Languages can prepare you for any situation – almost any
French learning commercial:
All in all, the summary – culture shock 8
What is culture shock? A summary Culture shock is the result of the confrontation with a culture that is different from our own, so that a person falls into some kind of “shock.” Shock may be the wrong word. We are confused because rules we had known may no longer apply, and we do not…
Waiting for the breakthrough – Learning Tunsi 9
“He has his hands behind his back” – in German or English, I could also say: “He has the hands behind the back.” I do not need to refer to the subject. In Arabic, this is not possible, “his” is mandatory both times. Maybe it’s because Arabic needs no explicit subject, so that the reference…
Dutch & German: Learning a related language
In language learning, we have a concept called “false friends”: Words that both languages have that sound or look alike, or sound a bit similar but with completely different meanings. These words are found particularly in languages of neighboring countries, for example: Dutch and German, or Spanish and Portuguese. And they are very annoying! You…
Is it only an imitation?
Does she imitate them – or does she know … ???
Where do all these words go to? – Learning Tunsi 8
I have now done 60 hours of language learning with my language helper. That means that I have probably heard another 60 hours of my recordings. My vocabulary in Tunisian Arabic might be around 500 words. But, that’s difficult to know as the number of words I can say is far smaller than the number…
5 Examples and stories – Culture shock 7
In the first six articles we have seen how culture shock can be defined, how it progresses and what you can do to moderate, accept and overcome. The main problem is to recognize the culture shock. The situation is not always so clear that I automatically deal with culture shock. Very often, the employer has…
Simultaneous translation in a very special way
She speaks seven languages … ???
Participate or die
„Before I came to France I attended an intensive course in „Elementary French“. Now, I am in France and I am astonished: Nobody seems to speak elementary French“. Sylvia Simmons Everybody knows: There are differences between school and life. This seems to be the problem of Ms. Simmons. But, it may be an even bigger…
Feeling stupid – the big crisis – Learning Tunsi 7
I feel so stupid. And I have to say a lot of things that I don’t know how to say. The story is about a bear and a goat. They meet. The bear has old clothing and is proud of it. Normally, he wears nothing, now he is dressed. Then, the goat comes by in…