Competition in this pair is now closed, and the winning entry has been announced. Discussion and feedback about the competition in this language pair may now be provided by visiting the "Discussion & feedback" page for this pair. Entries may also be individually discussed by clicking the "Discuss" link next to any listed entry. Source text in Spanish  Antes de que continúes, querido lector, debo advertirte que la peregrinación a Roma que estoy a punto de relatarte fue un perfecto desastre. Si esperas encontrar en este libro una historia de superación, hazañas físicas, fuerza de voluntad y victoria sobre uno mismo, es mejor que dejes ya la lectura, para evitar una decepción. Como sabiamente decía Aristóteles (digo yo que sería Aristóteles, porque era un señor muy sabio y decía muchas cosas): «Dichoso quien ocupa su tiempo en meditar sobre sus propios logros, porque tendrá mucho tiempo libre».
La triste realidad es que apenas hubo plan o propósito que no rompiéramos a lo largo del camino mis dos compañeros y yo. De hecho, empezamos incumpliendo la primera norma de toda peregrinación y esta primera transgresión marcó el tono general de todo nuestro viaje. Lo dicho, un desastre de peregrinación.
La primera norma de toda peregrinación dice, sencillamente, que el camino debe comenzar en la puerta de la propia casa. De otro modo, apenas puede hablarse de peregrinación. Cuando un peregrino medieval decidía caminar hasta Santiago (o era amablemente invitado a hacerlo por su confesor, para purgar sus pecados), no iba en carroza hasta Roncesvalles para comenzar allí su camino. No. Se calzaba las alpargatas, tomaba el cayado y el zurrón, se despedía de la familia entre las abundantes lágrimas de sus parientes más próximos y echaba a andar los meses que hicieran falta hasta llegar a su destino (si los bandidos, los animales salvajes, el frío, el hambre o las pestes no acortaban sensiblemente la peregrinación, claro).
Nosotros, sin embargo, no teníamos los tres meses que habríamos tardado en hacer el viaje entero hasta Roma desde nuestra casa a base de alpargata y carretera. Así pues, decidimos hacer lo más parecido posible. Como no podíamos salir andando desde España, fuimos en avión hasta una de las antiguas Españas, para salir desde allí. Es decir, viajamos hasta Nápoles. Porque Nápoles y Sicilia, aunque parezca mentira, fueron un tiempo Españas. Cuando las monedas de Felipe II decían Hispaniarum Rex, era una forma abreviada de decir Rey de Nápoles, de Sicilia y de otros muchos sitios. La bella ciudad de Nápoles fue una de las joyas de la Corona española (o aragonesa) durante dos siglos y medio, poco menos tiempo que Argentina, por ejemplo. Es una muestra del triste estado de nuestro sistema educativo que casi nadie sea consciente de ello.  | The winning entry has been announced in this pair.There were 37 entries submitted in this pair during the submission phase, 7 of which were selected by peers to advance to the finals round. The winning entry was determined based on finals round voting by peers.
Competition in this pair is now closed. |
Dear Reader, before you go any further I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome I am about to recount to you was an utter disaster. If what you are seeking in this book is a tale of obstacles surmounted, feats of strength, willpower and self-mastery, you might as well stop reading now and save yourself the disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said (let’s say it was Aristotle, because he was a very wise man who said many wise things): ‘Happy is he who spends his time pondering his own achievements, because he will have a lot of free time’.
The sad fact is that there was barely a plan or intention that my two companions and I did not manage to mess up along the way. Actually, we started by breaking the first rule of any pilgrimage, and that initial sin tainted the whole of our journey. I tell you, the pilgrimage was a complete disaster.
The first rule of any pilgrimage is, quite simply, that the journey must start from your front door. If not, it scarcely deserves the name ‘pilgrimage’. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or was graciously invited to do so by his priest, to redeem his sins), he didn’t take a carriage to Roncesvalles and then start walking. Oh no. He put on his sandals, he took hold of his staff and satchel, he bade farewell to his family amid his closest relatives’ plentiful tears, and he started out, with months ahead of him before he would reach his destination (if bandits, wild animals, cold, hunger or plague did not put an early end to his pilgrimage, of course).
But we did not have the three months it would have taken us to make the full trip to Rome from our house on sandal-shod feet. And so we decided to do the next best thing. As we couldn’t start out from Spain, we took a plane to one of the ancient Spains, so we could start out from there. In other words, we travelled to Naples. Because, strange as it may seem, once upon a time there were several Spains, and Naples and Sicily were two of them. The legend ‘Hispaniarum Rex’ on the coins of Philip II was an abbreviation for ‘King of Naples, Sicily and many other places’. For two and a half centuries the beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels in the Spanish crown – well, to be exact, the crown of Aragon. Two and a half centuries: only slightly less than Argentina, for instance. It is a sad indictment of our education system that almost nobody knows this fact. | Entry #28114 — Discuss  0 — Variant: Britishbritish
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52 | 11 x4 | 3 x2 | 2 x1 |
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| Entry | 3.67 | 4.33 (3 ratings) | 3.00 (2 ratings) |
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-3 2 sad indictment | Spelling
too legal a term, not in the style of the text | Sophie Cherel | |
|
Before you go any further, dear reader, I must offer a word of warning: The pilgrimage to Rome that I’m about to recount was an unmitigated disaster. If you’re hoping to find in this book a tale of self-improvement, physical feats, strength of will, and victory over self, you’d be better off putting it down right now and sparing yourself the disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said (I’m saying it would have been Aristotle, because he was a very wise man who said many things): “Happy is he who spends his time pondering his own achievements, for he shall have much free time.”
The sad fact is that my two companions and I shattered nearly all our plans and intentions along the way. In fact, we started by disobeying the first rule of any pilgrimage, and that initial transgression set the tone for our entire journey. Like I said, a shambles of a pilgrimage.
The first rule of any pilgrimage simply states that the journey begins at your own doorstep; otherwise, it can hardly be called a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or was helpfully encouraged to do so by his confessor, to be cleansed of his sins), he didn’t take a carriage to Roncesvalles to start the journey there. No. He put on his espadrilles, grabbed a walking stick and leather bag, bade his family farewell as his closest relatives shed copious tears, and set out to walk for months before reaching his destination (assuming, of course, that bandits, wild animals, cold, hunger, or pestilence did not considerably shorten the pilgrimage).
We, however, did not have the three months it would have taken us to make the entire trip from our house to Rome the espadrilles-on-pavement way. So we decided to do the next best thing. Since we were unable to walk all the way from Spain, we flew to one of the former Spains and set out from there. In other words, we traveled to Naples. After all, strange as it may seem, Naples and Sicily were at one time Spanish. When Philip II’s coins bore the inscription “Hispaniarum Rex,” this was a shortened form of his full title: King of Naples, Sicily, and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels of the Spanish (or Aragonese) Crown for two and a half centuries—barely shorter than Argentina, for example. Virtually no one is aware of that, which is evidence of the sad state of our education system. | Entry #27503 — Discuss 0 — Variant: USuseng
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- 4 users entered 10 "like" tags
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strength of will, and victory over self, | Good term selection | philgoddard No agrees/disagrees | |
sparing yourself the disappointment | Good term selection | philgoddard No agrees/disagrees | |
for he shall | Flows well
Good choice, sounds natural | MacarenaTouceda No agrees/disagrees | |
disobeying the first rule of any pilgrimage, and that initial transgression set the tone | Flows well | philgoddard No agrees/disagrees | |
- 3 users entered 7 "dislike" tags
- 8 users agreed with "dislikes" (13 total agrees)
- 1 user disagreed with "dislikes" (2 total disagrees)
| Syntax
Clunky | Martin Cosgrove (X) | |
+5 2 shattered | Other
Not sure that shatter is the correct word. | Marian Vieyra | |
| Grammar errors
Comma not needed here as it does not indicate the start of an independent clause. | Martin Cosgrove (X) | |
-1 1 of | Grammar errors
The phrase is 'Jewel in the Crown'. | Marian Vieyra | |
barely shorter than Argentina | Other
How short is Argentina?! Only makes sense if one inserts "a time" or "a period". | B D Finch No agrees/disagrees | |
| Syntax
Doesn't flow as well as it could. Seems like the register of a scientific paper. Also | Martin Cosgrove (X) | |
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Before you continue, dear reader, I should warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome I am about to relate was a complete disaster. If in this book you hope to find a story of overcoming, physical feats, willpower and triumph over self, you are advised to put it down now to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said (at least I assume it was Aristotle, since he was a wise man who said many things): “Happy is he who spends his time meditating on his own achievements, for he will have much free time.”
The sad reality is that there was barely a plan or intention that my two companions and I didn’t break along the way. In fact, we began by breaking the first rule of any pilgrimage, a transgression which set the tone for the rest of the journey. As I said, a disaster of a pilgrimage.
The first rule of any pilgrimage is simply to start at one’s own front door. Otherwise, it can hardly be called a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or was kindly invited to do so by his confessor, to purge his sins), he didn’t take a carriage to Roncesvalles in order to start his walk there. No, he put on his sandals, took his staff and his pouch, bade farewell to his family among the flowing tears of his loved ones, and set off to walk the months it would take to reach his destination (provided that bandits, wild animals, cold, hunger or plague did not considerably shorten his pilgrimage, of course).
We, however, couldn’t spare the three months it would have taken us to travel all the way to Rome on sandal-clad foot. So we chose the next best thing. As we couldn’t set out walking from Spain, we took a plane to a part of Old Spain, and started there. In other words, we flew to Naples. Because Naples and Sicily, believe it or not, were once Spain. When coins in Felipe II’s time read “Hispaniarum Rex”, it was short for King of Naples, Sicily and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels in the Spanish (or Aragonese) Crown for two and a half centuries, only slightly less than Argentina, for example. It shows the sad state of our education system that hardly anyone knows this. | Entry #27928 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specifiednone
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| Entry | 3.33 | 3.40 (5 ratings) | 3.25 (4 ratings) |
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| Grammar errors
Overcoming what? It is a verb, not a noun. | Martin Cosgrove (X) | |
-2 1 As I said, a disaster | Punctuation
Either there should be a colon, not a comma, or another verb is needed. | B D Finch | |
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Before you continue, dear reader, I should warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome which I am about to describe for you was a total disaster. If you’re hoping to find a story about triumph over adversity, physical exploits, willpower or victory over self in this book, you’d be better to stop reading now, to avoid disappointment. In the wise words of Aristotle (I’m saying it was Aristotle, because he was a very wise man and he said many things): “Happy the man who spends his time pondering his own achievements, because he will have a lot of free time."
The sad reality is that there was hardly a single plan or resolution that my two companions and I were able to keep to along the way. In fact, we started off by breaking the first rule of any pilgrimage and this initial transgression set the general tone for our entire trip. As previously noted, a disaster of a pilgrimage.
