Welcome to another chapter of Spanish study tips. Our previous entry focussed on something that doesn’t come easy to all of us, and which is often hard for the most enthusiastic aficionado at times – finding motivation to study. Have you ever wondered what you can do semi-passively to create a more immersive experience? While active learning and hard work is definitely the key to mastering a language, there are some small adjustments, changes in mind set, as well as lifestyle additions and changes which might help. This entry will focus on making Spanish part of your everyday routine.
When you’re out and about
When you’re out, go armed with a notebook and pen and try to think in Spanish. E.g.: You’re at the bank. Tell yourself (don’t do it aloud, because that is considered anti-social) what you’re doing, i.e.: I’m at the bank (estoy en el banco). I’m going to take out money (voy a sacar dinero). I’m waiting in line (estoy haciendo cola) etc. E.g. 2: You’re at the beach. Tell yourself what you see, i.e.: I see a good looking girl (Veo a una chica guapa). I’ve just knocked an ice cream out of someone’s hand (Acabo de tirar un helado de la mano de alguien). It’s a large man on steroids covered in ice cream and the good looking girl is his girlfriend (Es un hombre grande anabolizado. Está cubierto de helado y la chica guapa es su novia). The large man on steroids is about to attack me (El hombre grande anabolizado está a punto de atacarme).
If you can talk about a lot of things that you are doing in your day-to-day activities, then you are clearly beginning to think in Spanish. If you hit part of a sentence where you are unable to explain what you are doing or what is happening around you (of course, as a true beginner, this will understandably happen 98% of the time!), note down in English what you wanted to say. When you get home, look it up on Word Reference Forums. For more information on this useful forum, have a look here. Add the new expressions to your home made dictionary. These new expressions which you’ve come up with are also valid additions to your flashcards. Try to do this everyday, and in addition to your basic, fixed study program – outlined here – over time, speaking and thinking in Spanish will become easier.
Social Media and Apps in Spanish
Set your Facebook, other social media and your email to Spanish. Join social media pages that are in Spanish so your daily feeds are giving you a constant influx of things to absorb. Join ‘joke-a-day’ pages and other light-hearted things. Here is one to get you started:
https://www.facebook.com/humorabsurdo/
Have any hobbies? Find pages in Spanish that cover these things. When you’re confident, set your phone to Spanish. You should probably be relatively confident though, or you might not be able to set it back to English! Do not, I repeat do not set your GPS to Spanish, unless you want places like Fed Square and Flinders Street Station pronounced phonetically in Spanish…which is both bizarre and incredibly annoying.
Listen to music in Spanish.
Go online and search for the translations (or have a go at translating them yourself). For every other song, note down phrases you hear from time to time. Use your dictionary or go to Word Reference Forums and find out what they mean. Don’t stress if you find it difficult to understand them or if you can’t find a translation. There are a lot of songs in Spanish that probably don’t make a lot of sense to Spanish speakers.
Listen to Spanish radio and TV. Don’t expect to understand much at first, but it’s better than listening to Fox FM. Here is an example of what Spanish radio sounds like according to North American comedian Pablo Francisco:
Eating in Spanish…
It was a while ago, but I heard from someone else who was also probably also trying to make the similar points as I am, that in order to get good at a language, you have to eat the food of that country. I don’t think he meant that if you go to Coles and get the ingredients for a paella, that you will start to learn Spanish, but it would be a good start I guess. Cooking leads to a change in mindset. Dinner for one turns into dinner for two, then three, and so on. You will attract a certain kind of person. Next thing you know, your new interest has somehow resulted in the entire Chilean community of Melbourne over for dinner at your place. As awesome as Chileans are, perhaps you don’t want that though.
Going to Spanish and Latin American restaurants will also undoubtedly put you in contact with Spanish speakers. You may want to try your Spanish out by annoying the waiter, or even the people on the table next to you. A great place to buy Iberian and Latin American food products is Casa Iberica. There are two located in Melbourne at 25 Johnston Street Fitzroy and 154-156 Fulham Rd Alphington. Free Advertising for those guys I guess. Well all these things are pieces in the puzzle that is learning another language.
Going out and speaking Spanish
You could extend the previous idea to a more resolute and pragmatic approach. Why not go out to Spanish and Latin American night hotspots? They seem to be forever changing in Melbourne’s hectic environment, and as soon as one appears, another disappears, but Johnston Street is home to the Hogar Español and a number of other places where you can dance, speak, and mingle with Spanish speakers. There are also a number of community events and festivals run by the various Latin communities in Melbourne. The most famous is undoubtedly the Johnston Street fiesta. Check out this entry which mentions a little about the history of this Fitzroy institution. In any case, come November, you should definitely check it out!
http://www.hispanicfiesta.com.au/
There’s also the lesser known September Street Festival:
http://www.septemberfestival.com.au/
Making Friends…
I’ve saved the most obvious stuff for last, but there are a couple of points worth elaborating on. Firstly, try and go overseas for a couple of months (or longer) and knock yourself out. Now I know that not everyone can just take two or more months off, but I just want to cover all the possible bases in case you are one of those lucky people that has that opportunity. In any case, any time in Spain or a Latin American country will do wonders for your beginner Spanish. Make sure you go out constantly and don’t stop speaking (Spanish, that is…)! Latin American and Spanish people are awesome and very hospitable, so there’s no excuse not to throw yourself in. South American beer tends to be pretty ordinary, but Chilean and Spanish wine is fantastic.
Making friends with Spanish-speakers either locally or overseas and forming networks will provide an enormous drive for your learning. Going on a camping trip with Spanish-speaking friends or chatting on Facebook for half an hour a day will make you speak Spanish.
So those are some of the ways that you improve your Spanish in an everyday context. Remember, however, there is no substitute for hard work! Thanks for reading and there will be more in a week or so when we look at the idea of grammar and its relevance.
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