Learn Spanish online, free, with stories

A new flat, a nosy neighbour, first words

• First words Greet people, say yes / no, count to ten
• My new flat Name things at home and say where they are

Tomás’s oranges, churros with Elena

• At the market Buy food, ask prices, count money
• In the café Order food and drink

Photos, feelings, a very long day

• People Talk about family and describe people
• My day Describe your daily routine and tell the time
• Likes and plans Say what you like and what you are going to do

Lost in town, a bad day, a party

• Around town Ask the way and get around
• Health and help Say what hurts and ask for help
• Shopping and clothes Buy clothes and compare
• Free time Talk about hobbies and the weekend
• Season finale Hold a simple conversation about yourself

A terrible boss, a CV, an interview, a new office, and first pay day

• Yesterday Say what you did and tell a simple story in the past
• Looking for work Look for a job, make polite calls, say what you have to do
• The interview Talk about your experience and why you want a job
• The new office Talk about your workday, give opinions, handle pay day

A pay day that doesn’t add up, a landlord who wants the rent, a call to admin, and a director who dined on his own salary

• The payslip Talk about pay and money at work: big numbers, what you have left, asking for things and asking questions

Nuria takes Javi home: Mamá, the village, the food, a storm, the sea

• Going home Make plans in the future and compare places
• Mamá’s house Describe the past and follow instructions in the kitchen
• Christmas Eve Give and talk about presents, describe bad weather

No ferries in winter, a cousin with a boat, wolves in the old days, and a very seasick Don Ramón

• The Cíes Islands Talk about nature, weather and a trip; make plans that depend on something

Things vanish on Calle del Pez; Doña Elena investigates

• Something is missing Report what has happened; talk about someone, nobody, whose
• Where were you? Say what you were doing; give and ask for an alibi
• Clues Tell a story in the past: set the scene and say what happened
• The culprit Make a plan, apologise and explain what really happened

A fall on the dark stairs, four hours in A&E, Javi’s instructions, and a very worried landlord

• Nuria’s knee Say where it hurts, tell an accident and a hospital visit, follow instructions for medicine

Trains, a hotel from hell, the beach, a new accent, a flamenco night

• Heading south Plan a trip, buy tickets, book a room
• At the hotel Check in, complain politely, ask for services and directions
• At the beach Say what has happened to you and explain health problems
• Flamenco night Tell the whole story of a trip, with feelings and opinions

A cancelled train, a hire car, Doña Elena at the wheel for the first time in sixty years, and a very long way north

• The trip to Galicia Talk about a journey: where you leave from and arrive, how long it takes and which way you go

Parents from Medellín, twenty-two relatives on video call, culture clashes, one very big dinner

• Wishes and requests Say what you want other people to do and what you hope
• Feelings about others Say how other people’s actions make you feel
• Advice and customs Give advice, explain customs, say why and what for
• Doubts and the big dinner Express doubt and probability, host a dinner, make a toast

Doña Elena against Don Ramón for president of the residents’ association, and one very secret vote

• Elections in Calle del Pez Ask for support, say what a community needs and doubt what people promise

A pastry-chef bride, a stag night nobody remembers, mariachis, and a missing ring

• When, before, until Talk about future events, plans and conditions in time
• The night nobody remembers Guess what happened and tell events in order in the past
• Nerves before the big day Explain worries, concede a point, describe people precisely
• The wedding Tell a love story, give a short speech, congratulate people

Tomás gets fit for the five-a-side league, Javi coaches for free, and Nuria, who hates football, ends up in goal

• The neighbourhood league Talk about sport and training: team plans, excuses and what went wrong in a match

Nuria and Javi hunt for a flat, dream big, argue, compromise. Don Ramón is the landlord

• Flat hunting Look for a flat, read ads, describe what you need
• If only… Talk about dreams, unlikely wishes and hypotheses
• Who said what Pass on messages and report what people said and asked
• Living together Argue, compromise, write a formal complaint

Doña Elena stops a pickpocket with her umbrella: a police statement, fame on TV, a trial

