Schedules
Core
classes for
August & September
Help Center
Sevilla, España
Name: Paula
Residence: Denver
Profession: Social Worker
Hobbies: Spanish (of course), theatre, traveling (USA and abroad), readingWhat were your reasons for wanting to learn Spanish?
I wanted to learn Spanish mostly for fun and to be conversant when I travel, but have discovered that I really love the language and in my current job, they hope that I will be fluent someday as this would truly be a benefit.
What level were you before going to Sevilla?
I was and am still at an intermediate level.Why did you decide to go to Sevilla?
One of my teachers that I had for several classes at CFU had lived in Sevilla and through hearing lots about Sevilla and reading guidebooks about Spain, I decided that Sevilla was where I wanted to base myself. No regrets about that decision.How would you rate the school you attended? How were the classes?
I attended a school called Enforex. The classes were very challenging. Teachers were good although their rate of speech was incredibly fast. I had 2 teachers.
Did you stay with a family?
I stayed with a single host (woman) who had a son living in another country.What were some of the highs and lows of your trip?
Highs - My host was very gracious, engaging and eager to converse with me gently correcting my many mistakes. Loved Sevilla. Liked the fact that where I lived was very close to the school. Enjoyed my weekend get-aways (Granada, Cordoba, Ronda). Had very nice housemates. Lows - Although my host was very gracious, living conditions were challenging - hardly any hot water, the room where I stayed the first week was full of mold (but I moved to another room in her home for the remaining 3 weeks).What did you learn about Sevilla that you were not aware of prior?
I was actually well prepared for this trip. The only thing that comes to mind that I was not aware of is that I regretted buying a Eurail pass beforehand. Would have made better sense and been much less expensive to just buy tickets in advance, at train station, for wherever I wanted to go. I guess the other thing is that never realized how chilly it can be in April (was prepared for much more balmy temperatures).
What recommendations do you have for someone who plans on traveling there?
Go with an open mind and drop "American expectations" of how you feel people should act. Norms that I experienced in Spain - being on time is not the big thing that it is here in USA, life moves at a slower pace, many people smoke and you do get used to that. I brought postcards of Denver and other parts of Colorado to show and give to people I met as well as pictures of my family which people seemed to enjoy. Engage as many people as possible in conversation (in Spanish, of course). Everyone I spoke with was happy to converse in Spanish and to help me out when I was struggling.How has your experience benefited your Spanish? What was the biggest surprise?
Although I am far from fluent, I became much more comfortable with using certain tenses such as preterito indefinido (far from perfect). Also, realized that I could carry on a fairly decent conversation and at a comfortable rate (not painstakingly slow). Biggest surprise - some of the idiosyncracies of the Sevilla dialect. I thought l was prepared for how Sevillianos pronounce words that have a "c" before "i" or "e" but on several occasions found myself saying, "so that's what they're saying" with really simple words such as "hacer." I also found myself thinking and dreaming in Spanish while there and even since I have been back home (for almost 2 months), I occasionally will say a Spansh word instead of an English word.
What has been the most difficult part of learning Spanish for you?
I am not sure that there is one most difficult part - on the whole, I find that I need to do much repetition as it is hard to retain all the information.What advice or tips do you have for other students who want to learn Spanish?
I would definitely recommend the immersion experience. Being exposed to Spanish all the time, having to speak it with a host, hearing it wherever you go, helps to build up that repetition that is so needed in learning a language. Also, helps to integrate all the grammar.Read more travel stories:
Upcoming
Events
Immersion
Weekends
October
18-19, 2008
Online Courses
Job-specific
courses for teachers, heatlhcare,
realtors, law enforcement, fire and EMS.
