A few weeks ago, at the Brunch & Language Exchange, the typical cliché came out when someone said that in Barcelona only Catalan is spoken…

That reminded me of an American guy who crossed the ocean for love and moved to a town in Lleida. Everyone there spoke only Catalan, so that was the language he learned. But after a few years, he and his girlfriend broke up, so he decided to move to Barcelona, thinking that a big city always offers more opportunities. His surprise was when, he arrived in Barcelona, he found that almost no one spoke Catalan; therefore, without speaking Spanish, his options for finding a job were limited.

When someone brings up this cliché, I usually ask: Where? In what part of Barcelona is Catalan the only spoken language?
Then, it usually turns out that it is not in the city, but in a town in Catalonia. Such thing has an explanation as simple as that if in towns people do not usually speak Spanish, it is because they do not need it for their everyday life. That does not mean that they do not understand it, simply that they do not practice it daily, therefore they are not fluent and do not feel comfortable speaking it.

I compare it to English. It is a language that we have studied for years in elementary school, high school, etc. But, generally, it is not a language that we use daily, all the films are dubbed into Spanish and we are not in the habit of using it at all. Then, when a foreigner asks us something on the street, we become paralyzed, we begin to sweat trying to remember what that teacher repeated to us for years and we feel as uncomfortable as those people who live in towns where Spanish is not used.

In short, languages must be practiced regularly to be able to use them without even having to think, it does not matter if it is a language very similar to yours or completely different, the more you practice it, the more fluent you will be and the more comfortable you will feel speaking it.

If you also want to speak fluently in other languages and have fun chatting with native speakers, follow this link.
If you are looking for a language teacher, you can find it on our website.

What about you? Do you practice regularly? Are you comfortable speaking in other languages? Share your story with us either at the ONLINE Language Exchanges, at the weekly face-to-face gatherings or at the Brunch & Language Exchange on Sunday, May 30th. And if you want to see your story published, you can send it to us at info@speakquick.es

Big hug,
Aina

Language Learning

Reasons to learn languages

By Aina SpeakQuick on

21 April, 2021

- Language Learning

Some time ago, at a language exchange, I was talking with a guy from the States who said that it was not important for him to learn other languages since English is becoming the universal language and wherever he went he could communicate “almost” without problems . So he only went to language exchanges to socialize.

That made me think about my own experience at language exchanges… I started running them because, after years living abroad, I wanted to keep the languages I had learned and, for me, the only way is by practicing regularly. But I realized that I was not only practicing languages, but also creating new groups of friends (for myself and for many other people).

Socializing is a very good reason to participate, although there are many other reasons that would encourage anyone! Do you know that learning languages has many benefits? For example, it has been shown that dementia is less likely to occur if you are bilingual. In addition, it is proven that people who speak two or more languages are better at multitasking and that IQ increases with each language we learn.

So, if you still doubted whether to start participating in these kind of events, there are many more reasons to do so than you thought.

Would you like to socialize? Would you like to speak other languages fluently? Would you like to increase your IQ? Follow this link!
If you are looking for a language teacher, you can find him/her on our website.

You can do all this and much more with us, either at the ONLINE Language Exchanges, or at the Brunch & Language Exchange this Sunday, April 25th.
And if you want to see your story published, you can send it to us at info@speakquick.es

Best,
Aina

Language Learning, Uncategorized

I feel shy if you’re here…

By Aina SpeakQuick on

7 April, 2021

- Language Learning, Uncategorized

During a Brunch & Language Exchange, I sat at a table where English, Spanish and Italian were practiced; each of the 4 people had different levels. Although we all could communicate, there was a guy who hardly spoke, so every question we asked, I asked him to be the first to answer. He, in turn, declined the preference and asked someone else to respond first.

After a while, seeing that he was not really practicing the languages which he came to practice, he told me: “I feel shy if you are here, because you speak all languages perfectly.” I laughed and replied that I appreciated the compliment, but that nobody speaks any language perfectly. He looked at me incredulously, so I asked him, “Don’t you ever make mistakes in your native language?” Of course his answer was “yes”.

