After 5 lessons of the Brazilian Portuguese program, I started to become concerned that Brazilian and European Portuguese might be different - more so than American and British English. I decided to do a little internet research to find out what the general consensus was of the differences. Since I am going to Portugal and not Brazil, I want to make sure that I will not only be able to speak and be understood, but be able to understand what Portuguese speakers are saying to me.
Strangely enough, the most helpful resource I ended up finding was Yahoo Answers. Normally, I don't really pay too much attention to this site. However, as I was reading it, I realized that it was primarily a conversation between native Portuguese and Brazilian speakers. While a few stated that they felt like there wasn't a huge difference, the general consensus was very clear. They are quite different and while those in Portugal would understand Brazilian Portuguese because they have been so exposed to it through TV and movies, those from Brazil tend to have difficulty understanding European Portuguese. What is the point of speaking and being understood if I won't be able to understand what is spoken back to me in response?
For this reason, I decided to stop the Brazilian Portuguese program and buy the slightly more expensive European Portuguese program. This version is still Pimsleur, but was not included in the $9.95 list of languages. I found it on Amazon for $34.95. The great thing about this more expensive program is that it includes basic reading lessons. There is a small reading booklet that came with the Audio CDs, so that I can start to see how the words are written out starting on lesson 2 of 10.
I was excited that the box was sitting on my doorstep as I left for work today. I opened it up immediately and popped it in the CD player. Within 1 minute, I realized that it was a VERY good thing I ordered the European version. As with the last program, it started with a conversation between and man and woman in Portuguese. While I understood what was being said, some keys words and pronunciations were very different. "Excuse me" and "understand" were completely different words. They weren't even close to the ones I had learned already. The word "English" was also pronounced differently with a "aish" sound out the end rather than "ase". They also leave out the word for "I" as in "I understand" or "I speak".
Thankfully, I was still able to pick up the new words and phrases easily since I had already learned several of them. However, the previous words and pronunciations still popped into my head first. I'm hoping within a few lessons, that will go away and I can just retain the European Portuguese phrases and vocabulary. I'm still excited to start learning again and am happy that what I am learning will truly help me in Portugal.
Only 4 months and 3 days to go!
Thursday, January 30, 2014
Monday, January 20, 2014
Language Learning - Day 3
After taking the weekend off from learning, I have just completed Day 3. So far, I have learned to:
- Ask a man or woman if they understand or speak English
- Say that I understand or speak (a little) Portuguese - or that I don't speak or understand
- Good morning, good afternoon, good evening, goodbye
- Excuse me, sir or madam
- Thank you, sir or madam
- Are you American? Yes I am
- How are you? I am very good. And you?
- Where are you from? I am from _____________
- Brazilian, I am from Brazil (not relevant to visiting Portugal)
This may not seem like a lot of phrases right now, but I feel like I would be able to start a conversation with someone and at least get through the small talk. What is nice about this program is that it not only teaches you these phrases, but basically breaks down an actual conversation piece by piece. I've noticed that when I listen to the conversation between a man and a woman in the beginning of the lesson, I'm starting to really pick up what they are saying.
The hardest things about transitioning from learning the language to actually speaking it in a real life situation are listening, understanding, and formulating a response quickly. While I'm not very quick to respond accurately yet, this program pushes me to respond in a timely manner - just as if I were in a conversation with a Portuguese speaker. For example, when I studied in Italy, my classmates and I had visited the catacombs in Rome. On the way back to our apartment, we got lost and needed to ask someone how to get to the metro station. Naturally, we were away from the tourist area so the person we asked didn't speak any English at all. We asked him how to get to the Metro. All we heard as he spoke was sinistra (left) and destra (right) - then a lot of hand motions to "show" us the way. Needless to say, this wasn't much help because we could only understand 2 words of all that he said. And all that could we say in response? Grazie (thank you).
I'm looking forward to moving forward in the lessons. It's nice that you are constantly reminded of everything that you have learned in prior lessons so you don't forget. I'm actually surprised that even though I can't formulate a response quickly yet, I remember each of the words and phrases that I learned.
