Language Link Online
April 2008 ...sent every other month

Tips and information about learning Spanish and the people who speak it. Personal attention is what has made Language Link grow, and we value your contributions. Send us an email at info@langlink.com.
What's in this edition
Online Lesson, Cocina Cooking, Culture Clips, Language Link's Latest, OJO (special deals), Rhythm & Book Blurbs, Been There, Loved That (reports from participants), Likeable Links

Online Lesson
Plateau Perils? Ten Tips Toward Spanish Progress
It’s not uncommon to have the strongest desire to speak Spanish, yet hit a plateau where you feel you are not progressing. At times you need to add a new technique to wage the battle. Have you tried these?
     1. Lose your fear of making mistakes. Never demand perfection of yourself, but concentrate on getting the job of communicating accomplished. Your Spanish does not have to be polished to get across a basic point. Make some friends who are native speakers and talk with them about the basics of life. Think communication, not perfection.
      2. Listen, listen, listen! Many people make the mistake of trying to talk constantly, thinking that this will get them over the hump. You are better off to listen more rather than talk more. Only by listening will you become comfortable with all the patterns you need. Learn these basic patterns that you hear, vary them, and in doing so, you lose that feeling of grammatically having to invent every sentence you utter. That’s an impossible task. “Sing” back the song that you hear.
      3. Constantly add to your vocabulary, but in a contextual way. A very effective way is to carry with you a small, pocket sized notebook. Organize sections in it by general topics such as household, work, social, etc. When you’re in one of those situations, hear them or read about them, immediately add the new word. If it’s a verb, list it in the infinitive form. If it’s a noun, be sure to include the gender, el or la. Leave a wide space between your Spanish word and the English translation so that you can turn a page partly under to practice without your eye always seeing the translation.
     4. When you learn a new noun, practice it with adjectives, making sure they agree with the gender. Form simple sentences with them, and repeat them many times. Don’t just learn the word in isolation.
      5. When you learn a new verb, practice it in the tense in which you will most often use it. Also, give it a good workout in the present, simple past, and easy future (voy a + infinitive). If it lends itself to frequent commands, practice it that way. Concentrate on the high frequency usage. If it’s an irregular verb, say it aloud many times so that it “sounds right”. The “sounds right” rule is something which you unconsciously use as a guide in your own native language. That only comes through hearing a verb form often.
      6. Listen to music sung in Spanish. Write down the words, memorize them, and sing along. This is an immense help to pronunciation. It also gives you those valuable patterns, and it doesn’t matter at all if you can’t carry the tune.
      7. Read in Spanish, but try to make the majority of it at a comfortable level for you. If it’s so full of new vocabulary that you can’t even get the basic point, it will be very frustrating and will not accomplish your goal. Side by side English and Spanish texts are good, or try to find a book that you already know in English and read it in Spanish. Find one with a limited scope, so that the vocabulary will be repetitive. Try to get the meaning of a word from the context rather than from a dictionary. Don’t let a dictionary become a crutch, but a last resort. Add Spanish subtitles while watching a DVD movie in English.
      8. To increase listening comprehension, listen to as big a variety of speakers as possible. Concentrate on the key words, and listen in “clumps”, not for individual words. Focus on what you grasp and just let the unknown words pass unnoticed. Practice in your head writing out what you hear. This is a great way of decoding phrases which often slide together. It’s also a good discipline to actually write on paper what you hear, especially if it’s on a CD which you can repeat. 
       9. Try and make your Spanish more instinctive. When you ride a bicycle you’re not reviewing rules in your head of where your feet go…the movements become instinctive. Attach gestures with phrases, such as extending your hand for a handshake with Mucho gusto flowing out of your fingers.
       10. Get over the translating hump. You can never achieve the speed or fluency you need if you are constantly translating from English to Spanish. Work out grammatically what you usually would say in certain situations ahead of time, and then use them repeatedly until you reach the point that they automatically emerge without any conscious thought. Imagine that you have a separate track in your head where the trains run in Spanish. Keep on that track rather than constantly switching tracks.
        11. (This number 11 would be termed pilón. It’s the little sweetener or extra gifts which a merchant in Mexico will give you when you’ve bought a sizeable quantity of something.)
       Give yourself the opportunity for complete immersion, whether it’s in one of our programs or some other way you can arrange. It’s the fastest and best way to get off the plateau through motivation and the constant surround of the language so that you can start climbing the Spanish mountain again.