The first rule of any pilgrimage states, quite simply, that the journey should begin from the door of one’s own home. Otherwise, we can’t really talk in terms of a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or was kindly invited to do so by his confessor, in order to purge himself of his sins), he didn’t then set off in a carriage for Roncesvalles to begin his journey there. No. He would put on his sandals, take his staff and his little pouch, say goodbye to his family amidst the copious tears of his closest relatives and then set off to walk for the months that would be needed for him to reach his destination (if bandits, wild animals, the cold, hunger or pestilence did not significantly shorten the pilgrimage, of course).
In our case, however, we didn’t have the three months it would have taken to make the entire trip to Rome from our house wearing sandals and walking the roads. So, we decided to make it as similar as possible. As we couldn’t walk from Spain, we went by plane to one of the old parts of Spain, to set off from there. That’s to say, we travelled to Naples. Because, as unlikely as it seems, Naples and Sicily were once Spanish territories. When the coins of Philip II’s reign stated Hispaniarum Rex, it was an abbreviated way of saying King of Naples, of Sicily and of many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels in the Spanish (or Aragonese) Crown for two and a half centuries, a little less time than Argentina, for example. It is a sign of the sad state of our education system that almost no one is aware of this. | Entry #27281 — Discuss 0 — Variant: UKukeng
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pestilence d | Good term selection | philgoddard No agrees/disagrees | |
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, | Punctuation | Martin Cosgrove (X) No agrees/disagrees | |
“ | Punctuation
Different type of quotation marks at the end of the sentence. | Diana Casoliba Bonache No agrees/disagrees | |
-1 1 Happy the man | Grammar errors
Sounds like a stereotypical Chinese to English translation | Martin Cosgrove (X) | |
because | Inconsistencies
Inconsistent with "Happy the man", which is rather biblical and needs to be used with "for", not "because". | B D Finch No agrees/disagrees | |
talk in terms of a pilgrimage | Other
clunky | Martin Cosgrove (X) No agrees/disagrees | |
| Other
does not flow in the way a literary text should. | Martin Cosgrove (X) | |
| Other
Does not flow well. The next best thing? | Martin Cosgrove (X) | |
one of the old parts of Spain | Other
Clunky and doesn't communicate the meaning very well. | B D Finch No agrees/disagrees | |
|
Before you go any further, dear reader, I should warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome that I’m about to recount was a complete disaster. If you were hoping for a tale of self-improvement, feats of physical strength, willpower, and conquering oneself in these pages, it would be better for you to stop reading now to keep from being disappointed. As Aristotle wisely said (I say it must have been Aristotle since he was a very wise gentleman and said many things): “Blessed is he who spends his time contemplating his own achievements, for he will have plenty of free time.”
The sad truth is that there was hardly a single plan or intention that my two companions and I didn’t abandon along the way. In fact, we started out by breaking the first rule of every pilgrimage, and this first transgression set the tone for our entire journey. As I said, it was a disaster of a pilgrimage.
The first rule of every pilgrimage simply states that the path must begin right at the doorway of your own home. You can’t even begin to talk about a pilgrimage any other way. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or was kindly invited to do so by his confessor to purge his sins), he didn’t go to Roncesvalles by carriage to begin his journey there. Of course not. He would put on his sandals, get his staff and shepherd’s bag, say goodbye to family through his closest relatives’ free-flowing tears, and set out walking for the months it would take him to reach his destination (if bandits, wild animals, the cold, hunger, or plagues didn’t cut the pilgrimage grievously short, of course).
We, however, didn’t have the three months it would have taken us to make the entire trip from our house to Rome hiking along the road in sandals. So we decided to do the next best thing. Since we couldn’t set out walking from Spain, we took a flight to one of the old Spains so as to depart from there. That is, we went to Naples. Though you might not believe it, Naples and Sicily each used to be part of Spain. When the coins of Philip II said Hispaniarum Rex, that was a short way of saying King of Naples, Sicily, and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels of the Spanish (or Aragonese) Crown for two and a half centuries – just a little less time than Argentina, for instance. The fact that almost no one is aware of this is proof of the sorry state of our education system. | Entry #27742 — Discuss 0 — Variant: USuseng
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transgression | Good term selection | B D Finch No agrees/disagrees | |
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-1 1 conquering oneself | Other
Doesn't flow. "Self-conquest" would have been better. | B D Finch | |
| Syntax
Seems clunky and doesn't fit stylistically with the rest of the passage. | Martin Cosgrove (X) | |
| Mistranslations | Martin Cosgrove (X) | |
+3 1 through his closest relatives’ free-flowing tears | Syntax
Clunky; does not read naturally. | Martin Cosgrove (X) | |
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Before you go any further, dear reader, I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome that I’m on the brink of telling you about was a perfect disaster. If you expect this book to deal with personal growth, physical accomplishments, willpower, or victory over self, then you would be better off putting it back on the shelf to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said (I’m guessing it was Aristotle because he was a very wise man who said a lot of things): “Happy is the man who takes the time to ponder on his own accomplishments, because he’ll have a bundle of time to spare.”
The sad truth is that there was hardly a plan or intention that my two friends and I didn’t mess up along the way. In fact, we started our expedition by breaking the first rule of any pilgrim’s journey and, by doing so, set the general tone for our entire trip, which was a disaster of a pilgrimage.
The first rule is simply that the starting point must be the doorstep of your own home; otherwise, the journey would barely count as a pilgrimage. When on their own initiative (or upon the gentle push of their confessor to rid their souls of sin) medieval pilgrims would take the Way to Santiago, they would not ride by carriage to Roncesvalles to begin their journey there. No! They would put on their sandals, pick up their staffs, and fasten their leather pouches. They would bid farewell to their families, causing those closest to them to burst into tears. They would walk for as many months as necessary to reach their destination (granted that bandits, wild animals, the cold, hunger, or plagues didn’t cut their journey short).
We could not, however, spare the three months it would have taken us to make the entire trip afoot from our home to Rome, wearing disciple sandals. That is why we decided to do the next best thing. Since we could not depart from Spain by foot, we took a plane to a place that used to be part of the Spanish Empire to start our journey there; that is to say, we flew to Naples. Though hard to believe, Naples and Sicily belonged to Spain once upon a time. The words Hisparniarum Rex printed on coins minted under the rule of Philip II were a short way of proclaiming that he was also king of Naples, Sicily, and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the gems of the Spanish (or Aragonese) Crown for two and a half centuries, a little shorter than was Argentina, for instance. Most of us don’t know this, which goes to show the poor shape our educational system is in. | Entry #28034 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specifiednone
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-1 1 or upon the gentle push of their confessor to rid their souls of sin | Good term selection | Richard Flight | |
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+3 1 on the brink | Mistranslations
People don't talk about being 'on the brink' of telling a story. | Martin Cosgrove (X) | |
| Other
sounds unnatural, translation of entire quote lacks "Aristotelian" sound | Lauren Ryan | |
+2 which was a disaster of a pilgrimage. | Omission
why omit "like i said"? sounds too much like repetition | Lauren Ryan | |
| Other
Granted implies something factual, not an 'if' scenario. | Marian Vieyra | |
disciple sandals | Spelling
What on earth are "disciple sandals"? A coinage that doesn't work unless one assumes the disciples were fashionistas. | B D Finch No agrees/disagrees | |
us | Mistranslations
By using 'us' rather than a less personal choice, the translator is altering the intended meaning of the source text. | Martin Cosgrove (X) No agrees/disagrees | |
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Before you continue, dear reader, I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome that I am about to relate to you was a complete disaster. If you hope to find in this book a story of overcoming, of physical feats, will power, and victory over oneself, it’s best that you stop reading, to avoid being disappointed. As Aristotle wisely said (I’d say it must have been Aristotle, because he was a very wise man and said many things): "Blessed is he who spends his time meditating on his own achievements, because he will have a lot of free time."
The sad reality is that there was hardly any plan or purpose that my two companions and I didn’t break along the way. In fact, we started by breaking the first rule of every pilgrimage, and this first transgression set the general tone of our entire trip. As I’ve said, it was a disastrous pilgrimage.
The first rule of every pilgrimage says simply that the route must start at the door of your own house. Otherwise, one can hardly speak of a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or was kindly invited to do so by his confessor, to purge his sins), he didn’t go by carriage to Roncesvalles to start his journey there. No. He put on his rope-soled sandals, took his staff and leather bag, said goodbye to the family among the abundant tears of his closest relatives, and began to walk for the months it would take until he reached his destination (of course, if bandits, wild animals, cold, hunger, or plagues didn’t significantly shorten the pilgrimage).
But we didn’t have the three months it would have taken us to make the entire trip from our house to Rome, trekking along the road in our sandals. So, we decided to do the next closest thing. Since we couldn’t walk from Spain, we took a plane to one of the “old Spains” to leave from there. That is, we traveled to Naples. Because Naples and Sicily, although this may be hard to believe, were once part of Spain. When the coins of Philip II said Hispaniarum Rex, it was an abbreviated way of saying King of Naples, Sicily, and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels of the Spanish (or Aragonese) Crown for two and a half centuries, only a little less time than Argentina, for example. It’s a sign of the sad state of our educational system that almost no one is aware of this. | Entry #28046 — Discuss 0 — Variant: USuseng
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overcomin | Other
Not idiomatic | Ventnai No agrees/disagrees | |
| Syntax
You don't break a purpose. | Martin Cosgrove (X) | |
breaking | Syntax
Repetition | Martin Cosgrove (X) No agrees/disagrees | |
among | Other
Amidst/through tears, not "among" tears. | B D Finch No agrees/disagrees | |
| Other
Clunky. | Martin Cosgrove (X) | |
+1 and began to walk for the months it would take until he reached his destination | Syntax
Does not flow well. | Martin Cosgrove (X) | |
next closest thing | Syntax
One can say "next best", but not "next closest". | B D Finch No agrees/disagrees | |
-1 although this may be hard to believe | Syntax
Clunky: believe it or not | Martin Cosgrove (X) | |
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Non-finalist entries The following entries were not selected by peers to advance to finals-round voting. Before thou dost proceed, dear reader, beware: the pilgrimage to Rome I am about to recount went belly-up. If you thirst for a tale of grit, self-realisation, self-actualisation and brawn, perhaps you should put down this book now and spare yourself a let-down. As Aristotle wisely said (I mean, I guess it was Aristotle because he was ever so wise and said ever so many things), “Fortunate is he who busies himself pondering his own accomplishments for he will have much free time.”
The sad truth of the matter is that there was hardly a single plan or purpose that my two fellow travellers and I didn’t stray from during the journey. We started by breaking the cardinal rule for every pilgrimage. Then one transgression led to another, things started spiralling and, as I said, the pilgrimage went belly-up.
