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Tips For Learning Portuguese.... Gabrielle CollisonTips For Learning Portuguese. If you are planning on relocating to Portugal, then learning Portuguese is crucial, unless you want to live in an “expat bubble”, or have no wish to understand anything about the society in which you are living. It is no good waiting until you are living in Portugal to learn and hoping you will just pick it up. You won’t! You need to start learning many months before your permanent arrival and keep doing it after your relocation. You cannot avoid studying if you really want to learn a new skill. You should not only consider the benefits to you, but the fact that many Portuguese natives will find it extremely impolite and somewhat arrogant, if you make no effort to speak to them in their own language. Government offices and authorities will rarely deal with you in English, and if you attempt to write communications in English you may well get a terse reply telling you that the working language of Portugal is Portuguese! I have heard many excuses, for example, the Portuguese like to practise their English, the world language is now English, they always reply in English when I try to speak Portuguese, it is a difficult language, we don’t have time. The list of excuses is endless. If you're not going to learn the language, or really feel you can’t then you must seriously consider whether you should be moving there in the first place. OK, I have been hard on you – so what are my tips for making it easier to learn Portuguese? - If possible, try to find a private, native speaking teacher and either attend a class, or preferably one-to-one lessons, so that you can study at your own rate. - There are many language books, tapes, CDs and courses out there. Some are better than others and some may suit some people better than others. Buying a few different courses and alternating them, whilst expensive, may help to keep things fresh and widen your vocabulary and grammar. - Study with a partner or friend for motivational purposes. If you both know there is a time set and that someone else is relying on you, you will be less likely to skip it and do something else. - Try to find a non-English-speaking friend or friends. - The key is little and often, 20 minutes a day is far better than an hour or two once or twice a week. You will retain a lot more and not find yourself getting bogged down with it and bored. You are also more likely to make that amount of time available each day and not find excuses for doing something else. - Don’t worry about making mistakes and being perfect, just DO IT! You won’t learn if you don’t make mistakes, think of how many mistakes you hear when foreigners are trying to learn to speak English. Do you make fun of them? No. In general most people are appreciative of others making the effort to learn their language. Plus, it can be real fun. - Watch Portuguese TV and listen to Portuguese radio. However awful some of the programmes might be, you will be amazed at how much sinks in after a while. Portuguese telenovelas (soap operas) are excellent for this. The language used is generally easy to follow the very simple plots and story lines. Most films are subtitled in Portugal and not dubbed, so this makes it even better. You can listen to English and read Portuguese. - If someone replies to you in English, just keep speaking Portuguese, or if need be, ask them politely if they would mind not speaking to you in English. - If you have certain jobs or shopping to do the next day, or later the same day, do a bit of homework before you go out. Make a list of the verbs and vocabulary you might need and learn them and take the list with you for support. Many situations are quite similar, so once you’ve learnt a few stock phrases you can use them again and again. - If you forget a word, then try to remember a few other words to describe the one you’ve forgotten. For example, if you cannot remember the word for hairdryer, you could say the thing that drys hair and most of the time you will get offered the word, or at least the person you are speaking to will understand you. And so there is just one thing left to say Boa Sorte (Good Luck)! Gabrielle Collison, Sunday 09/09/2007 http://www.nativeportugal.com |
Buying a place in Portugal should be easy yet far too many people have fallen foul of the hidden dangers that can bring your property dreams crashing down around you. In this straightforward guide Gabrielle Collison shares her tips on how to minimise the risks and enjoy a trouble free purchase. |
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