Cocina Cooking
Crema de Palmito (Cream Soup of Hearts of Palm) Serves 6
Palmitos are on many menus in Latin America, but here is a twist, putting them into a soup. Crema is the word used for any cream based soup (in this case, yogurt).

One 16 oz. can of hearts of palm (drained, 1 T. of the liquid reserved), 2 C. vegetable stock , 3 tsp. flour, 1 egg yolk, 3 C. water, 3/4 C. plain yogurt, salt and pepper to taste, fresh parsley to garnish

Mix the hearts of palm liquid, stock, flour and egg yolk. Cut the hearts of palm into 3/4 in thick rounds. Place the liquid mixture and the hearts of palm in a large saucepan. Add the water and cook for 2 to 3 minutes over medium heat. Gradually add the yogurt while stirring constantly. Season to taste. Serve hot garnished with a sprinkling of parsley.

Culture Clips
"Without new experiences, something inside of us sleeps. The sleeper must awaken." -- Frank Herbert
       At long last I’m in Santiago, with the Andes shimmering in the distance. It is a city that occupies the fertile central valley of Chile between the Andes and the coast. The most remarkable thing about Santiago, with its 5 million inhabitants, is its diversity. It is a city with many faces, great and varied changes, and a social and political landscape that sometimes takes us back to the colonial city it once was. And yet in the midst of these loftier thoughts, I am thinking of my pocketbook. It’s very much like being in Europe, yet at a fraction of the cost due to the rising euro. All this sophistication at a bargain price. What a great city to offer Language Link’s students!

      I arrive at the expanded airport, a modern infrastructure housed in elaborate architecture. Taking a taxi into town leads me along the main avenue Avenida Libertador Bernardo O'Higgins (you have to love the name of this independence fighter!), also known as Alameda de Delicias (Boulevard of Delights). This avenue was opened by conqueror Pedro de Valdivia in 1541. En route I pass enormous palaces, reminders of past splendor from the mining boom. Passing from the colonial opulence, the taxi crosses many interesting neighborhoods which I’m itching to explore. Some of these areas strongly evoke a European flavor.

      The increased pitch of the traffic and activity on the streets, as well as the taller buildings and larger crowds, all signal that now I’m entering the city's financial and business district. Here it’s easy to see Santiago as one of the largest cities in South America and with a booming economy, Chile's center of commerce.

      Once settled in my lodging, I’m anxious to ride in one of the best metro systems in the world. A treat to the eye with many art exhibits and murals, it is also surprisingly inexpensive. The trains run from 6:00 am to 11:00 pm. Although this is a great city for walking, the metro is a super solution for longer distances across town.

       The Plaza de Armas is my first stop. It has one of those wide open feelings, but crammed with life and activity. It’s the very heart of Santiago and is only five blocks south of the Mapocho River. Nearby is the Parque Forestal, a reminder of the city's European heritage. It was designed by a French landscaper on the model of Parisian parks. The road then leads to the Mercado Central, of British design, with wrought-iron ceiling parts that were imported from England in the mid 19th century. Today the market sells a wide variety of fresh, exotic produce. What a delight to see the vast array of seafood. After all, Chile has a very long coast, and much of its culinary achievements include seafood. I wonder if what I will eat tonight in a restaurant will have come from this market.

