I’ve done it in Arabic, Lao, Japanese, Portuguese, Spanish, Thai, and Vietnamese. I gained language functionality in these foreign tongues with minimal, yet consistent, easy effort. Functional isn’t conversational. Functionality is using practical words for ordinary situations. Here we’re reminded to learn hello
Category: Language
How to learn chunks of words in foreign languages.
Wide sidewalks, yet long blocks, make Danang a pleasant alternative to Hanoi’s cluttered streets and practically endless buzzing traffic. Hanoi’s Old Quarter thrives in organized chaos while Danang seems to prosper without this potentially-perceived pandemonium. Danang has a wide, luxuriously-long, soft-sandy beach. It
Laos is a land to love. It’s an earth space that can have you feeling like you’ve stepped back in time, while simultaneously, the country is developing at a moderate pace. I don’t believe that Laos is well-known to most of the eight-billion-plus
On foot in Panama City, I ordered a fruit shake from a drive through window. I was charged for, and got four huge shakes in styrofoam cups. I thought my Spanish was functional. I was on a tight budget, yet had no choice
When drifting in a land not one’s own, it behooves a visitor to take time to think about why learning numbers abroad is a great idea, along with the phrase: How much? Some vagabonds will disagree, as I’ve observed the majority assume that
I’ve been in peaceful Pakse on the calm Mekong for three weeks, with nine days before the 30-day Lao visa expires. The original, but loose plan was to stay in Pakse for the full, in-country time allotment. However, during the first few days,
I found to my pleasant surprise that Khon Kaen, Thailand is a city of unknown world wonders. The above Thung Sethi has been compared to the Taj Majal. It’s certainly not that, as this architectural astonishment isn’t recognized on a world scale. Only
After virtual teleportation up and across the grand globe, and finally touching down in Southeast Asia’s humongous hub of Bangkok, I was unsurprisingly bombarded with the Thai language. Bangkok is a city of around 15 million people, so there’s no shortage of eavesdropping
If I travel to England or Ireland and look at the signs and names around, I can often remember something without giving it much thought as these are the same names or labels I grew up with in Massachusetts. However, a person who
Imagine traveling to sultry South America, somewhere near its northernmost tip. The climate, geography, way-of-life and language are different; yet it is a tropical wonderland in the backyard of the USA’s southeast. It can be reached in under three hours from the Florida