- Ask a man or woman if they understand or speak English
- Say that I understand or speak (a little) Portuguese - or that I don't speak or understand
- Good morning, good afternoon, good evening, goodbye
- Excuse me, sir or madam
- Thank you, sir or madam
- Are you American? Yes I am
- How are you? I am very good. And you?
- Where are you from? I am from _____________
- Brazilian, I am from Brazil (not relevant to visiting Portugal)
This may not seem like a lot of phrases right now, but I feel like I would be able to start a conversation with someone and at least get through the small talk. What is nice about this program is that it not only teaches you these phrases, but basically breaks down an actual conversation piece by piece. I've noticed that when I listen to the conversation between a man and a woman in the beginning of the lesson, I'm starting to really pick up what they are saying.
The hardest things about transitioning from learning the language to actually speaking it in a real life situation are listening, understanding, and formulating a response quickly. While I'm not very quick to respond accurately yet, this program pushes me to respond in a timely manner - just as if I were in a conversation with a Portuguese speaker. For example, when I studied in Italy, my classmates and I had visited the catacombs in Rome. On the way back to our apartment, we got lost and needed to ask someone how to get to the metro station. Naturally, we were away from the tourist area so the person we asked didn't speak any English at all. We asked him how to get to the Metro. All we heard as he spoke was sinistra (left) and destra (right) - then a lot of hand motions to "show" us the way. Needless to say, this wasn't much help because we could only understand 2 words of all that he said. And all that could we say in response? Grazie (thank you).
I'm looking forward to moving forward in the lessons. It's nice that you are constantly reminded of everything that you have learned in prior lessons so you don't forget. I'm actually surprised that even though I can't formulate a response quickly yet, I remember each of the words and phrases that I learned.
Wednesday, January 15, 2014
Language learning - Day 1
The Pimsleur Approach audio CDs arrived in the mail yesterday. I am excited to try them out and start learning Portuguese. In the small instruction booklet, they made it very clear that it was only auditory learning and I'm not to try and read or write anything out. This is only about speaking and doing anything else could derail my learning. No workbooks? Sounds good to me!
As the lessons are about 30 minutes long, which is exactly my one-way commute time to work, I decided to try to learn in the car. Lesson 1 started out with a brief conversation between a man and woman. They said "Excuse me. Do you understand (or speak) English?", "Are you American?", and "I understand (or speak) a little Portuguese." - as well as the responses to those questions. They broke down each word for me to repeat then put them back into a sentence. When we moved on, they went back briefly and asked me to repeat something that was said earlier on. In the beginning, my mind went blank several times, but within a few minutes, I really started catching on. Near the end of the lesson, they repeat the conversation and ask you to listen and try to understand what was said. I definitely caught quite a bit more of the conversation than the first time.
Over 4 hours later, I can honestly say that I can speak all of the phrases that I learned. The teacher asks you questions like, "How do you tell a woman that you speak a little Portuguese" and you are to then answer in Portuguese. They recommend that you be able to answer at least 80% of the questions correctly before moving onto the next lesson and that you shouldn't do more than one lesson per day (but you can repeat your daily lesson if you like). I am definitely planning on repeating this lesson on my way home from work. While they don't expect you to be totally proficient at the end of each lesson, I would like to make sure I have a good grasp prior to moving on. It seems to me like they are really focusing on the phrases that one would need to traveling in a Portuguese-speaking country.
Review after lesson 1 - Thumbs up! Excited to repeat today's lesson and learn more tomorrow.
As the lessons are about 30 minutes long, which is exactly my one-way commute time to work, I decided to try to learn in the car. Lesson 1 started out with a brief conversation between a man and woman. They said "Excuse me. Do you understand (or speak) English?", "Are you American?", and "I understand (or speak) a little Portuguese." - as well as the responses to those questions. They broke down each word for me to repeat then put them back into a sentence. When we moved on, they went back briefly and asked me to repeat something that was said earlier on. In the beginning, my mind went blank several times, but within a few minutes, I really started catching on. Near the end of the lesson, they repeat the conversation and ask you to listen and try to understand what was said. I definitely caught quite a bit more of the conversation than the first time.