The cardinal rule for every pilgrimage is simple: the journey starts at your front door. If it doesn’t, you can’t really call it a pilgrimage. Back in medieval times, when a pilgrim decided to walk the walk to Santiago (or was gently prodded to do so by his confessor, to atone for his sins), he didn’t ride a carriage to Roncesvalles and saunter on from there. No. He donned his alpargatas, grabbed his rod and purse, bid his family adieu as his nearest and dearest wept in torrents, and set off for however many months it took him to reach his destination (unless of course thieves, wild beasts, blistering cold, hunger or pestilence significantly curtailed the whole endeavour).
The thing was that we didn’t have the three months it would take us to walk all the way to Rome from our front doors – with alpargatas, footpaths and all. So we decided to do the next best thing. As walking from modern-day Spain wasn’t an option, we caught a plane to part of bygone-day Spain and took it from there. We flew to Naples. Because Naples and Sicily, believe it or not, were part of Spain for a time. When the coins in Felipe II’s day had “Hispaniarum Rex” etched on them, that was short for Rex of Naples, Sicily and more than a few other places. The lovely city of Naples was one of the jewels in the Spanish (nay, Aragonese) crown for two and a half centuries. Almost as long as, say, Argentina. The fact that almost nobody knows that today attests to the sorry state of our education system. | Entry #27215 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specifiednone
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gently prodded | Good term selection | philgoddard No agrees/disagrees | |
unless of course | Flows well
Use of unless is good but of course requires commas. Unless, of course. | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
attests to the sorry state | Good term selection | philgoddard No agrees/disagrees | |
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-1 +1 1 alpargatas | Other
People won't know what this means. | philgoddard | |
| Other
Sounds awkward. The Spain of bygone days, perhaps. | Marian Vieyra | |
-1 1 two and a half | Punctuation
should be hyphenated | B D Finch | |
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Before I continue, dear reader, I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome, which I am about to recount to you, was a complete disaster. If, in this book, you are hoping to encounter a tale of personal triumph, of physical exploits, of willpower and of victory over oneself, you would do better to stop reading to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said (I say it was Aristotle because he was a very wise man who said many things), "Blessed be the one who spends all his time pondering his own achievements, for he will have a lot of free time".
The sad reality is that there was hardly a plan or intention that my two companions and I did not shatter along the way. In fact, we began by violating the first rule of every pilgrimage and this first infraction marked the general tone of our entire journey. As I said, a disastrous pilgrimage.
The first rule of every pilgrimage simply states that the journey must begin at the door of one's own house. If not, one can hardly speak of a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or was kindly invited to do so by his confessor, in order to purge his sins), he did not take a carriage to Roncesvalles to begin his journey there. No. He put on his sandals, took his staff and his pouch, bade his family farewell amidst the abundant tears of his closest relatives and began the months of walking he would need to reach his destination (if bandits, wild animals, cold, hunger or disease did not significantly shorten the pilgrimage, of course).
We, however, did not have the three months it would have taken to make the entire journey from our house to Rome by sandal and open road. Thus, we decided to do something as similar as possible. As we could not walk from Spain, we flew to one of the most ancient Spanish territories in order to depart from there. That is to say, we travelled to Naples. Because Naples and Sicily, oddly enough, were once Spanish. When Hispaniarum Rex was written on the coins of King Philip II, this was shorthand for saying King of Naples, Sicily and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the joys of the Spanish (or Aragonese) crown for two and a half centuries, a little less time than Argentina, for example. It is a sign of the sad state of our education system that almost nobody is aware of this. | Entry #27467 — Discuss 0 — Variant: UKukeng
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one of the most ancient Spanish territories | Good term selection | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
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Before you continue, dear reader, I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome that I am about to recount to you was an utter disaster. If you hope to find in these pages a story of overcoming, physical feats, force of will, and victories over oneself, it would be better if you stopped reading now to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said (I say Aristotle said it, since he was a wise man who said a great many things), "Happy is he who occupies his hours contemplating his own achievements, for he will not want for free time."
The sad truth is that my two companions and I scarcely managed to follow a single plan or resolution along our journey. In fact, we began by failing to follow the first rule of any pilgrimage. This first transgression set the general tone of our entire trip. As I said: a disaster of a pilgrimage.
The first rule of any pilgrimage states, quite simply, that the journey must begin at your own doorstep. You could hardly call it a pilgrimage otherwise: when a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or when he was obligingly invited to do so by his confessor, so that he might purge his sins), he didn't take a carriage to Roncesvalles and begin his walk from there. Not a chance. He laced up his espadrilles, took his staff and shouldered his pack, bade a tearful farewell to his nearest and dearest, and got to trudging along for however many months remained to his destination (that is, of course, unless wild animals, cold, hunger, or pestilence didn't cut his pilgrimage emphatically short).
We, however, did not have the three months that it would have taken to hoof it along the entire route from our house to Rome, so we decided to do next-best thing. Since we couldn't walk from Spain, we took a flight to one of the Spains of old, which would be our starting point. That is to say, we traveled to Naples. Naples and Sicily, believe it or not, were once Spains in their own right. When the coinage of Philip II bore the words Hispaniarum Rex, it was an abbreviated way of saying that he was the King of Naples, Sicily, and many other places besides. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels in the Spanish Crown (the Crown of Aragon, rather) for centuries - indeed, only slightly less time than Argentina. That hardly anyone knows this is a testament to the sad state of our education system. | Entry #27788 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Canadiancanaeng
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+1 bade a tearful farewell to his nearest and dearest, | Flows well
Inspired choice of words. | Martin Cosgrove (X) | |
of old | Flows well
Fits well with the overall tone of the piece. | Martin Cosgrove (X) No agrees/disagrees | |
a testament to the sad state of our education system. | Good term selection | Martin Cosgrove (X) No agrees/disagrees | |
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you | Syntax
repetition of 'you' is a little jarring. | Martin Cosgrove (X) No agrees/disagrees | |
+1 1 that it would have taken | Syntax
A little clunky. Is the 'that' necessary here? | Martin Cosgrove (X) | |
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Before you continue, dear reader, I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome I am about to tell you about was a perfect disaster. If you were hoping for a story of overcoming, physical feats, willpower and personal victory, then it would be best to stop reading now, to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said (I say it was Aristotle, because he was a very wise man who said many things): "Blessed is he who spends his time contemplating his own achievements, because he will have a lot of free time”.
The sad truth is that my two companions and I broke almost all our plans and intentions along the way. In fact, we broke the very first rule of any pilgrimage from the start, which set the tone for the rest of our journey. As I said, a disastrous pilgrimage.
The first rule of any pilgrimage is simply that the route must start at the door of your house. Otherwise, it can hardly be called a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or was invited to do so by his confessor, in order to purge his sins), he did not go to Roncesvalles by carriage to start his journey there. No. He put on a pair of espadrilles, took a staff and a bag, said a tearful goodbye to his closest relatives and family and started walking until he reached his destination (if the thieves, the wild animals, the cold, hunger or other pests did not significantly shorten the journey, of course).
We, however, did not have the three months it would have taken to make the entire journey on the road to Rome from our house in a pair of espadrilles. So, we decided to do the next best thing. As we could not walk from Spain, we flew to one of the old Spanish cities, namely Naples, to leave from there. Because Naples and Sicily, as strange as it sounds, were once Spanish. When the coins of Philip II said Hispaniarum Rex, it was an abbreviated form of saying King of Naples, Sicily and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels of the Spanish (or Aragonese) Crown for two and a half centuries, a little less time than Argentina, for example. It is a sign of the sad state of our education system that almost no one knows about it. | Entry #27886 — Discuss 0 — Variant: UKukeng
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Before you continue, dear reader, I should tell you that the pilgrimage to Rome that I am about to describe proved to be a complete disaster. If you are expecting stories of obstacles overcome, physical valour, will power and self-improvement, you should stop now to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle in his wisdom once commented “Happy the man who has time to think about his own achievements, because he will have a great deal of free time”.
The sad truth is that there was scarcely a plan or purpose that my two companions and I did not fail to fulfil in the course of our journey. In fact, we began by breaking the first rule of travel, and this first transgression set the tone for our whole, disastrous, journey.
The first rule of any pilgrimage is, quite simply, is that it should begin at your own front door -otherwise it will hardly be worthy of the name. When a medieval pilgrim set out to walk to Santiago (or he was politely advised to do so by his confessor, to purge his sins) he never travelled first by cart to Roncesvalles to begin from there. Not at all. He put on his sandals, picked up his staff and scrip , said his farewells to his family washed by the abundant tears of his relatives, and set out to walk however many months it would take him to reach his destination (if the bandits, the wild animals, the cold and hunger and the plagues he encountered on the way did not significantly reduce the length of his pilgrimage, that is).
We on the other hand did not have at our disposal the three months it would have taken us to make the whole journey to Rome on foot, with only sandals to carry us along the long road that lay ahead. So we decided on the nearest thing to it. Since we could not begin our walk from Spain, we flew to an older Spain, and set out from there. That is to say, we travelled as far as Naples, because in earlier times Naples and Sicily, however unlikely it seems, were part of Spain. All the coinage of Philip II´s reign carried the logo ´Hispaniarum Rex´, which was an abbreviated way of saying King of Naples, Sicily and a number of other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels of the Spanish (or Aragonese) Crown for two and a half centuries, just slightly less time than Argentina, for example. It is a symptom of the sad state of our education system that almost nobody is aware of that. | Entry #28087 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specifiednone
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scrip | Good term selection
Nice alliteration | Richard Flight No agrees/disagrees | |
however unlikely it seems | Flows well | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
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(or Aragonese) | Other
(or, rather, Aragonese) | B D Finch No agrees/disagrees | |
-1 1 two and a half | Punctuation
should be hyphenated | B D Finch | |
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Before you continue reading, dear reader, I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome about which I am about to tell you was an unmitigated disaster. If, in this book, you are expecting to find a story of overcoming the odds, physical feats, willpower and victory over oneself, you had better stop reading now so as to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said (at least I think it was Aristotle, he was a very wise man and said lots of things): “Blessed is he who spends his time pondering his own achievements, for he must have a lot of free time”.
The sad reality is that there was nary a plan or proposition to which my two companions and I did not fail to adhere on our path. In fact, we started by breaking the first rule of any pilgrimage and this first transgression set the general tone for our entire journey, that is to say, a disastrous one.
The first rule of the pilgrim states, quite simply, that the journey must start at the door of one’s own house. Otherwise, it can barely be considered a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or if he was kindly invited to do so by his confessor, in order to purge his sins), he did not travel first to the village of Roncesvalles to begin his journey. Most definitely not. He put on his sandals, got his wooden staff and his pouch, said goodbye to his family whilst his closest relatives struggled in vain to hold back their tears, and set off to walk the however many months necessary to reach his destination (if bandits, wild animals, the cold, hunger or disease sadly cut the pilgrimage short, of course).
