Conversational Old English

Wes thu hal. Here's a stab at conversational Old English. These are conversations related to asking for directions and dating/dining. The conversations don't necessarily take place in the Old English time period, as they often refer to streets with names (cognates of the names of the streets in my home town in Virginia) and even to the ficticious "Beowulf Restaurant." I don't think there were restaurants back then, so I went with the cognate for "food-hall." Diacriticals are omitted and the compound letter ae is denoted with the two letters a and e. I also used "th" instead of the thorn, to avoid text conversion issues. The content of these conversations is based on the Pimsleur language method.

Forgief me. Eart thu Engle?
Gea. Ic eom Engle. And thu?
Ic eom American.
Ac thu understandest Englisce.
Ae, ic understande hwon, ac ne forwel god.
Na, Ic þence thu forwel god sprecest.
Ic thancie the.

Forgief me.
Gea?
Hwaer is Heahlond Stret?
Heahlond Stret is thaer ofer.
And Willahelmessunu Stret?
Her is Willahelmessunu Stret.
And hu gaeth hit?
Me for? Forwel god. Ic thancie the. Far wel.
Far wel.

Wes thu hal, Hilda.
Wes thu hal, Aelfred. Hu gaeth hit?
God. Ic thancie the. Ac, ic wille hwa etan. Thu eac?
Na. Ic wille huru hwa drincan. (Meaning: No, I'd just like something to
drink.)
Hwaer? Willahelmessunu Stretan on?
Gea, god.

Forgief me, Hilda.
Gea?
Hwaenne wilt thu hwa etan? Nu?
Na, ne nu. Aefter. Ac, ic wille hwa drincan nu.
Hwaer? Me bi? (meaning: Where? At my place?)
Gea, georne.

Hilda, wilt thu etan nu?
Ic thancie the, Aelfred. Ne nu. Ac, ic wille hwa drincan.
Gea, god. Hwaet wilt thu drincan?
Ic wille win drincan. Na, na. Ic drinke beor.
Ic eac. Ic wille eac beor drincan.
(speaking to the waiter) Forgief me. Twa beor, ic bidde. Hu? Etan? Na,
ne nu. Aefter.

Wes thu hal, Hilda. Hu gaeth hit?
Hit gaeth god, Aelfred. Ic thancie the.
Saege, Hilda. Hwaet wilt thu don nu? (Meaning: Tell me, Hilda. What
would you like to do now?)
Ic? Ic wille hwa drincan. And thu?
Ic wille hwa etan nu. Wilt thu me mid etan?
Gea, ac hwaer? Thaet Fodahealaernan Beowulf aet?
Hwaer is þaet fodahealaern Beowulf?
Heahlond Stretan on.
Ae, gea. Ic cnawe hwaer hit is.
And ic wille eac beor drincan.
Gea, god. Ic eac.

Comments and corrections?

Far wel,
Kevin

Home Via the Breadbasket

Not much to say. Kansas is flat. Saw lots of farms. We'll be back home in Virginia in a few days.

Atop Mount Evans

My friend Sam Hansuld took me to the top of Mount Evans in Colorado. The weather was beginning to get stormy, but the view from the top made the trip worth it.

Should Have Made a Left Turn at Albaquerque

Stopped in Albaquerque today. Wish I had alotted more time to stay here. The city has a nice old town with all kinds of shops and restaurants. We witnessed an outdoor wedding at the mission.

Idaho to the Grand Canyon in one day

Perhaps setting a new land speed record, we made it from Idaho to the north rim of the Grand Canyon in one day. I hadn't been here since 2000, when I visited the south rim. The ride in from the Kaibab Forest on the north side of the canyon was definitely more scenic, and there's a new lodge with shops and a nice restaurant. I definitely recommend the north rim over the south. Coming in through Utah was also worthwhile, as there were a number of national parks with all kinds of western landforms.

The Top of America

Greetings from the continental divide.

Rob Fowler Wedding

We made it to Minnesota with two days to spare before Rob Fowler's wedding. In the meantime, we stayed with Thidawan's Hmong friend from Thailand, Supamat Vang and her family.

Stopped to Fix a Flat Tire in Chicago

We just drove from Pittsburgh to Chicago on a donut. Most of the trip was through the night, except for Indiana and Illinois. Stopped at the Wizard of Oz Museum in Indiana in the morning and went up the Sears Tower while a mechanic put on a new tire. Just a minor setback. We're already in Wisconsin, and we should be in Minneapolis by tomorrow, on schedule.

Cherry Blossoms at the Tidal Basin

Unfortunately, I missed the peak bloom of the cherry blossoms at the tidal basin this year, as well as the festival events over the weekend due to other plans, but I headed out around sunrise this morning to see what was left of them anyway. Most of the petals were already scattered about the ground and floating in the Potomac, but there were still a handful of trees that were still in full bloom.

Despite the wind, it was nice to get out for some early morning fresh air and exercise. The advantage of going early in the morning on a weekday is that there's not so much of a crowd of tourists blocking the view and making a lot of noise. Also, there's plenty of parking that time of day right along the basin.

Super Pollo in Arlington, Virginia

Super Pollo is located on the 600 block of N. Randolph St. across from the Ballston Common parking garage. It is not visible from any main road. If you have never eaten at a Peruvian chicken restaurant, you are missing out on a unique taste. While the atmosphere is nothing to write home about, this is by far the best tasting pollo restaurant that I have been able to find in the DC area. The spices used to season the chicken are perfect, and the chicken is good quality and cooked rotisserie style. Along with the best tasting chicken, the Super Pollo also has the best selection of sides, including yucca. I highly recommend the coleslaw, as well. I don't ordinarily like my colesslaw runny, but this dripping slop-style coleslaw is absolutely delicious. Be sure to try an Inca Cola, which tastes similar to the pink variety of Fanta.