Over 4 hours later, I can honestly say that I can speak all of the phrases that I learned. The teacher asks you questions like, "How do you tell a woman that you speak a little Portuguese" and you are to then answer in Portuguese. They recommend that you be able to answer at least 80% of the questions correctly before moving onto the next lesson and that you shouldn't do more than one lesson per day (but you can repeat your daily lesson if you like). I am definitely planning on repeating this lesson on my way home from work. While they don't expect you to be totally proficient at the end of each lesson, I would like to make sure I have a good grasp prior to moving on. It seems to me like they are really focusing on the phrases that one would need to traveling in a Portuguese-speaking country.
Review after lesson 1 - Thumbs up! Excited to repeat today's lesson and learn more tomorrow.
Monday, January 13, 2014
Going Sailing
I am SO excited! As I was looking into outdoor things to do in Portugal, I came across some websites about sailing. When I traveled to Spain in 2008, my dad and I tried to find a place to rent a sailboat, but the only places that rented boats required a captain and crew. Hiring a crew is incredibly expensive and not really what I want. Sailing has been my passion for years and I have just wanted to rent a boat that I can sail. Then I found 3 places in southern Portugal that rented sailboats. The best place seems to be Beach Hut Watersports in Praia da Luz, near Lagos. I was already planning on a day trip to Lagos from Faro, so taking a bus a bit further would be perfect.
The website to Beach Hut,
http://beachhutwatersports.com/en/sailing-windsurf/
states that a Hobie Cat rental is only 30 Euros an hour (~$40). That is a great price and comparable to US sailboat rentals. I contacted the company for details and they said that they provide everything I will need: helmet, wetsuit, and lifejacket. For reservations, I will just need to contact them a couple days before and reserve a boat.
I thought there was no way I could get even more excited about Portugal than I already was. Then I found out I could go sailing. At this point, I want to run down the street screaming, "I'm going sailing in Portugal!! Eeeeeeeeeee!!!". Of course, I will contain myself and not do that...but it will be very hard.
The website to Beach Hut,
http://beachhutwatersports.com/en/sailing-windsurf/
states that a Hobie Cat rental is only 30 Euros an hour (~$40). That is a great price and comparable to US sailboat rentals. I contacted the company for details and they said that they provide everything I will need: helmet, wetsuit, and lifejacket. For reservations, I will just need to contact them a couple days before and reserve a boat.
I thought there was no way I could get even more excited about Portugal than I already was. Then I found out I could go sailing. At this point, I want to run down the street screaming, "I'm going sailing in Portugal!! Eeeeeeeeeee!!!". Of course, I will contain myself and not do that...but it will be very hard.
Thursday, January 9, 2014
Flight and hostels booked
Flight...Check. Lodging...Check. After not seeing any changes in the airfare, I decided to look into flights out of Seattle (I'm in Portland). I figured that I could drive up there, spend up to $50 to park my car and still save money if the airfare was lower. Minimum airfare from Portland: $1506. Minimum airfare from Seattle: $1343. Seems like a no-brainer to me. The flight leaves June 3rd at 7am and arrives in Lisbon (after one stop in Newark, NJ) at 8:20 am on June 4th. The great news is that I have a 7 hr overnight flight from Newark. If I can sleep on the plane, I'll be able to minimize my jet lag and start the trip in a good place physically. I haven't had a jet lag issue in years after I started using my little trick. As soon as I get on the plane at my starting location, I set my clock for my final destination and attempt to start eating and sleeping according to Europe schedule. This sure makes like a lot easier when it is time to land.
After booking my flight, it was time to plan out my cities to visit and how many nights I would stay at each place. Here's the plan:
Jun 4: Arrive in Lisbon early morning
Jun 4-6: Lisbon
Jun 6-8: Faro (with day trip to Lagos and other surrounding beach towns)
Jun 8-9: Coimbra
Jun 9-11: Porto
Jun 11-12: Lisbon
Jun 12: Fly back to the states
After planning out the dates and locations, it was time to look into hostels. I found and booked some highly-rated hostels that range from $12-23 per night. Each hostel has a kitchen, internet access (wifi or computers), and is located in the city centre. At least one of the hostels even offers breakfast! The hostel I will stay in on my last night in Lisbon has something called Mamma's dinners, which are traditional Portuguese dishes. What a wonderful way to end my trip!
