In your back pocket: "vos" does not equal "vosotros"

The lessons keep getting more interesting and more informative. They are finally starting to make some headway and momentum is moving forward. ¡Más adelante! This lesson started with explaining moods and the difference between tener and estar when referring to your moods. Basically, you use tener when you need something. When you need to sleep it’s “tengo sueño”, but it can also be “estoy consado”. Pretty much just different ways of saying the same thing, and it helps for understanding others when they talk to you. I mostly always say “necesito dormir”, so it was nice to learn some other useful Spanish phrases.

They also quickly went over the difference between estar and ser, which both mean “to be”. Estar is temporary, whereas ser is permanent. “Soy ingles”, because I will always be English; but “estoy hambre”, because I won’t always be hungry. It is a small spec in the grand scheme of things we need to learn, but it is a huge difference linguistically. We also went over some other smaller things that I’m sure will continue to be reinforced later. For example, we learned how some adjectives proceed nouns, like in English, but generally they follow the noun. In Engish we say “beautiful girls”, but in Spanish it would be “girls beautiful” (chicas bonitas). We went over the shortening of nouns, formal and informal uses, and finally were introduced to the ever-important present tense. For practice we used the 3rd person plural (ustedes/ellas/ellos) to distinguish cultures, based on some very rough stereotypes, haha. Nonetheless, it was pretty funny commentary, along with the handing out of golden stars to David (the gringo). They provide a nice break from the class and keep you laughing while learning some stuff that can easily clutter your brain.

In Castellano (Spanish dialect of Argentina) they use “vos” for the “tu” form, which can be confusing. The program does a good job of introducing the form, and showing the way it conjugates formally and informally. It was confusing to me, because in Spain they use “vosotros” for “y’all”, but it isn’t used at all in Latin/South America. Thus, the first time I was in Buenos Aires and a waiter asked me, “vos quierés pollo” (with the double L pronounced as a –sh, instead of a Y) I had no clue what he was talking about. After some time you get used to it though. The class really is only for Buenos Aires slang Spanish, though. It’s different than places in the interior of the country. For example, everywhere else I have been the double L has been pronounced as a J. Apparently there is some animosities and differences between Portaños (people from Buenos Aires) and people from the rest of the country, both in language and culture.

Lastly, we went over comparative words. We learned about the differences between the same, identical, and similar (mismo, identico, parecido), each having its own characteristic. Oppositely, we learned distinct, different, rare, and unique (distinto, diferente, raro, unico), with raro having a more negative connotation that is more similar to “strange” than “rare”.

Again, the story lines provide for some nice and needed entertainment throughout the class. David’s mom is still at his apartment, and you can tell the story is going somewhere. I find it pretty entertaining.

"Tengo una hermana... ella vende ella." "se vende?!"

This class was probably the most informative so far. First, like always, we quickly went over the ideas from the last class to reinforce them. I really like getting into this habit. The class tells you that language is not math, in the sense that it does not always work to an exact science, because there are always exceptions. In some ways, though, I treat it the same. For example, I appreciate the program strengthens what you learn by reiterating what you have been taught before moving on. I see learning Spanish, like math, as building a pyramid. You have to have a strong base before moving on, because as the course progresses you are constantly building on top of old knowledge with newer, more complicated material. Thus, I think it’s important to make sure that you have a strong base before moving on. In math, I think, this is the case as well. If you don’t understand the basic principles you will be completely lost when the material starts to gain momentum.

The class mixes in grammar, but the majority of it is spent teaching slang Spanish to really help you talk to people in the streets. It was funny that we learned the word “boludo” (asshole, jerk, prick, etc.), because earlier in the day my friends here in Cordoba were trying to explain to me that sometimes it can be used jokingly in a good way, and I really didn’t understand how. But after the classes commentary I kind of get it. We also learned “ballbreaker”, which is “rompepelotas”. I think it’s cool that they supplement necessary information with some funny words to keep you entertained and give you a little break from the general knowledge stuff.

