Learning Spanish

William2021

William2021

Active Member
I love Ibiza and have spent 7 incredible summers there, but I never got round to learning the beautiful language. I'm finally taking the time we now have to study the language and I'm looking up several online courses. Problem is, there are so many varieties of Spanish to choose from. Can anyone recommend which language is the best one to learn for future vacations to Ibiza, Mallorca, and possibly Valencia?

Gracias
 
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I'm also wanting to start learning Spanish hopefully this year.
Let us know how your getting on Aaron, or some feedback on the online course you have chosen

Good luck ??
 
I use duolingo and go on for 5 minutes a day slowly picking up the real basics. I choose 5 minutes just so it is a little easier to stick to and is in bite size chunks. It is surprising what you remember when it tests you. Only I reckon I will be one of those people that will be able to read Spanish better than speaking it
 
Life of Rye said:
I use duolingo and go on for 5 minutes a day slowly picking up the real basics. I choose 5 minutes just so it is a little easier to stick to and is in bite size chunks. It is surprising what you remember when it tests you. Only I reckon I will be one of those people that will be able to read Spanish better than speaking it
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Duolingo is sweet, I had little faith in what can be a free App without the upgrade but was impressed and now love it. I aim to level up every day or at least spend a little time on it out of my work breaks.. im in the same boat though with a pretty raw regional accent it doesn't sound right when speaking? but its the effort that counts as long as I can get by when were away and loose a little of the typical British tourist stigma then im happy
 
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duolingo is good for vocab & handy for brief holiday exchanges, but you need the grammar really if you want to actually have a conversation. get down your local tapas bar (if/when they reopen..) and practice your food/drink there. Or put an ad in your nearest university/or or FB for intercambios (exchanges). some people do skype or zoom lang practice (probably for a fee..) I've spent the last year or two improving my written on twitter interacting with a whole load of Spanish accounts. Sometimes people reply in English either because they assume it's just a gesture or because they want to practice themselves, which is a bit annoying but it depends really on the situation.
 
Quick question. What is most commonly used when ordering a drink?

Beber, Tomer or Trago and what is the difference?

Thank You !
 
ok so...

beber is the actual verb for drinking.
tomar, which is most commonly used IMO, means to take/have. vámos a tomar algo —> let's go have a drink (even though it actually says let's go have something)
a trago is a sip, but in south america it also stands for a drink. south americans would say quiero un trago, spaniards would say quiero una copa - I fancy a drink
 
Puedo pedir una ensalada sin queso por favor? :D

Ordering in Spanish is one thing I look forward to living in a predominantly Hispanic community - many restaurants answer the phone en espanol... pero ellos hablan ingles tambien.
 
Dirk Bigler said:
Would a waiter say:


Quieres una beber?

or

Quieres una trago?

Thanks
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none of both really.

they would usually ask one of those options:

qué quieres (if one person) / quereis (if various ppl) tomar?

qué te / os apetece? (what do you fancy - also when it's not sure whether you're gonna eat or just have drinks)

qué te / os pongo? (sort of 'what should I get you')
 
a lot of people here say birra instead of cerveza, but both are good. if you want a good old pint ask for a pinta or jarra. you have to specify or else the default measure is a caña which is barely a half

also:

- with wines, rioja is the region. if you want a generic red ask for a tinto
- if you want a gin ask for a ginebra. If you want ginger ask for jenibre. I did actually reduce a shop assistant to fits of laughter when I asked for a ginebra in a health food shop....
- and if you need a straw try not to look too embarrassed when asking for a paja...

*btw are there currently any vermuterias in IBZ ? been the lunchtime thing here with the cooler crowd in recent years but never really got into it
 
Tourist said:
*btw are there currently any vermuterias in IBZ ? been the lunchtime thing here with the cooler crowd in recent years but never really got into it
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yeah that trend has also arrived here, albeit not as much as in bcn, mad or also in palma. es born on plaza de parque is one I remember. but generally you see more people having a vermut before lunch these days
 
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