I am getting more and more excited each day and can't believe I have to wait almost 5 months to go to Portugal. More time to prepare, right? That's what I keep telling myself. Although, once I arrive, I like to have a free schedule rather than have everything planned out. I may have some places that will be on my list to visit, but unlike some who visit other countries, I don't want to have each hour planned out for me. Some of the best times are had when you are open and spontaneous. Ready to go explore new cities!
After booking my flight, it was time to plan out my cities to visit and how many nights I would stay at each place. Here's the plan:
Jun 4: Arrive in Lisbon early morning
Jun 4-6: Lisbon
Jun 6-8: Faro (with day trip to Lagos and other surrounding beach towns)
Jun 8-9: Coimbra
Jun 9-11: Porto
Jun 11-12: Lisbon
Jun 12: Fly back to the states
After planning out the dates and locations, it was time to look into hostels. I found and booked some highly-rated hostels that range from $12-23 per night. Each hostel has a kitchen, internet access (wifi or computers), and is located in the city centre. At least one of the hostels even offers breakfast! The hostel I will stay in on my last night in Lisbon has something called Mamma's dinners, which are traditional Portuguese dishes. What a wonderful way to end my trip!
I am getting more and more excited each day and can't believe I have to wait almost 5 months to go to Portugal. More time to prepare, right? That's what I keep telling myself. Although, once I arrive, I like to have a free schedule rather than have everything planned out. I may have some places that will be on my list to visit, but unlike some who visit other countries, I don't want to have each hour planned out for me. Some of the best times are had when you are open and spontaneous. Ready to go explore new cities!
Monday, January 6, 2014
Airfares are depressing
When I started planning this trip in my head a few months ago, I had planned on getting a flight for around $1000. I started looking at airfares in October and they were around $1500-1600. As my trip go closer, I figured those airfares would go down...at least a couple hundred or so. I may have been deceiving myself. If I get a flight to Lisbon for $1500, here is my general budget:
Airfare: 1500
Train: 200
Room and Board: 450 ($50/day for hostel and food)
Miscellaneous/Souvenirs: 150 Total: $2300
As I have the Eurail pass already gifted to me, my initial budget was $1600. Jumping up $500 is quite the difference. Oh, how I miss the days when I could backpack around Europe for $1200 (~$550 airfare). I knew that Portugal would cost more to fly to than other cities, but when I had looked before, the difference wasn't that big. Now other cities (Paris, London, Milan, Barcelona, Frankfurt) are down to $1250-1300, which is what I had been hoping for Lisbon. This is a bit depressing. Maybe I need to take a couple days off from looking at airfare.
I do have another option, which will add another leg to my trip, but it could save me up to $200. I could fly into one of the cities listed above and then fly RyanAir or EasyJet to Lisbon. Those flights would average around $110. Last option would be to take the train from Madrid to Lisbon...the 7 1/2 hour overnight train. That is only about $85. But it would take away an entire day going there since I wouldn't arrive until the following morning. And I won't have been able to shower for nearly 2 days at that point. As I write this, I'm thinking that maybe option 3 isn't such a good idea at all.
While I stress about airfares and my expanding budget, I've just ordered a language learning program to add to the mix. It's called the Pimsleur Approach. It is a set of Audio CDs that promises to teach you the basics of the language in 10 days. This is not meant to get your fluent, but good enough to speak most of the language and converse with locals. It was only $9.95, so I figure I have nothing to lose. The only problem is that it is Brazilian Portuguese. I know there are some differences, but I'm hoping they are minor enough that I will still be able to get by and not say something stupid. I also have a very short attention span, so listening to audio CDs might be difficult. I am very much looking forward to starting it when it comes, though. I will be sure to write all about the experiences with learning a new language at 32 years old.
Airfare: 1500
Train: 200
Room and Board: 450 ($50/day for hostel and food)
Miscellaneous/Souvenirs: 150 Total: $2300
As I have the Eurail pass already gifted to me, my initial budget was $1600. Jumping up $500 is quite the difference. Oh, how I miss the days when I could backpack around Europe for $1200 (~$550 airfare). I knew that Portugal would cost more to fly to than other cities, but when I had looked before, the difference wasn't that big. Now other cities (Paris, London, Milan, Barcelona, Frankfurt) are down to $1250-1300, which is what I had been hoping for Lisbon. This is a bit depressing. Maybe I need to take a couple days off from looking at airfare.