We, however, did not have the three months that it would have taken us to do the entire route to Rome from our house by sandal and motorway. Thus, we opted for the next best thing. Seeing as we could not walk from Spain, we flew to what was part of the Spain of old. Namely, Naples. Because Naples and Sicily, believe it or not, were briefly part of Spain. When on Philip II of Spain’s coins it said Hispaniarum Rex, it was a shorter way of saying King of Naples, Sicily, and many more places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels in the Spanish (or Aragonese) Crown for two and a half centuries, slightly less time than Argentina, for example. It is proof of the sad state of affairs of our education system that hardly anyone is aware of that. | Entry #27427 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specifiednone
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nary | Good term selection
Such a sweet word, and works so well in this context | Richard Flight No agrees/disagrees | |
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about which I am about to | Other
clunky | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
first rule of the pilgrim | Mistranslations
pilgrimage | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
(if bandits, wild animals, the cold, hunger or disease sadly cut | Syntax
provided that wild animals etc did NOT cut the... | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
briefly part | Other
inaccuate addition | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
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Before you continue, dear reader, I should warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome I am about to tell you about was a complete disaster. If you expect to find in this book a story of overcoming, of physical feats, of willpower and victory over oneself, you might as well stop reading now because you’ll be disappointed. As Aristotle wisely said (it must have been Aristotle I think because he was very wise and said many things), “He who spends his time meditating on his accomplishments is fortunate because he will have much free time.”
The sad truth is that my two companions and I would end up abandoning almost all of our plans and purposes along the way. In fact, we began by breaking the first rule of every pilgrimage, and this first transgression set the tone for our whole journey. Like I said, it was a disaster of a pilgrimage.
The first rule of every pilgrimage states, simply, that the path traveled must begin at the door of your own home. Otherwise, you can barely even call it a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or his confessor kindly suggested he do so in order to purge his sins), he did not take a carriage to Roncesvalles to begin his journey there. No. He strapped on his rope sandals, picked up his staff and leather sack, bid farewell to his family as his closest family members shed many tears, and set off to walk for however many months it would take to get to his destination (if bandits, wild animals, the cold, hunger, or plagues did not cut his pilgrimage short, of course).
We, however, did not have the three months it would have taken us to make the entire trip from our house to Rome, walking along the roads in rope sandals. So we decided to do the next best thing. Since we could not just set out walking from Spain, we flew to one of the bygone parts of Spain to depart from there. That is, we traveled to Naples. As strange as it sounds, Naples and Sicily were once part of Spain. When the inscription on Felipe II’s coins was Hispaniarum Rex, it was an abbreviated way of saying King of Naples, Sicily, and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels of the Spanish (or Aragonese) Crown for two and a half centuries, a bit less than Argentina, for example. It is a sign of the sad state of our educational system that almost no one is aware of this. | Entry #27191 — Discuss 0 — Variant: USuseng
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| Grammar errors
Overcoming is a verb, not a noun. | Martin Cosgrove (X) | |
jewels of the | Other
one of the jewels in the crown, not of the crown. | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
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Before you read any further, dear reader, I should warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome I’m about to recount was a complete disaster. If you’re expecting this book to be filled with tales of beating the odds, feats of great physical strength, willpower and self-mastery then I suggest you stop reading now to avoid disappointment. To quote the wise words of Aristotle (I’m assuming it’s Aristotle because he was a very wise chap who said a lot of stuff): “Blessed is he who spends his time reflecting on his own achievements, for he will have a great deal of free time.”
The sad reality is there was barely a plan or goal my two companions and I didn’t stray from along our journey. In fact, we started out by breaking the first rule of every pilgrimage and that first transgression set the overall tone of the entire trip. The aforementioned disaster of a pilgrimage.
The first rule of every pilgrimage states, quite simply, that the journey begins at your own front door. If not, then you have no right talking about pilgrimages. When a medieval pilgrim decided to set off for Santiago (or was kindly invited to do so by his confessors to purge his sins), he didn’t hop on his chariot to Roncesvalles and start his journey from there. No. He put on his sandals, picked up his walking staff and bag, bid farewell to his family amidst a flood of his closest relative’s tears and set off to walk for as many months as were needed in order to reach his destination (assuming, of course, that the pilgrimage wasn’t cut drastically short by bandits, wild animals, the cold, starvation or pests).
We, however, did not have the three months it would have taken us to make the sandal-powered road trip from our house to Rome. So, we decided to do what we could. As we couldn’t set off walking from Spain, we took a plane to one of the old Spains to set off from there. And by that, I mean we flew to Naples. Because Naples and Sicily used to be, believe it or not, a part of Spain. When Philip II’s coins read Hispaniarum Rex, it was shorthand for King of Naples, Sicily and loads of other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels in the Spanish (or Aragonese) crown for two and a half centuries, a little less than Argentina, for instance. It’s a sad indictment of our education system that hardly anybody knows that. | Entry #27395 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Britishbritish
Martin Cosgrove (X)United Kingdom | Rating type | Overall | Quality | Accuracy |
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wise chap who said a lot of stuff | Good term selection | Richard Flight No agrees/disagrees | |
The aforementioned disaster of a pilgrimage. | Good term selection | Lauren Ryan No agrees/disagrees | |
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-3 +1 2 then you have no right talking about pilgrimages | Other
Overtranslation? | Marian Vieyra | |
pests | Mistranslations
pestilence | philgoddard No agrees/disagrees | |
-1 +1 1 And by that, I mean | Grammar errors
Comman in wrong place. And by that I mean, | Marian Vieyra | |
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Before you go any further, dear reader, I should warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome I am about to describe was an utter disaster. If you're expecting this book to be a story about challenges overcome, great physical feats, strength of will, and facing one’s demons, you’d best stop right here to avoid any disappointment. As Aristotle once wisely said (in any case, I’m attributing the quote to Aristotle since he was a very wise gentleman who said lots of things): ‘Fortunate are those who spend their time contemplating their own achievements, for they shall have a lot of free time’.
The sad reality is that there was barely a single plan or intention that my two companions and I didn’t abort along the way. In fact, we started by breaking the very first rule of any pilgrimage, and this initial transgression set the general tone for the rest of the trip. As I said, it was a disaster of a pilgrimage.
The first rule of any pilgrimage is very simple: The journey must start at the door of one’s own home; otherwise it can hardly be called a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago de Compostela (or was cordially invited to do so by his confessor, to purge his sins), he didn’t take a carriage to Roncesvalles and start his journey from there. No. He would put on his canvas sandals, grab his stick and leather pouch, bid farewell to his very tearful nearest and dearest, and set off for however many months it would take to reach his destination (if the pilgrimage hadn’t already been sadly cut short by bandits, wild animals, cold, hunger, or disease, of course).
But we didn’t have the three months it would have taken us to walk to Rome along motorways in canvas sandals. So we decided to replicate it as closely as possible. As we couldn’t walk all the way from Spain, we flew to one of the old Spanish territories to start from there. In other words, we travelled to Naples. Because, as absurd as it may sound, Naples and Sicily were once ruled by Spain. The ‘Hispaniarum Rex’ featured on the coins issued by King Philip II was an abbreviated way of saying King of Naples, Sicily and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels in the Spanish (or Aragonese) crown for two and a half centuries; only a short time less than Argentina, for example. It a sad indictment on the state of our education system that hardly anyone is aware of this fact. | Entry #27419 — Discuss 0 — Variant: UKukeng
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facing one’s demons | Good term selection | Richard Flight No agrees/disagrees | |
old Spanish territories | Flows well | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
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T | Other
The 't' should be lower case. | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
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Before continuing, dear reader, I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome, which I'm on the verge of telling you about, was an absolute disaster. If you are hoping to find a story of self-improvement, feats of strength, shear willpower and internal triumph in this book, it is better that you stop reading now, so as to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle so wisely said (I guess it was Aristotle because he was a very wise man and said many things): "Fortunate are those who fill their time reflecting on their own achievements, because they will have lots of free time".
The sad reality is that there was hardly a plan or an intention that my two friends and I didn't break along the way. In fact, we started by breaking the first rule of any pilgrimage and this first transgression set the general tone of our trip. As I said, an absolute disaster.
The first rule of any pilgrimage says, simply put, that the journey should start from the door of your own house. Otherwise, you can hardly speak of it as being a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to travel to Santiago (or was graciously invited to do it by their confessor, to be cleansed of their sins), they were not then half-way to Roncesvalles in a carriage to start their journey from there. No. They shoved on their sandals, grabbed their staff and their hunting bag, bade farewell to their family amidst an abundance of tears from their nearest and dearest and embarked on their journey, which would take them months before they reached their destination (if bandits, wild animals, the cold, hunger or the plague didn't painfully cut short the pilgrimage, of course.
We, however, did not have the three months that we would have taken to make the whole trip from our house to Rome with just our sandals and the open road. As it was, we decided to make it as similar as possible. As we could not leave Spain by foot, we took a plane to somewhere that was once under Spanish rule, one of "the former Spains", to start from there. That is to say, we travelled to Naples. Because Naples and Sicily, although it doesn't seem possible, were at one time part of Spain. When the coins of King Felipe II read 'Hispaniarum Rex', this was an abbreviated version of King of Naples, of Sicily and of many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels of the Spanish (or Aragon) crown for two and a half centuries, scarcely less time than Argentina, for example. Sadly, it is an example of the poor state of our education system that almost nobody knows about this. | Entry #28019 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Britishbritish
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| Entry | 2.34 | 2.00 (4 ratings) | 2.67 (3 ratings) |
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simply put | Good term selection | philgoddard No agrees/disagrees | |
once under Spanish rule | Flows well | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
scarcely less time than Argentina | Flows well
This reflects the Spanish meaning. It says 'poco menos', not 'un poco menos'. | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
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+1 were not then half-way to Roncesvalles | Mistranslations | philgoddard | |
read | Other
doesn't sound idiomatic | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
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Before you proceed, dear reader, I should warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome I am about to recount was a perfect disaster. If you were hoping this would be a story of overcoming the odds, physical feats, will power, and victory over oneself, it is best that you stop reading now in order to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said (at least, it was probably Aristotle because he was a very wise man who said many things): “Blessed is the person who spends their time reminiscing on their own achievements because they will have plenty of free time.”
The sad reality is that there was barely a single plan that my two friends and I did not mess up on the road. In fact, we began by breaking the first rule of pilgrimages, and that first transgression set the tone for our journey. As I said, a disastrous pilgrimage.