       Another place I visit is the house of Pablo Neruda. It is called La Chascona (which means a woman with “wild” hair) and was affectionately named that after the Nobel prize winning poet’s wife. I’ve long loved his poetry, and in this quirky, fascinating house, it’s very easy to feel his presence. His typewriter, with paper in the carriage, still seems to await an outpouring of his thoughts. This experience of visiting a very personal house of a renowned writer always is a personal thrill. My favorite part of the house tour is when the guide points out a secret door in the dining room. Neruda used this to quietly escape from a dinner party if he found that his guests were not scintillating company.

        Tomorrow I’m planning a short trip outside the city to visit a vineyard…a must do in this country of excellent wines. They all tout that the medical studies show that not only is a glass of red wine per day very healthy, but that there is something special in Chilean wine which makes it superior for this purpose. And all the while, I’m enjoying the majestic Andes, The world class ski resorts seem almost close enough to touch. S’amazing…Santiago! I am so glad I'm here.

Language Link’s Latest
Please reserve early! We already have summer study reservations pouring in. Especially at PLFM in Antigua summer weeks are filling up. Sámara Beach has very limited host family stays available in June and July. Some of our most popular programs end up with wait lists, and we really dislike telling you there’s no availability on the weeks you want.

If you are interested in making your own personal trip or organizing a group trip to Peru (not to study, just to travel), we would like to pass on an excellent contact who will customize a trip for you. Luis Calderón has developed exciting trips to all parts of the country, particularly the newly archaeologically developed North. Tell him you're contacting through Language Link at lacalderon99@hotmail.com

OJO (Special Deals)
Here is the most special deal we've announced in a long time for past students, but you have to act quickly! The excellent Spanish school IMAC in Guadalajara, Mexico, is so proud of the quality of its program that they are offering a Language Link student two weeks of free classes and homestay in exciting Guadalajara (airfare not included). They want Language Link to get acquainted with the school through a test student. Because we will require you to write a thorough evaluation of your classes, homestay and the school, we want an experienced student who knows our other programs. You can qualify to do this if:

1. You have participated in at least TWO Language Link programs at any time in the past ten years. (And we know there are many of you out there who qualify!)

2. You can make the trip within 3 months beginning May 1.

If you qualify and could make the trip in that time frame, please send an email to kay@langlink.com stating when and where you studied to help remind us of who you are. The first person to reply will be granted the trip.

And now our ongoing trip contest where anyone qualifies...this is the last notice to enter our contest for a free two week study trip to Quito, Ecuador, including private classes and a homestay. We will randomly select the winner's name within the next few weeks and announce it in June. You will have up to a year to make your trip. All you have to do to be among the final contenders is click on our website contest box and enter a brief comment. In June we hope to announce a new contest to yet another exciting location.

A comment from a past winner: From Sara Brown, labor and delivery nurse in Minneapolis, Minnesota, contest winner at PLFM in Antigua, Guatemala . With gratitude…it was a once in a lifetime experience that I will never forget. I loved the family experience. The info packet provided to me was very helpful , and Meredith was also great in answering all my questions and being very patient with me. My teacher and I had a great time together…lots of laughs. It was hard to leave school the last day. I'm continuing to study back at home and using my Spanish in the hospital. I'm amazed how much I comprehend now and how much the experience gave me confidence to speak more Spanish. I'm very motivated to continue learning and plan to start volunteering with the Latino population to keep up my Spanish.

Rhythm & Book Blurbs
Book - Stories from Latin America: Historias de Latinoamérica
These enduring legends offer insights into the history and culture of Latin American countries, bringing life to folklore. For ease of comprehension, they are told in both Spanish and English, on facing pages. Many students make great progress using bilingual books. The repeated exposure to verb tenses and vocabulary is much more beneficial than rote memorization from a text. Often the stories are so interesting you forget you’re reading in Spanish. This book is best for the intermediate level and will greatly increase your Spanish comprehension.

