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You have learned the preterite, imperfect, and present perfect separately. Now it is time to use them all together to tell real stories. Colombians are natural storytellers -- ask anyone about their weekend and you will get a five-minute narrative complete with sound effects. This lesson is your workshop: you will analyze how skilled narrators weave tenses together, then practice constructing your own multi-paragraph stories.
B1-B2 Language Objectives
Every good past-tense narrative in Spanish follows a natural structure. Master this framework and you can tell any story.
Read this story carefully. Every verb has been chosen deliberately.
Mi Primer Día en Bogotá
Cuando llegue (P) a Bogota, era (I) de noche y llovia (I) mucho. Yo no sabia (I) que la ciudad era (I) tan fria. En el aeropuerto, habia (I) mucha gente que esperaba (I) a sus familias. Yo estaba (I) nervioso porque era (I) mi primera vez en Colombia.
Tome (P) un taxi amarillo. El conductor era (I) un senor mayor que se llamaba (I) don Jorge. Me pregunto (P) de donde venia (I) y cuando le dije (P) que era (I) estadounidense, se rio (P) y me dijo (P): "¡Bienvenido, hermano! Le va a encantar esta ciudad."
Mientras ibamos (I) por la autopista, yo miraba (I) por la ventana. Las luces de Bogota brillaban (I) en la lluvia. Llegamos (P) al hotel a las once. Deje (P) las maletas, me acoste (P) y dormi (P) hasta las diez de la manana.
Ahora, despues de muchos viajes, Bogota se ha convertido (PP) en mi segunda casa. He conocido (PP) gente increible y he aprendido (PP) que lo que don Jorge dijo (P) era verdad.
P = Preterite, I = Imperfect, PP = Present Perfect
In the first paragraph, why are almost all verbs imperfect?
Why does the last paragraph switch to present perfect?
Prompt 1: A Memorable Meal
You had an unforgettable dining experience in Colombia. Tell the story.
Scene-setting (IMPERFECT): Where were you? What was the restaurant like? Who were you with? How did you feel? What was the weather?
Events (PRETERITE): What did you order? What happened? Did anything surprising occur? How did the meal end?
Connection to now (PRESENT PERFECT): Have you been back? Have you tried to recreate the dish? Has it changed how you eat?
Example start: "Era un domingo por la tarde. Estabamos en un pueblo pequeno que se llama Barichara. El restaurante donde comimos era una casa vieja con un patio lleno de flores..."
You want to start your meal story with 'The restaurant was small and had a beautiful view.' Which tenses?
Prompt 2: Getting Lost
Tell a story about getting lost somewhere in a Colombian city.
Build your narrative using this skeleton:
Example start: "Caminaba por el centro de Medellin. Buscaba un museo que mi amigo me habia recomendado. Las calles eran estrechas y todas se parecian..."
Prompt 3: Meeting Someone Special
Tell how you met an important person in your life (or invent a story).
Tense map:
Spot the error: 'Era de noche. Llovía. De repente, sonaba el teléfono.'
Spot the error: 'El hotel fue grande y tuvo una piscina.'
Which is better storytelling? A) 'Fui al mercado. Compré frutas. Volví a casa.' B) 'Hacía calor. Fui al mercado, que estaba lleno de gente. Compré frutas y volví a casa.'