Starting to learn a foreign language as an adult can be somewhat difficult, and sometimes boring. Over the years, I've used various methods from books to CDs and have more recently added apps and online courses.
I've always found the early stages of learning a language somewhat frustrating. You mostly just plow through basic vocabulary and grammar.
However, once you've mastered the essentials of a language, continuing to learn becomes much more enjoyable. Things start to click. You begin to see patterns, get grammar points, understand idioms.
You can start reading articles and stories, listen to podcasts, watch videos and movies. In real life, you start having conversations that work.
As I described in a previous post, I am currently learning Dutch (from scratch) with Duolingo, while continuing with my (intermediate) Spanish with a Babbel course. This presents me with an excellent opportunity to look at and compare the two programs.
There are other reviews of both programs. The Economist did one in 2013, which - due to to the improvements of both sites - is already somewhat dated.
Another one by Angel Armstead for Fluent earlier this year, describes well both programs' different approaches, but Fluent's Kerstin Hammes was also quite critical of Duolingo in her subsequent March 2015 post.
Duolingo's Structure
I started Dutch with Duolingo just a few months ago. Also, I had used Duolingo for several months for continuing with my Spanish.
With Duolingo, you follow a nicely laid-out lesson sequence with various categories or topics: Basics, Phrases, Food, Animals, Clothing, Plurals, Possessives, Adjectives, Indefinite & Definite Pronouns, etc.
You do one lesson after another. That means, you can “unlock” the next lesson only after you've completed the previous one.
One way to move faster is to “test out” of all the lessons in a category or topic. That's only possible if you already know the words, of course. (Note that during a test, you “can't peek” at the translation.)
Duolingo's set lesson sequence has several advantages: • Beginners can build up their skills slowly but surely. • Lessons build on each other. Earlier words show up again and again to be recombined.• You don't have to make any choices about what to study until you've finished your “skill tree.”
The Duolingo Method
With the Duolingo system, you learn mostly new words by first correlating them to pictures. Some of the more abstract words, you'll guess from the context of a sentence. If you're not sure, you can always check the translation by tapping/clicking on the English.
New words are the practiced in various ways. For me, it's the variety of tasks which makes the learning engaging. There's plenty of hit or miss involved. But hey, making mistakes is all part of the learning process.
You translate the words you just learned back to English, together with other familiar words. You write what you hear and learn spelling as you do it. You fill in missing words in a sentence, or select the correct translation from three options.
There's also a sort of pronunciation check, which seems to respond more to the cadence and intonation of your voice than to correct pronunciation. (I once used the wrong language but still my voice was accepted.)
A recently added feature to the app asks you to “tap the pairs,” which are simple correlations of English and foreign words.
Early on with Duolingo you could only make 3 mistakes before you had to replay the lesson. But now, both in the app and on the PC, a mistake just sets you back a little. You can continue until you complete 20 items correctly.
At the end of the lesson, you're awarded 10 points and you can then continue to the next one. Once you've completed all the lessons of your “skill tree,” you can go back to any category or topic to “strengthen your skills.” Apparently, you can do this until you've reached Level 25!
My Frustrations with the Nonsense
While I like Duolingo very much, I often get annoyed when I have to learn Dutch words such as “schildpadden” (turtles), “eenden” (ducks), “konijnen” (rabbits) etc., all words that I'm unlikely to use in a conversation in the foreseeable future.
And while the lessons get a little more interesting as your vocabulary expands, the ducks and turtles reappear in different variations. The often nonsensical sentences – try: “the ducks are reading the newspapers” - may sometimes be funny and teach you some grammatical points, but I find them mostly frustrating.
No doubt, the simplicity of the Duolingo approach, with its variety of tasks, keeps you engaged and on your toes. I just wish that the program would replace the random and often nonsensical sentences that I have to read, pronounce, translate, and write, with real-life dialogs or at least with more useful sentences.
Duolingo's Gamification and Metrics
The various “gamification” features of the program do provide some incentive. For example, points are added to your total with each completed lesson, and you receive “lingots” to redeem in the “lingot store.”
I find the daily “streak reminder” to be a good motivator to keep learning. I'm adamant about not breaking my ever growing streak (which currently stands at day 184).
For Spanish, which I did earlier, I see a Fluency Score (currently 47%), based on the 5900 points, and Level 13 completed to date. For Dutch, with 2,625 points and level 10, there is no Fluency level yet.
I think that I'm making progress. I've reached level 10 in Dutch so far and I continue to do 2-3 lessons every day.
Babbel's Structure
Babbel's courses are structured differently from Duolingo's. You see immediately that you're not required to proceed in sequence through all the lessons. At any point, you can choose with which lesson to begin or at what lesson to continue.
In the Spanish program, there are 6 Beginner's Courses (each with 18-22 lessons); 4 Intermediate Courses (with 19-20 lessons each); 6 Grammar Courses (with 12-21 lessons each); and 6 Listening and Speaking Lessons (with 8-10 lessons each). There are also plenty of lessons in other sections such as, Reading and Writing, Countries and Traditions, Specials (where you find such topics as False friends, True Friends, Numbers, Spanish idioms). And, the “Words and Sentences” section covers over 30 different topics.
The Babbel Method
Lesson 1 of the Beginner Course 1, called “¡Mucho gusto!Part 1,” starts with four basics: Hello!, yes, thank you, Bye!
You first hear and see both the English and the Spanish Word and a picture that expresses its meaning. You then find the Spanish translation by spelling each of the words with letters that are provided.
The next step is to practice these four words again, this time as part of a simple dialogue, which includes phrases that you'll learn in the next lesson.
As I already knew some Spanish, I jumped right to the Refresher Course 1 (called, Upper Beginner's Level). The lessons have a similar structure to those in the Beginner's Course. You're taught four words or phrases in each lesson.
At this stage, a basic knowledge of the language is required. Spelling becomes harder, as you have to use the keyboard without any hint of which letters to use. Plus, exercises for word order and specific grammar points are added.
At the end of a Refresher Course lesson, you typically insert the newly-learned Spanish words into phrases that are part of a short dialog or story around a specific topic, e.g. “At the shop,” “Daily Routine,” “Vacation,” “Leisure activities” etc.
Babbel also has a voice recognition feature. But I don't use itvery often because it's hard to get the pronunciation exactly the way it's required.
If you are indeed a beginner, you can choose to follow the sequence of the lessons and move from the “Beginner's Courses,” to the “Refresher Courses” and then on to the “Intermediate (in-depth) courses.”
Babbel's Other Options
After my Refresher Course, I stopped with Spanish for a few weeks, but then started up again. I redid a few previous lessons and tried out some other sections, for example “Other Verb Forms,” such as the “pretérito perfecto.”
I also tried “Countries and Traditions” where I selected “Spanish for Everyday Life.” This section has several short lessons, such as “Ir de compras” (shopping), “En el restaurante” (in the restaurant), etc. These lessons contain a combination of exercises. You complete sentences with missing words followed by vocabulary and word order exercises all related to a specific topic.
The many lessons in “Grammar” (at this time, 92), “Listening and Speaking” (46), “Countries and Traditions” (53), and the over 500 lessons in the sections “Specials” and “Word and Sentences” give learners loads of options.
Besides, you can review the vocabulary covered in the lessons at any time, either with Flashcards of by writing or speaking them. (in the case of my Refresher Course, these were mostly sentences.)
