Question for the gringo's on here that have learned spanish:)

[garythfla]

i am starting classes tonight at the local community college to learn some spanish. for you guys that have already learned a alot of spanish what did you think of it as far as difficulty?

one of my biggest suprises when i went to bogota last year was learning that the spanish spoken in colombia isnt quite the same as spanish spoken in mexico or other south american countries (at least thats what all the colombianos that i know told me).

[Fuzzyone]

i am starting classes tonight at the local community college to learn some spanish. for you guys that have already learned a alot of spanish what did you think of it as far as difficulty?

one of my biggest suprises when i went to bogota last year was learning that the spanish spoken in colombia isnt quite the same as spanish spoken in mexico or other south american countries (at least thats what all the colombianos that i know told me).

   I have been told the same thing by Colombians that their spanish is very good compared to other countries in Latin America. Just keep going to school, it will help you alot also if you find someone who already speaks spanish to start having little talks with. They will open your eyes up to little things that you might not understand.

[bundy_138]

My experience with Spanish.......pronunciation.  If you cannot say the words correctly, you wont get it right.  Learn how to say each letter of the alphabet correctly and you should have no problem. 

It doesn't matter how many classes you take, if you do not speak the language everyday or totally immerse yourself in it, you will forget quickly.

Bundy

[papi]

i am starting classes tonight at the local community college to learn some spanish. for you guys that have already learned a alot of spanish what did you think of it as far as difficulty?

i would not say it is easy yet many words are similar to English. It is like putting a puzzle together. Going to class is a great way to get started. Consider chatting online with a dictionary.

one of my biggest suprises when i went to bogota last year was learning that the spanish spoken in colombia isnt quite the same as spanish spoken in mexico or other south american countries (at least thats what all the colombianos that i know told me).

colombians speak very nice spanish but it is going to vary by individual. I have a friend in panama who does not speak english but he has the voice of a singer and speaks spanish beautifully. I understand him perfectly. At the same time, i have met folks in colombia who mumble. Depends on the person. i understand the mexicans but had trouble with understanding the cubans in miami. Taxis are sometimes difficult to understand in colombia

[garythfla]

fortunately, the woman i work with is from Ecuador and she has already offered to help me, I also live in a town that has a large spanish population.

I also have the DishLatino package from DishNetwork and I have picked up quite a bit from that, i bought this package because i thought it would be a good way to immerse myself in the language somewhat and also because I like watching Futbol Colombiano.....Go Millo's:) (this package has GolTV and also a Colombian tv station in addition to a bunch of others).

The guys on GolTV talk really fast and I jave noticed that I am beginning to pick up indivudual words better even when they are talking super fast (although i dont know what the words mean a lot of times,lol).

[papi]

here are some suggestions

1. go to class
2. practice with folks who don't speak English
3. watch TV, music
4. read subtitles, both either in spanish or English (listen in spanish and read the English or vice versa)
5. put a dictionary on the crapper
6. chat online
7. listen to spanish lessons on CD (the least effective for me but some guys swear by it)
8. travel to spanish countries
9. read signs, pamphlets, pick up the newspaper
10. and my favorito...ask questions in the cama...como se dice eso? y eso?...jeje 

[Kiltboy1]

I never have taken a Spanish class in my life , so i cannot help you with that regard, but my Spanish is very good and Colombians tell me that my pronunciation is really good. Emerson is the way i learned and for the most part  Emerson in Colombia. Mexican Spanish may be about the worse grammatical you can find , There Spanish is horrible. I would suggest using the SAP on your TV and watching some Spanish programing  and look at the English translation as it comes across the screen. I have not spoken to many people that had much success in taking Spanish classes, but have had greater success listening to classes on CD like Pilmsler or something because you hear the better dialects. If your Spanish teacher is American or from Mexico, you are going to be behind the  8 ball already. Get the Cd's and the Spanish TV programming and then go and immerse yourself in a country you like. My fiancee is from Ecuador and there dialect and wording is very different then Colombians. The Ecuadorian Spanish is similar to Chile or Peru or sometimes Argentina, grammatically they are very good, but with a more Italian accent as compared to Colombians who are the "SPEEDY GONZALES" OF LATIN SPEAKERS" IF YOU CAN RAP WITH A COLOMBIAN, YOU CAN RAP WITH ANYONE !