I shouldn’t say this because I do my living with the Spanish teaching, but I am the first one to make mistakes in my two native languages, Spanish and Catalan. In both of them, mainly due to the influence of the other, but sometimes also due to the influence of the other languages I speak and other times because the word simply does not come to my mind. This is not something to be ashamed of, it is something totally normal and that happens to everyone.

Participating in language exchanges is the best way to lose the fear of getting out of your comfort zone and to really learn a language. Practicing a language with native speakers makes you improve your vocabulary, fluency, expressions, pronunciation… In addition, the more you practice, the easier it is to think in that language, which usually leads to fewer mistakes (although remember that we are human and without a doubt we are going to make some in any language 😉).

If you also want to speak other languages fluently and to have fun chatting with native speakers, follow this link..
If you’re looking for a language teacher, you can find him/her on our website.

What about you? Do you practice regularly? Are you comfortable speaking in other languages? Share your story with us either at the ONLINE Language Exchanges, or at this Sunday’s Brunch & Language Exchange. And if you want to see your story published, you can send it to us at info@speakquick.es

Best,
Aina

Language Learning

How to learn a language fast

By Aina SpeakQuick on

31 March, 2021

- Language Learning

A few weeks ago, at the Online Bar, I spoke with a Spanish girl who is learning Italian. She has been attending to classes for a few months and she still doesn’t feel comfortable talking it. She asked me for how long I had studied Italian, my answer was “3 months”. She was shocked and asked how had I managed to learn it so quickly. To which I replied: “one thing is to study and a different one to learn!“.

I moved to Italy in 2006 without knowing any Italian (apart from “ciao”, “birra” and “grazie”). I toke an intensive course of 4 hours a day from Monday to Friday for 3 months and, when I left class, I tried not to speak other languages, although my Italian was painful at the beginning, I used it at all times and with everyone, even with foreigners.

Shortly after arriving in Italy, I started dating an Italian, which helped me a lot to improve my accent (even now some Italians ask me if I am from Florence). I lived there for a year and when I returned to Barcelona, my ragazzo came with me, so I continued to use Italian at home for a couple more years.

I did not learn Italian in 3 months, that was the time I invested in my classes. But I did many hours of practice. In fact, I did so many that I even forgot my other languages! When I returned to Spain, I was unable to speak Spanish, I had neglected it for a year and it took me a month to regain my confidence and fluency.

As I always say, languages have to be practiced regularly to be able to use them without having to think, even if it is your native language. The only way to learn fast is by spending hours. The more you practice it, the more fluent you will be and the more comfortable you will feel speaking it.

If you also want to speak other languages fluently and have fun chatting with native speakers, follow this link.
If you are looking for a teacher of a language, you can find it on our website.

What about you? Do you practice regularly? Are you comfortable speaking other languages? Share your story with us either at the ONLINE Language Exchanges, at the Paella & Language Exchange this Saturday, April 3rd, or at the Brunch & Language Exchange on Sunday, April 11th. And if you want to see your story published, you can send it to us at info@speakquick.es

Best,
Aina

Language Learning, Uncategorized

Have you ever made a fool of yourself for not knowing how to pronounce a word correctly in another language?

By Aina SpeakQuick on

30 March, 2021

- Language Learning, Uncategorized

Some Sundays ago, at the Brunch, we were practicing Italian at the table where I sat. We talked about many interesting topics during the three hours of language exchange. At a certain point, someone asked me, “Have you ever made a fool of yourself for not knowing how to pronounce a word correctly in another language?” Of course my answer was: “Yes!”.

Here’s my story, of how I made a fool of myself in front of my former Italian in-laws:
I had been in Italy for a short time, only a couple of months, so my Italian was still not very good. That was also the time I had been dating Riccardo. We had met in a bar, he was the bartender and we fell in love almost at first sight (I say almost because I went many times to make sure he had seen me). We started dating on Halloween night (maybe a premonition of what that relationship would be like, but this is another story). And soon after he wanted to introduce me to his parents, I’d been putting off until he told me it was his mother’s birthday and that she wanted me to go to the celebration too. I could not refuse, so I arranged myself in the Italian style, that is, a little dress, heels, makeup… but all very posh (those of you who know me know that I usually go quite formal, but Riccardo said that Spanish women, myself included, seemed very hippies).

