Your observations about being uninhibited about language ring true for me. I am often when it comes to Spanish so cautious because I don't want to embarras myself with bad grammar, that it keeps me from using the language while travelling. Dina, who is less inhibited or concerned, will talk a lot. I think I had more formal study than her in high school combined with college, and even did a language study trimester in Salamanca, but she lived and volunteered with a program in Mexico after high school and I think this loosened her up a bit about just being very conversational. On the topic of Nepal, Ana did a program there in February and she absolutely loved it. She went with several classmates at ICE, both juniors and seniors. She wants to take me to Queens to try the many dishes she discovered there. I will try not to forget to take a photo!
Ah, Alex, I keep forgetting how much we have in common, except for height, roots, religion, etc. I did have a Spanish girlfriend, Rosa Domingues Anton and I wish I could find her now on social media. I hooked up with her again about five years later in 1991 when she was studying in the U.S. and for a brief weekend we rekindled our romance. At the tail end of my time there I also met an American at a party, Janet Brown, whose name is so common and generic I guess it is safe to share here. We managed to continue things in the U.S. as well so except for the bad grades (I got a C+ in art history which lowered my overall GPA when I graduated) and the fact that I didn't really learn the language, I guess my time there was well spent. Oh to be in one's early 20s and have a full head of hair!!
One of the ironies of my time in Salamanca was that I was a bit of a book worm, reading the assigned books (in Spanish), making sure to complete my homework. A lot of time was spent in my apartment (I lived with a Spanish family). I never spoke with the father, who owned a bar down the street where he spent most of his time and was taciturn. But I did speak with the mother and the kids. That was good. But my friend Andrew took an entirely different approach. I am sure he did some of his assignments, but he was less concerned with the school work and made a concerted effort to make Spanish friends, hang out in bars and restaurants, and talk to them as much as possible. At the conclusion of the trimester he was the much better speaker and went on to teach Spanish in the NYC public school system part-time. Years later he met a woman from France and eventually moved back with her where he has now lived for many years. He is the music director of a French band and I am sure that for many years he has been fluent. I would be curious if he kept up his Spanish.
Your observations about being uninhibited about language ring true for me. I am often when it comes to Spanish so cautious because I don't want to embarras myself with bad grammar, that it keeps me from using the language while travelling. Dina, who is less inhibited or concerned, will talk a lot. I think I had more formal study than her in high school combined with college, and even did a language study trimester in Salamanca, but she lived and volunteered with a program in Mexico after high school and I think this loosened her up a bit about just being very conversational. On the topic of Nepal, Ana did a program there in February and she absolutely loved it. She went with several classmates at ICE, both juniors and seniors. She wants to take me to Queens to try the many dishes she discovered there. I will try not to forget to take a photo!
Ah, Alex, I keep forgetting how much we have in common, except for height, roots, religion, etc. I did have a Spanish girlfriend, Rosa Domingues Anton and I wish I could find her now on social media. I hooked up with her again about five years later in 1991 when she was studying in the U.S. and for a brief weekend we rekindled our romance. At the tail end of my time there I also met an American at a party, Janet Brown, whose name is so common and generic I guess it is safe to share here. We managed to continue things in the U.S. as well so except for the bad grades (I got a C+ in art history which lowered my overall GPA when I graduated) and the fact that I didn't really learn the language, I guess my time there was well spent. Oh to be in one's early 20s and have a full head of hair!!
One of the ironies of my time in Salamanca was that I was a bit of a book worm, reading the assigned books (in Spanish), making sure to complete my homework. A lot of time was spent in my apartment (I lived with a Spanish family). I never spoke with the father, who owned a bar down the street where he spent most of his time and was taciturn. But I did speak with the mother and the kids. That was good. But my friend Andrew took an entirely different approach. I am sure he did some of his assignments, but he was less concerned with the school work and made a concerted effort to make Spanish friends, hang out in bars and restaurants, and talk to them as much as possible. At the conclusion of the trimester he was the much better speaker and went on to teach Spanish in the NYC public school system part-time. Years later he met a woman from France and eventually moved back with her where he has now lived for many years. He is the music director of a French band and I am sure that for many years he has been fluent. I would be curious if he kept up his Spanish.