The first rule of pilgrimages says, simply, that the road should begin at the door to your house. Otherwise, one can hardly call it a pilgrimage at all. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or was kindly invited to do so by their confessor in order to purge their sins), they did not take a carriage all the way to Roncesvalles to begin their journey there. No. They put on their sandals, picked up their staff and bag, said goodbye to their family amid the abundant tears of their closest relatives, and began the months-long walk to reach their destination (if bandits, wild animals, the cold, hunger, or pestilence did not grievously shorten their pilgrimage, of course).
As for ourselves, we did not have the three months it would have taken us to make the entire journey to Rome from our house in sandals alone. So, we decided to do the closest thing possible. Since we could not walk all the way from Spain, we took a plane to one of the old Spains in order to set off from there. In other words, we travelled to Naples. Because Naples and Sicily, as unlikely as it may seem, were once part of Spain. When Philip II’s coins had the words Hispaniarum Rex written upon them, that was a short way of saying King of Naples, Sicily, and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels in the Spanish (or Aragonese) crown for two and a half centuries, a little less time than Argentina, for example. It is a sad indictment of our education system that almost nobody is aware of this fact. | Entry #27731 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Britishbritish
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| Entry | 2.17 | 2.33 (3 ratings) | 2.00 (2 ratings) |
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-1 +1 1 “Blessed is the person who spends their time | Good term selection
Good gender-neutral rendering of the Beatitudes | Amanda Foy | |
abundant | Good term selection | Dot Roberts No agrees/disagrees | |
written upon them | Flows well | Dot Roberts No agrees/disagrees | |
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reminiscing | Mistranslations
reminiscing is not the same as contemplating or meditating | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
-1 As I said, a disastrous | Punctuation
Either there should be a colon here, not a comma, or another verb is needed. | B D Finch | |
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Before you continue, dear reader, I should warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome I’m about to relay was a perfect disaster. If you’re hoping to find here a story of personal growth, physical exploits, battles of will and Triumph over Self, it’s best if you put the book down now and spare yourself the disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said (I say it was Aristotle because he was a very wise man and said a lot of things), “Lucky are those who spend their days contemplating their own achievements, for they will have plenty of free time.”
The sad reality is, there were few plans or intents we didn’t abandon along the way—my two friends and I. In fact, right off the bat we broke the first rule of any pilgrimage, and this transgression set the tone for our entire trip. Like I said, a pilgrimage disaster.
The first rule of any pilgrimage is, simply, that the journey should begin at your own doorstep. Anything else can hardly be called a pilgrimage. If you were a medieval pilgrim who decided to walk to Santiago (or was kindly invited to do so by your confessor to purge your sins), you didn’t ride by carriage to Roncesvalles and set out from there. No. You strapped up your sandals, grabbed your staff and scrip, bid your family farewell amidst the abundant tears of your dearest relations, and set out to walk for however many months it would take to reach your destination (that is, of course, if bandits, wild animals, cold, hunger or plague didn’t grievously cut your trip short).
We, however, didn’t have the three months it would have taken us to walk by road all the way from home to Rome in sandals. So, we decided on the closest thing possible. Since we couldn’t set out on foot from Spain, we boarded a plane for one of the old Spains, to start from there. In other words, we flew to Naples. That’s because Naples and Sicily—though it’s hard to believe—were, at one point, Spains. When the coins of Phillip the II said “Hispaniarum Rex,” it was short for the King of Naples, of Sicily, and a host of other places. For two and a half centuries, the enchanting city of Naples was one of the joys of the Spanish (or Aragonese) Crown—a little less time than Argentina, for example. It’s proof of the sad state of our educational system that virtually no one knows that. | Entry #27301 — Discuss 0 — Variant: USuseng
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| Entry | 2.00 | 2.00 (2 ratings) | 2.00 (2 ratings) |
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-1 +1 1 T | Spelling
The use of capitalisation here seems a little too grandiose and like something found in a self-help book. | Martin Cosgrove (X) | |
S | Spelling
The use of capitalisation here is unnecessary. | Martin Cosgrove (X) No agrees/disagrees | |
-1 +1 1 were, at one point, Spains | Other
Not idiomatic. Naples and Sicily were under Spanish rule. | Marian Vieyra | |
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Before you continue, dear reader, I should caution you that the pilgrimage to Rome I am about to recount was a perfect disaster. If within this book you are hoping to encounter a tale of surmounted obstacles, daring feats, willpower and victory over oneself, it is best that you stop reading to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle wisely stated (I believe it would have been Aristotle, as he was a very wise gentleman who said many things): “Happy is he who spends his time meditating on his own successes, as he will have an abundance of free time.”
The sad reality is that there was hardly a plan or purpose that we would not violate along the way, my compañeros and I. In fact, we started by disregarding the first rule of any pilgrimage, and this transgression set the general tone for our entire journey. In a few words, it was a debacle of a pilgrimage.
The first rule of any pilgrimage requires, simply, that the journey begin at the door of one’s own home. Otherwise, there’s no calling it a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or was so kindly invited to do so by his confessor, to purge him of his sins), he did not take a carriage to Roncevalles and embark upon his journey there. He slipped on his espadrilles, picked up his staff and leather satchel, bid farewell to his family amidst abundant tears from his closest relatives and ventured out to walk the months it would take for him to reach his destination (so long as the bandits, wild animals, cold, hunger and pests did not considerably shorten his pilgrimage, of course).
We, on the other hand, did not have the three months it would have taken to make the entire journey from home to Rome via espadrilles and highways. Thus, we decided to do the closest thing possible. As we could not set out on foot from Spain, we took a plane to what was formerly Spain, to begin our journey there. Meaning we traveled to Naples. For although it may seem unlikely, Naples and Sicily at one time belonged to Spain. When the coins of Felipe II were marked Hispaniarum Rex, it was an abbreviated way of denoting the King of Naples, of Sicily and many other sites. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels of the Spanish (or Aragonese) Crown for two and a half centuries, hardly less time than Argentina, to put it in perspective. The fact that nearly no one is aware of this is a fine example of the sad state of our educational system. | Entry #27757 — Discuss 0 — Variant: USuseng
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Naples and Sicily at one time belonged to Spain | Flows well | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
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In a few words | Other
Poorly phrased. | B D Finch No agrees/disagrees | |
+2 1 via espadrilles | Other
You can't say "via espadrilles". | philgoddard | |
| Other
Pilgrims didn't stick to highways, they used byways too. | B D Finch | |
sites | Other
Poor choice of vocabulary. | B D Finch No agrees/disagrees | |
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Before you continue, dear reader, I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome that I am about to tell you was a perfect disaster. If you hope to find in this book a story of overcoming, physical feats, willpower, and victory over oneself, it is better that you stop reading now to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said (I say it would be Aristotle, because he was a very wise man and said many things): "Blessed is who spends time meditating on his own achievements, because he will have a lot of free time."
The sad reality is that there was hardly any plan or purpose that my two companions and I did not break along the way. In fact, we started breaking the first rule of every pilgrimage and this first transgression marked the general tone of our entire trip. That said, a pilgrimage disaster.
The first rule of every pilgrimage simply states that the road must begin at the door of the house itself. Otherwise, one can hardly speak of a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or was kindly invited to do so by his confessor, to purge his sins), he did not go by carriage to Roncesvalles to begin his journey there. No. He put on the espadrilles, took the staff and the bag, said goodbye to the family among the abundant tears of his closest relatives and began to walk the months that were needed until he reached his destination (if bandits, wild animals, the cold, the hunger or the plagues did not significantly shorten the pilgrimage, of course).
We, however, did not have the three months it would have taken to make the entire trip to Rome from our house based on espadrille and road. So, we decided to do as close as possible. Since we couldn’t leave Spain by foot, we took a plane to one of the old Spains to leave through there. That is, we travel to Naples. Because Naples and Sicily, although it seems a lie, were once Spain. When the coins of Philip II said Hispaniarum Rex, it was an abbreviated way of saying King of Naples, Sicily, and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels of the Spanish (or Aragonese) Crown for two and a half centuries, a little less time than Argentina, for example. It is a sign of the sad state of our education system that almost no one is aware of it. | Entry #27557 — Discuss 0 — Variant: USuseng
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it is better that you stop reading now | Flows well | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
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the espadrilles, took the staff and the bag, said goodbye to the | Mistranslations
"His", not "the". | philgoddard No agrees/disagrees | |
-1 1 although it seems a lie | Other
Literal translation from the Spanish. | Marian Vieyra | |
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Before you continue, dear Reader, I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome I am about to describe to you was a complete disaster. If you were hoping to discover a tale of self-improvement, with physical feats of derring-do, willpower and victory over the self in the pages of this book, I would advise you to stop reading now, to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said (I’m saying Aristotle because he was a very wise man and said many things): ‘Happy the man who spends his time meditating on his own achievements, because he will have a lot of free time’.
The sad reality is that there was barely a plan or scheme that my two companions and I did not abandon along the way. In fact, we began by breaking the first rule of any pilgrimage, and this first transgression set the overall tone for our entire trip. As I said, a disaster of a pilgrimage.
The first rule of any pilgrimage states simply that the road must begin at your own front door. Otherwise, you can hardly call it a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago, (or was kindly invited to do so by his confessor, to atone for his sins), he didn’t travel by carriage to Roncesvalles to begin his journey there. No. He put on his canvas shoes, took up his staff and leather satchel, said goodbye to his family amid the copious tears of his nearest and dearest, and started walking for the months it took to reach his destination (provided bandits, wild animals, the cold, hunger or pestilence did not significantly shorten the pilgrimage, of course).
We, however, did not have the three months it would have taken us to make the entire journey to Rome from our house by road, wearing only canvas shoes. We therefore we decided to do the next best thing. As we could not walk from Spain, we took a flight to one of the former ‘Spains’, to leave from there. In other words, we travelled to Naples. Because Naples and Sicily, hard as it is to believe, were once part of Spain. When coins at the time of Felipe II bore the inscription 'Hispaniarum Rex', it was a shortened way of saying King of Naples, Sicily and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of jewels in the Spanish (or Aragon) Crown for two and a half centuries, less time than Argentina, for example. It’s a sign of the sad state of our education system that almost no one is aware of this. | Entry #27689 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specifiednone
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Before you continue, dear reader, I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome I’m going to tell you about was an absolute disaster. If you expect to find a story in this book about overcoming obstacles, feats of physical strength, willpower and mastery of oneself, you had best stop reading now to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said (I think it was Aristotle, since he was a very wise man who said many things): “Blessed is he who spends his time pondering his own accomplishments, because he will have plenty of free time.”
The sad truth is that we hardly had any plan or intention that we would not abandon as we travelled, my two comrades and I. In fact, we started by breaking Rule Number One of every pilgrimage and this first misdeed set the tone for our whole trip. I repeat, a disastrous pilgrimage.
