Hobby #3: Learn German

For as long as I can remember I’ve been interested in languages. In elementary school I signed up for after-school language classes starting in second or third grade. From what I recall it wasn’t at the suggestion of my family, but by my own choice. I took French for multiple years and Spanish one year. They were only a few months out of the year, though, and by the time I reached high school what I had learned was all but forgotten. I picked up French in eighth grade because it felt much artsier than the Spanish that most of my classmates were (wisely) taking.

I continued French through junior year of high school, and picked it back up in college. I realized that I could get a minor with only 18 credits and decided to pursue a double minor in French and Italian. With that, I hoped to take advantage of two of my school’s Summer Study Abroad Programs, one in France and one in Italy (clearly I had no concept of money at this time in my life, as each was a cool $5,000 after airfare). I dropped French sophomore year because I didn’t like the other students in my program (introvert problems), but continued my minor in Italian. After a few more classes and a brief study abroad disaster in Italy, I was able to declare myself an Italian minor.

I think part of my desire to learn new languages goes hand-in-hand with my desire to travel. I want to see the world, and I want to be able to communicate with the people in the country I’m visiting in their native tongue, or at least the “this is the best that I can do” version. Cue my Hobby #3: Learning German.

I enjoy traveling to places with lots of cultural appeal, and Jefferson has a lot of interest in the World Wars, so Germany has been selected as our next vacation spot. The trip would be in fall 2017 at the very earliest, so I’ve got plenty of time to learn important phrases like “Where’s the bathroom?” and “What do you mean I missed my train?” before we go. With a solid two years of German language training, I should be properly prepared for our trip.

I’ll be using Duolingo, a free language learning website and app, to start my journey. I highly recommend Duolingo if you have an interest in learning a new language. For one, it’s free (as opposed to the highway robbery that is Rosetta Stone), and it’s got a ton of languages you can learn all at once (to include Klingon starting July 2018). Once I get a good handle on the basics, I’d like to try German language podcasts and German books or audiobooks. I may not be able to speak German that great at the end of it, but I hope to be able to read and comprehend well enough to get around on public transport, understand street signs, and read menus.

Wünsch mir Glück!