I do have another option, which will add another leg to my trip, but it could save me up to $200. I could fly into one of the cities listed above and then fly RyanAir or EasyJet to Lisbon. Those flights would average around $110. Last option would be to take the train from Madrid to Lisbon...the 7 1/2 hour overnight train. That is only about $85. But it would take away an entire day going there since I wouldn't arrive until the following morning. And I won't have been able to shower for nearly 2 days at that point. As I write this, I'm thinking that maybe option 3 isn't such a good idea at all.
While I stress about airfares and my expanding budget, I've just ordered a language learning program to add to the mix. It's called the Pimsleur Approach. It is a set of Audio CDs that promises to teach you the basics of the language in 10 days. This is not meant to get your fluent, but good enough to speak most of the language and converse with locals. It was only $9.95, so I figure I have nothing to lose. The only problem is that it is Brazilian Portuguese. I know there are some differences, but I'm hoping they are minor enough that I will still be able to get by and not say something stupid. I also have a very short attention span, so listening to audio CDs might be difficult. I am very much looking forward to starting it when it comes, though. I will be sure to write all about the experiences with learning a new language at 32 years old.
Saturday, January 4, 2014
Planning for Portugal
After a few years away from Europe, I've decided to visit Portugal this June. While I've visited most countries in Western Europe, Portugal has somehow eluded me and has been on my bucket list for awhile. Planning on traveling by myself, staying in hostels and exploring the country by train!
In this blog, I'll be documenting this trip from the planning stage through the end of the trip. For now, I'm trying to learn enough Portuguese to get through my trip and make an effort to speak with the locals. On previous travels in Europe, I've learned that people truly appreciate it when a traveler attempts to speak the language. I might only know enough to order a pastry or ask for a train ticket (queria um bilhete da ida e volte - I'd like a round-trip ticket). I haven't studied another language in at least 5 years, so this is going to be interesting. It's amazing what you can find on the internet to learn. There are tons of free sites with games and other easy ways to learn Portuguese. The struggle will not be mixing up the words with Italian or Spanish. Oh, romance languages...you kill me. Adios to Adeus, Ciao to Tchau, billiette to bilhete.
While I'm learning the language, my next step is to buy my plane tickets. Still waiting for the airfares to come back down...I hope. Currently, roundtrip tickets are $1500...eek! I'm hoping more for closer to $1000. My parents got me a Eurail pass for Christmas, so with that out of the way, I figure the rest of the trip will cost me about $600 in addition to airfare. That will cover hostels, food and a bit more for souvenirs for 10 day trip. Over the next couple months, I'll be paying close attention to airfare. If it saves me a bit, I may also fly somewhere cheap like Frankfurt and fly RyanAir to Lisbon. We'll see! Fingers crossed for cheap(er) airfare!
In this blog, I'll be documenting this trip from the planning stage through the end of the trip. For now, I'm trying to learn enough Portuguese to get through my trip and make an effort to speak with the locals. On previous travels in Europe, I've learned that people truly appreciate it when a traveler attempts to speak the language. I might only know enough to order a pastry or ask for a train ticket (queria um bilhete da ida e volte - I'd like a round-trip ticket). I haven't studied another language in at least 5 years, so this is going to be interesting. It's amazing what you can find on the internet to learn. There are tons of free sites with games and other easy ways to learn Portuguese. The struggle will not be mixing up the words with Italian or Spanish. Oh, romance languages...you kill me. Adios to Adeus, Ciao to Tchau, billiette to bilhete.
While I'm learning the language, my next step is to buy my plane tickets. Still waiting for the airfares to come back down...I hope. Currently, roundtrip tickets are $1500...eek! I'm hoping more for closer to $1000. My parents got me a Eurail pass for Christmas, so with that out of the way, I figure the rest of the trip will cost me about $600 in addition to airfare. That will cover hostels, food and a bit more for souvenirs for 10 day trip. Over the next couple months, I'll be paying close attention to airfare. If it saves me a bit, I may also fly somewhere cheap like Frankfurt and fly RyanAir to Lisbon. We'll see! Fingers crossed for cheap(er) airfare!
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