Rule Number One of every pilgrimage simply says that the journey must begin at the door of one’s own house. Otherwise, one can hardly speak of a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim set out to walk to Santiago (or was kindly asked to do so by his confessor, to purge his sins), he did not ride in a carriage to Roncesvalles to start his pilgrimage there. No. He put his training shoes on, picked up his staff and knapsack, said goodbye to his family as tears flowed freely on the faces of his closest relatives and got started on the months required for him to reach his destination (if, of course, his pilgrimage wasn’t cut short by bandits, wild animals, cold, hunger or the plague).
We, however, did not have the three months we would have needed to make the whole trip to Rome from our home on running shoes and roadways. So we decided to do the next best thing. Since we couldn’t start our walk from Spain, we flew to one of the “prior Spains” to start from there. That is to say, we flew to Naples. Even though it seems untrue, Naples and Sicily were once part of Spain. When the coins of Philip II read Hispaniarum Rex, that was a short form for “King of Naples, Spain and many other places.” The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels in the Spanish crown (or that of Aragon) for two and a half centuries, or slightly less time than Argentina held that status. It’s a sign of the sad state of our education system that almost nobody knows this. | Entry #27931 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specifiednone
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training shoes | Mistranslations
medieval training shoes? | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
prior Spains | Spelling
former Spains | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
Even though it seems untrue | Mistranslations
Unlikely, not untrue. | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
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Before you continue, dear reader, I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome which I am about to describe to you was a perfect disaster. If you expect to find in this book a story of self-improvement, Physical feats, willpower and victory over oneself, it is better that you leave already this reading, to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said (I believe it would be Aristotle because he was a very wise man and said lots of stuff): “Blessed is he who occupies his time in meditating upon his own achievements, for he shall have much free time.”
The sad truth is that barely was a plan or purpose that we did not break along the road, my two partners and me. In fact, we began by breaking the first rule of every pilgrimage and this first transgression set the general tone of our entire journey. As said, a disastrous pilgrimage.
The first rule of every pilgrimage says, simply, that the road must start at the doorstep of oneself's home. Any other way, it can barely be called a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or was kindly invited to do so by his confessor, to purge his sins), he did not travel by carriage to Roncesvalles to start there his journey. No. He slipped in his espadrilles, took his stick and his bag, said goodbye to the family between the abundant tears of his closest relatives and began walking the months needed until he reached his destination (if bandits, wild animals, cold, hunger, or pests didn't considerably shorten his pilgrimage, of course.)
We, however, did not have the three months that it would have taken to make the entire journey to Rome from our home in espadrille and road. So that, we decided to do the most similar thing possible. As we could not leave walking from Spain, we went by plane to one of the old Spanish territories, to start out from there. That is to say, we travelled to Naples. Because Naples and Sicily, even if it could look untrue, were once Spain. When Felipe II coins said Hispaniarum Rex, it was an abbreviated form to say King of Naples, Sicily, and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the Spanish (or Aragonese) crown's jewels during two centuries and a half, a bit less than Argentina, for example. It is proof of our educative system's sorry state that nobody is conscious of it. | Entry #27767 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specifiednone
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leave already this reading | Other
Awkward, sounds like non-native English | philgoddard No agrees/disagrees | |
would be Aristotle | Other
Sounds non-native | philgoddard No agrees/disagrees | |
barely was a plan | Syntax
there was barely a plan | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
So that, we | Grammar errors
So we | philgoddard No agrees/disagrees | |
Spanish (or Aragonese) crown's jewels | Syntax
one of the jewels in the Spanish crown | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
during two centuries and a half | Other
Non-native English | philgoddard No agrees/disagrees | |
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Before you continue, dear reader, I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome that I am about recount to you was a perfect disaster. If you are hoping to find a story about things like overcoming, physical feats, willpower and victory over one's self in this book, then you may as well stop reading now to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said (I'll say it was Aristotle because he was a very wise man and said many things): "Blessed is he who spends his time reflecting on his own achievements, for he will have much free time."
The sad reality is that there was hardly any plan or purpose that my companions and I didn't break away from along the way. In fact, we started by breaking the very first rule of every pilgrimage and this first transgression marked the general tone of our entire trip. As I said, a disaster of a pilgrimage.
The first rule of every pilgrimage says, quite simply, that the walk must begin at your own front door. Otherwise, you can hardly call it a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim would decide to walk to Santiago (or was kindly invited to do so by their confessor in order to purge their sins), they didn't go by coach to the village of Roncesvalles to start their journey from there. No. They would put on their espadrille sandals, take their staff and bag, say goodbye to their family amidst the plentiful tears of their closest relatives and walk around for as many months as it took before they would reach their destination (if the thieves, wild animals, cold, hunger or plagues didn't significantly shorten the pilgrimage, that is).
We, however, did not have the three months that it would have taken us to complete the entire trip from our house to Rome by espadrille sandals and road. Hence, we decided to do the next best thing. Since we couldn't walk from Spain, we flew to one of the ancient Spains to set out from there. That is to say, we travelled to Naples. Because Naples and Sicily, although it doesn't seem like it could be true, were at one time, Spain. When the coins of Felipe II said Hispanarium Rex, it was an abbreviated way of saying King of Naples, Sicily and of many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels on the Spanish (or Aragonese) Crown for two and a half centuries, slightly less time than, for example, Argentina. It is a sign of the sad state of our education system that nobody is aware of this. | Entry #27221 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Irishiriseng
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the next best thing | Good term selection | Melody Shaw No agrees/disagrees | |
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Before you read any further dear reader, I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome that I am about to recount was a complete and utter disaster. If you are hoping to find a story about heroes who rose up in the face of adversity, achieved physical exploits, demonstrated willpower and overcame their own demons in this book, it’s best that you stop reading right now to avoid being disappointed. As Aristotle wisely said (or rather, it’s me who says it was Aristotle as he was a very wise man who said a lot of things): “Only a privileged person can spend his time reflecting on his own successes because he must have a lot of free time.”
The sad reality was that, over the course of our journey, there were almost no plan or proposal that we, myself and my two companions, did not break. As such, we started off on the wrong foot by breaking the first rule of any pilgrimage, and that first transgression set the whole tone for our trip. As said before, a disastrous pilgrimage.
Simply put, the first rule of any pilgrimage is that it starts from the doorstep of your own home. Otherwise, you could hardly call it a pilgrimage. When the medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or was kindly invited to do so by his confessor to purge his sins), he didn’t go by horse-drawn carriage to Roncesvalles to start the pilgrimage from there. Of course not. He put on his sandals, took his staff and bag, bade farewell to his family among a torrent of tears from his closest relatives and set off to walk the months it would take to get to his destination (if bandits, wild animals, the cold, hunger or plagues didn’t drastically cut the pilgrimage short of course).
For us, however, we didn’t have the three months that we would have needed to complete the journey to Rome from our home using sandals and routes alone. So, we went for what bore the most resemblance. As we couldn’t leave from Spain on foot, we went by airplane to one of the cities of Old Spain to start from there. In other words, we flew to Naples because while it is hard to believe, Naples and Sicily belonged to Spain at one time. When the coins of Felipe II were inscribed with the words “Hispaniarum Rex”, it was a shorthand way of saying King of Naples, Sicily and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of Spain’s (or Aragon’s) crown jewels for two and a half centuries, only a little less than Argentina for example. It’s proof of the sad state of our educational system that no-one is aware of this. | Entry #28096 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Britishbritish
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started off on the wrong foot | Good term selection | Richard Flight No agrees/disagrees | |
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+1 read any further dear reader | Other
read and dear reader - repetitive | Marian Vieyra | |
+3 1 “Only a privileged person can spend his time reflecting on his own successes because he must have a lot of free time | Mistranslations | Marian Vieyra | |
For us, however, we didn’t have the three months that we would have needed | Syntax | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
using sandals and routes | Other
by road, wearing only sandals | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
+1 we went for what bore the most resemblance | Mistranslations | Marian Vieyra | |
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Before continuing, dear reader, I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome that I'm about to recount to you was a perfect disaster. If you're hoping that this book contains a story of self-improvement, physical feats, will power, and victory over one's self, it's best that you stop reading now so you're not disappointed. As Aristotle wisely said (it must've been Aristotle, he was a very wise man who said a lot of things): "Fortunate is he who spends his free time meditating on his own accomplishments, for much time he will have."
The sad truth is that there was barely a plan or purpose that my two companions left intact throughout the trip. In fact, we set off by breaking the first rule of any pilgrimage, and this first transgression set the general tone of our entire trip. Like I said, it was a disaster of a pilgrimage.
The first rule of pilgrimage simply states that the journey must start at the door of your own house. Otherwise, it can barely be called a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or was kindly invited to do so by his confessor to purge his sins), he didn't take a carriage to Roncesvalles to start the journey there. No, he strapped on his sandals, grabbed his staff and leather pouch, bid his family farewell through the tears of his closest relatives, and set out to walk however many months it took to arrive at his destination; if the bandits, wild animals, hunger, disease or the cold didn't drastically shorten the pilgrimage, of course.
We, however, didn't have the three months to spend that it would've taken to make the whole trip to Rome from our house on street and sandal, so we decided to do the next best thing. Since we couldn't go on foot from Spain, we hopped on a plane to one of the old Spains to leave from there: we flew to Naples. Naples and Sicily, believe it or not, were once Spains. When Philip II's coins said Hispaniarum Rex, it was an abbreviated way of saying King of Naples, Sicily, and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels of the Spanish (or Aragonese) crown for two and a half centuries, just a little less time than Argentina, for example. It's a sad showing of the state of our educational system that almost no one knows that. | Entry #27115 — Discuss 0 — Variant: USuseng
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if | Other
unless – Even if he got eeaten by wild animals on Day One, he would still have set out to walk for many months. | B D Finch No agrees/disagrees | |
| Other
Road, not "street" and the correct preposition is "by", not "on". | B D Finch | |
-1 +1 1 were once Spains | Spelling
This doesn't have much sense in English, it would need explaining I think. | Victoria Monk | |
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Before you continue, dear reader, I should warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome that I am about to describe to you was an absolute disaster. If you are hoping to find a story in this book about self-improvement, physical feats, willpower and victory over oneself, it would be better for you to stop reading now to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said (I believe it was Aristotle, because he was a very wise man, and he said a lot of things): “Fortunate is he who spends his time pondering his own accomplishments, for he will have a lot of free time.”
The sad truth is that there was hardly any plan or intention that my two friends and I did not end up breaking along the way. In fact, we started by disobeying the first rule of any pilgrimage, and this first transgression set the general tone for our entire journey. As I said, it was a disastrous sort of pilgrimage.
