Vegantraveller's 2023 Language Log

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vegantraveller
Yellow Belt
Posts: 88
Joined: Wed Sep 07, 2016 8:39 am
Location: Turin, Italy
Languages: Italian (N), English (C2), French (C2), German (B2-C1), Japanese (B2), Spanish (B2-B1), Swedish (B1). Just started: Icelandic, Romanian, Occitan/Provençal.
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=16482
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Vegantraveller's 2023 Language Log

Postby vegantraveller » Sun Jan 17, 2021 1:17 pm

Hello everybody,

Here I am with my study log on this wonderful forum!
Herebelow is the link to my 2020 log, with an overview of my languages:

https://forum.language-learners.org/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=14635

For 2023 I am going to focus on various languages, while trying to maintain all other ones.
I have just taken up two new languages, Icelandic and Romanian, for the first half of 2023. During the second half of 2023, Japanese and German are going to be there regularly (B2-C1ish), as well as Swedish (I have progressed a lot in the language, I can now use Swedish quite well, even though I still make many mistakes).

I'll also try to be less pedantic and more informative in my log.

Good luck to everybody and keep up the good work :D
Last edited by vegantraveller on Tue Feb 21, 2023 10:08 am, edited 1 time in total.
2 x
I'm a man from Italy, not an owl from Japan :mrgreen:

Please correct my errors!

User avatar
vegantraveller
Yellow Belt
Posts: 88
Joined: Wed Sep 07, 2016 8:39 am
Location: Turin, Italy
Languages: Italian (N), English (C2), French (C2), German (B2-C1), Japanese (B2), Spanish (B2-B1), Swedish (B1). Just started: Icelandic, Romanian, Occitan/Provençal.
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=16482
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Re: Vegantraveller's 2021 Language Log

Postby vegantraveller » Sun Jan 17, 2021 1:41 pm

I’m going to post here the list of the resources I’m currently using, starting with textbooks and grammar books, and then an ongoing list of all the media I have been consuming since January (books, films, TV series, etc.). I have also added a list for authentic materials in Italian I have read or watched (only films, TV series, and books originally conceived in Italian) that may inspire those who are learning my language.

TEXTBOOKS AND GRAMMAR BOOKS

ENGLISH
Coursebooks

A. Bulger, M. Altare, Perfezionamento dell’inglese, Assimil
Grammar
R. Side, G. Wellman, Grammar and Vocabulary for Cambridge Advanced and Proficiency, Longman

FRENCH
Coursebook

A.Bulger, Perfezionamento del francese, Assimil
Grammar
M. Grégoire, A. Kostucki, Grammaire progressive du français. Perfectionnement, Clé International

GERMAN
Coursebook

M. Roemer, M. Benetton, Il tedesco, Assimil
Grammar
H. Dreyer, R. Schmitt, Die neue Gelbe. Grammatica tedesca con esercizi, Hueber
E. Kreutner, J. Langner, German Tutor. Grammar and Vocabulary Workbook, Hodder and Stoughton

JAPANESE
Coursebook

C. Garnier, T. Mori, Il giapponese senza sforzo, Assimil
Kanji
Inter University Center for Japanese Language Studies, Kanji in Context. A Study System for Intermediate and Advanced Learners + Workbooks, The Japan Times
Grammar
S. Makino, M. Tsutsui, A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar, The Japan Times
M. Mastrangelo, N. Ozawa, M. Saito, Grammatica giapponese, Hoepli

SPANISH
Coursebook

F.J.A. Martínez, M. Altare, Lo spagnolo, Assimil
Grammar
L. Aragonés, Gramática de uso del español (niveles A1-A2), Hoepli

SWEDISH
Coursebooks

W. Fovet, F. Ultimini, S. Rossi, Lo svedese, Assimil
A. Beronius Haake, Complete Swedish, Teach Yourself
A. Bränströmm, C. Bunge Repetto, A. Meregalli, Lagom lätt – Corso di lingua svedese, Hoepli
Grammar
A. Bränströmm, C. Bunge Repetto, A. Meregalli, Grammatica svedese, Hoepli

LANGUAGE PRACTICE
SPEAKING


I use Italki regularly for speaking practice with native tutors, and to ask for corrections and doubts. I usually have two to three lessons a week of one hour each, alternating my languages (but currently giving priority to Japanese German, and Swedish).