Babbel's Gamification and Metrics
Babbel's gamification features are straightforward. There are no badges or “lingots” as with Duolingo. You have a progress bar at the top, and your score pops up at the end of the lesson, let's say, 22 out of 29.
You have the option to review and correct the errors you made. Even if you do, the guilty sentences get added to your personal vocabulary list. You can review them then at you leisure.
In the app and on the PC you can see the current total count of the vocabulary list and the count of those still to review. (On the PC you can also see how many times you reviewed each.) It's a good way to keep track of what you're learning.
Duolingo and Babbel: A Comparison
I like the simplicity of the Duolingo approach. However, I keep getting annoyed that new words often appear and are recombined in random, unrelated, nonsensical sentences.
In contrast, new words with Babbel are typically taught as part of a useful dialogue or short scenario. The words make sense in the context in which they are set and this helps me to remember many phrases and sentences.
Once you've become familiar with the Duolingo system, you know exactly what to expect.
You also know that you'll be using quite a bit of English when you translate from the foreign language. If you type or spell quickly, you can be penalized for typos in English.
For each lesson, Babbel typically introduces +/-4 new words, which you then practice. Once you've learned the words, you'll hear them as part of a dialog or brief story and write them into the provided blank spaces. You always hear the full sentence that includes the new word(s).
Most importantly, in Babbel there is no writing or spelling in English.
Both courses don't require you to use the accents (for accented letters). Duolingo allows slight misspellings of foreign words, while Babbel only accepts correct spellings.
Both Duolingo and Babbel give you the correct answer after you've made a wrong entry and both tell you where you've made the mistake.
Duolingo allows you to set goals for yourself, ranging from the “casual” learner with 10 points or 1 lesson per day, to the “insane” with 50 points or 5 lessons per day. Such daily reminders to maintain one's streak have been a good incentive for me!
There are no specific goals or targets with Babbel, but you can ask for daily reminders in Settings.
Final Thoughts
A daily Dulingo lesson or two can easily become a daily habit, especially if you care about not breaking your learning streak. Once you get going with Babbel - and pay attention to the daily reminder - the same can happen.
My frustrations with Duolingo - its nonsensical sentences, words I could do without, and lots of English sentences to type - these I don't experience with Babbel.
In fact, I like Babbel's dialogues. I enjoy the little scenes that incorporate the new words, the many Spanish sentences you hear and read, especially when you are reviewing your mistakes again.
Its many lessons, topic categories, and options make it an excellent course for learning a language.
Still, Duolingo's simplicity, also the fact that it's completely free for unlimited time, makes it a compelling choice for many learners. They may also overlook some of its shortcomings as I do.
No question, I'm continuing with Dutch on Duolingo for now, but may still subscribe to Babbel's Dutch course. I've got a Dutch family reunion to go to in the fall.Disclosure: Gamesforlanguage.com has no business relationship with Babbel.com other than for its founders having purchased a 1-year subscription to the Spanish course and a 3-month subscription to the Dutch course. No business relationship exists either with Duolingo, except GamesforLanguage's founders are learning several languages with its free courses. See our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use for further details.
An article in the New York Times (May 16, 2015) by David Kohn Let Kids Learn Through Play pointed out that formal didactic instruction of young children should be reconsidered. He writes:
“A growing group of scientists, education researchers and educators say there is little evidence that this approach improves long-term achievement; in fact, it may have the opposite effect, potentially slowing emotional and cognitive development, causing unnecessary stress and perhaps even souring kids’ desire to learn.”
But kids love to play, in fact most, if not all their learning in the early years occurs during play. So we wonder whether “educational” games - including those on tablets and smart phones – are not a way for kids to still learn, but let them do so through self-directed play.
These games combine playing and educational topics from geography, math, spelling, science, to native and foreign languages.
WHY LANGUAGE GAMES WORK FOR KIDS
There are numerous audio, video, and other “toy based” games and apps, which children play in their native language. With these, they enhance word recognition, pronunciation, spelling, and writing, etc. And they don't have to be on a laptop or tablet either.
There are blocks with numbers or letters; there are playing cards and board games; and there are more and more battery operated toys that combine colors, movements, music, and language sounds into interactive learning centers for young children.
Kids play native or even foreign language games - not because it helps them to better communicate with their parents, siblings, and peers - but because they provide interactive fun.
Kids' language games teach basic vocabulary, often with funny pictures, cute sound effects, and “rewards” for getting it right. They feature droll or adorable characters, catchy music, bright colors, and require the young player to swipe, click, or move a word or image in order to progress.
“BRAIN GAMES” for Adults?
Games and play are not just for kids, though. Adults also learn well with games. Just think of scrabble, a game that challenges adult and children.
A well-established segment is the field of Brain Training and there are plenty of brain games/apps available.A few years ago Nintendo DS developed a series of Brain Age Games but they did not seem to catch on.
But since then, Lumosity has surged to becoming the dominant online brain game presence. There's also research being done in the area of cognitive improvement, especially related to the effect of video games on the brains of older adults. (See our blog post on Language Learning and Memory)
FOREIGN LANGUAGE GAMES for Adults?
In 2007 Nintendo DS started a series of language games (My Spanish Coach, My Japanese Coach, My French Coach, etc.) and again these did not appear to be very successful. Around the same time, Craig Gibson launched Digital Dialects, a website with simple, animated games for learning vocabulary in 30+ languages (at that time).
Also then, Word Dive, a vocabulary/spelling game appeared on the scene. Mindsnacks with its language learning app for learning and practicing vocabulary appeared in 2010 and added gamification (rewards, badges, etc.) and humor to its games.
When in 2012, Duolingo, a gamified “crowd-sourced text-translation platform” (Wikipedia) took the Internet by storm, it became clear that language learning games for adults are here to stay.
Sites that use games just for vocabulary acquisition come in various guises and continue to be popular. Word Bucket (2013) lets you save words in your “bucket” and the learn and play them in a word-playing game.
We recently discovered and like an interactive iPhone app called Drops (2015), a colorful “timed repetition” game, you can also play on an iPad.
An interesting and different site for learning vocabulary is Influent (2011), which is a “3D Language Learning Video Game” that you need to download. Once inside the game, you click/tap on objects to hear and see what they are, learn to say them and create a gamified list to further learn them.
And, many online language programs, such as Transparent Language and Babble, and language learning communities such as Busuu, Mango Languages, and Rosetta Stone's Live Mocha are now adding various language games to their lessons.
WHY LANGUAGE GAMES WORK FOR ADULTS
As language games for adults become more numerous and go mainstream, they join the “learning revolution,” which Markus Witte (Founder and CEO of the language learning site Babbel) talks about in this Wire Magazine post: The Learning Revolution: It’s Not About Education.
In his words: “A new trend is initiated by a whole new breed of learning technology start-ups that set out to make learning easier for everybody.” Why not jump on this trend and play a few language games?!
In contrast to children, adults typically do have a specific plan or need for the language they are learning (be it for work, travel, friendship, personal satisfaction, etc.).
Moreover, adults not only have to develop the discipline and learning habits to keep going in the midst of their many other commitments and time constraints, but they also have to find ways to stay motivated.
Games can therefore be an effective addition to any language learning program, especially because they are interactive and fun. Being engaged while learning can be a powerful boost to a learner's motivation.