Good luck and keep us posted on your progress


KB

[garythfla]

Pimsleur is real good, I have their Russian course(all three levels) on CD and I havent listened to it in a year and I can still understand alot of Russian when i hear it. Reading and writing russian is another matter,lol.

The bad thing about Pimsleur is that they are so dang expensive. I lucked out and had a friend that had the Russian course and he let me have it. It was something like 200 or 300 new and at the time the lowest one on ebay was like 170 i think. thats for one level not all three levels,lol.

I may poke around for the Pimsleur Spanish and see if I can find a good deal since (in my opinion) they are really good. the only problem with me is that i hate to take money out of my "colombia" account and spend 350 on pimsleur spanish 1,2, and 3 (i just looked on amazon, $350 is for all three spanish levels.....used).

[soltero]

i am starting classes tonight at the local community college to learn some spanish. for you guys that have already learned a alot of spanish what did you think of it as far as difficulty?

one of my biggest suprises when i went to bogota last year was learning that the spanish spoken in colombia isnt quite the same as spanish spoken in mexico or other south american countries (at least thats what all the colombianos that i know told me).

There are going to be differences that vary per country in the same manner that different American cities have different accents and mannerisms when speaking along with local dialect and slang. I took Spanish in highschool some 20 odd years ago, and found that the Spanish taught in most courses helps as far as learning tenses and grammar, but fall way short on being able to "fit in", as they invariably teach Castilan, which is 600 years old. For example, I remember the word for "pen" (as in ink pen) was "pluma" (which is "feather"). If you say pluma to someone nowadays referring to a pen, they will look at you sideways.

The best thing about learning in a class besides grammar and tense would be that you can recognize words much better when written. Many hispanics that I have met in my travels do not write well, as I guess they don't have much need for it unless job related. The Cliff Notes to writing Spanish is that it writes the same way it sounds.

Personally, I have found the best way to learn a foreign language is to get a book (or take a class), learn the grammer and verb tense, and then as soon as possible, get out and start speaking it as much as you can. Find stores or areas in your city that will give you the opportunity to practice. Don't worry about looking stupid as you are trying to learn, and everyone has to start somewhere. Most people will be happy to help you, although you will find those that enjoy the fact that they have a "secret" way to communicate around gringos and don't want to share.

If you can, find people you work with who speak the language and only speak to them in Spanish. Also, if you work in a corporate environment and work late, oftentimes the cleanup crew will help out. There was one chica that would help me with Spanish while I helped her with her English every night when I was working and she would come by cleaning up. I was also able to pick up conversational Korean this way.

After you understand the basics, immersion is the best way to go, IMHO.

[Malandro]

the best way to learn Spanish is to invest in a long-haired dictionary.

[papi]

or join the peace corps 

[soltero]

the best way to learn Spanish is to invest in a long-haired dictionary.

I like that suggestion! I hope that dictionary comes with oral lesson plans and various lingual study levels.

[John W]

Gary:

Here is a link to a site that claims to have a Pimsleur "buy back" program: 

http://ultimatelanguagestore.com/spanish_pimsleur_products?b=1

You buy any level for $182 and they will buy it back for $120.  If you download it to your Ipod, you can get the whole set for $186.  Also, the Mastering Spanish series level I & II on amazon only runs about $60 for each level.  I think this series is even better than Pimsleur and this program comes with a book, which I think is very helpful.  I have not order from the Pimsleur "buy back" site, but have bought Mastering Spanish I & II through amazon.  I think audio programs are essential.  If you take a college class you will mostly improve your reading and writing from your classroom and study time.  Adding an audio program to your studies will help immensely.  Good luck.