LISTENING

Mostly films, TV series, and Youtube videos, as well as podcasts about what I like (usually travel, cinema, veganism, culture, and news programmes) in all my languages.

I also watch and listen to simplified material (mostly Easy Swedish on Youtube, and podcasts from Radio på lätt svenska).

READING
I love reading, even though I no longer can find the time to do it extensively. I now also prefer to read two-three books simultaneously in different languages. Below is a list of the books I have read so far or I am in the process of reading this year.

WRITING

I sometimes write and get corrections on lang8 and Italki in all my languages. 


Apart from that, I also use English daily for my job, as well as German and Japanese on a regular basis, but I’m not going to count these activities in my study log (even though I write down and then study useful vocabolary or idioms I may encounter).

2021 MEDIA
Here is the ongoing list of all the media I have used this year, I hope they can be of inspiration to you.

ITALIAN
Films and TV Series


P. Genovese, Perfetti sconosciuti (2017)
Books - Literature

L. Ariosto, Orlando furioso, Einaudi (reading)
C. Boito, Senso (reading)
Books - non fiction
M. Paoli, R. Setti, L'italiano - Bada a come parli, GEDI (reading)

ENGLISH
Films and TV Series

A. Aja, Crawl (2019)
C. Baugh, Bad Day for the Cut (2017)
G. Clooney, The Midnight Sky (2020)
S. Coppola, The Beguiled (2017)
M. Håfström, The Rite (2011)
Berman, Pulcini, Things Heard and Seen (2021)
TV series - Best Leftovers Ever! (2020)
TV series, C. Carter, The X Files (1993-4 seasons 1-2 - watching)
TV series - S. Grant, Unbelievable (2019 - 8 episodes)
TV series - V: Visitors (1983 - season 1)
TV series - Bonding (2020 season 2 - 8 episodes)
Books

FRENCH
Films and TV Series


I. Calbérac, Venise n'est pas en Italie (2019)
S. Verheyde, Madame Claude (2021)
TV series - Dix pour cent (2015-20)
Books - Non fiction

R. Templar, Les 120 règles d’or du travail (translation from English), Marabout - reading

GERMAN
Films and TV Series


C. Kaya, Betonenrausch (2020)
M. Petry, Meine teuflisch gute Freundin (2018)

JAPANESE
Films and TV series


M. Akiyama, 月極オトコトモダチ (Tsukigime otoko tomodachi - 2018)
H. Kore'eda, 万引き家族 (Manbiki Kazoku - 2018)
T. Yamamoto, のさりの島 (Nosari no shima - 2020)
アグレッシブ烈子: We Wish You a Metal Christmas (Aguresshibu Retsuko: We Wish You a Metal Christmas - 2019)
グッド・モーニング・コール (Guddo Mōningu Kōru - TV series - 2016-2017)
Books and manga - fiction
H. Etsumi, じゃりン子チエ (Jarinko Chie - manga & graded reader), Hoepli - reading 

F. Miyamoto, 隣の外国人 (Tonari no gaikokujin - manga), Ohta Shuppan - reading

SPANISH
Films and TV series

P. Font, Gente que viene y bah (2019)
G. Querejeta, Invisibles (2020)
M. Caro, La casa de las flores, TV series - 3 seasons

SWEDISH
Films and TV series


P. Fischer Christensen, Unga Astrid (2018)
L. Langseth, Kärlek och anarki, TV series - 1 season
Audiobooks - fiction
A. Widholm, Zombiespanarna
Books - fiction
C. Müntzing, H. Waubert de Puiseau, S. Ad Nilsson, Mordet på fjorden, Compact (graded reader)
C. Müntzing, M. Leijon, Iskallt mord - Circon (graded reader - reading)
Last edited by vegantraveller on Tue May 18, 2021 10:43 pm, edited 6 times in total.
5 x
I'm a man from Italy, not an owl from Japan :mrgreen:

Please correct my errors!

