I wish....

Question

If I am "wishing" to be somewhere, "I wish I was in Guatemala." Would I use the word "ojala que" or "quisiera". "Ojala que yo estaba en Guatemala." Or "Quisiera estar en Guatemala" is it better to express I wish i was..or I wish to be.
Gracias!

Nice post. You have your profile filled out. A vote from me for all that. We also say in English "I wish I were..." one of the rare noticeable uses of the subjunctive in English. - Jubilado, May 26, 2015

Answer 1

"Ojala que yo estaba en Guatemala." Or "Quisiera estar en Guatemala"

To me:

Ojalá (que) (yo) estuviera en Guatemala = I wish I were in Guatemala

Quisiera estar en Guatemala= I would like to be in Guatemala.

I am an intermediate level learner.

That's my understanding too. - Manity, May 26, 2015

"Anhelo estar en Guatemala" is another variation. "Anhelar" is to S T R O N G L Y desire something. - Daniela2041, May 27, 2015

Answer 2

Quisiera estar en Guatemala...

Looking at how the notion of 'wish you were here' is translated in Spanish memes, it seems that both 'quisiera' and 'ojalá' are used with 'estuvieras', while the Spanish translation of Pink Floyd's album 'Wish You Were Here' is 'Deseo que estuvieras aquí'...

I'm only a beginner :-(

That album is widely known as "Ojalá estuvieras aquí". Saludos! - LuisCache, May 26, 2015

Thee is not a beginner. - Jubilado, May 26, 2015

Thanks! I wasn't even thinking of deseo. - Deannashae, May 27, 2015