I was trying to speak Spanish to someone the other day and as my brain reached for the Spanish word for garbage can, out tumbled German like a pair of dirty underwear at an airport security screening. “Oh, I mean…uh…” I fumbled, embarrassed My German hung awkwardly between me and the confused Mexican woman… Read More Do you ever mix up your second and third languages?
I once made the mistake of traveling with my what amounted to my travel opposite, a boyfriend* who insisted our trip revolve around organized tours, timetables, and three meals a day spent with a group of loud, boisterous British backpackers. For someone who loves flexible, unstructured vacations where entire days are spent people watching, meandering through… Read More What’s Your Travel Personality Type?
This year I’ll be going to two weddings (one in Europe and the other in New York). I’m hoping that while in Europe (the wedding is in Helsinki, Finland) I’ll be able to visit friends in Switzerland, France and Belgium, but but how much I see/do depends entirely on my financial situation and how much time I… Read More What’s on your 2013 Travel Bucketlist?
The photo above, taken in Amsterdam, is courtesy of K@a. I’m going to start taking Spanish and / or German classes at the community college soon. Spanish, because it’s a useful language to know and German, because although it’s not useful, I spent 10 years and thousands of dollars studying it, so I might as… Read More 9 Quotes about Struggling to Learn a Foreign Language
Once a blog, book and art exhibit, artist Vahram Muratyan’s Paris vs New York pictures are now a set of 100 postcards. When I first heard about this from @brainpicker on twitter, I thought: “Cute, but what are you supposed to do with 100 flashcards?” Then I had the idea to create a wall collage. You can… Read More Decorating Ideas for Travel Addicts: Paris vs New York Postcard Collage
Maybe you don’t know this about me, but I’m an English as a Second Language Teacher (What. You didn’t think I made a living off of blogging, did ya?). I’ve played these videos for my students as warm-up activities or as part of a lesson and thought I’d share them with you. Even if you’re… Read More 5 Funny Videos about Teaching ESL
While catching up on my NPR podcasts this afternoon, I came across “Bilingualism A Political Liability?” from NPR’s All Things Considered. The radio spot focused on the negative responses some of the Republican presidential candidates have received over their ability to speak a foreign language. Mitt Romney speaks fluent French and Jon Huntsman (who has since… Read More Bilingual and Running for Election? Shhh! Better not tell anyone…
How’s your travel vocabulary? Have you been keeping up? Here’s a list of travel-related words that have been officially recognized by the Oxford English and Merriam-Webster dictionaries. Mankini Official Dictionary Definition: a brief one-piece bathing garment for men, with a T-back. How it Relates to Travel: Popularized by the movie Borat, this is one… Read More New Travel-Related Words Added to the Dictionary in 2011
Bradley Cooper speaks fluent French?! Swoon. … Read More 8 American Celebrities You Didn’t Know Spoke a Foreign Language