User avatar
vegantraveller
Yellow Belt
Posts: 88
Joined: Wed Sep 07, 2016 8:39 am
Location: Turin, Italy
Languages: Italian (N), English (C2), French (C2), German (B2-C1), Japanese (B2), Spanish (B2-B1), Swedish (B1). Just started: Icelandic, Romanian, Occitan/Provençal.
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=16482
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Re: Vegantraveller's 2021 Language Log

Postby vegantraveller » Sun Jan 17, 2021 2:36 pm

The first 10 days of January have been quite busy language-wise, and I have tried to dedicate to language learning as much time as I could. The 365 Challenge proved also beneficial, since I enjoyed more focus and less procrastination!

Weeks 53-1: 1st January - 10 January

ENGLISH -3h45'
I started unit 7 from Assimil, a revision lesson, dealing with the future perfect, question tags (and same way question tags), as well as the accent pitch change in similar verbs and nouns.
I read an article from Græs - Home. A Metaphor, and watched an episode of the TV programme Best Leftovers Ever!: very useful and fun, I learnt what to do with chip leftovers :lol:



FRENCH - 2h30'
I went on reading Richard Templar's book translation, and had a conversation with my tutor on Italki (we mainly spoke about the similar and different countermeasures for coronavirus adopted in France and Italy).

GERMAN - 1h40'
I started German Tutor, a very good resource to review the main grammar points of German. I started from lesson 1, dealing with plurals.

ITALIAN - 2h
I rewatched the movie Perfetti sconosciuti, a successful hit that has been inspiring remakes in most countries.



I also started reading canto 13 from Orlando furioso.

JAPANESE - 9h20'
I started unit 68 from Assimil (皇室): this lesson offers a good revision of keigo forms, so it was a nice review of the different verb and noun polite forms and usages.
Kanji revised: 送・泊・覚・忘・調・続・考・答・教・開・閉・止・焼・消
I also finished the last episodes of season 2 of グッドモーニング・コール, thus, completing the drama, plus a couple of episodes of Tokyo Veg Life on YouTube.



SPANISH - 13h35'
I started New Year's Day with Spanish, revising lessons 1-3 from Assimil and doing lesson 4 (Una buena idea). The lesson covered the definite article, the past participle of the verbs in -ar, the object with a person, the plurals, as well as the infinitive + object pronouns (so far, so good!).
I also started binge-watching the three series of the Mexican modern telenovela of La casa de las flores.



SWEDISH -3h40'
I went through lesson 56 from Assimil (a revision unit), going through the genitive with -s, the various usages of the verb att bli, the time expressions with and om, and the adverb .
I also prepared for my class going on with the article below, and had my conversation practice with my Swedish tutor:

https://spraktidningen.se/artiklar/2020/11/har-ar-sveriges-100-storsta-sprakhandelser

Some Anki flashcard review for all of my languages, of course.
4 x
I'm a man from Italy, not an owl from Japan :mrgreen:

Please correct my errors!

User avatar
vegantraveller
Yellow Belt
Posts: 88
Joined: Wed Sep 07, 2016 8:39 am
Location: Turin, Italy
Languages: Italian (N), English (C2), French (C2), German (B2-C1), Japanese (B2), Spanish (B2-B1), Swedish (B1). Just started: Icelandic, Romanian, Occitan/Provençal.
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=16482
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Re: Vegantraveller's 2021 Language Log

Postby vegantraveller » Tue Jan 26, 2021 11:32 pm

Here's an update for weeks 2 and 3. I have been practising my languages quite a lot, the 365-day challenge is proving successful, and I'm keeping momentum. I also ordered the complete set of the TV-series Oz, in English.
Apart from Japanese and Swedish, I'm going to concentrate on English and French for the first half of 2021.

