I REALLY want to learn Spanish !!!!!!

I also would like to know is it easy to get access to the internet out there?

Monday , la la la
Tuesday, la la la
Wednesday, lalala
Thursday, la la la

FRIDAY!!

Well let me tell you about my experience living in Latin America. I spent 4 years in Lima, Peru and have now been in Bogota, Colombia for a year. Between the two locations there is no doubt that Colombia is so much better than Peru. I can go into some detailes but just take my word for it. Also take everything you have ever heard about Colombia and throw it out the window or flush it down the toilet because it is nowhere near as bad as its reputation claims. This is a beautiful country with wonderful people. The 20,000 narco-terrorists give this place a bad name and it is undeserving. Like any place, you need street smarts, and of course I wouldn't go backpacking all over the countryside. There are many places and roads that are well protected and safe to drive.
I learned from Berlitz in Lima but there are many places here you can take spanish classes or just have a private tutor - which I think is the way to go if you ask me, and they are not very expensive.

Internet access here is VERY good. I have a cable modem (DSL is also available) I get 60KB/sec down and 15KB/sec up and a ping of 130ms from here to my dad in Philadelphia. We play online together all of the time.

I don't know about getting a job here, the market is pretty tough but you being a forigner (U.S.??) you certainly have an advantage even if you dont speak Spanish, depending on what job that is, of course.

I think I covered all of your questions..

Hi, Thank you very much for your detailed reply, I really appreciate that.
I'm a European, I am still considering about it, it will be at least 2 years before I'll be able to go to South America.

Colombia sounds cool, the reason I asked about safety is because.......I just don't want to die in a foreign country anyhow...

I wish one day we'll be able to meet up , thanks.

By the way, I was wondering what if my visa expired after two or three months there?
Should I go out of that country then come back again?
Or can I just extend my visa? Is there university offer Spanish course for foreigners?

:-) I hope you don't mind I have so many questions.....

I was also thinking how much would it cost to rent a small room in Colombia, a small room with a bed and a desk......

Hello, I´ve found this post by chance while I was surfing the net and I think that you probably have more possibilies to do what you had thought without have to travel to some very very far place to learn Spanish. Why don´t you try in Spain? I have friends that did that through the erasmus grants to spanish universities, you´ll have all the advantages like any west european country like Germany or France and don´t have to worry to be killed every time you´re going to have a walk. If you´re studying in some college, I´d ask about this possibility.

Sometimes the cheapest solution is the worst and when you travel mistakes can turn your life a hell, think seriously about it, about every possibility and take all the info you can get before take any decision.

By the way, in the midtime you can get some method or grammar and listen online radio channels through internet (it´s what I do to learn languages), even you can record them in mp3 with some program that save streams. Plus you can watch movies in OV with subtitles in Spanish or in your language...

Thank you very much for your kindly advice, Spain is cool I know, but the cost of living, language courses....are probably too high for me to afford, comparing with South American contries.

Also, the enigmatic nature of South America is very enchanting to me, if not dangerous.......

I really appreciate your suggestion, and I will consider it carefully,
life is so precious :wink: .......

Have a nice day.......

Seven years ago, I spent a summer in Quetzaltenango Guatemala to study spanish. This is a small city where spanish schools are a fairly large industry. There are a fair number of Americans and Europeans there... but the the place isn't overrun with tourists. I found this to be a nice balance.

I went to a small school that hired college students to provide one on one tutoring. I did this for five hours a day, five days a week for a couple of months. It was a great way to learn Spanish very quickly, but you need to have your own initiative since a one on one tutor works best if you know how and what you want to learn.

There is also a small side industry of people who house students. I ended up staying with a fairly wealthy family that had several rooms to rent out. Other students stayed with one family in a way that seemed more intimate (I would have preferred this).

I don't remember the prices, but they were very low. I think I paid $150US per week for 25 hours of one on one tutoring. This included housing and side trips.

This was a great experience that I would highly recommend.

The school I used was CBA (link) I was very happy with them.

Let us know.

:)Thank you for sharing your experience, that sounds really great, although
150US per week is still expensive to me......

I'm worried about my Spanish level right now, I have literally 0(zero) understanding of Spanish, how could I survive there.....I wonder, when you were in Guatemala,no, I mean, did you know some Spanish before you go to Guatemala? Should I know learn some Spanish before I go? Do I have to bring a Spanish-English Dictionary with me before I go there ?
How did you solve the 90day-visa-limit problem? .......I have so many questions..

Have a nice day, thanks for reply in advance, when you have time.

I don't think you are going to get intense Spanish training and housing for much less (actually, the prices quoted on the website I linked to are a bit lower than I remembered, but you need a few extra dollars for extras.)

The school took care of the visa etc. I was there for under 90-days and there was no problem. Of course you need to get your passport up-to-date and you should see your doctor for immunizations.

I had had two semesters of college Spanish before I went. There were people in the school who came with no knowledge of Spanish and did just fine. In this environment, with teachers who don't speak English, you learn very quickly.

The school has a good set of activities (games, etc) for beginners and the other students help out quite a bit as well.

The other thing that is great is the socialization time after school. You will quickly learn to order a beer, change money at a bank etc., etc. (Unfortunately many of the people there do speak English, but best to decide to not use any English if you want to learn quickly) Most of the people I met there were very patient and understanding.

You should defiately bring a dictionary.

I think this is the best, quickest and most interesting way to learn Spanish.

Thanks for the information..... If I go there I'll report my progess and the things and people there in South America.

Go to CHile without hesitation.
Regards
Xavier

In Chile people have internet like in the USA and broad band also.
Regards
Xavier

learning spanish
hello, how are you?

Well this is my first day in here hahah, well I was reading your messages and and I saw you are very interested in learning spanish, Well I live in South America, I from lima Peru,read Peru is not a good country in order to learn spanish hahaha... anyway, I like to improve my pronunciation because I think it is really baadd yeah and maybe I could help with your spanish.

hmm i think u have to know we have different accents in south america (I guess you knew it) u know people from Peru, Argentina, Venezuela, Ecuador, Colombia, etc we talk a little different but of course we can understand each other perfectly.

so, if you are interested in having a conversation with me plz reply my message. (and if there are more pple who want to study english and spanish with me . you are welcome!! hahha)
see you

bye

By the way, correct my mistakes plz!, thank you

bookmarking with interest

Learning Spanish in Lima
Hi,

People coming to Lima to learn Spanish might want to check out our school Edit: Moderator: Link Removed. It´s the only Spanish school here to offer a full-time program, social activities, homestay and volunteer opportunities.

We have been described as "expensive, but worth it". In defense, it is more expensive to run a school in the capital than in the provinces. If you are looking for cheaper options, Cuzco is good, and so is Arequipa.

Ignore the naysayers! Peru is a wonderful country to visit, and a great place to learn Spanish.

Visitors to Peru should check out www.expatperu.com for lots of useful links.

All the best,
Alan
El Sol

watching with interest - also if Pitter would drop by - he lives in Columbia and might take dis-agreement on the danger there