Archive for July, 2010
Jul
Jul
Italian travel blogs
Perhaps the single topic that I read about the most is travel. I have always been fascinated with far away places and beautiful, exotic scenery… multicultured festivals and traditional styles of dress.
So naturally, when I am learning a new language, I go on the hunt for travel blogs in that language. When you’re learning…
Jul
Jul
Lithuanian directions
In anticipation of a coming trip to Lithuania this fall — and as I spend time learning about my heritage — I have decided to learn a little about the language. This is also a really good opportunity for me to put my list of the 10 most important things to know, to get by…
Jul
Jul
Introduction to Catalan
If you imagine a triangle, with Spanish, French, and Italian on the three points, Catalan would be the center of the triangle.… That’s the description that was given to me by Benny. And from what I’ve seen, I can’t think of a better way of describing it.
Jul
Jul
Troublesome Italian words with more than one meaning
In my studies so far this year, I’ve run into several situations where a word can mean two completely different things, occasionally reflecting a difference in pronunciation, and the only real way to know this is by context.…
Jul
Jul
Word pattern recognition
Have you ever thought about what’s actually going on in your mind when you listen to someone talking? If so, you may have already noticed that your brain is guessing at the words to come next before you even hear them!
It works with reading too. If I write “six of one…“, I
Jul
Jul
Verb+preposition+infinitive patterns in Italian
In my last post, I talked about the importance of learning word patterns on your way to fluency. Today, I want to focus on some simple patterns: verb+preposition… patterns.
Jul
Jul
Basic Lithuanian verbs
As I learning about my Lithuanian heritage, I am also learning about the language. So far I have looked at Lithuanian greetings, some common courtesies, how to ask questions, numbers, and directions. This week, let’s learn some basic verbs!…
Jul
Jul
Five failures of Esperanto
Okay, I know I’ve said Esperanto is more religion than language, and I’ve complained about how few people there are with whom to use Esperanto. But today I’m going to put aside those biases and bring attention to a few specific details of Esperanto which give me an unfavorable opinion of it as a language.…
Jul
Jul
A few Italian word patterns
Since we’re in the second half of the year, the focus is less about grammar and vocabulary, and more about building “muscle memory”. It’s still important to continue picking up new words, of course, but the focus should be on word patterns and common usage. The idea is to get away from translating in your…
Jul
Jul
Travel light – pack for a week with only a backpack!
Today I’m leaving for a fabulous week in Barcelona, and as usual, I’m traveling light. I’ll have everything I need in a single backpack. When you travel, less is more. By that, I mean that having to carry less offers me the freedom to do more. While everyone else is standing around a luggage carousel,…