In short, there I was, looking my finest, putting to the test the Italian I had learned in two months of classes, with my new in-laws who I had just met. I was extremely nervous so I didn’t speak too much, but when the waiter arrived I had to open my mouth to order my food. Well, for those of you who do not speak Italian, I will tell you that it is VERY important to highlight the double letters; that is, if there are two “n” in a row, or two “m”, “l”, “s”, it does not matter the letter, if there are two together, you have to pronounce both, because the meaning of the word can change. I wanted to order the “all’arrabbiata” macaroni (it could be translated as “angry”, basically they are a bit spicy), but instead of ordering “le penne all’arrabbiata” I asked for “pene all’arrabbiata”, which it turns out to be an angry penis…

Everyone’s eyes widened and my mother-in-law, raising her voice, repeated to the waiter that what I wanted was teh pasta. I wanted to die of shame. I don’t think I spoke more during the whole awkward evening.

Now I remember it and I laugh, but at that moment I had a terrible time. The good thing is that I learned the importance of pronunciation. This is not learned with books or apps, it is learned by speaking with native speakers.

If you also want to have fun chatting with native speakers of the language you want to improve while enjoying a delicious meal, follow this link.

What about you? Have you ever made a fool of yourself for not knowing how to pronounce a word correctly in another language? Share your story with us either at the ONLINE Language Exchange, at the Paella & Language Exchange this Saturday, April 3rd, or at the Brunch & Language Exchange on Sunday, April 11th. And if you want to see your story published, you can send it to us at info@speakquick.es

Best,

Aina

Barcelona tips, Special Dates

La Fira de Santa Llúcia

By Nicolò Mugnani on

27 November, 2018

- Barcelona tips, Special Dates

Christmas is coming and the anxiety for the chase of gifts grows.
Don’t worry, Barcelona offers you the solution.

As every year, Santa Lucia’s Christmas market will open its doors and you will find curious and unique ideas for your gifts.

The market, with 232 years of life, is a mandatory place to feel the typical Catalan Christmas atmosphere, with its handcrafted decorations, jewelery and handmade accessories.

It is common for the inhabitants of Barcelona to buy figures for the nativity scene and nougats for their Christmas festivities.

This year the market will start on November 30th and will end on December 23th and as always will be on the Avinguda de la Catedral, to fill your Christmas with magic.

Special Dates, Uncategorized

March 8

By Aina SpeakQuick on

8 March, 2018

- Special Dates, Uncategorized

On March 8, 1908, in New York textile workers of New York Cotton factory were on strike to demand improvements in their working conditions. In commemoration of this date, the socialist groups achieved this date was declared as the International Women’s Day.

Undoubtedly, society and women’s evolution within it is a fact. Todays post is written by four women, very different from each other, but united by something more powerful than discrimination, sexism and inequality: love.

Daniela Piovezan @piove_dani

I grew up in a bubble of machism disguised, in which the woman must be nurtured and protected as a valuable asset that can not mancillarse, physically or morally. In a society full of protocols and scripts. An ornate, padded and safe cage. I do not complain. I’m not complaining because what they taught me, was nothing more than what was taught and is not the time to blame.

It is time to learn from the past, face fears, go ahead, creating a new story and new lessons.It’s time to celebrate. We celebrate the achievements. The conquests of many women who entered our history, fill me with admiration for her example of struggle, resistance and improvement.

Daily battles each and every one of us to have a full life. We celebrate the driving force behind the fight for the same privileges, and why not, also the duties.

We celebrate equality. Equal importance, not of essence. Equal opportunities and rights. We celebrate differences.

The differences that complement and build. The differences that show the beauty of the nuances. We celebrate freedom. Free to go, do or be what you want. The freedom to have children or not. Combing hair, applying makeup, shaving, grooming … or not. Seduce and be seduced. Go alone or accompanied. Showing your knees, cheeks or chest. Playing football, billiards and chess. You may like pink, blue or yellow, without distinction, nor because one color or another means anything.

Let’s celebrate which each can provide as a human being, with their genes, personalities and stories.