Because of their interactive nature, games are very versatile. They can easily combine humor and serious learning. (Think of the Duolingo Owl, or the Rhinos of the Mindsnacks games.) Plus, games are nonlinear and dynamic, features which help in the acquisition of language as a complex tool for communication.
When learners make a mistake or need to figure out a grammar point, they can easily replay a segment and get immediate feedback. Games can also interweave a story line - which provides context - with vocabulary and grammar practice, while keeping the learner interactively engaged (a main feature of Gamesforlanguage). Moreover, by involving multiple senses - visual, auditory, and touch - games stimulate association and sharpen memory.
Last but not least, games are relaxing because they are fun and engaging. And who would not want to learn in such a way?
A Word of Caution
As wonderful as gamified online courses and apps are for learning and staying engaged, they are also unlikely to get you to become fully fluent in a foreign language: For that, you have to start speaking and have conversations in the foreign language.
Maybe in the not-too-distant future you can have such conversations with your PC, tablet or smart phone. But until then, your best bet is to find real-life conversation partners. If these are hard to locate for the language you are learning, start speaking online with language exchange partners. Your speaking skills will greatly benefit!
Going to Paris? Cool! And even better if you learn a few useful phrases ahead of time.
They will immediately set you apart from those many hardy monolinguals that swarm through Paris every year. (Entrance to the Louvre, left)
A willingness to learn the local language transforms you into a much more welcome tourist - even if you've only been able to master such pleasantries as "bonjour" (hello), "merci" (thank you), "pardon" (excuse me), "de rien" (you're welcome), "pas de problème" (no problem), "au revoir" (goodbye). Besides, you'll enjoy the experience more.
For more complicated phrases, having a phrase book handy can by helpful. The booklet will back you up when you're asking for directions, ordering in a restaurant, buying a subway ticket, inquiring about opening times, etc.
And, if you're ambitious and motivated, you can learn the phrases by heart. Plus, if you're also learning online, you can practicethem by mimicking a native speaker and/or getting pronunciation feedback.
Now, if you're an even more advanced learner, just think: Once in Paris, you'll have free immersion and unlimited chances to practice with native speakers!
But, no matter what stage of learning you're at - here are my top 5 phrases to say or use when exploring Paris. They go right to the heart of what makes Paris so hugely enjoyable.
1. Faire une petite promenade (to go for a little walk)
The best way to explore Paris is on foot. Walking through different neighborhoods lets you experience the cityand its people in a very direct way. Sounds, colors, textures, smells - all converge together to draw you into the moment.
My husband and I have always enjoyed strolling through the Jardin du Luxembourg (see picture, right), a spot where Parisians also love to hang out.
People sit and chat or read their newspaper on one
of the benches lining the paths. Children launch a toy sailboat on "le Grand Bassin" (the large pond). Students sit on the grass to talk, flirt, or do homework.
There are tennis courts, places to play basketball and volleyball, there's a corner for chess, and an area for boule players. There's also a large children's playground for kids 7-12, which charges a small entrance fee.
A wonderful neighborhood to explore is the district of le Marais (the Marsh). Historically the Jewish district, it has more recently become a trendy quartier with lively bars and restaurants, colorful markets, and funky small shops.
Le Marais spreads across the 3rd and 4th arrondissements, and a walking tour (on your own or with a group) will take you past posh aristocratic houses, small alleys, the incomparable Place de Vosges, trendy boutiques, great museums, and much more.
2. Louer un vélo (to rent a bike)
Exploring Paris by bicycle has a different charm and you can cover more terrain that way. Paris is generally a friendly city for cyclists, but you're still dealing with big city traffic. There are bike paths everywhere and plenty of opportunities to rent, either from bike rental shops, or (by credit card) at one of the Paris Vélib stations (see picture, right). Vélib is a large-scale public bike-sharing system.
We rented a bike twice at a Vélib station. But rather than riding in the city itself - we like to walk, and are also a little scared of the Paris traffic - we chose two destinations on the outskirts.
Our first ride was in the vast public park, Bois de Boulogne, located on the western side of Paris, on the border of the 16th arrondissement. To get there, we took the Métro to Port d'Auteuil and easily found a Vélib station nearby.
Formerly the hunting grounds for the Kings of France, the park has - with its woods, small lakes, picnic grounds, and nature paths - 15 km of bike trails on which we rode to our heart's content.
Another place we targeted was Château de Vincennes, situated on the eastern edge of Paris, in the 12th arrondissement. We went by Métro to the stop "Chateau de Vincennes."
On a bike from the Vélib station nearby, we crossed over to the Bois de Vincennes, a park that matches the Bois de Boulogne in size and beauty. With its four lakes, arboretum, botanical garden, and delightful Temple d'Amour, the park gave us another chance to experience the great Paris outdoors (picture, left).
To round off our adventure, we took a quick tour of the castle itself, a former residence of the Kings of France.
There we got our history fix of the day and learned that several well-known figures, such as the philosopher Denis Diderot and the notorious Marquis de Sade, had been incarcerated in the castle's dungeon.
3. Quelle vue magnifique! (what a Great view!)
With the limited building heights of the inner city, there are great views of the city from several choice locations.
Whether you're up on the Tour Eiffel, the Tour Montparnasse, Notre Dame Cathedral, on the steps of the Basilique du Sacré-Coeur, or just on the Esplanade du Trocadéro, you're in for a visual treat.
We've enjoyed each one of these vistas. Still, we think the Esplanade du Trocadéro holds a particular charm.
It's a large platform located on the summit of the Colline de Chaillot, across the Seine from the Eiffel Tower, and even just the view it affords is worth a visit. (See picture, right)
But there's more. The whole area is full of fun and energy. Leading down from the Trocadéro towards the Seine are the lovely Jardins du Trocadéro.
On the greens people sit and socialize. Children play ball or splash around at the cascading fountains. There's always something fun going on. When we were there, we watched an amazing skateboard slalom.
The skyscrapers that you can see from the Arc de Triomphe are located at the other end of the monumental "Axe Historique." They form part of La Défense, an important business district. From the top of La Défense's Grande Arche (which housed the currently closed Computer Museum) we had a different, spectacular view of the city.
4. Prendre l'apéritif (to have an aperitif)
In the early evening when life slows down, it's a perfect time for a glass of wine at a sidewalk café and for doing some people watching.
If you pick a café that's off the beaten tourist track, you'll also hear French spoken around you. You can take your time for this important activity because dinner in Paris usually doesn't start till around 8 or 8:30.
Paris has no shortage of such cafés or bistros, wherever you may be staying.
However, a visit to Paris may not be complete without an apéritif or even lunch at Les Deux Magots on the Place Saint-Germain-des-Prés. (See picture, left) Popularwith tourists and locals alike because it was a favorite haunt of writers and artists such as Hemingway, Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, Camus, Picasso, Joyce, Brecht, Verlaine, Malraux, Rimbaud, the café-restaurant Les Deux Magots is also known for its present literary activity:
Every year the café awards the Prix des Deux Magots for a new French novel, usually one that is off-beat or unconventional, and which may not be considered for the more traditional Prix Goncourt.
5. Faire une croisière (To take a boat cruise)
A river cruise on the Seine is not to be missed. The routes of the various boat companies are similar and most offer day and evening cruises.
