Learning a foreign language comes with many things… and one of the big things is correct pronunciation. If you haven’t grown up speaking German, it’s almost impossible to master all the nuances.
Continue readingIntroducing… Claudia Weiss
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I was never destined to learn another language… but here I am
I’m quite often asked in Austria if I learnt German at school. My answer: “No, I learnt Indonesian,” is usually met with very blank stares.
When I began high school in Australia it was mandatory to learn one semester each of French and Indonesian.
The ongoing struggle of formal/informal speech
One of the great irritations of German, apart from having genders and weird pluralising and everything else that goes on… is formal speech. You could say it is a little similar to English… but only in a very subtle way. In English, it’s normal to refer to someone older than you as Mrs or Mr so-and-so… until there comes a time where they tell you it’s fine to call them by their first name. But come on, that’s simple!
The making of a Kornspitz – and the fulfilment of a goal
When I first came to Austria I got extremely excited by the prospect of ordering a sandwich at the deli. Yes, yes, I know… the bubble I live in is a strange and wonderful one. But back to the story – at most supermarkets, you can grab yourself a roll (be it white, round, long, or if you’re like me, a Kornspitz), then ask the staff behind the counter to fill it with ham, cheese and gherkins.
I love checking out the selection of rolls (even though I now always stick with my Kornspitz, kind of like how I always order a Big Mac). I love considering the different ham and salami options – but here I’m a creature of habit too, and I can’t move past the garlic-salami. Cheese and gherkins are added, and then my instant sandwich is packaged up at a ridiculously low cost. We often resort to these for quick lunches on the go and we buy one every time we are about to get on a plane in Austria.
4 Years in Austria – some reflections
It is with some surprise, and some trepidation, that I confront the fact I have now lived in Austria for 4 whole years.
4 whole years.
In many ways I feel like I’ve just arrived, in others I feel like I’ve been here an eternity.
“Learn a language,” they said. “It’ll be fun, they said.” – Debunking the myth that there are ‘fun’ ways to learn a language
When I first started learning German, naturally I did all kinds of Google searches on hints, tips and tricks to learning a language faster. There must be some kind of magic formula, I assumed, and if I could just unveil it, fluency would be mine!
Well, sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but there just isn’t. Sure, there’s plenty of ideas, but none of them take away from the fact that learning a language comes with hard work and practice.
One thing I came across a lot was so-called ‘fun’ and ‘easy’ ways to learn another language. I clung onto those with everything I had. Options like watching movies in a foreign language, reading local newspapers and listening to the local radio… sure these may sound like fun, but actually, they’re not.
Here’s why these methods are actually no fun at all, and up until now, have barely helped me.
Words that sound hilariously dirty in German – time to get my 14 year old boy on
German really is a hilarious language, especially when you come from an English-speaking background. I am constantly hiding my smiles and sniggers as I listen to the chatter around me. Here’s ten of my favourites. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do! Continue reading
Feel like watching a movie in English tonight? Good luck finding it!
During my travels some friends and I found ourselves in Croatia, and on this particular day, unmotivated, we visited the cinema to watch ‘The Very Bad Trip – Part II’ – that is – The Hangover Part II. It puzzled me then and it puzzles me still, who decides on the sometimes very special movie titles when they’re translated into different languages. I’ve come across many more in Austria, so here are some of my favourites – and I’ll translate them literally so you can enjoy them the same way I do.
an aussie in austria 