DSO @dsowriter

I am very pleased that women unite for causes that we support throughout. What hurts, often, is that we seem to competitors, more than friends. Surely, retrograde education, is much to blame for this. But it is as it is, even if I don’t understand, nor I will ever understand, but unity among us, does not always mean power.

It’s something that hurts me, but I fight every day to make this change. We stigmas in our skin that cause us pain without being able to understand why. But the reality is only one, throughout this struggle for hundreds of years, against the injustices of a society in which the woman was more than subdued by the pressure without human reason, we drown in such a way that I think even today … It remains a problem.

We fight, we go to the streets, something that was unthinkable. We speak and say what we think, without feeling fear in our bodies to be nullified or even mistreated. Life is not always fair. With hand on heart, consistent of what I say, man, talking male, has not been fair to women. We were a lower “category”, our voice, our desires and what we really needed was not taken into consideration. Creating a dent in our lives and thinking, I had to really be.

But what I said, women have to unite without any separatism, support for good and bad, although we are not complement agree. Undoubtedly, the saying ” Unity is Strength” , should be our doctrine, to put a pair of ovaries to any character who wants to belittle us, just for the condition of being a woman.

We are free women, struggling with the ideas of an independent life created by our own choices, without an inculpatory hand pointing at what “we must do.”

Today I want to toast.

Let’s toast with a good Cosmopolitan:

Here’s to all single mothers.

Here’s to those business women who give up so much, just because of being a woman.

Here’s to each woman who without fear has escaped the bastard who raised his hand against them.

Here’s to all those who come out to the streets on March 8 defending our rights.

Here’s to women who made patience a virtue.

Thank you all for being women.

Ivonne Tarraco @iua_tc

To all warriors

I have one day, but it is worth it. I took to the streets without fear, convinced of what I do and why I’m here. I owe it to them, my mother, my grandmother, all the women who I did not have the pleasure of meeting, and opened my pace and marked the way to go. I carry my own open fronts and deal my own battles, but today I feel I am able to stop an entire country. I move on with my strategy and I expect a large number of troops. We are flagged by the same goals and our hymn has led us here. They may try to discourage me and desautorizarme, or call into question my intentions and my abilities, you may question my judgment or simply do not take into consideration but will continue there, at the foot of the canyon. I will move forward with firm and decisive step, gaining ground on merit, seeking new allies every day until I forget why I was here today. I hope to leave behind lost causes and be able to muster the courage to sacrifice myself for all those for who is worth fighting. I know it will not be easy, perhaps the idea to abandon will tempt me, but I am also thinking of future generations, we have to entrench present. So I’ll stock up with my owns and the borrowed, the innate and the acquired, I will have all the resources at my disposal and a time not always prove to be necessary in order to achieve, at last, the long-awaited victory. And if in the worst case, I fall or I am hurt, I know I have the support of countless helping hands that will shield my heart the courage to get back on my feet. Recognizing me imperfect and vulnerable, weathered by the ravages of life and coached them from illusion and honestly, I acknowledge what my demands are, because it is these and not others, and I have no intention of changing them:

I claim a place in the world, my place, ours.

I claim worthy, equal and fair wages.

I claim shared hours and minutes alone.

I claim them the same opportunities.

I claim freedom, equality and justice.

I claim the right to decide and to get excited, to learn and to be wrong, to fight and to give up, to succeed and to fail.

I claim humanity over any gender.

I claim love in all its forms and expressions.

I claim respect and my own life.

I claim the power to be myself.

Lara de Mena @laradmena

Writting about women’s day, quickly leads me to think about the struggle for equality with men, wage inequality, gender violence and many battles, we must not give up. All this is true, we still live in tow of many evils in our society, giving my full support today who will take to the streets to claim it. But in my humble desk, I want my words go dedicated to highlight to bring to light all that we know and sometimes we miss…

Woman, everyone knows their morphological meaning, but what about the hidden meaning?Woman is synonymous with passion, emotion, courage, strength, dignity, courage, intelligence, emotional strength, empathy and suffering (yes, we suffer and sometimes a lot, but because we have the ability to feel).

There is a word that encompasses the feelings of a woman, it is love. Love for what we do, love for how we do it, love for who surrounds us. Her beauty, her friends, her loneliness, her independence, her frailty, her leadership, her simplicity, at the end of the day, what is the most important?

