Fluent Fiction - Slovak: Overcoming Final Exam Fears: A Week in Bratislava
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Story Transcript:

Sk: V sobotu ráno v Bratislave v malom byte na treťom poschodí, Ján a Zuzana sedeli pri kuchynskom stole.
En: On Saturday morning in Bratislava, in a small apartment on the third floor, Ján and Zuzana were sitting at the kitchen table.

Sk: Boli to študenti, ktorí sa pripravovali na maturitné skúšky.
En: They were students preparing for their final exams.

Sk: Na stole boli učebnice, perá a poznámky.
En: On the table were textbooks, pens, and notes.

Sk: „Zuzana, máme už len týždeň na prípravu,“ povedal Ján s obavou v hlase.
En: “Zuzana, we only have one week left to prepare,” said Ján with concern in his voice.

Sk: „Viem, Ján,“ odpovedala Zuzana, „ale musíme byť pokojní. Spoločne to zvládneme.“
En: “I know, Ján,” responded Zuzana, “but we have to stay calm. We’ll get through this together.”

Sk: Ján sa pozrel z okna.
En: Ján looked out the window.

Sk: „Dnes je krásny deň. Mali by sme študovať vonku.“
En: “It's a beautiful day today. We should study outside.”

Sk: Zuzana sa usmiala.
En: Zuzana smiled.

Sk: „Dobrý nápad, Ján! Poďme do Medickej záhrady.“
En: “Good idea, Ján! Let’s go to Medická Garden.”

Sk: Za malú chvíľu boli študenti v Medickej záhrade.
En: Soon after, the students were in Medická Garden.

Sk: Slnko svietilo, vtáci spievali a vzduch bol svieži.
En: The sun was shining, birds were singing, and the air was fresh.

Sk: Našli si tiché miesto na lavičke pod stromom.
En: They found a quiet spot on a bench under a tree.

Sk: Otvorili učebnice.
En: They opened their textbooks.

Sk: Čítali si nahlas, pýtali sa navzájom otázky a pomáhali si, keď niečo nevedeli.
En: They read aloud, asked each other questions, and helped one another when something was unclear.

Sk: „Ján, čo je podstatné na tejto básni?“ spýtala sa Zuzana.
En: “Ján, what is significant about this poem?” asked Zuzana.

Sk: „Význam je v symbolizme a emóciách,“ odpovedal Ján s úsmevom.
En: “The significance is in the symbolism and emotions,” answered Ján with a smile.

Sk: „Treba to chápať ako obraz našich pocitov.“
En: “You need to understand it as a picture of our feelings.”

Sk: Študovali celé dopoludnie.
En: They studied all morning.

Sk: Obed si dali v blízkom bistre. Potom sa vrátili do záhrady.
En: They had lunch at a nearby bistro and then returned to the garden.

Sk: Po týždni plnom práce prišiel deň maturitných skúšok.
En: After a week full of hard work, the day of the final exams arrived.

Sk: Ján a Zuzana boli nervózni, ale pripravení.
En: Ján and Zuzana were nervous but prepared.

Sk: Pred školou si ešte raz prešli poznámky.
En: Before entering the school, they went over their notes one last time.

Sk: „Zvládneme to,“ povedala Zuzana a silno stisla Jánovu ruku.
En: “We can do this,” said Zuzana, squeezing Ján’s hand tightly.

Sk: Po skúške sa stretli pred školou.
En: After the exam, they met in front of the school.

Sk: „Ako to šlo?“ spýtal sa Ján.
En: “How did it go?” asked Ján.

Sk: „Myslím, že dobre,“ odpovedala Zuzana so smiechom.
En: “I think it went well,” answered Zuzana with laughter.

Sk: „A ty?“
En: “And you?”

Sk: „Tiež,“ usmial sa Ján.
En: “The same,” smiled Ján.

Sk: „Sme šikovní!“
En: “We did great!”

Sk: Na konci dňa sa vrátili do Medickej záhrady, kde si spoločne otvorili knihu a čítali už pre radosť, nie pre učenie.
En: At the end of the day, they returned to Medická Garden, where they opened a book and read together, this time for pleasure, not for studying.

Sk: Slnko pomaly zapadalo a Bratislava sa ponorila do večera.
En: The sun slowly set, and Bratislava sank into the evening.

Sk: Ján a Zuzana si uvedomili, že všetko úsilie stálo za to.
En: Ján and Zuzana realized that all their efforts had been worth it.

Sk: Prešli cez skúšku nie len maturitnú, ale aj životnú.
En: They had passed not only their final exam but also a test of life.


Vocabulary Words:

• apartment: byt
• preparing: pripravovali
• exams: skúšky
• concern: obava
• calm: pokojný
• garden: záhrada
• shining: svietilo
• singing: spievali
• fresh: svieži
• spot: miesto
• bench: lavička
• textbooks: učebnice
• unclear: nevedeli
• significant: podstatné
• symbolism: symbolizmus
• emotions: emócia
• picture: obraz
• feelings: pocitov
• nearby: blízkom
• bistro: bistre
• nervous: nervózni
• notes: poznámky
• squeezing: stisla
• laughing: smiechom
• pleasure: rádosť
• efforts: úsilie
• worth: stálo
• final: maturitná
• exam: maturitná
• test: skúška