Mi clase Español

My whole life, I've only studied Tagalog, English, French and Italian. Why Tagalog and English? Because they are the official languages of the Philippines. Why French? Because I was a stupid 14 year old choosing a language not because of its practicality but because "it sounds pretty". Why Italian? Because it was required for the Rome Center. And why not Spanish? I have no idea but I'm for sure kicking myself now.

The past few years, I've been teaching myself Spanish. I've come to realize that I am not the best at languages. I took French for three years and I barely remember anything beyond Comment tu t'apelle? or Parlez vous Anglais? I think my Italian was better than my French even though I only took it for four months...this is probably because I learned the language while living in Italy. So I used that logic when I thought about studying Spanish. I didn't want to spend money on a class and not be able to practice it in my daily life...then it would just be a waste of money I don't have.

Thus, here I am struggling to converse with Spanish people. I think in the last 4 months, I've improved enough that I can get by - ask for something at a store, order food at a restaurant, etc. But it is still very frustrating not being able to have a decent conversation with people. As you all know I love to talk, and when my roommates start talking about god knows what over dinner during Spanish week and I can't contribute to the conversation, I just feel like shit. It's the most frustrating thing for me.

So thank god for the free Spanish classes at the new school I work for. All teachers get free lessons for 6 hours a week. In the language school industry (at least here in Madrid), that is a lot! I went to my first class on Monday and I was completely lost. Everyone in the class is at an intermediate level, while I'm pretty much at the beginner level. I think I'm the only one that's never taken Spanish before. Nonetheless, the class was still good. I think I will eventually get used to the teacher's pace and catch up to all the other students. I definitely feel like an ass not being able to contribute much or not knowing as much, but I'm over it. I gotta start somewhere.

Last week, we learned about subjuntivos. I am not such a fan. In general, I am not a fan of Spanish verbs. There are just way way too many! But I have no choice but to learn it. So here's a bit of Spanish lesson for you all.

Subjuntivos - use when expressing wishes, emotions, ideas, and doubts.
Ejemplo: Ojala pueda hablar Español!