal relationship.
- ahora
- Now; at the present moment in time.
- saludé
- Greeted; welcomed someone upon meeting them.
- entusiasmo
- Enthusiasm; eager interest or energy about something.
- parte
- Part or side; used in 'por su parte' meaning 'for his part'.
- pareció
- Seemed or appeared; past tense of parecer.
- encantado
- Delighted or enchanted; very pleased to meet or see someone.
- verme
- To see me; infinitive plus object pronoun.
- desbordamiento
- Overflow; an outpouring of emotion beyond normal bounds.
- alegría
- Joy or happiness; a feeling of great pleasure.
- invité
- Invited; asked someone to join for a meal or event.
- almorzar
- To have lunch; to eat the midday meal.
- conmigo
- With me; prepositional phrase combining con and me.
- partimos
- We departed or left; past tense of partir.
- juntos
- Together; side by side as a group.
- Qué
- What; interrogative pronoun used in questions.
- diablos
- Devils; used in exclamations like 'what the devil'.
- preguntó
- Asked; posed a question; past tense of preguntar.
- asombro
- Astonishment; great surprise or amazement at something.
- manifiesto
- Manifest or evident; clearly visible or obvious.
- mientras
- While; conjunction indicating two simultaneous actions.
- traqueteábamos
- We rattled along; bumped noisily through streets in a vehicle.
- concurridas
- Crowded or busy; full of people and activity.
- calles
- Streets; paved roads in a city or town.
- delgado
- Thin or slim; having little body fat or flesh.
- como
- Like or as; conjunction used in comparisons.
- listón
- A thin wooden slat or lath; very thin like a board.
- moreno
- Dark-complexioned or tan; having dark skin or hair.
- nuez
- Walnut; a nut, or colloquially meaning very dark brown.
- hice
- I made or did; first person past tense of hacer.
- breve
- Brief or short; taking little time or space.
- resumen
- Summary; a short account of the main points.
- aventuras
- Adventures; exciting or dangerous experiences.
- apenas
- Barely or hardly; scarcely; just as soon as.
- terminado
- Finished; completed; past participle of terminar.
- llegamos
- We arrived; first person plural past tense of llegar.
- nuestro
- Our; first person plural possessive adjective.
- destino
- Destination; the place someone is traveling toward.
- Pobre
- Poor; lacking money or evoking pity and sympathy.
- diablo
- Devil; used as an exclamation expressing pity or frustration.
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