#Lingo learning centre how to
#Lingo learning centre free

The one thing that I find remarkable about learning a language as an adult is how enjoyable it is. Tim Ferriss and Benny Lewis are largely self-taught polyglots so they know what they’re talking about! I highly recommend giving it a read if you’re toying with the idea of brushing up on your school-learned French or Gaeilge, or starting a new language from scratch like I have.

Be warned though, if you are too tired and lying on your back you will drift off and smack yourself in the face with your phone. The most helpful language-learning advice I have found is via this link and I’ve tried to implement a lot of what is featured in it. Personally I use them mostly just before I go to sleep, because it’s a way to switch off the chatter in my head and it helps me to fall asleep easily. If you play games on your phone, you might consider using some of that time to have a go at Duolingo and Babbel. When you’re in a queue, waiting for a bus, travelling or trying to sleep at night you can whip out the phone and do five or ten minutes. The best thing about these apps is that you can use them at points in the day that are not much use for anything else. I’ve been using them for about ten or fifteen minutes almost every day for a year or so. They are incredibly helpful and available in a number of languages.

#Lingo learning centre free

Apart from receiving tuition on how to swear, mostly I have been learning by myself using two free language apps, Duolingo and Babbel. I’m half considering unleashing the knowledge gained from Matteo on the hoards of Italian students clogging up the footpaths in Florence. Actually, I’ve been told that Italians take it to another level altogether and swear at God and other heavenly entities when things are going badly. I’m happy to find that Italians attitudes towards swearing are quite relaxed.

Irish people sprinkle their conversation with a few expletives for added emphasis, humour and drama, but it’s rarely intended to offend. Swearing in Ireland isn’t really a taboo activity to the degree that it is in the UK.

#Lingo learning centre how to

Actually, I tell a lie – my friend Matteo taught me how to swear like an Italian trooper when I lived in London.

I have not had any formal tuition in Italian. When a woman recently asked me where she should change trains for Florence I was pleasantly surprised that I could respond with no hesitation ‘È la prossima fermata, Prato Centrale, di solito binario due’ (It’s the next stop, Prato Central, usually track two). I admit I may have done a mini fist pump after I told her, which no doubt undermined my credibility. I get quite a kick out of it on the few occasions when I can understand clearly and respond appropriately without faltering, and they can also understand my response. Often I get the opportunity to engage with real live Italians and test myself properly. So most of my journey is focused on language learning. Usually I do some or all of the following: scribble in my sketchbook try to read and understand every Italian sign I see try to translate announcements at the station and on the train eavesdrop on other passengers conversations and look up the words I don’t understand (oh the gossip I have been privy to!) flick through the dictionary to find new Italian words I might need for the day. When I am travelling from Bologna to Florence by train in the mornings I am normally a bit foggy-headed, so I use the journey to try to get myself in gear for the day. It’s as if the old left hemisphere wants to hit the snooze button and get five more minutes in the sack. As mentioned in a previous post, I’ve noticed that when I am tired, the language centre of my brain seems to shut down.