• Stop, thief! Tell the story of a crime, report a police statement, pass on what the news says

A film crew takes over Calle del Pez: extras, the press, a star who quits, the premiere

• Lights, camera… Understand notices and instructions, talk about abilities
• On set Follow and repeat instructions, compare accents, talk about what would have been
• Opinions and the press Give and defend opinions, answer an interview, understand headlines
• Trouble on set Set conditions, explain mistakes and what should have happened
• The premiere Look back on a year, thank people, review a film, talk about the future

Doña Elena orders a modern phone online: the wrong model, a talking speaker, a phone queue and a refund at Javi’s shop

• The complaint Say what a screen or letter says, complain by phone and tell staff what to do, say what does not work

A developer wants the building: letters, a campaign, a town-hall debate, and a poet in Elena’s flat

• The letter Understand official letters and notices; describe actions, states and results with the passive
• The campaign Explain causes, consequences and purposes in speech and writing
• The debate Take part in a formal debate: concede, counter-argue, interrupt politely, hedge
• The building stays Report statements precisely with reporting verbs; summarise events and press coverage

A town-hall letter, Tomás's borrowed tools, a damp patch with the poet's face, and a blackout for the whole street

• Repairs in the building Deal with repairs at home: get things done, give sizes and weights, and argue about whose job or bill it is

Tomás and Marisa open a café: a business plan, hard bargaining, a flood, opening day, and twins on the way

• The business plan Set out a plan with precise conditions, risks and numbers
• Negotiating Negotiate: make, improve and reject offers diplomatically
• Everything is changing Describe changes and processes over time; say how things went wrong
• Opening day Use verbs that change meaning with se; praise, complain and react to news with nuance

An evening art-history course, Don Ramón in the seminar for the free coffee, a day at the Prado, and an exam Doña Elena wins at eighty

• Nuria goes back to studying Talk about studies, ideas and art: give known reasons, hedge in a discussion, describe a work of art

The abuela’s ninetieth: vos and usted, a secret from 1965 shared with Elena, a coffee farm, and the abuela’s blessing

• Across the ocean Handle international travel; sequence events precisely in time; express probability
• Vos, tú, usted Understand the main regional varieties of Spanish and adapt your own speech
• The abuela’s secret Talk about regrets and alternative pasts with the full conditional system
• The coffee farm Talk about the extreme, the unknown and the indefinite; ask the biggest question

Don Ramón on a friendship platform for the over-seventies: a profile by Javi, fourteen polite messages a day, a first dinner with chaperones on both sides

• Ramón looks for company Talk about relationships and feelings: say what people do to each other, how things make you feel, and what you hope for

Elena writes her life story: idioms, irony, a TV debate, a leaked chapter, the launch

• Once upon a time on Calle del Pez Narrate a long story vividly, choosing past tenses for meaning
• Say it with flair Use idioms, sayings, irony and colloquial registers; intensify and soften
• On air Give a structured talk, handle tough questions and hold your ground in public
• The book launch Handle any everyday or professional situation fluently: celebrate, reflect, speculate, persuade

A singer with no voice, a magic show, a mus final, and Doña Elena on stage, eighty years old and singing rock

• The neighbourhood fiestas Talk about events, music and amounts: say where and when things take place, what will be done by a deadline, and talk about two people at once

Nuria’s new job at the publisher: a red pen for Doña Elena, a stolen idea, and the Book Fair

• The offer Weigh up a big decision with nuance: understand, regret, assume and conclude; switch register for the same message
• The red pen Spot and correct the errors natives make; know what is standard, what is regional and what is just spoken
• The pitch Write and present a proposal in a nominal, impersonal professional style; describe figures and trends
• The Book Fair Report what people said and how they said it; refer back to known topics; take praise gracefully

Elena goes on the radio: callers from the whole Spanish-speaking world, Friday debates, and a scoop

• On the air Run a live conversation: reformulate, hold the floor, check understanding, react with oral markers
• The listeners Understand callers from across the Spanish-speaking world and adapt to them
• The debate Argue at a high level: concede strategically, escalate, set conditions and reject firmly