What makes a Paris cruise so special is that the Seine flows through the heart of the city. The river touches on 10 of the 20 arrondissements and is lined by many great buildings and monuments. We enjoyed a day cruise on a sunny day, as the boat slowly made its grand loop and we listened to amusing historic facts and anecdotes. (See picture right with a view of the Notre Dame)
At the far end of the "rive gauche" (left bank) you'll pass by the four sleek towers of La Bibliothèque François Mitterand (an expansion of the National Library). You'll probably wonder about the politics that allowed the towers (as well as the Tour Montparnasse) to exceed the inner city's building height limits by quite a bit.
During an evening (dinner) cruise with good friends, we were vowed by the beauty of the City of Light. In my mind's eye, I still see the illuminated Eiffel Tower, as it sparkled through its gold covering.
When you're exploring Paris yourself, there surely will be other French phrases that you'll love. So don't wait, start brushing up your French and make your Paris experience a memorable one.
Bio: Ulrike Rettig is the co-founder of GamesforLanguage.com. She is a lifelong language learner, growing up in Austria, the Netherlands, and Canada. You can follow her travel memories on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and leave any comments with contact or below.
Traveling to a German-speaking country? And you don't speak much German?
It's always good to have a few basic words and expressions on hand. In most German travel guides you'll find the translations for greetings, please, thank you, where is the bathroom, etc.
Learning a few of these makes interactions friendly. They can also help you out in a pinch. Knowing the basic German numbers can be especially helpful.
We found out how useful it was to know numbers in the local language when we traveled to China and Japan. We had little opportunity to use many of the Chinese and Japanese words and phrases we had learned. However, knowing the numbers proved very useful for bargaining and buying at the markets. (This was also the case in Italy - as we describe in this post about Italian Numbers.)
Numbers also came in handy when shopping in small stores or paying the bill in restaurants.
Most numbers you'll see are in digital form. You'll rarely need to spell them. But you do need to understand them when they're spoken. And to learn them, it helps to see them written out.
German Numbers 1-19
German numbers from 1 to 12 resemble the English. They have a similar sound, even though the spelling may be different. For most English speakers, they are not difficult to learn and remember. "eins" (one) “zwei” (two) “drei” (three) “vier” (four) "fünf" (five) "sechs" (six) "sieben" (seven) "acht" (eight) "neun" (nine) "zehn" (ten) “elf” (eleven) “zwölf” (twelve)
German numbers from 13 to 19 use the same model as in English. They combine (and in some cases also shorten) the lower numbers with the suffix “zehn” (teen). So you have:
In this Quick German Numbers Game to the right, you can practice these easy German numbers from 1-20:
Counting by Tens: 20, 30, 40, etc.
The German numbers between 20 and 90 that end in a zero follow the same pattern as in English: by adding the suffix “-zig” (in English “-ty”) to a form of the numbers 2 to 9. (Note the slight irregularities below for 20, 20, 60, and 70.)
Note: • 20 ("zwanzig"), which uses only the first two letters of "zwei" • 30 (“drei-ßig”) which uses the suffix “-ßig” (spoken “-ssig”) • 60 (sechzig) drops the "s" of "sechs" • 70 ("siebzig") cuts the "en" of "sieben".
Note also a regional variation with these numbers: • In northern Germany and standard German, the ending of these numbers has a “ch” sound: as in “zwanzich.” • More to the south, including in Bavaria and Austria, you'll hear the ending “zik,” as in “zwanzik."
German Numbers 21-99
The numbers beyond 21 that don't end in a zero - although regular and straightforward - can be confusing to English speakers as they deviate from the English model. The German for “twenty-one” is “einundzwanzig” (literally, oneandtwenty).
This turned-around structure in German is consistent: • "einundzwanzig" (twenty-one) • "zweiunddreißig" (thirty-two) • "dreiundvierzig" (forty-three) • "vierundfünfzig" (fifty-four) • "fünfundsechzig" (sixty-five) • "sechsundsiebzig" (seventy-six) • "siebendundachtzig" (eighty-seven) • "achtundneunzig" (ninety-eight)
It takes some getting used to that “fünfundvierzig” means “forty-five” and that “vierundfünfzig” is “fifty-four.”
Not to forget that we think of numbers mostly as digits. So, when you hear “fünfundvierzig” you have to think 45, and when you hear “vierundfünfzig” you need to think 54.
Mastering numbers well enough so that you can easily pay at a market, understand an address, or take down a telephone number can indeed be a challenge.
Telephone Numbers
In German, telephone numbers are normally given as a series of two-digit numbers (and if need be, with a three-digit number at the end). This can be especially annoying when a German tells you a telephone number that you want to write down.
For the number 32 57 42 86 91, you'll hear zweiunddreißig-siebenundfünfzig-zweiundvierzig-sechsundachtzig-einundneunzig.
To avoid confusion you are better off asking for each digit separately. This translates as: “Kannst du - (or formal) Können Sie - bitte die Ziffern einzeln sagen?”
German Numbers from 100-10,000
The numbers from 101 to 1999 are closer to the English model, except that in English the numbers are not written as one word.
For example, 101 is “(ein)hundertundeins” (one hundred one), or 333 is “dreihundertunddreiunddreißig” (three hundred thirty-three), with the inversion noted above.
German Historical Dates
Historical dates, of course, are rarely written out. But there are conventions on how to say them.
In German as in English, you use “hundreds” (not thousands) to say a specific year between 1101 and 1999.
So, 1386 is “dreizehnhundertsechsundachtzig” (all written as one word), and except for the inversion of the last part, similar to the English “thirteen hundred eighty-six."
However, for 1066 (when the Normans invaded England), you use the word “tausend” (thousand) as in “tausendsechsundsechzig.”
You do the same for the current century. 2021 is “zweitausendeinundzwanzig.”
You you may also hear, similar to English, “zehnsechsundsechzig” (1066), or “zwanzigeinundzwanzig (2021).”
In this Quick German Game on the left, you can practice some of the German numbers between 21 and 100, and beyond.
Millions, Billions, Trillions, etc.
A point of frequent confusion for English speakers may be the high numbers that are often quoted in news reports about global finances. We noticed, for example, some errors in the recent reporting on the negotiations between Greece and the European Union regarding Greece's financial obligations.
German and English agree on 1,000,000 - “eine Million” (one million). But, for the English “one billion,” Germans say “eine Milliarde,” and for the English “one trillion,” Germans say “eine Billion.” You can see the problem:
In the northern regions of Germany, as well as on national media (radio, television) you'll recognize most numbers as they are spoken. Even so, you may sometimes hear 2 (“zwei”) also pronounced as “zwo” or “zwee,” or with other slight variations.
However in certain parts of Germany, such as Cologne, Bavaria, the Black Forest region, as well as in Austria and in Switzerland, regional dialects may make certain numbers unrecognizable for the foreigner.
So knowing and practicing the German numbers should be high on your list when you are planning a trip to a German speaking country.
Pronunciation Practice
Practicing the German numbers also gives you an opportunity to work on your pronunciation. As in any language, getting the mouth mechanics right is also important in German.
• “Zwei” has a soft "v" sound instead of the English "w". • "Drei” has a German "r" sound. • “Vier” has German "r" at the end of the word. • "Elf" and "zwölf" have you practice "l" the German way. • "Fünf" has you practice German "ü". • "Zwölf" lets you practice German "ö".
During the day, whether you are commuting to work, noting how many email messages are in your inbox, reading the newspaper, doing exercises, etc., you'll always see or count numbers. Pronounce them silently, or out loud if you can, in German. And you'll be surprised how fast you'll know them!