Weeks 2-3: 11th January - 24th January

ENGLISH - 6h35'
I watched Sofia Coppola's The Beguiled, a feast for the eye, as I love period-drama movies, and a couple of short films on Youtube (Just Ask Him and The English Teacher). A good mix of Southern American English and RP :D



I also read an article from Græs (A Train Ride to Munich), as well some news from The Times, and had a conversation with my tutor, talking about first dates and prejudice (she randomly chooses some subjects, and we talk about them, concentrating on idioms and colloquial terms).

FRENCH - 4h50'
I studied lesson 8 from Assimil (La circulation), with dialogues, notes, and exercises.
I also listened to my favourite travel podcast (Instinct Voyageur) while driving, read Joe Biden's first day at the White House from Le Monde, and went on with Templar's book.

GERMAN - 3h
I had a conversation with my tutor, who made me work on verb+preposition collocations, a tricky subject to use correctly.

ITALIAN - 1h10'
I started the 13th canto of Orlando Furioso, and read some pages of the booklet Bada a come scrivi, dealing with auxiliaries, the expressions sia...sia.../sia...che... and siccome che, hypothetical sentences, and the use of the subjunctive.

JAPANESE - 19h10'
I finished lesson 68 from Assimil and went on revising the main keigo forms.
Kanji revised: 直・並・変・残・集・倒・郵・便・局・病・院・窓・雨・京・映・画・仕・事・質・問・料・理
I also watched 万引き家族 in Japanese. It's a great movie, I remember seeing it dubbed in Italian at the cinema when it was released, so it was great to watch it again in the original soundtrack.



I also read some newspaper articles for my conversation class, where we talked about the increased energy consumption in Japan caused by the current cold weather, and a couple of news related to coronavirus, went through the second book of the manga I'm reading, listened to some radio podcasts while commuting, and watched some Youtube videos as well.

SPANISH - 7h55'
I worked my way through units 4, 5 (¿Adónde vas?), and 6 (Dos pérdidas) of Assimil, dealing with basic stuff such donde-adonde, the present indicative of the verbs in -ir, ser/estar, polite forms, the future with ir a, haber/tener and some the various false friends between Italian and Spanish.
I finished watching La casa de las flores, and listened to some travel podcasts while driving (La maleta de Carla is really great).

SWEDISH - 11h
I completed lesson 56 from Assimil.
I discovered the new Swedish series Kärlek och Anarki, and (binge-)watched it straight away. I managed to understand most of it. The story is set in Stockholm, and the accent is quite neutral.



I also learnt some new basic words from the dialogue Vad är det här? from Lagom lätt I didn't know (such as läppstift and blöja :lol: )
For the rest, I listened to podcasts while driving (mainly Historiepodden), finished my graded reader Mordet på fjorden, started my new graded reader Iskallt mord, and watched some videos on Youtube.

And of course, a lot of Anki flashcard repetitions for all my languages!
6 x
I'm a man from Italy, not an owl from Japan :mrgreen:

Please correct my errors!

User avatar
vegantraveller
Yellow Belt
Posts: 88
Joined: Wed Sep 07, 2016 8:39 am
Location: Turin, Italy
Languages: Italian (N), English (C2), French (C2), German (B2-C1), Japanese (B2), Spanish (B2-B1), Swedish (B1). Just started: Icelandic, Romanian, Occitan/Provençal.
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=16482
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Re: Vegantraveller's 2021 Language Log

Postby vegantraveller » Sat Feb 20, 2021 7:29 pm

Long time no see... I've been really busy at work, but I managed to fit in a good dose of language study and practice, and I'm going on with the 365 daily challenge. I also purchased Gramática de uso del español (levels A1-A2), since I had no grammar book for Spanish.
Here is a quick summary of...

Weeks 4-5-6: January 25th-February 14

ENGLISH - 27h35'
A lot of time spent on English, but basically I consumed a lot of media:
1) an American series, Unbelievable, really well acted and shot, with a great Toni Collette (8 episodes)

2) the second season of Bonding (I saw the first one a couple of years ago):

3) George Clooney's latest release The Midnight Sky (he acts better than he directs):

4) the Northern Irish movie Bad Day for the Cut:

5) The Rite

6) the first two episodes of the first season of The X Files (yes, it's a '90 classics, I remember watching it when I was a teenager back then!)

