I feel your pain! I have been taking Portuguese classes for over a year now in preparation for my move to Portugal. There are days I feel like nothing "stuck" in my brain. Then all of a sudden bits & pieces come together. I am reading a book A cidadela Misteriosa by Susan Morais. It is an A1 level but it has a glossary of terms (English) and the audio is included (in Portuguese).
Parabéns! Portuguese can be a challenging language. Luckily for me I was born in the Azores and came to the US as a very young child - so while my Portuguese is "house" and not school taught, it does afford me some level of expertise. My husband is learning to speak/write Portuguese as we prepare to retire there in 2027 when we are of retirement age. He will sometimes as me why something is as I have indicated, and my answer is "I don't know, but this just feels right" and I am almost always correct. When I am visiting the mainland - they can always identify me as an 'island' girl b/c of my accent. :) I'll take it as it still means we can fully communicate. You are both doing great. Keep going, practice like your teacher suggested - immersion and repetition are always best. Have a great week.
First to admit the social value of the Simpsons is sketchy (but the writers were prescient)... I immediately thought of Homer saying "but I want it Now". Good for you for trying and showing success. And kudos to Denise for demonstrating a level of discipline that I doubt I could achieve.
Thank you for today’s letter! I felt like you were speaking my thoughts exactly! (8 different tenses of the same verb) I probably would have fainted if I were in the class when she did the surprise test, but ultimately, she was brilliant. I have a huge fear of language as I always felt so stupid in high school Spanish but I want to learn Portuguese ! I like Denise’s 30 minutes per day. That, to me, is doable without frustrating myself beyond the pale. Congrats to you both for passing. I am inspired!!
Kudos to you for making the effort to learn some Portuguese. It's not easy--I started studying 2 years before we moved here in August of 2021, and since coming here, my husband and I have been taking private lessons twice a week. I would estimate that I'm at the B1 level and at the current pace, could probably reach B2 within a year.
My reading has progressed a lot--I'm at the point where I can read a newspaper article and maybe have to look up 5 or 6 words. I'm not as confident in speaking but I can always make myself understood in day to day situations. The other day, I went to Luz hospital for some bloodwork and the technician said something to me in Portuguese. I didn't understand so she said Fala português? I said, in Portuguese that I do speak some but I am hearing impaired and often have difficulty understanding it. She repeated what she had said, I got it the second time, and from there we went on to have a conversation about how I liked living here, where I was from, places she had been in the US etc. It was such a good feeling to be able to do that!
As you pointed out, understanding European Portuguese seems to be unusually difficult because of the way that so many vowels are reduced or dropped altogether. I'm making a concerted effort to work on my understanding capability by doing as much listening to TV and podcasts as I can force myself to do, and I feel like my capability is slowly but surely getting better. It's very up and down but it is getting better. I also use the PracticePortuguese website and I find the dialogs on there to be a great learning tool. Also, for those of you who have Netflix, there are several shows in European Portuguese, and it's great because you can watch them with Portuguese subtitles which helps to develop your skills of understanding. Also, on TV shows, the actors tend to speak more the way people do in real life compared to newcasters. A couple to look for are Pôr do Sol, Glória and Rabo de Peixe.
To everyone who is making any effort to learn Portuguese, I strongly encourage you to keep it up and don't get discouraged. It's worth it and will come in handy over and over. Plus you will gain a lot of goodwill from Portuguese people. It seems to be that Americans are starting to get a bad rap here, whether it's deserved or not, and making the effort to learn Portuguese is a good way to help counteract that.
Another person in the same boat.. signed up on the understanding that we would be working to achieve the required certificate for the eventual citizenship.. but it seems every school (in fact every class!) does things differently, has different "standards" (or lack thereof).. and it appears that each class ends up being "tested" only on the work they covered (even if its not the whole A1/A2 syllabus)..
So whether the piece of paper I have been assured I will receive will be worth anything remains to be seen.. It's very frustrating.
Yes I have learnt "something", but am I at Ciple level? - I doubt it.
I took the CIPLE test two years ago at the Univ in Faro. A five hour ordeal stretched over a two hour lunch break. Of course. It’s Portugal! The parts of the test were averaged together thankfully! The written and spoken parts were fine, even partially fun (roleplay with another student on topics posted during lunch). The oral comprehension part was incredibly difficult. Simply said I flunked it. Even today after six years in Portugal, although I can speak OK, and carry out a conversation with people, it’s still frustrating Lee difficult to understand what I’m hearing if they speak in a normal speech and manner. It’s a stress language literally. If I had known about the public course, I would’ve taken it for sure anything to have avoided that exam in Faro! What have heart. I have reached the point of liberation. I can speak to people and widen my horizons about the place where I am living. Keep on Truckin everybody it’s worth the effort.