You want to Learn German Fast?
Not everyone will agree with Benny Lewis', the Irish Polyglot's statement "Why German is easy!". But, if you are serious about learning German - and even before you buy or subscribe to any expensive courses (except GamesforLanguage.com's German 1 and German 2 courses obviously, which are FREE!) you may want to learn more about Benny's approach.
Disclosure: The link above to Benny Lewis's site is to a partner's program with revenue sharing, if you decide to buy or subscribe.
[Update: At this time - January 2021 - we are sorry so say that Speaklikethem is not in operation.]
We, at Gamesforlanguage, are always looking for ways that help learners take the next leap towards fluency. The key for learning to speak a language fluently is simple: You have to engage in live conversations, and do this frequently using various topics of conversation.
Recently, we discovered a new start-up site called Speaklikethem.com that looks very promising. We had a chance to talk extensively with Speaklikethem's Olivier Royer and Alberto Bortott, who together explained some of the special features that they are building into this site.
Intermediate Learners or Above
At Speaklikethem the goal is for learners to have real and productive conversations, so learners can't still be beginners. Users of the program should have already reached a fairly solid basis in a language they are practicing. Beginners simply cannot hold their part in a conversation that goes beyond a simple exchange of questions and statements about themselves.
In your Profile, you're asked to list your language skills: native, bilingual, intermediate, or advanced, and while self-classifications of intermediate and advanced leave much room for interpretation, they are a clear signal that the site is for those who want to practice already existing listening/speaking skills.
An Interest-based e-Platform
In order to make interesting conversations possible, users can upload videos in the target language from the Internet, which will serve as topics and discussion points with their language partners. Or they can use any of the existing videos.
With time, the program will accumulate an extensive supply that will cover topics such as business, culture, fun, planet, sciences, society, sport, style, techno, and trends - all in many languages.
This is the basic new idea that is likely to create not only conversation topics, but also “engagement” by the language partners – (one key component of language learning that we had discussed in our post 2 Language Learning Essentials: Motivation and Engagement)
Preparing for a Conversation
Clearly, videos can become a great way to suggest topics for a conversation. But in addition, at Speaklikethem users can upload links to articles, pictures, as well as vocabulary lists, grammar points, etc. that could provide a little extra linguistic backbone.
We found that especially during a first encounter with a language exchange partner, it's important to have topics of conversations as well as some questions ready to ask.
Finding an Exchange Partner
Because the focus of this site is to set up interest-based conversations with readily available resources, finding a suitable partner should be fast and easy. For example, if I'm interested in elections in Spain, or am looking to work in Germany, I can propose those topics to my language communities - using one of the videos - and anyone interested can pick up the invitation.
When we were looking to meet language exchange partners in Seville, Spain, we were able to filter both for the specific city and face-to-face conversations on certain sites, an option we would strongly recommend also to Speaklikethem. Speaklikethem is currently in a Beta start-up mode and subscriptions are free.
MassChallenge
Coincidentally, we also learned that Speaklikethem has applied to MassChallenge's startup Accelerator Program in London for 2015, a program that started in Boston and has expanded internationally. Gamesforlanguage was a Finalist in MassChallenge's 2011 Accelerator Program in Boston, MA.
MassChallenge is a yearly 4-month competitive program that connects high-impact start-ups with resources they need to launch and succeed. The program provides mentorship, office space, education, network & community and runs from late spring to early fall.
Disclosure: Gamesforlanguage.com has no business relationship with Speaklikethem other than having subscribed to their free website. Both companies may exchange guest blogs at a future time. See our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use for further details.
If we consider learning a foreign language to be a “project” that needs various resources, has a schedule or timeline, and an accomplishment or goal at the end – then some of the key elements of a project are indeed present.
In the previous post I included my simple time line (above) and here is my update on the tasks and activities shown in January:
Spanish – Duolingo
I started Duolingo – Spanish in December 2014 and have continued with it for 148 days, (see screenshot). I've completed all regular lessons and am currently on Level 13 with 5643 points. I'm continuing now with 1 lesson a day. I completed 3 Duolingo tests and progressed from 2.03/5.0 to 5/5 while in Seville.
Spanish – Gamesforlanguage.com
I did not quite complete our Spanish 1 course by the time we left for Europe in February, but reached Level 5. I listened to our Podcasts, which by that time I pretty much knew by heart (we developed them, after all). Many of the phrases and expressions actually proved very useful in Seville.
(We are currently working on tests for each of the Spanish 1 course levels to be available within the next few weeks as “Quick Games.”)
Spanish – Find Tutor, Stay in Seville, Practice Speaking
As we described in other posts, we had found three language exchange partners with whom we met repeatedly in Seville. As we described in How a Tutor Boosted our Language Fluency, we did find a tutor while we were there and found our conversations with him to be very productive.
We did not have to switch with him to English (or German), as with our language exchange partners. So, our time with our tutor proved to be very effective for improving both our listening and speaking skills.
Back in the US. I continued to exchange emails in Spanish with the Unicaja bank in Seville, which had withdrawn funds from my account without delivering them to me in a failed ATM withdrawal incident.
As we reported in our post, the money was finally returned just about 30 days later. Unicaja continues to insist that the delay was caused by Maestro (Master Charge in Europe) to whom they had returned the funds.
We have also started to watch Spanish TV and movies again; currently we are watching “Comisario Rex” (actually an Italian series, dubbed Spanish) as well as a soap “Hasta el Fin del Mundo.”
While our listening skills have increased substantially since our stay in Seville and we can guess much from the context, we still can't fully understand all of the rapidly spoken conversations. We find that adding subtitles in Spanish helps a lot.
We continue to read Spanish newspapers and articles online, often using a browser extension, which also boosts our vocabulary.
Spanish – Find Local Language Exchange Partner or Tutor
We are currently looking for a language exchange partner and/or tutor in our area. Becoming really fluent in a foreign language requires practice, and having regularly scheduled speaking sessions is quite important for not losing the progress we have made. Mylanguageexchange.com and conversationsexchange.com were the two sites that helped us find our partners in Seville.
How Fluent?
While we have not yet achieved the same fluency as in French, we are quite happy with our progress. While our topics of conversation are still limited, we have substantially increased our active vocabulary, have acquired a number of banking terms while in Seville (see our April 2015 post), can talk about Spanish elections, and quite a few other, personal or abstract topics.
Update: on April 28, 2015 I took several of the free tests which were listed on a LingQ post. These tests did not evaluate fluency, but rather vocabulary and grammar proficiency.
As I commented on the post: "I was disappointed with the Transparent Language test as it pegged me as a “Beginner”, while the Language Level Test gave me a B1, the Sprach Caffe a 50/72 , and LingQ an Advanced 3 with knowing 35,500 words. (I’ll do the Bridge test, when I’ll have more time!)" I am currently looking for a test with which I can evaluate my fluency in a more formal way.
Dutch – Duolingo
During January and the first part of February, I indeed completed 1-2 Dutch lessons each day, but stopped during our stay in Seville. In April I again took up Dutch, but found that the 6-7 week hiatus has thrown me back quite a bit.
I have now reached Level 9, with 1844 points (see screenshot above), but find that I have to go back to much earlier lessons again. I currently mostly “strengthen my skills” with 2-3 lessons per day, and will continue to do so until I feel that I have reached my previous level.
In spite of its closeness to German (my native language), I find writing Dutch especially challenging. While some words are pronounced quite similarly to German, they are often spelled differently.