The first rule of thumb for any pilgrimage is simple really: the journey should begin at the door of one’s home. If not, one can hardly speak of a “pilgrimage”. When a Medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or was very kindly invited to do so by his confessor, to purge his sins), he did not go by carriage to Roncesvalles to start his journey there. No. He donned his espadrilles, took his walking stick and his haversack, bid farewell to his family amid the many tears shed by his nearest family and he started to walk for the months it would take him to arrive to his destination (that is, if the bandits, wild animals, the cold, hunger or the plagues did not grievously cut his pilgrimage short).
In our case, however, we did not have the three months it would have taken us to make the entire journey to Rome on rope-soled sandals and highways, so we decided to do the next best thing. As we couldn’t leave on foot from Spain, we traveled by plane to one of the former Spanish countries, so as to leave from there. In other words, we traveled to Naples. Because Naples and Sicily, even though it might sound unbelievable, were at one time Spanish. When Philip II of Spain’s coins used to say “Hispanarium Rex” on them, it was a shortened way of saying King of Naples, Sicily and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was once one of the crown jewels of Spain (or Aragon) over the course of two and a half centuries; so, for a little less time than Argentina was, for example. It is an indication of the sad state of our education system that almost no one is aware of this. | Entry #27284 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Canadiancanaeng
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| Entry | 1.50 | 1.50 (2 ratings) | 1.50 (2 ratings) |
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first rule of thumb | Mistranslations
I'm not quite sure this works here. | Richard Flight No agrees/disagrees | |
+1 bid farewell to his family amid the many tears shed by his nearest family and h | Other
Awkward repetition | philgoddard | |
nearest | Other
Nearest and dearest, perhaps. | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
+1 former Spanish countries | Mistranslations
Former Spanish colonies? | Marian Vieyra | |
crown jewels | Mistranslations
Jewels in the crown... | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
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Before you continue, dear reader, I should warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome that I am about to share with you, was an absolute disaster. If you are hoping that this book offers a story about overcoming obstacles, feats of strength, willpower and victory over oneself it would be best to stop reading now, to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said, (I quote Aristotle because he was wise and he said many things) “Joyful is he who spends his free time considering his achievements, for he will have ample free time.”
The sad truth is that there was barely a plan or goal that my two companions and I did not fail to fulfill along the way. In fact, we started off by breaking the first rule of any pilgrimage and this first transgression set the general tone for the entire trip. As I said, an absolute disaster.
Rule number one of every pilgrimage states simply, that the route must begin at the door of one’s own house. Also, there is no discussing the pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or if he were invited to walk it by his priest, to purge his sins) he did not take a chariot to Roncesvalles to start his journey. No. He put on his sandals, picked up his walking stick and satchel, said farewell to this family amid plenty of tears from his closest relatives and set out to walk for as many months as it took to reach his destination (if the bandits, wild animals, cold, hunger or disease did not cut the pilgrimage short, of course).
We, however, did not have the three months that it would have taken to journey to Rome entirely by road and sandal. And so, we decided to do something comparable. Since we could not head out from Spain on foot, we took a plane to one of the ancient Spains, to leave from there. That is to say, we travelled to Naples, because Naples and Sicily, even though it seems untrue, were once Spanish. When the Felipe II coins said Hispaniarum Rex, it was an abbreviated way of saying King of Naples, of Sicily and of many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the Spanish (or Aragonese) Crown’s jewels for two and a half centuries, only slightly less time than Argentina. It is indicative of the sad state of our education system that almost no one is aware of it. | Entry #27605 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Canadiancanaeng
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+1 Rule number one of every pilgrimage | Good term selection | philgoddard | |
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Also, there is no discussing the pilgrimage | Mistranslations
This makes no sense. | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
chariot | Mistranslations
carriage or cart | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
walking stick | Mistranslations
staff | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
even though it seems untrue | Mistranslations
too literal | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
the Felipe II coins | Grammar errors
no need for 'the' | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
Crown’s jewels | Syntax
jewels in the Spanish crown | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
|
Before you continue, Dear Reader, I should warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome that I’m about to relate to you was a perfect disaster. If in this book you hope to find a story of challenges overcome, physical feats, strength of will, and victory over oneself, it’s better that you stop reading now, to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said, (it must have been Aristotle who said it, in my opinion, because he was a very wise man and said a lot of things) “Happy is he who spends his time reflecting on his achievements, because he will have a lot of free time.”
The sad reality is that there was hardly any plan or resolution that my two travel companions and I didn’t break at some point during the journey. In fact, we began by breaking the cardinal rule of any pilgrimage, and that first transgression set the general tone of our entire trip. Like I said, it was a disaster of a pilgrimage.
The cardinal rule of any pilgrimage is, quite simply, that the journey should start at one’s own doorstep. If it were any other way, it could hardly be called a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or his confessor kindly encouraged him to do so, to purge his sins), he didn’t take a carriage up to Roncesvalles to begin his journey from there. No. He put on his espadrilles, took a walking stick and leather pouch, bid his family goodbye amidst an abundance of tears from his closest relatives, and set out to walk however many months it took to arrive at his destination (if the bandits, wild animals, cold, hunger, or plagues didn’t significantly shorten the pilgrimage, of course.)
We, nevertheless, didn’t have the three months it would have taken us to make the entire trip from our house to Rome along the road, outfitted in espadrilles. Therefore, we decided to make it as similar as possible. Since we couldn’t leave on foot from Spain, we went by plane to one of the former Spanish kingdoms, to leave from there. Namely, we traveled to Naples. We did so because, believe it or not, Naples and Sicily were once a part of Spain. When Phillip the Second’s coins said "Hispaniarum Rex," it was an abbreviated way of saying "King of Naples, of Sicily, and of many other places." The beautiful city of Naples was one of the crown jewels of the Spanish (or Aragonese) Empire for two-and-a-half centuries, only a slightly shorter time than Argentina was, for example. The fact that almost no one is aware of this is proof of the sad state of our educational system. | Entry #27814 — Discuss 0 — Variant: USuseng
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| Spelling
One relates a story, but not a pilgrimage. | B D Finch | |
| Other
Pilgrims were known for walking with a staff, not a walking stick. | B D Finch | |
the | Grammar errors
if bandits, wild animals etc. No need for 'the'. | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
nevertheless | Mistranslations
Should be 'however', not nevertheless in this case. | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
| Other
"Namely" could preface Naples, but not "we travelled to". | B D Finch | |
were once a part | Syntax
were once part of | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
one of the crown jewels of the Spanish | Mistranslations
one of the jewels in the Spanish crown | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
|
Before you continue, dear reader, I should warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome, which I am on the verge of telling you about, was a perfect disaster. If you expect to find a story of personal self-improvement, feats, willpower and self-conquest in this book, it’s best to leave off reading right now to avoid disappointment. As wisely said by Aristotle (I believe it to be Aristotle who was a very wise gentleman by whom much was said): “Fortunate is anyone spending their time meditating over own achievements as this will mean plenty of spare time”.
The sad truth is that there was hardly any plan or purpose that my two companions and myself kept to along the way. In fact, we began by not keeping to the first rule of any pilgrimage, and this first transgression set the overall tone of our entire journey. As said, a disastrous pilgrimage.
The first rule of any pilgrimage simply states that the journey must begin at the door of one’s own home. Any other way can hardly be regarded a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim took the decision of walking to Santiago (or was courteously invited by his confessor to do as such to purge his sins), he didn’t travel in a chariot to Roncesvalles to begin his journey there. No way. He put on his espadrilles, gathered his staff and leather pouch, bid farewell to his family amidst a flood of tears from his closest relatives and began to travel by walking the necessary months until reaching his destination (provided, of course, bandits, wild animals, the cold, hunger or diseases didn’t significantly shorten the pilgrimage).
We, however, didn’t have the three months it took to make the entire journey to Rome from home, in our espadrilles. We therefore decided on the most similar possible way. As we couldn’t leave walking from Spain, we took a flight to one of the ancient cities of Spain to begin from there, namely Naples, as, although hard to believe, Naples and Sicily had been, at one time, kingdoms of Spain. The King Philip II coins minted with the words Hispaniarum Rex was an abbreviated form of saying King of Naples, Sicily and many other cities. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the gems of the Spanish Crown (or Crown of Aragon) for two and-a-half centuries, a little less time than Argentina, for example. An indication of the sad state of our educational system that almost no one is aware of. | Entry #27725 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specifiednone
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As said | Omission
'As I said' is more idiomatic. | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
As we couldn’t leave walking from | Syntax
Sounds odd. | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
one of the ancient cities of Spain | Mistranslations
Not sure this is an accurate translation. | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
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Before you continue, dear reader, I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome that I am about to tell you about was a perfect disaster. If you hope to find in this book a story of defeat, physical feats, willpower and victory over oneself, it is better that you stop reading, to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said (I say it was Aristotle, because he was a very wise man and said many things): "Blessed is he who spends his time meditating on his own achievements, because he will have a lot of free time."
The sad reality is that there was hardly any plan or purpose that my two companions and I did not shatter along the way. In fact, we started by breaking the first rule of every pilgrimage and this first transgression marked the general tone of our entire journey. That said, a disaster pilgrimage.
The first rule of every pilgrimage simply says that the journey must begin at the door of the house itself. Otherwise, one can hardly speak of a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to travel to Santiago (or was kindly invited to do so by his confessor, to purge his sins), he would not go by carriage to Roncesvalles to begin his journey there. No. He would put on his sandals, would take the staff and the bag, say goodbye to the family amidst scalding tears of his closest relatives, and would set off walking for months that were needed until he reached his destination (if bandits, wild animals, cold, hunger or the plagues did not significantly shorten the pilgrimage, of course).
We, however, did not have the three months it would have taken to take the entire trip to Rome from our house on foot and sandals. So, we decided to do it as close as possible. As we could not walk from Spain, we went by plane to some of the old Spanish lands, to leave from there. That is, we travel to Naples. Because Naples and Sicily, although it seems a lie, were once Spain’s. As Philip II coins read Hispaniarum Rex, it was an abbreviated way of saying King of Naples, Sicily and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels of the Spanish (or Aragonese) Crown for two and a half centuries, a little less time than Argentina, for example. It is a sign of the sad state of our educational system that almost no one is aware of. | Entry #28052 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specifiednone
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about to tell you about | Other
clunky | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
| Spelling
superación is the opposite of defeat, it is overcoming. | Marian Vieyra | |
That said, a disaster pilgrimage | Grammar errors
No verb. | B D Finch No agrees/disagrees | |
the house itself | Other
Whose house? | B D Finch No agrees/disagrees | |
+1 1 would take the staff and the bag | Spelling
The second 'would' is redundant. Also, take up his staff etc would be better. | Marian Vieyra | |
+1 for months that were needed | Omission
for 'the' months that... | Marian Vieyra | |
| Other
This would be better placed earlier in the sentence. | B D Finch | |
although it seems a lie | Mistranslations
Literal translation from the Spanish. | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
|
Before you continue, dear reader, I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome that I’m about to relate to you was an utter catastrophe. If you hope to find within this book a story of triumph, physical exploits, strength of will and victory against the self, it would be better if you stopped reading now, so as to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle was known to say, wisely (at least, I believe it was Aristotle, as he was a very wise gentleman and said a lot of things): “Happy are those that occupy their time by meditating on their own achievements, for they will have plenty of time for leisure”.