We also learned the names for body parts, even slang for the private parts. It was nice, because I haven’t known anything other than “los manos” and “la cabeza” this whole time I’ve been in South America. We went over numbers from 1 to infinity! Maybe not infinity, but we learned basically how to pronounce numbers in the hundreds, thousands, and millions (including how to say years). It’s still kind of shady to me, because some of the numbers in the hundreds are similar and others are completely different. For example, a lot of them follow a pattern, but 500, 700, and 900 have names that you just have to learn. I also had no idea that numbers could be feminine and masculine as well. I am going to go back and learn them again. Lastly, the class went through the different words for members of the family from mom, dad, sister, and brother to uncle, aunt, grandson, niece, etc. For the most part the words are easy, but difficult to remember, just because there are so many. But I am sure that we will reinforce it at the beginning of next class. The context in which they talk about their family members is really funny, too (just look at the title of the blog). It for sure helps to remember some of the more basic words. Lastly, we learned that when speaking of things or people in groups, if there is one masculine thing or person, the entire group is referred to in the masculine context. Like the question says, if there are 99 women in a room and 1 man you would greet them "Hola chicos!", because of the one man. It seems sexist, but it's just the language. I'm trying to learn it, not judge it! Here's a screen shot for an example:


Even though not all four children are male they are referred to as "hijos", because at least one of them is.

There was a short introduction to the conditional and to irregular verbs, too. I know they are just introducing these topics, but I think that the class should try to hammer verbs into the student’s head before mentioning the conditional. People need to know how to speak in the present before they can even think about moving on to other tenses. Like I was saying before, learning language to me is like building a pyramid. You HAVE to have that base before building on top of it. With my small background in Spanish I was still kind of lost when they brought in the conditional; I didn’t understand its importance in the lesson. Even if there was a solid base there, I think the preterit (past) or future tenses are more important than the conditional. We’ll see what happens.

Next class is more verbs, which is good, and vocabulary for moods.

"Che Guevara come fideos"

The third class opens up where the second class left off continuing with counting. I had a difficult time remembering numbers 10-20 in order, so it was nice to have a refresher course to remind me. It helps with using the 24-hour clock down here, as well as buying bus tickets, groceries, and other good stuff. These lessons are really convenient for gringos traveling around the continent, because they introduce different currencies, language uses, and proper names for people (paraguayo, uruguayo, colombiano, argentino, etc.) from all around South America. Another aspect I found helpful was their introduction to terms used in the business world. It ranged from basic workplace vocabulary, to introducing people, talking about others, and greeting back. Really nice for travelers who are going to be here for a while and are trying to pick up temporary odds and ends to make money along their journies.

The last part of the lesson consisted of introducing basic Spanish verbs (-ar, -er, -ir endings and the usage of the infinitive). It’s nice to be able to start using action words, and it definitely opens up your usable vocabulary when trying to talk to people. I expect to learn a lot more verbs to use. Learning verbs and being able to conjugate them correctly is the fastest way to learn Spanish, I think. They are the most important part of the sentences, when I talk to native speakers down here. Even if I mess up the pronouns, or my sentences are fragmented, they know what I am trying to get across if I can properly use the verbs.

Lastly, I’m digging how the course treats the lessons like mini-episodes. There is always some cliffhanger at the end to make you want to start playing the next one to find out what happens. They aren’t enthralling or anything, but they keep your interest and make it easier to keep studying. Overall, I like the British student and the Argentine teacher. They work well together and the examples they use when putting the vocabulary into context is pretty funny too. I believe one was, “Che Guevara eats noodles.” Weird, but funny and helps you correctly structure the sentences just the same.

Repition and rebuilding

An example of the way the program uses colors and diagrams to help you visually structure sentences.

I'm now starting to get the hang of the structure of the class, and I'm liking the direction it's going. It starts by reinforcing what you learned last class, and throughout the next lesson offers exercises and games to help you remember the material. It really reiterates what you have learned before you move on. Last class we did informal expressions, and this class included formal expressions. The lessons also teach a lot of slang Spanish tough to help you speak with everyone in the streets, hostels, and shops.

Specifically, the class went through the differences between cual, que, and other question words that helped me understand it a bit more. It also explained accent reduction on consonants to pronounce them smoothely, not harsh. The guy in the video is still funny, but I can tell some people might get sick of him as it goes on. The product seems to be targeting gringo guys. Being a gringo guy I think it's pretty funny and keeps me interested, but I can see how girls would get bothered by it eventually. He hits on the hot teacher, like the entire class, haha.

