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Travellers' questions that don't fit anywhere else This is an opportunity to ask any question, and post any notice you wish that doesn't fit into one of the other sections.
Photo by Hendi Kaf, in Cambodia

I haven't been everywhere...
but it's on my list!


Photo by Hendi Kaf,
in Cambodia



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  #1  
Old 20 Feb 2012
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Learning languages on the road
I'm looking at learning spanish and russian for our trip next year, as much as enrolling at the local college is probably the best thing to do due to both of us being shift workers we can't do this currently.

I was just wondering if there are good teach yourself audio collections that I can listen to and learn. I know rossetta stone is supposedly the bees knees but I'd rather audio than computer based.
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Old 20 Feb 2012
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You may try "Learn Spanish (and Russian) in Your Car", the name says it all.

Buena suerte,

Esteban

EDIT: If you want to work more on Spanish Grammar, "Aprende Gramática y Vocabulario" is a very good series of books, being 1 & 2 the best (the most basic as well). The explanations are vere concise and clear and there are plenty of exercises and you can find the solutions at end.
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Old 20 Feb 2012
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I use the Michel Thomas series for Spanish. By far the best system I have used (including Rosetta Stone). I also took a 2-week immersion style class after I started traveling and found those two worked together very well.
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Old 20 Feb 2012
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I can't speak to learning Russian, but I lived in Mexico for 3 years, and I found "Madrigal's Magic Key" by far the most useful book for learning Spanish.

Amazon.com: Madrigal's Magic Key to Spanish: A Creative and Proven Approach (9780385410953): Margarita Madrigal, Andy Warhol: Books

It may be 50 years old, but for an English speaker learning basic Spanish on his/her own, it is a superb book.
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Old 20 Feb 2012
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Originally Posted by bclarke View Post
I can't speak to learning Russian, but I lived in Mexico for 3 years, and I found "Madrigal's Magic Key" by far the most useful book for learning Spanish.

Amazon.com: Madrigal's Magic Key to Spanish: A Creative and Proven Approach (9780385410953): Margarita Madrigal, Andy Warhol: Books

It may be 50 years old, but for an English speaker learning basic Spanish on his/her own, it is a superb book.
Let´s see how it works, had to order it
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Old 20 Feb 2012
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Originally Posted by Hemuli View Post
Let´s see how it works, had to order it
Hemuli,

I see you are in Germany, so just a comment.

Keep in mind that English does not have pronunciation rules clearly stated as German, for instance. That means that methods intended for English speakers "explain" how to pronounce referring to the pronunciation of English words with the same/similar sound. Let's say "luz" (=light in Spanish), the method may say "like loo + th like in thanks".

Conclusion: not soo good for us. Of course, there'll be CDs, but anyway, may not be the 1st option for a common language like Spanish, French, Portuguese (different story if you plan to learn Swahili).

Hope it helps this boring speech.

Esteban
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Old 21 Feb 2012
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Originally Posted by estebangc View Post
Hemuli,

I see you are in Germany, so just a comment.

Keep in mind that English does not have pronunciation rules clearly stated as German, for instance. That means that methods intended for English speakers "explain" how to pronounce referring to the pronunciation of English words with the same/similar sound. Let's say "luz" (=light in Spanish), the method may say "like loo + th like in thanks".

Conclusion: not soo good for us. Of course, there'll be CDs, but anyway, may not be the 1st option for a common language like Spanish, French, Portuguese (different story if you plan to learn Swahili).

Hope it helps this boring speech.

Esteban
I am Finnish guy living in Germany.
Let´s see how it will work during my trip. If I loose my hope with it, I will give this book to someone else
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