Parabéns, you finished! Here are some of my thoughts. 5 minutes a day won't do it, you must have already realized that. If mastery of the Portuguese language were a matter of survival (I'm sure it's not the case...) you'd need to submerge: write your journals/blogs in Portuguese, read only in Portuguese, speak only or 95% of the time in Portuguese. The goal would be to think in Portuguese!
I know, it’s too radical. I did it in reverse with the English language when I migrated to the US. Anyways I'd recommend reading in Portuguese 2 great writers. The poetry of Fernando Pessoa ( some of his works come in the bilingual format) and the novelist Eça de Queirós (19th century but modern, leaner style, the equivalent perhaps of Dostoievski, same era). Try " A Reliquia" e "Os Maias". It may help developing good vocabulary and appreciation for a syntax so different fom English. That is, if you like Literature of course. But it can be fun...
I suspect the authors are a bit more advanced than Goldilocks, the Wizard of Oz, and other books I borrowed from the children's library. I think I might try something a bit easier first. But you are correct about immersion. I had a friend in the US that was dating a Spanish-speaking women and he immersed himself in Spanish TV, radio, etc. He became fluent fairly quickly. Of course, the woman he was dating (his now wife) is also among the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. Now that is motivation...
Kudos to you for diving into learning the language! What worked best for me learning Spanish was watching a series I was super familiar with (i.e. Friends, The Office, etc.) dubbed in the language you're learning, with subtitles in the language you're learning. It's hard at first but eventually it's like your brain picks up on the rhythms of dialogue and it makes all the difference!
Talk the Streets is an amazing course!! Especially with pronunciation, I haven't found a better place to start. The written grammar and some of the artificial intelligence chats that are now available are good, but I think the course is a fabulous place to begin.
Thought my wife and might entertain the idea of moving to Portugal, and were considering moving for a year to check it out. Lot of benefits Medical
After considering everything and throwing the language barrier on top, I don't think we're good candidates. We're 72 and 71 and would need a small mortgage we can't get
Portugal is a wonderful country with many pluses, but it is also very important to come with a clear understanding of pros and cons. If you lived near Lisbon you could get by with English...and keep in mind you only are 2 and 3 years older than Denise who has learned the language! Also you could rent!
Congratulations Nancy!
Wow, that's great! Good job hanging in there! I haven't gotten to a class yet, but it's always on my mind.
I feel your pain! I have been taking Portuguese classes for over a year now in preparation for my move to Portugal. There are days I feel like nothing "stuck" in my brain. Then all of a sudden bits & pieces come together. I am reading a book A cidadela Misteriosa by Susan Morais. It is an A1 level but it has a glossary of terms (English) and the audio is included (in Portuguese).
Parabéns! Portuguese can be a challenging language. Luckily for me I was born in the Azores and came to the US as a very young child - so while my Portuguese is "house" and not school taught, it does afford me some level of expertise. My husband is learning to speak/write Portuguese as we prepare to retire there in 2027 when we are of retirement age. He will sometimes as me why something is as I have indicated, and my answer is "I don't know, but this just feels right" and I am almost always correct. When I am visiting the mainland - they can always identify me as an 'island' girl b/c of my accent. :) I'll take it as it still means we can fully communicate. You are both doing great. Keep going, practice like your teacher suggested - immersion and repetition are always best. Have a great week.
Parabéns!
Parabéns!
First to admit the social value of the Simpsons is sketchy (but the writers were prescient)... I immediately thought of Homer saying "but I want it Now". Good for you for trying and showing success. And kudos to Denise for demonstrating a level of discipline that I doubt I could achieve.
Parabéns por passar no teste!👏👏👏😉
Thank you for today’s letter! I felt like you were speaking my thoughts exactly! (8 different tenses of the same verb) I probably would have fainted if I were in the class when she did the surprise test, but ultimately, she was brilliant. I have a huge fear of language as I always felt so stupid in high school Spanish but I want to learn Portuguese ! I like Denise’s 30 minutes per day. That, to me, is doable without frustrating myself beyond the pale. Congrats to you both for passing. I am inspired!!
Kudos to you for making the effort to learn some Portuguese. It's not easy--I started studying 2 years before we moved here in August of 2021, and since coming here, my husband and I have been taking private lessons twice a week. I would estimate that I'm at the B1 level and at the current pace, could probably reach B2 within a year.
My reading has progressed a lot--I'm at the point where I can read a newspaper article and maybe have to look up 5 or 6 words. I'm not as confident in speaking but I can always make myself understood in day to day situations. The other day, I went to Luz hospital for some bloodwork and the technician said something to me in Portuguese. I didn't understand so she said Fala português? I said, in Portuguese that I do speak some but I am hearing impaired and often have difficulty understanding it. She repeated what she had said, I got it the second time, and from there we went on to have a conversation about how I liked living here, where I was from, places she had been in the US etc. It was such a good feeling to be able to do that!