[rpcv]

or join the peace corps 

Exactly! Back before I was a volunteer, I had hoped for a post in Colombia until I learned they stopped the program there in the 70's.

I think listening to Spanish on the radio is helpful and so is the Rosetta Stone cds. You can get them on Ebay for less $$.

[el_ruso]

Language is an action rather than a theory.  You can't learn driving by reading a book about it, although you can get some ideas from it.

I would suggest taking basic classes or even getting a grammar book if your knowledge is absolute 0.  After that you have to make effort to practice.  The more you practice, the more you learn and better you speak.  don't worry if you don't speak perfect - just make an effort and you will improve.  You can take millions of classes, but if you don't put time and effort into practicing it, you will forget everything and will not be able to speak it.

A good way to learn vocabulary after you have learned basics and the grammar is to buy the same book in English and Spanish.  This way you can learn words in context, and it will be easier to learn them.  Try to make a sentence with a new word to make it easier to memorize it as well.

Good Luck

[el_ruso]

spanish varies a great deal from country to country, or even between parts of the same country.  For example English spoken in NYC, Fort Worth, London, Scotland, Jamaica and Australia will be quite different.

The older and more educated the speaker, generally the easier it will be to understand him.  The clearest and easiest to understand Spanish I have heard is in Mexico and Ecuador.  Spanish in bogota is clear, but very fast.  The hardest to understand are the folks in the Caribbean, especially from Puerto Rico.  And the "prettiest" is the Argentian accent, it's kinda melodic.

[papi]

Exactly! Back before I was a volunteer, I had hoped for a post in Colombia until I learned they stopped the program there in the 70's. Cry

actually, that is how Mal learned it...thus my comment. i think he is rather fluent

[garythfla]

i just got back from my first class a couple of hours ago and you guys arent going to believe this......my teacher ia a colombiana from bogota,LOL.

she's an older lady that married an american guy that was working in colombia for one of the oil companies...texaco i think.

[papi]

that is a risky job...did you tell her about the planet??

[michaelb]

Every Spanish speaking country speaks the "best" Spanish and those others are just a bunch of uneducated yokels....just ask any of them. But seriously, in my opinion anyway, Mexicans are the easiest to understand (Could be because I've had the most experience with them? But they really do speak slower and clearer than most others) Costa Ricans are fairly easy to understand (even if they can't pronounce the name of their own country. Why do you think they call them 'Ticas'?). Colombians are fairly easy (but not as easy as Mexicans or Ticas). Guatemalas sound almost exactly like southern Mexicans. Cubans are darn near IMPOSSIBLE to understand....only people who can understand a Cuban are Puerto Ricans, and vice versa. Not only does each country have its own accent, they have their own words, like we say 'truck' and Brits say 'lorry', we say 'elevator', Brits say 'lift' etc...Somebody said 'pluma' for pen is wrong (or at least obsolete), well, it's a fine word for pen in Mexico, in Colombia they really will think you're talking about feathers, their word for pen is 'stenografo' (looks a little bit, no, come to think of it, a lot, like our word 'stenographer', doesn't it? Coincidence? No, it isn't, it's a COGNATE)

[utopiacowboy]

My wife and kids always say lápizero for pen.

El_ruso is right. Learning a language is like learning to ride a bicycle or learning to dance. You can't learn it in a book - you've got to do it. For me the best way to learn is in bed.

[P Daddy]

My wife and kids always say lápizero for pen.

That's pretty much the standard word in most of Colombia for a pen...(maybe you REALLY ARE married to a Colombiana UC )

[bundy_138]

The words and phrases I learned in bed are not intended for common conversation!      Now what!?  jajajajaja

Bundy

[utopiacowboy]

The words and phrases I learned in bed are not intended for common conversation!      Now what!?  jajajajaja

Bundy

All I can say is you must not be having the right conversations.

[jediknight]

we use esfero for pen.
jk