Sabado, de 2 de Julio, 2022: The day before class

Doctor Español Amor

Or, how I quit worrying and learned to love the verb conjugation

Hola compañeros humanos!

Me llamo Diana, y estoy aprendiendo español. ¡Hagámoslo!

I have been studying languages for around ten years now. My primary focus for this linguistic endeavor has been the German language, primarily due to my love of the hard rock band Rammstein (ich liebe Rammstein so viel!). I noticed that learning new language changes how your brain works. I could feel it; it was palpable. So, even though I may never be fluent in German (we'll see, I haven't given up yet), I continue learning just because it feels good to stretch out the ol' synapses, you know?

However, I recently decided to learn Spanish for several reasons. One, Spanish is the second most spoken language in the United States (and arguably the world), so becoming fluent would greatly benefit me. Two, I want to visit some Latin American countries, with Chile being the chief among them. Before I head out on grand adventures, I'd like to have at least a rudimentary grasp of the language. And, three, there is a strong possibility that my company will eventually relocate me to San Diego, California, and boy, howdy, I should speak Spanish if I'm going to live in San Diego. There are many Spanish speakers there since the city shares a border with Mexico.

I started to learn Spanish with Duolingo, and it has been great. It's a good teaching tool, and the creators have made it fun. I am learning a lot of vocabulary and language fundamentals, as well as commonly used phrases. But the program is only going to get me so far.  I will be able to read and write Spanish, but I won't become fluent using Duolingo alone. I will need to tackle this task in multiple ways.

Therefore, I am starting an intense, accelerated Spanish class tomorrow, Sunday, July 3, 2022. The goal is to get me from level A-1 to level B-1 in 12 weeks. I want to get to a point where  I can hold short, arduous conversations with native speakers.  If I can get to that point, my fluency journey will go faster and smoother since I can practice with my Spanish-speaking friends.

Estoy emocionada!