Day 134: A Fish Warden at Seventy
At the municipal hall of Calatagan, Batangas, Lito (B), the municipal agriculture officer, interviews Mang Ciriaco (A), a seventy-year-old retired fisherman who is applying to be a volunteer fish warden.
How to study this lesson 3 steps
- Read the situation under the title. It says who is talking and how they know each other, which decides how politely they speak.
- Read the dialogue line by line with its translation, until every line makes sense.
- Spend at least 30 minutes listening to native Tagalog. It doesn't matter if you don't understand it yet.
Dialogue
Audio for this lesson is coming soon. For now, read the dialogue and its translation.
Keys: E hide English · ← → previous / next day
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A
Ako 'yung nag-apply sa Bantay Dagat. Huwag mong tingnan ang edad ko.
I'm the one who applied for Bantay Dagat. Don't go by my age.
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B
Magandang umaga po, Mang Ciriaco. Babasahin ko po muna ang mga tungkulin ng isang fish warden.
Good morning, Mang Ciriaco. First, I'll read you the duties of a fish warden.
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A
Basahin mo, iho. Pero mas kilala ko ang dagat kaysa sa batas.
Read away, son. But I know the sea better than the law.
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B
Alinsunod po sa Fisheries Code, maaari ninyong sitahin ang sinumang lumalabag kaugnay ng ilegal na pangingisda.
Under the Fisheries Code, you may call out anyone committing violations related to illegal fishing.
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A
Sitahin? Noong araw, ang mga nagbobomba ng isda, sinisita ko na kahit walang uniporme.
Call them out? Back in the day, I was calling out the dynamite fishers without any uniform.
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B
Hindi ko po minamaliit ang karanasan ninyo, pero gabi po ang karamihan ng patrolya.
I'm not belittling your experience, but most of the patrols are at night.
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A
Kaya ko pa. At alam ko kung saan sila dumadaong: sa likod ng bakawan malapit sa parola.
I can still do it. And I know where they bring their boats in: behind the mangroves near the lighthouse.
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B
Wala po iyan sa mapa namin. Paano po ninyo nalaman?
That's not on our map. How did you know?
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A
Apatnapung taon akong nangisda riyan, iho. Ang mapa ninyo, gawa sa opisina; ang akin, gawa sa bangka.
I fished those waters for forty years, son. Your map was made in an office; mine was made in a boat.
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