The painful reality is that there was scarcely a single plan or intention which my two companions and I didn’t destroy during the course of our journey. In fact, we began by flaunting the first statute of any pilgrimage, and this first transgression set the general tone of the entire journey, which, as stated above, was a catastrophe of a pilgrimage.
Put simply, what the first statute of pilgrimage, any pilgrimage, states is that the journey must commence at one’s own door, or else it can scarcely be thought of as a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to go by foot to Santiago (or was cordially invited to do so by their confessor, as a means to purge their sins), they didn’t go by chariot as far as Roncesvalles so as to begin the journey from there. No. They put on their espadrilles, took up their staff and their sack and, amid the plentiful tears of his nearest and dearest, said goodbye to their family before setting out to walk for however many months lay before them and their destination (if brigands, wild animals, cold, hunger or plague didn’t cut the pilgrimage considerably short, of course).
We, however, didn’t have the three months that it would have taken to make the entire trip from our home to Rome by means of espadrilles and road alone. But we did decide to do the next best thing. As we couldn’t leave Spain on foot, we flew to one the ancient Spains, so we could leave from there. What I mean is that we travelled to Naples. This was because Naples and Sicily, doubtful as it may sound, were once Spains. When the coins of Philip the 2nd read 'Hispaniarum Rex', this was shorthand for King of Naples, Sicily, and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels of the Spanish (or Aragonese) Crown for two and a half centuries, which is almost as long as Argentina was, to provide some frame of reference. It is a sad indictment of the current state of our education system that barely anyone is aware of this. | Entry #28061 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Britishbritish
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+1 that I’m about to relate | Other
One relates an incident, a story etc., but not a pilgrimage. | B D Finch | |
+2 victory against the self | Mistranslations
victory over the self | Marian Vieyra | |
| Mistranslations
flouting, not "flaunting"! | B D Finch | |
statute | Mistranslations
do pilgrimages have statutes? | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
sack | Mistranslations
the item was more of a pouch or satchel | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
| Syntax
Shift of pronoun from their/them to "his". | B D Finch | |
by means of espadrilles | Other
Reads very oddly. | B D Finch No agrees/disagrees | |
|
Before you continue, dear reader, I should warn you of the pilgrimage to Rome that I am about to narrate to you was a complete disaster. If you expect to find in this book a story of self-improvement, physical feats, self-control and victory over one self, is best that you stop reading, to avoid a disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said (I believe it was Aristotle because he was a very wise man that said many things): “Joyful is one which occupies its time meditating on its own achievements, because he will have a lot of free time”
The sad reality is that there was barely a plan or purpose that we, my two companions and I, did not break along the road. As a matter of fact, we started by breaking the first rule of pilgrimage and that first transgression set the general tone of our entire journey. As stated, a disaster pilgrimage.
The first rule of any pilgrimage is, simply, that the journey should start at your own door. Otherwise, it can hardly be spoken of as a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or was kindly invited to do so by its confessor, to purge its sins), he would not go in a carriage to Roncesvalles to start there its journey. No. He would put on its espadrilles, would take its walking stick and leather pouch, he would say goodbye to its family amongst many tears of close family members and would start traveling any months necessary until they would reach their destiny (that is course, if bandits, wild animals, cold weather, hunger, or pests do not noticeably shorten the pilgrimage).
We, however, did not have the three months that it would have taken to make the entire trip from our house to Rome on just espadrilles and road. Therefore, we decided to do the closest thing possible. Since we could not keep walking from Spain, we took a plane to one of the old Spains, to leave from there. That is we traveled to Naples. Because Naples and Sicily, even if it seems hard to believe, were at what time Spains. When the coins of Philip II used to say Hispaniarium Rex, it was an abbreviated way of saying King of Naples, Sicily and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels of the Spanish crown (or Aragonese) during two and a half centuries, a little less than Argentina, for example. It is proof of the sorry state of our educational system that almost no one is aware of it. | Entry #28022 — Discuss 0 — Variant: USuseng
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Joyful is one which occupies its time | Mistranslations | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
| Grammar errors
A pilgrim is a person, not an it. | MollyRose | |
on just espadrilles | Other
Wearing just... | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
were at what time | Grammar errors
were at one time... | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
during two and a half centuries | Grammar errors
For two and a half... | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
|
Dear reader, before going any further, I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome that I am about to describe to you was a complete disaster. If you’re hoping for a book full of tales of self-improvement, physical feats, force of will and victory over oneself, it’s better you stop reading now, to avoid being disappointed. As Aristotle wisely said (I say Aristotle, because he was a very wise gentlemen, and he said many things), “Joy to he who spends his time reflecting on his own achievements, because he will have much free time.”
The sad reality is that I barely had a plan or purpose that wouldn’t break my two friends and I along the way. In fact, we had started out by violating the first rule of all pilgrimages, and this first transgression had set the general tone for the rest of our journey. As I said, a disaster of a pilgrimage.
The first rule of pilgrimage simply states that the route must start from your own front door. Otherwise, you can hardly call it a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or was kindly invited to do so by his confessor, to purge himself of his sins), he didn’t take a carriage to Roncesvalles to start his journey there. No. He put on his rope sandals, took up his staff and leather pouch, bid his family farewell amongst plenty of tears from his closest relatives and made a start on the months it would take to reach his destination (provided that his pilgrimage wasn’t cut short considerably by crooks, wild animals, cold, hunger, or plagues of course).
Us, however, we didn’t have the three months we would have needed to make the entire journey from our home to Rome on rope sandals and the road alone. So, we decided to do the next best thing. As we couldn’t leave Spain on foot, we travelled by plane to one of the old Spains, to set off from there. Meaning, we travelled to Naples, as although it’s hard to believe, Naples and Sicily at one time formed part of Spain. Back when the coins of Philip II read Hispaniarum Rex, it was an abbreviated way of saying, ‘King of Naples, Sicily, and many other places’. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels in the Spanish (or Aragon) Crown for two and a half centuries, a little less time than Argentina, for example. The fact that almost no one is aware of this shows the sad state of our education system. | Entry #27589 — Discuss 0 — Variant: UKukeng
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+1 The sad reality is that I barely had a plan or purpose that wouldn’t break my two friends and I along the way | Mistranslations | Richard Flight | |
|
Before you continue, dear reader, I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome that I am about to tell you was a perfect disaster. If you hope to find in this book a story of overcoming, physical feats, willpower and victory over oneself, it is better that you stop reading, to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle said wisely (I say it would be Aristotle, because he was a very wise man and said many things): "Blessed is he who spends his time meditating on his own achievements, because he will have a lot of free time."
The sad reality is that there was hardly any plan or purpose that my two companions and I did not break along the way. In fact, we started breaking the first rule of every pilgrimage and this first transgression marked the general tone of our entire trip. That said, a pilgrimage disaster.
The first rule of every pilgrimage simply says that the road must begin at the door of the house itself. Otherwise, one can hardly speak of a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or was kindly invited to do so by his confessor, to purge his sins), he did not go by carriage to Roncesvalles to begin his journey there. No. He put on the espadrilles, took the staff and the bag, said goodbye to the family among the abundant tears of his closest relatives and began to walk the months that were needed until he reached his destination (if bandits, wild animals , the cold, the hunger or the plagues did not significantly shorten the pilgrimage, of course).
We, however, did not have the three months it would have taken to make the entire trip to Rome from our house based on espadrille and road. So, we decided to do as close as possible. As we could not walk from Spain, we went by plane to one of the old Spain, to leave from there. That is, we travel to Naples. Because Naples and Sicily, although it seems a lie, were once Spain. When the coins of Philip II said Hispaniarum Rex, it was an abbreviated way of saying King of Naples, Sicily and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels of the Spanish (or Aragonese) Crown for two and a half centuries, a little less time than Argentina, for example. It is a sign of the sad state of our education system that almost no one is aware of. | Entry #27946 — Discuss 0 — Variant: Not specifiednone
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that I am about to tell you | Syntax | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
He put on the espadrilles, took the staff and the bag | Other
needs a possessive here | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
although it seems a lie, | Other
too literal | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
|
Before you go on, dear reader, I must warn you that the pilgrimage to Rome that I am about to tell you about was a perfect disaster. If you hope to find a story about overcoming, physical feats, willpower and victory over yourself in this book, you'd be better off stopping right now, to avoid disappointment. As Aristotle wisely said (I say that it was Aristotle, because he was a very wise man and he said many things): "Fortunate is he who spends his time pondering on his own achievements, for he will have much free time."
The sad reality is that there was hardly any plan or purpose that wouldn't have broken up my two companions and I along the way. In fact, we began by breaking the first rule of every pilgrimage and this first violation marked the general tone of our entire journey. Like I said, a pilgrimage disaster.
The first rule of every pilgrimage is simply that the journey must begin at the door of your own house. Otherwise, you can't really call it a pilgrimage. When a medieval pilgrim decided to walk to Santiago (or was kindly invited to do so by his confessor, to purge his sins), he did not go by carriage to Roncesvalles to begin his journey there. Absolutely not. He would wear espadrilles, take the crosier and leather bag, say goodbye to his family through the sobs of his closest relatives, and would walk however many months necessary to reach his destination (if the bandits, wild animals, cold, hunger or sickness did not significantly shorten the pilgrimage, of course).
We, however, did not have the three months it would have taken to make the entire journey to Rome from our house going by road wearing espandrilles. So, we decided to do the next best thing. Since we couldn't walk out of Spain, we flew to one of the ancient Spains, to leave from there. In other words, we went to Naples. Because Naples and Sicily, oddly enough, were at one time part of Spain. When Philip II's coins had the words Hispaniarum Rex on them, it was an abbreviated way of saying King of Naples, Sicily and many other places. The beautiful city of Naples was one of the jewels of the Spanish crown (or Aragonese) for two and a half centuries, a little less time than Argentina, for example. It is a sign of the sad state of our educational system that almost no one knows that. | Entry #27817 — Discuss 0 — Variant: USuseng
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about to tell you about | Syntax
awkward | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
that wouldn't have broken up my two companions | Mistranslations | Marian Vieyra No agrees/disagrees | |
| Mistranslations
I would think only a bishop would use a crosier, and that the original refers to a walking stick of some sort. | Richard Flight | |
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