Learn Spanish watching Lingus.tv

Teach children long enough and you quickly realize how age is no indication of maturity. As much as I would love to believe that I have 33 years of wisdom and intelligence to fall back upon, the reality is, is that I’m as awkward and uncoordinated with my thoughts and emotions as any toddler is taking their first steps.

Just need to get my right foot forward. Damn my leg is heavy! Who made my leg so chubby and heavy? Stupid chubby leg! How am I supposed to move this fat stub and balance on this tiny foot at the same time? Breath…Okay..okay..almost there..Yeah! Whoo hoo. One step! Sweet!…Wait..What?!! Now you want me to move the left! No way lady! I’m sitting here and taking a breather. I’m saying “nap time” with the dog and my pacifier is what I’m saying or you’re going see some serious tears.

We cry, scream, hit and occasionally bite when we don’t get our way. We get angry, and take our frustrations out on the one’s we love, and more often, the one’s we don’t love. Rather than smiling and saying thank you to the store attendant, we nod our heads in a sign of acknowledgment but not necessarily with kindness or respect. We rarely move out of our seat for someone who needs it more, claiming that our day was equally as difficult as theirs, nor do we help each other even when help is completely warranted. We do this to protect ourselves from interacting or getting to close.

I say this because I’ve noticed that I’m becoming a little numb to granny needing a seat on the train, little Alvaro wanting to teach me about the cats who live under the bushes lining his apartment building, or the store attendant who asks me for millionth time, “De donde eres?”

Stuck in our 2 bedroom apartment, rarely communicating in Spanish with the outside world, I fear at times that I’ll never master this language, and remain a toddler, communicating with short phrases while repeating the same verb tenses because they are the only ones I know. My fear builds up so profoundly that at times, even when I have the opportunity to write in Spanish, I remain paralyzed for fear that I’ll make an error. This is no way to learn a language, and I feel that maybe Eleena’s suggestions in taking 40 minutes a day to practice a group of vocabulary or a verb tense may not be such a bad idea.

Maybe maturity for me will come in recognizing where to divide my time between work, my relationships with others and my relationship with myself. To understand when to focus on my goals, such as improving my Spanish, and focusing on my future and relationship goals. Maybe my thirties will bring clarity as to how I can continually invite change without feeling barraged with instability. And maybe, just maybe, I’ll be able to take my first fluid steps towards appreciating the daily achievements, rather than remaining focused on lifelong goals.

Here’s to balance!

Gabriella

Gabriella Opaz is co-founder of Catavino.net – a website dedicated to Spanish and Portuguese wine

As an American, I am very used to having people over to my house. On several a Sunday, friends would gather together, bringing their favorite dip, dish or dessert, basking in the warmth and festivities of the group. Glasses could be heard clinking among roars of laughter, or even raucous debates would be bantered over the most recent controversial political faux pas or religious stand. In our home, old friends and new would share their lives, their histories and their feelings with us, regardless of who they were or how long we knew them. For us, our front door had open door policy.

Here in Spain, however, the customs are slightly different. A Spanish home, from an expat point of view, is considered sacred. It is reserved for close friends – which usually refers to the people you’ve known all your life – and extended family. Everyone else is asked to meet in the streets, restaurants, bars and cafes to share their experiences in the open air. Large groups gather comprised of people of all ages, styles and relations to stroll the streets, while stopping here and there for a beer or tapa.

I’ll never forget how bizarre I felt the first time I went out with 12 new friends in the heart of Madrid, not only feeling overwhelmed with the bustling city streets at 12am, but also the overwhelming notion that we travel and socialize in a pack. I was used to one on one conversations, where you sink into a deep philosophical discussion or simply giggle over insignificant stories. But to have a dozen people share stories at once, most of whom have known each other since grade school, took a bit of getting used to.

Yeah, I’ll admit that there are many times when I miss being over to a new friend’s home to have dinner, or simply share a drink. Equally true, I miss having the liberty of having people over to home, other than expats like us, but I’ve learned to accept what I cannot change.

When moving to a new culture, there are always these little hurdles we need to overcome. Whether it’s hanging clothes on the line to dry, losing your electricity for a week, or my inability to touch fruit with my bare hands in the fruit stand, we all need to learn how to go with the flow. Things can’t always remain the same, and the best we can do for both our psyche and emotions is to enjoy the ride, appreciating and respecting the culture around us. Not always easy when your native culture feel so natural, but a goal worthy of achieving.

Saludos,

Gabriella

1. I Can’t Learn a Second Language because I don’t Live in Spain

I will be the first to admit that your chances of learning, comprehending and utilizing a second language increase 10 fold if you live in the country for which your target language is spoken, but that should never stop you from at least trying. We are not victims of our surroundings. I retook first level Spanish three times in the USA, in hopes of understanding it, but I learned that for me, without context and practice, it was difficult for me to learn. So I picked up a book in another language, watched videos with the subtitles active, and when I was very motivated, I volunteered as a TEFL teacher in return for Spanish lessons. It was a lovely little intercambio!

2. I’m too Old to Learn a Second Language

There is nothing that astounds me more than hearing someone throw out this illogical excuse – although I’ve done it myself more than once. There is absolutely no proof that I am incapable  of learning a second language after a certain age.? Now, there is no argument that the process of becoming proficient will take longer at 32 or 82 yeas of age than if I’m at the young, impressionable age of 2 to 5, but it is not impossible. It only requires me to have a bit more faith and patience in myself, and the world around me.

3. I don’t have a Good Ear (más…)

It’s been three years and seven months since I’ve moved to Spain. Approximately 1277 days of excitement, confusion, bewilderment, frustration and beauty, a true life altering experience I wish upon everyone with a desire for growth and change. But let’s be clear, this is not an experience for the weak hearted or the close minded. To pick up your entire life at 30 and move 4,527 miles away from friends and family takes commitment, a bit of courage, and a ridiculous amount of stupidity.

My husband and I lived in the top floor of small duplex just south Minneapolis. I was finishing my masters in education, while he was working in a wine shop he thoroughly loved, but something was missing. We ached to learn about the world, something other than 8 month long political campaigns, restaurant portions that could feed a small African tribe, commercials for over the counter prescriptions and triple shot decaf half skim lattes. We dreamt of moving somewhere where life was simple, and where one’s focus was on the community and the culture, rather than consumerism.

For approximately six months, we chatted about where we needed to go, and how we would afford to get there. But eventually we realized that excuses come easy and commitment is much more difficult. We didn’t want to lie on our death beds and say, “If only we…” So we did the unimaginable, we chose a country in Western Europe and booked a ticket for three months from that day. (más…)