Finally, finally! I will have the chance to immerse myself in Spanish for 2 whole weeks!
When the kids and I discussed a destination last year, I gently pushed them in the direction of Spain or Italy (since I’m studying both languages and I always try to combine pleasure and pain). They went for Spain in the end and D-day is approaching rapidly … I will also score some bonus points since we will make a stop-over in France , so hopefully I will get a chance to brush up on my rusty French speaking skills as well!
In preparation I have treated myself to a little crash course in Spanish grammar and vocabulary.
When I decided in June not to go for a fifth year in school, but instead continue the Spanish journey on my own, comfortably in my couch, I ordered three grammar books in the Aula Internacional series (levels B1, B2.1 and B2.2) They arrived within a week and now I am working my way through book 1 (a walk in the park since this is actually third year material, so review mainly). It is almost done, I just need to review some vocabulary, but that’s it. I hope to be halfway through book 2 before we leave and then finish that one there.
Netflix is the best thing ever and I haven’t regretted taking a subscription for a minute. I find it very important, necessary even, to listen to the spoken language outside of a classroom (where, let’s be honest, all conversations are adapted to foreign students and in the case of Spanish, you might get a shock once you finally hear a real conversation between two Spanish). I think listening to a language before you can even pick out single words, is essential to get the rhythm of the language, how it flows, how it feels to the ear, which will give you more flair once you start talking yourself!
So therefore, I follow series in the languages I study, with subtitles in my native language, that I gradually set to subtitles in the source languages and eventually completely turn off. One of my absolute favourites for Spanish was Chicas del cable, with Casa de papel as a very close second. But this time, I am avidly watching Velvet, a series about fashion designers. I turn on the Spanish subtitles and just enjoy …
And of course I wouldn’t be a grammar junk if I wouldn’t try and walk into a local book store and see if they have any courses for C1 or maybe some nice linguistic section where I can go totally crazy for a little while.
So how did I do? A little update after I come back!