Structurally, the color coding and diagrams to help you understand the organization and grammar of the words on the Magic Whiteboard are doing a good job. I'm a visual learner, so
the pictures and colors have worked out nicely. I also have a hard time aligning the words correctly in a Spanish sentence and not translating verbatim in English. The diagrams and English subititles are improving the way I hear the language spoken to me, and they help me visually structure it in my head. Speaking the language out loud, I think, is the fastest way to learn Spanish. You can read and write all you want, but its not going to help you as much when dealing with people face to face.

I have been able to put a couple of the lessons to good use. I am staying in a hostel in Rosario with a group of about 15-20 medical students from Córdoba. The second lesson went over emergency words like hospital, nurse, police, ayudar (to help), etc. Bueno, entonces... gave me some words to use in making conversation with them and asking them about school and what they studied specifically. Also, the lesson helps you with numbers, how to fill out forms, and pronounce addresses. It helps in the taxis and when asking for directions, and the instructions for filling out forms have been useful at Western Union.

¡carumba! That was actually fun(ny)

Wow. I have to say after the first class I am delightfully surprised. That was much more entertaining than I had originally thought it was going to be. Look at the demo video above to just get a taste of this guy's humor that doesn't stop throughout the entire lesson. If you like it, there is a YouTube channel with a bunch more (http://www.youtube.com/buenoentonces). He's hilarious, and it really keeps you motivated to keep listening. I have never seen these types of lessons before--ones that don't bore me as soon as they begin. I knew Bueno, entonces said these were interactive Spanish courses, but they truly do keep your attention and keep you tuned in.

Now, apart from the entertainment value, I did learn some cool new stuff just through the first class. From the basic Spanish classes I have taken I figured I would fly through at least the first few classes, but I was introduced to tons of words and useful Spanish phrases I didn't know before. For example, to spoon someone is "hacer cucharita". Amazing, haha! Not only that, but there are really cool cultural notes in there. For example, they explained where the term "gringos" came from. During the Battle of the Alamo, between Mexico and Texas, Texans wore green and Mexicans wanted them to go--thus, "Green-go's". So simple, yet you would never put that together! Basically, that just solidifies my opinion that gringo isn't a nice term, despite attempts from Latinos to tell me it's ok, haha. Also, I learned how to say "Yankee" in Spanish, because apparently all Americans are Yankees? Even though they are the most hated baseball team in the U.S. Thirdly, as a person from the United States I (like everyone else) have grown accustomed to referring to ourselves as Americans, but people from South America refer to themselves as Americans as well, because, well, they are from the Americas. ¿Claro, si? This is all in the first class!

Lastly, and most importantly, I really appreciate that the program emphasizes speaking first and foremost. Other programs and courses in school try to throw too much grammar and conjugations at you, instead of teaching you how to communicate--the most necessary part of learning a language. The first class was just greetings, salutations, and farewells, but I can tell I am going to learn how to speak much better. I have always been good at understanding Spanish when reading, writing, and listening, but I have had a difficult time trying to speak it. I know tons of other people who struggle speaking as well. This is going to be a great tool to improving my speech, I can tell. Can't wait for the next session.

Yo-la!

Hey everyone, I'm Cody. I'm a 22-year-old Yank and recent college grad from Oregon. I graduated in June and bought a one way ticket to South America to fulfill the explorer in me. I started in Brazil, then made my way down here to Argentina. I was quite the nomad until I got to Buenos Aires, and then all of a sudden I had a hard time leaving. Apparently that's quite the normal gringo story. A one week stint in BsAs turns into a month, then a year.

Either way, when I arrived I posted on Craigslist to try to trade English lessons for Spanish lessons. While I was skimming the pages I found this opportunity! I get to learn Spanish through Bueno, entonces... in exchange for writing a blog about my experiences with the product. Seeing as I would be blogging anyways, it was win-win for me. So, today is day 1. I'm excited to not only improve my Spanish through an interactive program that goes at my pace, but also to share with you guys my experiences with the product and the way I incorporate it into communicating in the streets on a daily basis. Before this, I took two years of Spanish language courses in college, but I was always unimpressed and over the typical regurgitation of information that was taught in the large classroom setting. Also, it is very difficult to learn a language 50 minutes a day, 4 days a week. You go to class, you speak for a little, then you walk outside and speak in English all day. This is a great opportunity for me, because I get to take a Spanish course and walk outside, speak Spanish, and use what I have learned in an everyday setting.

That's why I jumped at this opportunity. I really don't think there will be anything more beneficial to learning the Spanish language than taking a course while in a place where it is the native language. So here I am! All is go!