How has your language learning gone this year? As one year makes way for another, in this post let's take a step back and look over how things went....and look ahead to share hopes and plans for 2019 (also in vlog form, down at the bottom). But first, my annual year-end review and preview wouldn't be complete without a picture of a Christmas tree. Here's my 2018 "bark n … [Read more...]
Learning Basque as life gets in the way
How do you sustain language learning when the demands of "life" start to get seriously in the way? It's work and travel that have taken their toll on my Basque for the last couple of months. You may be (and probably are) learning a completely different language. I bet you'll still experience the same struggle to keep going when you're very busy or on the road. Here's how it's … [Read more...]
“Dr Popkins Method?” How I got fluent in German
To help you better in your language learning, I’m sharing my own story in the "Dr Popkins Method?" series. I’ve told the story of how I got fluent in French, Welsh and Russian. Now, let’s look at how to learn German.....or, at least, how I've done it. This post covers roughly the same German ground - but in more detail - as the second half of the vlog linked at the bottom of … [Read more...]
One month Basque boost: final week diary
Kaixo denei! Here's the diary of the fourth week “One month Basque boost” project and a final round-up of all I did to level up my spoken Basque in the month before I took part in a Basque TV programme. I've delayed this post by a week to wrap things up after the shoot (which took place six days ago). At the end of this final week's diary, there’s the final catch-up video … [Read more...]
One month Basque boost: third week diary
Kaixo denei! It's the end of week three of my summer "One month Basque boost" project. One week to go until I'm in a Basque TV programme. My aim this month has been to have at least five thirty or forty-five minute lessons with a teacher on Skype each week and to do thirty minutes of self-study a day. This week I managed to have eight lessons and did the extra study five … [Read more...]
One Month Basque Boost: second week diary
This is the third post in my "One month Basque boost" mini project. My aim this month is to do five one-to-one Skype lessons a week (I'm mainly using italki.com) and an additional thirty minutes focussed study five days a week. The immediate spur is an upcoming Basque TV appearance. At the bottom of this week's diary, there's a quick update of other news from Howtogetfluent.com … [Read more...]
One Month Basque Boost: first week diary
Kaixo Londresetik! This is my second post in my "One month Basque boost" mini project. I've been asked to take part in a Basque television programme at the end of August. That provides a great incentive for me to focus in again on levelling up my Basque speaking abilities. My aim this month is to do five one-to-one Skype lessons a week (I'm mainly using italki.com) plus thirty … [Read more...]
One Month Basque Boost: kick off
Kaixo denei Londresetik! I've just had some exciting news: I'm going to be in a Basque TV programme. The crew is coming to shoot at the end of August. That's great motivation for me as an intermediate level Basque learner to put my foot on the gas during the next four weeks. In this post I'm launching my "One month Basque Boost" mini project (scroll right down for launch … [Read more...]
Icelandic’s success as an inspiration for Welsh and Europe’s other “lesser used” languages.
There a host of reasons why I was looking forward to going to Iceland and learning some Icelandic for the first time. One of them was to compare the Icelandic and Welsh linguistic situations. The two languages are not closely related. Icelandic is a Germanic language and Welsh a Celtic one. They do both share the characteristic of having a relatively small number of … [Read more...]
Learning Icelandic in Reykjavík (vlog)
I've been back from my first ever visit to Iceland for three full weeks now. Since then, I've also been on a work trip to Dubai. That's my excuse for the delay in reporting back at the end of my 30 Day Focus on Icelandic. This language "sprint" culminated in a three-afternoon class in Reykjavík. I've made a short video of my experiences which I hope will inspire you to try … [Read more...]