Learning a new language (or at least attempting to) is by no means an easy feat. Those of you who have, or indeed can speak more than one language, well, what talented beings you are. I remember taking French as a subject during my first year of high school. I don’t recall whether I was genuinely interested in learning another language, or whether it was compulsory, but I wouldn't mind betting it was the latter. I doubt that my 13-year-old self would've had the patience for such things. To this day, recognising the difference between a baguette and a croissant is probably the extent of my French-based knowledge.
When you plan to embark on a journey to a part of the world where the official language is not your own, it makes sense to take it upon yourself to learn a few basic words and phrases, doesn't it? I quite like the idea of being able to, or at the very least trying to partake in a conversation using the local language. Almost seems rude not to. So, I thought it would be pertinent to take a few lessons in Spanish. Being on a relatively tight budget, however, meant that attending an actual, physical class wasn't entirely feasible. We’re fortunate to live in an age where the opportunity for us to learn a language is at our fingertips, quite literally. We can simply download apps onto our phones and carry a virtual tutor with us wherever we go. The means for us to learn about anything that interests us is so accessible and that’s something I certainly don’t take for granted. I've been challenging myself to pick up my phone for 10-15 minutes each afternoon in an attempt to increase my Spanish vocabulary, fragments at a time, through sessions on an app. It’s been much more difficult to keep up with the routine than I initially thought, but it’s pretty remarkable what your mind is able to recall with consistent practice and patience. Spanish is a beautiful language which I'm sure to tarnish with my haphazard pronunciation. Nevertheless, I will endeavour to keep practicing and use what I've learnt during my travels. Hopefully the experience will encourage me to sign-up for some real classes when I return. With a little persistence, I may eventually become fluent in Spanish. You never know, right?
1 Comment
Alicia
15/5/2016 08:19:52 pm
Hahaha this is golden b
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B is:A 26-year-old tea drinking writer of words trying to find her place in the world.
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