Bon dia. Em dic Fèlix. Estic aprenent català.
Good morning. My name is Felix. I am learning Catalan.
Sóc cubà-americà. Visc a Miami... i aniré a Barcelona el treze de febrer.
I am Cuban-American. I live in Miami... and I will go to Barcelona on the 13th of February.
Fa dos mesos, vaig començar aprendre català.
Two months ago, I began to learn Catalan.
Quan vagi a Barcelona, vull menjar molta paella, pa amb tomàquet, croquetes, patates braves i bastant mariscs. I de beure, gaudiré de cava, vermut, vi, cervesa, i cidra, y per descomptat, una mica d'aigua també. :)
When I go to Barcelona, I want to eat lots of paella, pa amb tomàquet (bread rubbed with tomato, topped with olive oil and salt), croquettes, patates braves (fried potato cubes topped with spicy sauce and aioli), and lots of seafood. And to drink, I'll enjoy Cava (local bubbly), vermouth, wine, bear, cider, and, of course, a bit of water too. :)
I have been curating a list of things to do and places to go based on what we see on YouTube videos, personal recommendations, TripAdvidor reviews, and more. Here's what I've got so far. I'll keep adding until my trip.
Please, if you have any recommendations, kindly leave them in the comments section below. Gràcies!
Restaurants
Disfrutar (ultra high end €€€€) you've got to watch this video!
Bodega La Puntal - El Born
Botafumeiro (also €€€€)
La Xampanyeria (no tables - no reservations - lots of tapas)
Quimet & Quimet - amazing tapas- salmon with truffle honey
Can Solé - for Paella
Areas/Sights
El born
Ribera
Ciutodena Park (romantic boats for rowing)
Montjuic
Museo Picasso
Tibidabo (mountain top overlooking the city)
Arch de Triomf
Barceloneta (beach area)
Font Màgica (magic fountain show)
Sports/Entertainment
Barça v Valladolid @ Camp Nou
Further Afield
Girona
Costa brava
Calella de Palafrugell
Tossa de Mar - muralla De la Villa vella-
Montserrat
So, how does one exactly learn a new language? I'll tell you, there are many, many, ways to do so and tons of resources from absolutely free to considerably costly.
I'll first start with the most enjoyable for me... Speaking face to face with a native speaker! I have the great fortune to have a Catalan co-worker, Judit, who teaches at the school I work at. She teaches Spanish to our students but sits with me whenever she can spare some time and tutors me in Catalan. The other person with whom I have conversations often is my tutor on italki, Desi. Italki is a language exchange platform where you can connect with other people who want to learn languages. For free, you can find someone who wants to learn your language and would be willing to do so in exchange for you teaching them your language. It's a great option if you'd like to keep things free. Asking questions of the community is also free and a great way to learn but it could take some time to get answers.
Desi, my awesome tutor with excellent pedagogical skills, is a professional and worth every penny! Since I don't have a lot of time before my trip, I'd like to simply learn and not have to teach in return. So, I schedule time with him on italki's site and process payment there too. When tutoring time comes, we connect via Skype and that experience has been great!! (you can use other options like Google Hangouts, FaceTime, etc. depending on the tutor) As I speak and learn, Desi writes in the chat section. For example, if I may make a mistake or struggle remembering a word, he'll help or correct me and then writes it so I can then study it later on my own. I can't say enough what a great method that is!
Here's a screenshot
Other language learning tools I've been using:
- Duolingo - Free, easy, works on all platforms - strange choices of vocabulary. I wish it were more focused on what one might say when traveling. I'd rather learn how to ask, "what are some of the most authentic and highly recommended restaurants in the area?" instead of, "The blue turtle drinks milk with the children under the stairs of my aunt's house." (creepy, huh?)
- HelloTalk - Another (FREE!) language exchange definitely worth checking out. Works through their free app. Here's a description from their site: Learn a language by chatting with native speakers around the world. ... Native speakers teach you their language, while you teach them yours. ... Chat with language partners via text, voice recordings, voice calls, video calls, and even doodles!
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Google Translate - Google is definitely trying and every day, this service improves. However, use with caution and as a guide. Single words and very simple phrases usually translate well. Example: "I want to go to the park." will translate fine, but anything slangy or casual might not, like, "Hey, what do you say we go hang out at the park to just shoot the breeze and chill?" (I'm laughing at the thought of reading that translation to a native speaker! Ei, què dius que anem al parc a simplement disparar la brisa i el refredat?
(Google Translate is what I use to create the [llegir en català] links at the bottom of these posts.) - verbs.cat & verbscatalans.com - Need to know how to conjugate a verb? There you go!
- LearnBots - mobile app for more verb conjugation practice. Worth the few bucks for the full version.
- Simple Radio - Sometimes I just listen to the radio. This app is similar to IHeartRadio but has more local stations. I tune in to Catalunya Radio FM 102.8 Barcelona. You could also just click here to listen right from your browser.
- YouTube - Leaving YouTube for last is not a reflection of its usefulness or value. There are tons of videos and lessons on there as well.
- Kindle - I've also downloaded a few books on my Kindle but haven't used those much. Will come in handy if I'm somewhere without connectivity.
So here's a song by the amazing group, Blaumut, that I've been listening to (more times than I'm willing to admit). As a musician, I hear so much in this seemingly simple but truly rich song. The string arrangements, harmonies, lyrics, and Xavi de la Iglesia's voice are the main elements of what has made this currently my favorite song.
I have added all of Blaumut's music to my Català playlist on Spotify along with other Catalan artists like Roger Argemí (amazing vocal soloist) and Txarango (large group with a party-like Latino sound). I'll keep adding more as I discover new singers and groups I enjoy.
Hola a tots! Em dic Fèlix i estic aprenent català. That translates to, "Hello, everyone! My name is Felix and I am learning Catalan."
I've created this blog to document my journey as I immerse myself in the Catalan culture, language, food, music, customs, history, current political climate, and much more. Please note, I have no method, plan, or set expectations for this little project so posts will likely be random and disjointed. I'd like to think of it as a storage area. Here's what lead to this...