As you pointed out, understanding European Portuguese seems to be unusually difficult because of the way that so many vowels are reduced or dropped altogether. I'm making a concerted effort to work on my understanding capability by doing as much listening to TV and podcasts as I can force myself to do, and I feel like my capability is slowly but surely getting better. It's very up and down but it is getting better. I also use the PracticePortuguese website and I find the dialogs on there to be a great learning tool. Also, for those of you who have Netflix, there are several shows in European Portuguese, and it's great because you can watch them with Portuguese subtitles which helps to develop your skills of understanding. Also, on TV shows, the actors tend to speak more the way people do in real life compared to newcasters. A couple to look for are Pôr do Sol, Glória and Rabo de Peixe.
To everyone who is making any effort to learn Portuguese, I strongly encourage you to keep it up and don't get discouraged. It's worth it and will come in handy over and over. Plus you will gain a lot of goodwill from Portuguese people. It seems to be that Americans are starting to get a bad rap here, whether it's deserved or not, and making the effort to learn Portuguese is a good way to help counteract that.
Thanks for the encouragement and recommendations!
Another person in the same boat.. signed up on the understanding that we would be working to achieve the required certificate for the eventual citizenship.. but it seems every school (in fact every class!) does things differently, has different "standards" (or lack thereof).. and it appears that each class ends up being "tested" only on the work they covered (even if its not the whole A1/A2 syllabus)..
So whether the piece of paper I have been assured I will receive will be worth anything remains to be seen.. It's very frustrating.
Yes I have learnt "something", but am I at Ciple level? - I doubt it.
Regardless of what we receive the class was a wonderful gift
I took the CIPLE test two years ago at the Univ in Faro. A five hour ordeal stretched over a two hour lunch break. Of course. It’s Portugal! The parts of the test were averaged together thankfully! The written and spoken parts were fine, even partially fun (roleplay with another student on topics posted during lunch). The oral comprehension part was incredibly difficult. Simply said I flunked it. Even today after six years in Portugal, although I can speak OK, and carry out a conversation with people, it’s still frustrating Lee difficult to understand what I’m hearing if they speak in a normal speech and manner. It’s a stress language literally. If I had known about the public course, I would’ve taken it for sure anything to have avoided that exam in Faro! What have heart. I have reached the point of liberation. I can speak to people and widen my horizons about the place where I am living. Keep on Truckin everybody it’s worth the effort.
We are so fortunate that Portugal offers this class. In addition to language it included Portuguese culture and traditions.
Parabéns, you finished! Here are some of my thoughts. 5 minutes a day won't do it, you must have already realized that. If mastery of the Portuguese language were a matter of survival (I'm sure it's not the case...) you'd need to submerge: write your journals/blogs in Portuguese, read only in Portuguese, speak only or 95% of the time in Portuguese. The goal would be to think in Portuguese!
I know, it’s too radical. I did it in reverse with the English language when I migrated to the US. Anyways I'd recommend reading in Portuguese 2 great writers. The poetry of Fernando Pessoa ( some of his works come in the bilingual format) and the novelist Eça de Queirós (19th century but modern, leaner style, the equivalent perhaps of Dostoievski, same era). Try " A Reliquia" e "Os Maias". It may help developing good vocabulary and appreciation for a syntax so different fom English. That is, if you like Literature of course. But it can be fun...
I suspect the authors are a bit more advanced than Goldilocks, the Wizard of Oz, and other books I borrowed from the children's library. I think I might try something a bit easier first. But you are correct about immersion. I had a friend in the US that was dating a Spanish-speaking women and he immersed himself in Spanish TV, radio, etc. He became fluent fairly quickly. Of course, the woman he was dating (his now wife) is also among the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. Now that is motivation...
Kudos to you for diving into learning the language! What worked best for me learning Spanish was watching a series I was super familiar with (i.e. Friends, The Office, etc.) dubbed in the language you're learning, with subtitles in the language you're learning. It's hard at first but eventually it's like your brain picks up on the rhythms of dialogue and it makes all the difference!
Congratulations to you both
Talk the Streets is an amazing course!! Especially with pronunciation, I haven't found a better place to start. The written grammar and some of the artificial intelligence chats that are now available are good, but I think the course is a fabulous place to begin.
Thought my wife and might entertain the idea of moving to Portugal, and were considering moving for a year to check it out. Lot of benefits Medical
After considering everything and throwing the language barrier on top, I don't think we're good candidates. We're 72 and 71 and would need a small mortgage we can't get
Portugal is a wonderful country with many pluses, but it is also very important to come with a clear understanding of pros and cons. If you lived near Lisbon you could get by with English...and keep in mind you only are 2 and 3 years older than Denise who has learned the language! Also you could rent!