The Accidental Interpreter

interpreter

This picture was taken in Brasilia, on Tuesday, March 17, 1992. It shows the exact moment when I became an interpreter. The gentleman in a light suit is congressman Ibsen Pinheiro. Sitting diagonally from him is His Royal Highness Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh. I am the young guy in the middle. Yup. The one […]

Oh, Yes. I’m the Great Pretender

As it turns out, Mr. Jorge Castañeda speaks impeccable English. Yet, after admitting to having spent years “interpreting other people’s bad jokes”, and promising he would do his best not to tell any of his own, he went on to indicate matter-of-factly that interpreting was how he paid his way through college. For a second, I found the […]

The Accidental Translator

This book tells the story of how I accidentally became a translator — and soon thereafter an interpreter — 30 years ago. It also testifies to how winding anybody’s professional route is and it drives home an idea best summarized in this quote by John Lennon: “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans” The book was […]