Music – Caribeños – Latin American Music for the Marimba by Orlando Cotto
Is there any instrument which can trigger fond Latin American memories like the marimba? This recording took some of the best traditional music from Latin American countries and re-invented them on a classical music instrument, the concert marimba. It is done at a high level of musicianship and is tremendously enjoyable. The artist comes from Puerto Rico and offers a musical bouquet of delicious inspiration and daring undertaking.

You can easily purchase both items through our Language Link Shop.

Been There, Loved That
     Ecela of Santiago, Chile - My experience was superior. I had 4 weeks to learn enough to Spanish to get by in Chile. (He was beginning a job in the wine industry.) It was the start I needed to learning Spanish. The instructors were great, and I stayed with the family of Fernando Rodriguez. What a great family!!!! Thanks so much. – Zak Miller, Wine Industry, Santiago, Chile

      I thought the school was excellent. I really enjoyed my host family, and the city of Santiago was wonderful. – Jeff Boncek, Attorney, Dallas, Texas

      PLFM of Antigua, Guatemala - Every phase of my experience was outstanding beginning with the answering of questions I had before I registered, to the pre-work and information I received once I registered, to being picked up at the airport and delivered to a wonderful family who welcomed me with open arms., I had three different teachers, all of whom were fabulous. I learned the material not just through classroom work, but through “talking through Antiqua “– that is, every moment a teacher was with me, she was teaching me, correcting me, giving me new words, it was truly a total immersion! - Karen Gravenstine, Consultant AARP, Silver Spring MD

       Academia de Español Quito, Ecuador - My experience was a very fun one - went to the jungle for 1 of the 3 weeks and learned a lot. Each professor was great, and my family stay was superb. – Lesley Newell, Student, Atlanta, Georgia

       Spanish Language Institute of Cuernavaca, Mexico - What a wonderful university trip we had in January. The school visits/people were excellent! (The group visited a variety of schools and had speakers on education in Mexico.) Maru (the academic director) did a fabulous job of putting all that together. it was a wonderful experience and my students all hated to leave. In fact, here's a paragraph from one of the students' reflection paper . It sort of says it all! – Steven Kimbell, Education Dept, Univ. of Wisc. At Green Bay, Wisconsin
Since I have been back in Wisconsin, I’ve been searching for a word that means homesick for a place that is not your home. Before leaving for Mexico, I was nervous about being in a foreign country for three weeks. As the final week came to a close, I couldn’t imagine boarding an airplane and flying back ‘home.’ After three short weeks, I came to adore the city, culture, and people of Cuernavaca.

       Amauta of Cuzco, Peru - Another grand adventure thanks to Language Link. Everything worked just as it should have—the school and instruction, fellow students, the week in Urubamba—todo. Thank you so much for your help and answering all of my questions. You have a marvelous organization that delivers every time. Congratulations! I cannot say enough good about you or all you did for me. - - Leslie Bishop, Teacher, Oregon

       ILEE of Buenos Aires, Argentina - I learned a lot and had fun in the process. My host family was very welcoming and great company. I stayed with them for about three months and really got to know and enjoy the family. - Nate Germaneri, Student, Oregon

Likeable Links
http://www.santiago.cl/ A general website about the city
http://www.santiagotimes.cl/ An English newspaper published in Santiago
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html? – an article about Santiago high style shopping
http://www.geographia.com/chile/chilehistory.htm History of Chile
http://www.aspirennies.com/private/SiteBody/Romance/Poetry/Neruda/pneruda.shtml About Pablo Neruda

We hope you enjoyed our news. Please visit us at www.langlink.com. Call us at 800.552.2051. Central Time with hours 9:00 to 5:00.
Kay Godfrey, Director Latin America Office
Meredith Butler, Director U.S. Office
Language Link, P.O.B. 3006, Peoria, IL 61612 USA
Worldwide 309.673.9220, Toll Free 800.552.2051

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