Dutch: Select/Sign Up
I am considering signing-up up for Babbel's Dutch course by May 1 as shown on the time line. We had also subscribed to Babbels' Spanish course and we'll report on our experience with it in a future blog post.
Adding another online course to Duolingo seems necessary to both expand the vocabulary and get more listening and speaking practice. I also hope that once I can formulate some sentences I will be able to practice with my wife Ulrike, who is fluent in Dutch (which she had learned while attending school in the Netherlands for two years).
Motivation and Engagement
Our motivation for improving our Spanish was both related to our planned stay in Seville, and generally to learning another language when traveling to Spanish speaking countries. Cuba and various South American countries are on our list.
By reading Spanish online as well as Spanish books (currently: the Spanish translation of "Hunger Games": "Los Juegos del Hambre", and "La Sombra del Viento" by Carlos Ruiz Zafon) and watching Spanish language movies, we're confident that we'll keep our interest in Spanish alive.
Time Line
So far, I have kept quite closely to the January 2015 time line. In September I'll know whether I have achieved my goal of understanding a good part of the conversations while participating in our Dutch Family Reunion in Utrecht. With the Dutch being so fluent in German and English, I have little hope, however, that I'll be able to practice much speaking.
During our recent stay in Seville, Spain (see picture left), we were again reminded how challenging local dialects are for foreign language learning.
That is especially the case when they try to improve their new language in an immersion environment, as in the country where their new language is spoken.When you visit only for a few days and your interaction with locals is quite limited – as happened during our first stay to Seville in 2012 – you don't seem to notice the dialect very much.This time, however, it was different.
The Language Learning Challenge
The four European languages we are very familiar with, German, Spanish, French, and Italian, all have different dialects spoken in various regions.
All language schools and online programs, including GamesforLanguage.com, teach a "standard language" that you may hear on radio and television, but which may be spoken in only a few regions of the country.
Chances are you'll find yourself in a region where your language learning efforts over the last few months don't seem to be quite enough. It's no different in Spain, but also presents an opportunity to learn more about the local dialect.
THE MISSING “S” in the Seville Dialect
As we describe in a previous post: Learning Spanish –First Impressions of the Local Dialect in Seville, Spain, we noticed right away that some consonants are dropped at the end and in the middle of words, so "gracia" instead of "gracias," "do cerveza" instead of "dos cervezas," "E'paña," "e'pañol," etc.
But this was just the tip of the iceberg. There are other differences to standard "Castilian" Spanish and even to other regions of the Andalusian dialect.
SESEO & CECEO
Generally speaking, typical Andalusian pronunciation features as the "leveling s, z, and c sounds" (the latter before an [i] or an [e]). This means that in parts of Andalusia [s], [z] and [c] have an [s] sound (called a "seseo" dialect.)
In other parts of Andalusia [s], [z] and [c] have a [θ] sound (called a "ceceo" dialect.) Seville, in fact, is a small language island.
Surrounded by regions that speak "ceceo," the city itself is mostly a "seseo" haven. On the street, with the many tourist coming from other regions of Spain, you of course heard a mixture. In any case, neither "seseo" nor "ceceo" is really part of standard Castilian. Castilian and Andalusian have been perceived as distinct dialects since the the 15th century.
In Castilian Spanish, [s] is pronounced as [s]; and [c] and [z] are pronounced [θ]. The latter is sometimes called the "Castilian lisp," which is often attributed, incorrectly, to the lisp of a Spanish king. This and other language myths are wonderfully debunked in a recent blog post: 10 Myths And Misconceptions About World Languages, the "Castilian lisp" in Myth #4: "The Spanish Kings's Lisp."
DROPPED CONSONANTS
We noticed that [d] was weakened or dropped entirely when between two vowels. For example in the bus, we heard "próxima para" (instead of "próxima parada," next stop); and, our Sevillian acquaintances would say "a menu'o" (instead of "a menudo,") often.
Flamenco terms are famous examples: cantaor (from cantador, Castilian: cantante "singer"); tocaor (from tocador, Castilian: músico); and bailaor (from bailador, Castilian: bailarín). When spelled, the [d] is also dropped, we learned. [See Wikipedia "Andalusian Spanish"]
FORMAL OR INFORMAL
Spain in general, including Andalusia, is known for it's greater informality compared to Latin American countries. When we met our tutor for the first time, he immediately addressed us with "tú," though we were clearly older than he.
Since pronouns are dropped unless you need them for clarity or emphasis, out tutor happily used the pronoun-less "tú" form with us, but dropped the "s-endings" (tiene, habla, quiere, encuentra, etc.). When I asked him whether Sevillians could tell the difference between "tiene" (informal with the dropped "s") and "tiene" (formal), he said, actually no, and smiling, said that he had never thought about it.
So, in Sevilla, you may not always catch right away whether someone is addressing you formally or informally.
PAYING ATTENTION
In most cases, you don't chose to stay or live in a region because of a particular language dialect: Work, family, friends, cultural, or other interests, etc. generally impact your decision. So chances are that you will find yourself in a city or town with a local dialect.
When you are starting to notice what distinguishes the local dialect from the standard language, your language learning is one the way to reaching another level. And the sooner you can discover some to the typical idiosyncrasies of the local language, the faster you'll be able to understand and eventually speak it.
At the end of our month there, we could pretty well understand our tutor and our language exchange partners, but we spoke the Seville dialect only in small chunks, such as with "gracia" and "do cerveza." Thus, in Seville, we still remained at the first stage, but feel quite confident that after a few more weeks we would have graduated to stage two.
Bio: Ulrike & Peter Rettig are co-founders of Gamesforlanguage.com. They are lifelong language learners, growing up in several European countries before moving to Canada and the United States. You can follow them on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
At the end of our one-month-for-fluency stay in Seville (March 2015), we experienced the two initial days of Sevilla's amazing family festival, the Semana Santa (Holy Week).
The entire city seemed to participate. Whole families, from babies to grandparents, and many groups of young and old came out into the street, especially in the late afternoon and evenings. This year drew especially large crowds, as spring was in full bloom and the weather was sunny and warm.
The Preparations
We already noticed in early March that viewing stands were being erected behind the Ayuntamiento (City Hall), on the route of all the processions.
From days before Semana Santa, Sevilla was transformed: Repairs to buildings and roads were completed; balconies were draped with festive cloths; mobile restrooms were erected and hooked up to the city sewer system (no “porta potties"!); barriers and chairs were placed at major viewing routes; the inner “casco antiguo” (old town) was closed to traffic in the afternoons, taxis were banned, bus routes were changed, and a large part of the old town became a pedestrian zone.
Daily program booklets came with the local newspaper El Diario de Sevilla and showed the routes and times of the various processions. The article on Culture Trip can give you an idea of some of the details.
The Brotherhoods
During Semana Santa, there were seven to ten daily processions, organized by the different "cofradías" or "hermandades" (religious brotherhoods), social organizations that play a crucial role in putting on the processions.
Sevilla alone has 60 different "cofradías," some of which are associated with trades, as can be seen in their name, for example, "La Cena" (dinner), "La Hiniesta" (broom), "La Borriquita" (little donkey), others have a spiritual names such as "La Paz" (peace), "El Amor" (love), "La Amargura" (bitterness).
Still others carry the names of various saints. Some of the "cofradías" trace their origin back to the 16th century; they often have several thousand members, who participate in the processions. You can find out more about the brotherhoods in the above link.
