Saturday, April 11, 2015

J is a blank -- #Curacao expressions on #AtoZChallenge 2015

There are no words that start with J in Papiamentu.

I knew you wouldn't believe me, so here's a screenshot of the dictionary.
Last word in the I section is italiano. Then comes the J section. Then comes the K.

No words with J. None.

How cool is that?

(Not that I have anything against J; it's just I find these quirks of Papiamentu fascinating.)

Because Papiamentu predominantly uses phonetic spelling, all the J words borrowed from other languages are spelled with either a Y (the Dutch jaloers, jealous, becomes yalurs) or an H (justice becomes hustisia; the Spanish for judge, juez, becomes hués).

Which leaves me in a bind for the J post. I thought about going up to the beaches of San Juan--breathtaking little coves you totally would love to see, I know it--but, technically, it's San Juan. Same thing with St. Joris, my favorite dog beach.

And then I thought:

Jeremi!
[JEH-reh-mee]
(yep... just like Jeremy. But the i makes it Curaçao ;) )

A deserted Jeremi from the sky.
(Image source)
(Image source)
(Image source)
(Image source)
Jeremi Beach. A secluded paradise on the Western tip of the island...

See that yellow circle the yellow arrow is pointing to?
That's Jeremi.
Well, secluded during the week. It's a favorite of the locals (Curaçao people are known for their taste), so on weekends it will not look like the photos above.

But during the week? Aahhh...

It's such a hard, stressful life, isn't it?
(Image source)


Update on the guessing game:
No one got hofi. I'm floored. I suck. It was too hard, I think, and my hints weren't all that helpful. Hofi is yard, or garden. Dogs need a large enough hofi to live in. There's a new hofi near our place that started a farmer's market, the first in Curaçao.

I apologize. My bad. So here's a new rule: if no one gets the right answer or even comes close, everyone that guessed will have their names added to the raffle. So all of you who took a shot at hofi -- and I love your creativity! -- are now in to win a collection of short stories about Curaçao. Sound fair? The way I see it, you shouldn't have to pay the price for my incompetence :)

Bon wikent! (Care to guess on this one? ;) )

20 comments :

  1. Hi Guilie .. I love the idea of Jeremi - it looks a gorgeous place to visit for a day out in the week.. peaceful and quiet .. cheers Hilary

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Hilary! It really is a gorgeous beach... The only problem (for me) is they don't allow dogs even though it's public. So it's not one I go to often ;)

      Delete
  2. That is cool about no word for J! Cute turtle photo. I really thought I got hofi right! :)

    http://sytiva.blogspot.com/2015/04/journey-to-kinder-place-ordeena-mae.html

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It is cool, right? Sorry about hofi... Totally my bad.

      Delete
  3. I don't suppose wikent is related to the French "le weekend"?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. *very marked, very fake French accent* Veggy veggy ggelated, Monsieur Sanchez. Veggy peggceptive of you :D

      Delete
  4. might just have to create some "J" words. Language evolves. Happy weekend

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I agree, Joanne. Actually, that's one of my favorite things about Papiamentu--how it embodies the spirit of change and adaptation and continuous evolution. Thanks for the visit!

      Delete
  5. Good weekend to you too. with beaches to go to like these who cares about the 'J'.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Ooooh, I could spend some time on that beach right now... Spring is barely starting up here...

    @TarkabarkaHolgy from
    Multicolored Diary - Epics from A to Z
    MopDog - 26 Ways to Die in Medieval Hungary

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You want to know the sad part, Csenge? You live close to these places, a stone's throw away, and--after the initial bout of sun-and-sand addiction--months can pass without you touching a beach. Why is it that humanity is wired to take things for granted? :(

      Delete
  7. WHAT! I was sure hofi meant wind! Jeremi looks beautiful! Bon wikent - have a nice weekend! Hope it's great!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Susan! Yeah, I'm sorry about hofi... I need to work on my hints, methinks ;) A hopi dushi wikent for you, my friend!

      Delete
  8. You had many of us stumped. Okay. All of us.
    Fun post!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hahaha... "All of us" indeed :D I'll do better with the hints next time, I promise. Thanks for the visit!

      Delete
  9. Hello there.
    Oh those photos are gorgeous...the clear, blue waters remind me of my holiday a few years ago when I visited my parents on the island of St. Vincent.
    Thanks for sharing.

    Entrepreneurial Goddess

    ReplyDelete
  10. Jeremi Beach looks soooo inviting. Makes me wonder why I'm living in a city.

    Hope you had a good weekend, too!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Thanks for visiting Anabel's Travel Blog. Lovely pictures here! A gorgeous beach.

    ReplyDelete
  12. I find it fascinating that there are no J words in Papiamentu.

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...