Learning Spanish
Picking up the local lingo
One of the first things we said we wanted to do when we moved her, was to actively try and learn the language. We've been holidaying in and around Spain for years, and over time had picked up some words, local greetings, please and thank you etc etc, and with the help of duolingo we furthered some of our knowledge.
But nothing works better than in-person classes, with someone who has a full grasp of the language, local dialect and phrases, and more importantly the desire to teach.
We've been so fortunate to find a teacher who offers us just that, and best of all she is local, just a 10 minute walk away from our home, and also has two of the cutest dogs. We've been learning with Joanne for a little over 3 months now, and I think we're definitely getting there.
Of course we have so much to learn, everyday brings new vocabulary that we've not needed/learned yet, and every lesson we have a giggle with our teacher, along with coffee, cookies and dog cuddles to help it all sink in. We really are enjoying learning Spanish with Joanne.
We've even had our teacher Joanne around for Tapas, and Roy was delighted to get one of his many Tapas books out and get creative, rustling up some delicious traditional Spanish dishes, all serves with a nice glass of vino.
All in all we're thrilled to be learning Spanish, like everything we have good days and bad days, but we're slowly getting by with the locals, and everyday we try a little more and gain a little more confidence when out shopping, ordering food or going to the local bar for a beer.
Most importantly when taking your orders to the local post office 'Correos' and answering the lady there when she asks what is in each parcel, I can now reply 'es lana' (it's wool), though after just a week of dropping off parcels she has already realised 'siempre es lana' (it is always wool) - haha.
Personally I think learning local dialect really does offer great opportunities to experience local culture on a different level, and I can't wait to learn more and be better understood. Watch this space for more updates on our Spanish journey.