The Processions
These solemn processions have large floats bearing Jesus and Mary statues, are decorated with candles and flowers, and are accompanied by spirited music and hundreds of "Nazarenos" (penitents) wearing pointy hoods and cloaks in various color combinations.
All that makes for an unusual, elaborate, unforgettable spectacle. Especially the “Nazarenos” dressed in all white may create some unpleasant (KKK) associations for older, especially African Americans.
For locals, however, the hooded figures that could be seen walking through the old town to their procession starts, were just part of the Semana Santa celebrations, which began officially on Palm Sunday.
Each of the processions moved along a specific route and took many hours to complete it. Several of them started at 3 PM and ended at 2:00 or 3:00 AM in the morning.
We could see that many of the "Nazarenos" following the processions were teenagers or even younger, and these were accompanied by parents or other family members who provided them with water or a sandwich from time to time.
In Seville you can't see the men who carry the ornate and quite heavy floats. They are underneath each float and and only come out occasionally for a well-deserved drink when the procession comes to a to a halt.
The Atmosphere
The atmosphere in the city during those days was electric, excited, but the crowds were surprisingly calm and measured.
Several times, as we walked from one procession to another, we were caught in a stream of people who were doing the same. In spite of our initial anxiety at being in such a densely-packed and moving crowd, we witnessed no out-of-control behavior, no unpleasant incidents, no shouting.
There were lots of small and older children present and we thought that surely some of them would get lost in the crowd. Later we heard of only one case of a child that had gotten lost, but was found again after a few hours.
People were surprisingly patient, courteous, laid back. And, even though there was a lot of waiting time, no one seemed to get upset about this. People socialized, chatted, kids played hide and go seek. It was truly a lively, inclusive folk festival that added powerful memories to those of our stay.
Bio: Ulrike & Peter Rettig are co-founders of Gamesforlanguage.com. They are lifelong language learners, growing up in several European countries before moving to Canada and the United States. You can follow them on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
My husband and I spent the month of March in Seville, Spain (left: La Giralda under blue sky, seen from el Alcázar), mostly in sunny, warm weather, while our home town, Boston, USA, kept getting bombarded with relentless snowfalls.
We were lucky to be away at that time, but the main reason for our trip was to improve our Spanish through the best kind of "immersion" that we could set up.
It's not easy for adult foreigners to meet and engage with locals, so we had a plan: We set up "live" language exchanges in advance and were determined to find a local teacher for conversation lessons.
Warming up with Language Exchanges
Language Exchanges with locals are a great way to start practicing speaking in a relaxed, friendly way. We did these the two of us together, armed with questions and a few scripted, memorized sentences. (see also our recent post: 4 Tips for Improving Your Foreign Language during a One-Month Stay).
To be honest, our initial conversations were pretty halting. To be able to talk about your own experiences in a casual, spontaneous way, you need to know present and past verb forms.
For Spanish, with its different past tenses, that's quite a task. Using just the simple past gets the basic message across but often not all of the meaning. Already our first exchange conversation had us go back to our place and review the basic tenses of common verbs such as "hacer, estar, ser, ir, haber, poder, tener, etc." I wrote out the forms by hand on sheets of paper. We memorized them and practiced them in between sightseeing stints.
It wasn't just the grammar which made a normal conversation challenging. All of our exchange partners were from the Seville area and spoke the local city dialect. (Local people from Seville talk fast and drop some letters, including most occurrences of the letter 's' in the middle or end of words.) In time, though, we got used to the dropped letters.
Doing those conversations during our first two weeks was a big step forward. It felt really good to begin understanding spontaneous questions and to learn how to ask them.
The great thing about meeting with others is that your head starts preparing and practicing for the conversations in advance and processes them afterwards. It's another level of learning, quite focused and effective.
Adding a Tutor
We intended to ask our language partners if they knew any tutors for our remaining two weeks, but instead came across a notice at a nearby square. It offered: Clases de Español (see photo), and had a phone number attached. I mustered my Spanish and texted our interest in 7 tutoring sessions. We got an answer quickly and set up a first meeting for the next day.
Carlos, a licensed teacher of Spanish at a local school, spoke no other foreign languages except some Italian. That he spoke no English was a huge stroke of luck for us. It forced us to express and explain ourselves only in Spanish. He in turn, being a trained teacher, knew just when and how to correct us without interrupting the conversation too much.
A Conversation Format
You can't learn a language without speaking it, and engaging in a conversation is clearly the best way to level up your speaking skills.
On the one hand you are listening to the other speaker(s) and interpreting what is being said; on the other, you are beginning to frame an answer, but at the same time have to keep in mind grammatical points such as verb endings, tenses, pronouns, agreement, etc. Besides, your answer has to have some momentum to keep the conversation going. Stopping at every second or third word is not going to cut it.
Being in a live conversation gives you the chance to ask questions. If there's something you don't understand, you can just ask for an explanation or a clarification. Questions are also a good way to keep the conversation going and to give you a certain amount of conversational control.
Topics for Conversation
Our main intent was to practice conversation, but to keep conversations moving along you need to have interesting things to discuss. Carlos asked us for topics we'd like to focus on.
During our stay in Seville, general elections in Andalusia were happening and one of our sessions was a question-and-answer session about Andalusia's political history, and we explained voting processes and party structure in the U.S.
Also, at the end of our visit, the amazing festivities of "Semana Santa" (Easter week) began. (See above a picture of one of the many processions that occur every day from Palm Sunday to Easter. A future post will provide more details.)
Besides discussing some of the local traditions of Easter week with us, Carlos also told us of his memories of growing up in Seville, especially his experiences as a child during the Easter week festivities. This made the lessons quite personal and interesting.
Learning to Rephrase
When you're talking about something in a foreign language, it can often happen that you're looking for a specific word, but just cannot remember it. An excellent skill to practice is to rephrase what you're trying to say and express it in different words, rather than stop short and rack your brains.
Knowing that English would not help, we were forced to say things "in other words," again and again, and actually got pretty good at it. To be able to do this, of course, you need enough vocabulary. Reading the local newspaper every day was helpful for the topics we were talking about.
Clarifying Grammar in Context
Conversational practice is an ideal vehicle for learning grammar in context. I normally use a grammar text to look up questions that I have. I rarely start with a text book to learn grammar.
In our conversations with Carlos, we started out by talking about things we had done, i.e. we had to use Spanish past verb tenses. Since there are several to choose from and they differ in usage from English past verb tenses, our conversations were a effective way to practice the Spanish forms.
Carlos gave us a helpful, simplified guideline for which tense to use when. The "imperfect tense" (imperfecto) sets the scene that you embellish with other events. The "simple past" (pretérito) expresses an event in the past that is finished and doesn't relate to the present. The "present perfect" (pretérito perfecto) is a past, finished event that nevertheless still impacts the present moment.
Understanding which verb tense to use as we talked about past events and experiences was a great way to learn a difficult chunk of grammar.
The Local Dialect
At first, our tutor spoke a little more carefully and avoided dropping the "s" from words as he talked. But after a couple of sessions, he fell back into his dialect pronunciation. We could have asked him to use a more standard way of speaking, but found in time that we could understand him quite well. In the end, it has made our Spanish a little more versatile.
