How to speak Colombian Costeño (Coastal) Slang!

When I arrived in Barranquilla with what a fairly decent grasp on the Spanish language - a degree in Modern Languages does normally help a bit - I was expecting to be generally OK. I might have to learn a bit of the local lingo, perhaps. and get used to the accent, but these things are easily overcome. Also, in Colombia they speak the clearest Spanish in the world, right? Not quite. This may be apparently true of Bogota, but on the coast - as I was soon to discover - there is a strong local dialect, a very heavy accent and a heck of a lot of words that they don't even use in other parts of the country, let alone on the other side of the world! Since the moment I realised this, I have been compiling a list of my favourite terms: some because they are in common use, some are helpful to know, and some because they are just quite funny. I don't claim to have a list of every word, or the proper definition, I've just done the best I can with the 10 months experience I had and asking a few friends. Please add any suggestions for extra words/changes in the comments below :)

COSTEÑOL	LITERAL  TRANSLATION	MEANING
Ajá	Aha	Aha/oh really/I don’t believe you/I understand/you’re totally right/That’s utter rubbish (it’s quite multi-functional)
A la orden	At your command	At your service
Bacano		Cool
Brother/Cuadro/Pana	Brother/Square/corduroy	Mate/Dude
Cachaco	Anyone from the interior of Colombia	What people from the coast call people from Bogotá
Caribe	Caribbean	Expensive
Camello	Camel	Work
Cancelar	To cancel	To pay (rather confusingly)
Chévere		Cool
Chincharrón	Pork rind	Problem
Chino	Chinese person	Asian person
Cógela suave		Take it easy
Corroncho	Chav/Redneck	What people from Bogotá call people from the coast
Cule		Loads
Curramba		Barranquilla
Dale		OK
Dar papaya	To give papaya	To give a thief an opportunity to rob you, similar to ‘opportunity makes the thief’
Eche		What?!
Espantajopo	Arse Scarer	Hipster
Firme	Firm	OK
Firme como la gelatina	Firm like jelly	Whatever you want it to mean
Flaca/gorda/negra	Skinny girl/fat girl/ black girl	Dear/honey/baby – all terms of endearment, believe it or not!
Frías	Cold ones	Beers
Fuera como la guayabera	Out like the Hawaiian shirt	Left out
Full	Full	Very
Gringo	U.S. citizen	White person
Guaro		Colombians’ spirit of choice, aguardiente.
Guayabo		Hangover
Hacerse bolas	To make balls for yourself	To be confused
-ico/-ica eg. galleta/galletica		Diminutive form, used on everything! eg. biscuit/little biscuit
Mamando gallo	Breastfeeding from a chicken	Messing around/making fun of someone
Mami/Papi	Mummy/Daddy	Any female/male person (including your children/partner)
Man	Man	Man
Marica	Gay man	Mate/Dude
Me vale huevo	It is worth egg to me	I don’t care
Mi alma/corazón/vida/reina	My soul/heart/life/queen	My love (also used for strangers)
Mover el bote	To move the tin can	To dance
Muñeca	Doll	Babe/honey
La ñapa		The extra bit you ask for when you buy things in the street e.g. a top up on your juice cup
Naranjas	Oranges	Nothing
¡¡Nojoda!!	Don’t fuck with me!	You’re kidding!
Pagó	Paid	OK/Let’s do it
Pava	Female turkey	Boring
Pelá/Pelao		Child
Picó	Pickup	MASSIVE speaker system!
Pillar eg. ‘¡Nos  pillamos allí!’	To catch	To see eg. ‘See you there!’
Pupy	Puppy	Posh/snobby
¿Qué más?	What else?	What’s up?
Relájate como la carne	Relax like meat	Chill!
Translento	Translow	Referring to the (not very speedy) Transmetro bus system
Tres quince	Three fifteen	Happily tipsy
Tronco	Trunk	Loads
Vaina		Thing (VERY useful word!)
Verga/mondá	Penis	Pretty much anything
Vieja/viejo	Old one	Affectionate term for Mum/Dad/Grandparent/Partner
Zanahoria	Carrot	A boring person
Zapatear a alguien	To shoe someone	To stand someone up