I am a single woman, without ever having gone through the altar, I have not experienced the birth of a child, nor I’ve gotten a managerial position. However, all this, I live with the joy of knowing that I am surrounded by love. With the need to share and share, so, today, March 8, I will raise with the sole goal, to thank all those beautiful women who are part of my life, to love and admire you. You are worth it and you know it!

THANK YOU!

From Sin hipocresías blog, by Dolors Siles
https://sinhipocresias.wordpress.com/

Barcelona tips

Las Ramblas

By Aina SpeakQuick on

29 August, 2017

- Barcelona tips

The different “Ramblas” in Barcelona were named like that because through them it came down water from Collserola mountain, to the sea. They were rather smelly streets, especially in summer because of the water shortage, but mainly because of the lack of sewage in the humble houses of both the Gothic Quarter, Raval, and the now called Eixample (Rambla de Catalunya) and Poblenou, people used to throw waste in them waiting for the water stream to wash them away. This necessary practice was done at anytime, but especially in the early morning and late hour of the day. This generated a habitud in the people of that area to meet, to chat about their things and “fer barri” (“to build neighborhood”).

Once they were supplied with a sewage system, the two sidewalks, the side roads and the central promenade looked as they are now, and so, on Las Ramblas (the well-known ones, those that divided the center of the city in two), there were established stores, Theaters, restaurants, schools and a University, and some flowers and animals kiosks in the central promenade. All Barcelonans from all neighborhoods began to go there. At first it was empty only at night, but like the torrent that flowed in its beginnings, a river of people did not cease to “ramble” day and night, even today: the people of the neighborhood, merchants, workers, bartenders, workers of the Liceu, prostitutes, trade unionists, street artists, tourists, opportunists… “All social classes, races and ethnic groups together in the same street, doing anything and at anytime”, this began to be the definition of the Ramblas.

People began to talk about it as if it were something from our environment: “yesterday there were not so many people”, or “in the higher part is hotter…”, or “these artists are very good…”. As in the Djemaa el Fna square in Marrakesh, the Ramblas of Barcelona took on a life of their own, it became a feast for the senses and people from all over the world came en masse to walk by it to see “what going on, what was happening on Las Ramblas… “.

“Rambling” always was, should be and will be a time to observe, learn, share and live. Let nothing or no one take the “rambling” from us!

by Ruben Arroyo

www.rubenarroyo.net

“Ruben’s “Don’t be a tourist, be a real Barcelonian” tour guides”

www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQTXkKDloPU

Barcelona tips

Bunkers del Carmel

By Aina SpeakQuick on

8 August, 2017

- Barcelona tips

Off the metro line 4 and up the hill are the historic Bunkers del Carmel, a great place to check out a full view of Barcelona-without the tourist crowds. On the weekends there are still quite a lot of people but it is definitely off the beaten path!

Go there during the day for a picnic, during the evening to watch the sunset or at night for the views (with a few drinks in tow!)

How to get there: There are a couple of ways to get to the bunkers.

If you take the bus, take the N17 from the Jaume 1 metro station. It takes longer to get there, but the walk is shorter (total time is about 50 minutes from Jaume 1 metro station).

The other option is the metro (and the only option if you stay later than the buses run). Take the Line 4 metro (yellow line) to the stop Alfons X. From there, it is a bit of a walk up the hill (about 1.6 km!), so be prepared (total time about 45 minutes from Jaume 1 metro station).

Of course, you can drive there if you have a car!

Bring your camera/phone and your friends and enjoy the view!

by Lyndee Johnson

Barcelona tips, Language Learning

In Barcelona not everyone speaks catalan

Language Learning

Reasons to learn languages

Language Learning, Uncategorized

I feel shy if you’re here…

Language Learning

How to learn a language fast

Language Learning, Uncategorized

Have you ever made a fool of yourself for not knowing how to pronounce a word correctly in another language?

Barcelona tips, Special Dates

La Fira de Santa Llúcia

Special Dates, Uncategorized

March 8

Barcelona tips

Las Ramblas

Barcelona tips

Bunkers del Carmel