Carlos explained to us that the Spanish of Andalusia is closer to Latin American Spanish than that which is spoken in other parts of Spain and that was due to large waves of emigration from Andalusia to the Spanish colonies in the Americas.
Our Fluency Boost
Did our month in Sevillemake us fluent Spanish speakers? Not as fluent as we'd like to be. But it gave our fluency a big boost.
When we compare our initial taxi ride from the airport to Seville at the beginning of our stay, to our ride from Seville to the airport at the end of our stay, there was quite a difference.
At the beginning, we asked a few short questions or made brief comments and didn't understand a lot of what the taxi driver responded. At the end, we were chatting away with the taxi driver about our stay, the elections, Semana Santa, differences of taxi ownership and taxi colors in Spanish cities (In Seville they are all white) etc. We clearly had made noticeable progress.
Now we just have to figure out how we can give our language fluency another boost!
When it comes to foreign currency, traveling has become so much easier: Instead of worrying about how much of the foreign currency you should change at home or at the foreign airport (do you still remember “traveler checks”?) - today you can pay with your credit card(s) in many places or withdraw cash at ATM machines all over the world.
Yes, you have to be conscious about the various bank and exchange fees and be aware of the fee differences between the various cards.
But, even if you are, you'll still want to read about our recent experience in Seville, Spain. Here is our story:
Beware of ATM Withdrawals at Night
Ever since an ATM in Barcelona did not return my card a few years ago, I have been reluctant to withdraw money from a cash machine at night.
At that time, it happened during the day and I just went into the branch office and recovered my card without much of a problem. If one's card is withheld at night, things might get more complicated, especially if you have to explain your problem in a foreign language.
In Seville, as in many cities in Spain and Italy, dinner in a (non-tourist) restaurant typically starts after 8 PM. As we were returning from a very pleasant dinner out, we walked by a Unicaja ATM and replenishing my depleted funds seemed appropriate.
Feeling good and confident, I disregarded my usual concerns and went ahead with a withdrawal. I chose the English language option at the machine to avoid any mistakes and everything seemed to go along fine.
A prompt on the screen instructed me to take the cash. I waited patiently for a moment, when suddenly another screen came up: “For technical reasons it is not possible to provide you with the cash requeted [sic].”
Well, this seemed strange, but technical malfunctions happen. I did not see a phone or intercom to report the error right away and took my card when it was ejected.
I also waited for and observed the next machine customer (see picture above) as he completed his transaction, apparently without a problem (and fortunately without “my” cash!)
Check your Bank or Credit Card Account
However, two days later, when I checked my bank account, I saw to my surprise, that 505 euros had indeed been withdrawn (500 euros plus a 5 euro transaction fee).
I returned to the ATM, which is located at one of Unicaja's branches in Calle Sierpes, and reported the problem to the customer service representative at the bank. She summoned others for help, but none of the branch employees' English was better than our Spanish, so we had to explain the problem in Spanish.
After checking the bank's accounts and verifying my credentials, passport and credit card, the manager agreed that it was indeed the bank's problem. (As this happened two days after the initial withdrawal, we were somehow surprised that they had not discovered this issue earlier.) I signed and received a transfer notice of 500 euros to be put back to my account and assumed that the money would show up in my account within a few days.
The Story Continues
Why did I not just ask for the 500 euros I had been unable to withdraw from the ATM machine? In retrospect, I believe that's what I should have requested. But since I went to another bank to successfully withdraw money from its ATM right after the failed attempt, I did not want any more cash.
I also believed that the deposit back to my account would be done quickly, i.e. within a day or two. (Later I found out that such a request would not have been honored anyways, as credit card/bank rules prohibit it.)
When five days later I still did not see the deposit of the 500 euros in my account, I went back to the branch to inquire. By that time, we had also brushed up on our Spanish banking language and explained our situation again.
However, we were told that there was nothing they could do, as they had already initiated the transfer back to my account. I was told that I should just be patient.
Fool me Twice, Shame on You
Then I thought, now with the branch office open, let's give the machine another try. And when I tried to make another withdrawal, exactly the same happened: The ominous screen - “For technical reasons it is not possible to provide you with the cash requeted [sic]” appeared again.
This time, however, we not only took photos of several of the screens, but also reported the problem right away. As the ATM customer before us apparently also had an issue and was making a complaint, it was clear that the bank was aware of the problem. Our second failed transaction was immediately canceled.
Patience Wearing Thin
A few more days have passed and now it's been more than ten days since my first unhappy withdrawal experience. I've sent several e-mails and we have made several trips to the branch office, but the funds still haven't not shown up in my bank account.
In our latest foray into the Unicaja bank's branch office, we asked for the branch director. His explanation was more differentiated and he reiterated that Unicaja ("Un banco pequeño, pero un buen banco!" - A small, but a good bank") indeed had made the transfer back to the "Maestro" intermediary (Master Card in Europe), but Maestro, apparently, had not effected the transfer back to my bank yet.
And credit card/bank rules (supposedly!) don't allow cash payments by the bank for failed ATM transactions. Patience again. While Unicaja's branch staff were very nice and tried to be helpful, we were really surprised that none of the staff spoke any English, French or German, the languages we are still more fluent in than Spanish.
However, it gave us a great opportunity to practice our Spanish and apply the banking terms we had looked up and tried to memorize.
ATM Lessons Learned
1. Avoid any cash withdrawals at night, especially in a foreign country. 2. Check whether the machine has a phone or intercom with which you can report a problem right away. 3. Only use ATMs during during working hours that are part of a bank or branch office. (In Seville typical bank working hours are from 8:00 AM to 2:30 PM) 4. Obtain a written confirmation of the deposit back to your credit card and inquire with your credit card company/bank that the deposit was made. 5. Learn some key banking/financial terms in the foreign language.
English not Spoken Everywhere
While our experience with Unicaja was somewhat annoying, it also gave us an opportunity to brush up on our financial language and practice our Spanish. The experience with the branch personnel and its manager also confirmed what we had experienced ourselves and heard from others here in Seville: English is not the preferred foreign language in southern Spain.
As I've mentioned, no one at the bank spoke English. As a matter of fact, the bank director said proudly: "No hablo inglés, sólo hablo español." (I don't speak English, I only speak Spanish.)
Also, to our surprise, our Spanish tutor, a professor at a local university, speaks no English either, and we have heard from others that French and German have come into favor in recent years as foreign languages learned and spoken in southern Spain.
Update - The end of the Story
On April 9, 2015, nearly exactly a month after the 500 Euros disappeared from my bank account, I finally received a deposit of Euro 500.00 back to my account. I am still not sure who is holding the Fee of 5 Euros, Unicaja, Maestro, or my bank, but I am sure I will find out in time.
While Unicaja maintained that there was nothing they could do - they had returned the 500 Euros to Maestro - I suspect that my formal complaint to the bank that had issued the debit card and the bank's follow-up finally gave me my money back. It is still surprising to me, however, how long it took Maestro to return the funds that they had received two days after the failed transaction.
Starting to learn a foreign language as an adult can be somewhat difficult, and sometimes boring. Over the years, I've used various methods from books to CDs and have more recently added apps and online courses. 
New words are the practiced in various ways. For me, it's the variety of tasks which makes the learning engaging. There's plenty of hit or miss involved. But hey, making mistakes is all part of the learning process. 
Lesson 1 of the Beginner Course 1, called “¡Mucho gusto!Part 1,” starts with four basics: Hello!, yes, thank you, Bye! 