7) as well as the second episode of Best Leftovers Ever! and a short film on Youtube (Masquerade).
I finished lesson 7 from Assimil, a review unit, with the last pasrt dealing with phrasal verbs, and had a conversation class with my tutor.
I also read two articles from Græs, one about the current situation of Basque, and the other, a long interview to a German-language school director in Berlin, and listened to some podcasts while driving.

FRENCH - 5h05'
Some Youtube videos, and some reading of Templar's book and Le Monde, in preparation for a conversation class with my tutor (yeah, we updated the Covid situation in France and Italy, but mainly spoke about Russia and their current political situation).

GERMAN - 11h35'
I reviewed and wrote down my notes from my a previous conversation with my tutor, and had two lessons with him, working on verbs with prepositions.
I also listened to some podcasts while driving, and watched the film Betonrausch on Netflix.


ITALIAN - 1h
I finished reading the 13th canto of Orlando Furioso, and also continued reading Bada a come scrivi (se + conditional, the gerund use, and particular or irregular conjugations of the verbs accedere, aprire, benedire, convenire, coprire, cuocere, dare, dirimere, dovere, esigere, espellere, incutere, nuocere, piacere).

JAPANESE - 20h45'
Kanji reviewed: 真・紙・好・元・気・静・利・親・切・笑・泣・喜・困・怒・押・引・死・吹・急・咲・置・勝・選・飛・踏・進・盗
I also re-read lesson 19 from Assimil, and wrote down the notes from a previous conversation class with my tutor, and had another one with him.
I watched the special Christmas episode of アグレッシブ烈子: We Wish You a Metal Christmas

I also went on reading 隣の外国人, and listened to some podcasts while driving.

SPANISH - 2h25'
I started taking conversation classes with a Spanish teacher. Thanks to its similarities with Italian, speaking Spanish is like a breeze, definitely easier than other languages. For sure, there are several words and expressions I don't know, but the language flows somehow naturally, so it's more of a matter to polish and enrich it rather than getting used to speaking it. I also started Gramática de uso del español (levels A1-A2), and did the first lesson about masculine and feminine.

SWEDISH - 10h25'
I studied lesson 57 from Assimil (Kommissarie Marinus ställer indisketa frågor), dealing mainly with preteritum and supine, and the main differences between the five families of verbs. I also continued reading my easy thriller book, and copied and pasted all the new words into Anki. I also had three conversation classes with my tutor.
Some videos on Youtube and listening to podcasts as well.

And, of course, a lot of Anki repetitions in all my languages during hidden times (which would have been otherwise wasted on social media!).
4 x
I'm a man from Italy, not an owl from Japan :mrgreen:

Please correct my errors!

User avatar
vegantraveller
Yellow Belt
Posts: 88
Joined: Wed Sep 07, 2016 8:39 am
Location: Turin, Italy
Languages: Italian (N), English (C2), French (C2), German (B2-C1), Japanese (B2), Spanish (B2-B1), Swedish (B1). Just started: Icelandic, Romanian, Occitan/Provençal.
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=16482
x 273

Re: Vegantraveller's 2021 Language Log

Postby vegantraveller » Sun Apr 04, 2021 5:14 pm

Hi there... I haven't been quite active on the forum, partly because I was ridiculously busy at work, and partly because I happened not to save properly a previous journal entry I wrote here, and so I have to write it back from scratch. :shock:
I mostly worked from home, going to office once in a while. But I also took the plane after many months, as I had to go to Dubai for work at the end of February. I've been to the Gulf metropolis quite a few times now, but it always strikes me that people there literally come from all over the world. Arabic may the only and official language there, but it's hardly spoken or used. English is the de-facto language, as 90% of the local population is foreign-born, and half of it comes from India. I recently read that an own variety of English has emerged there, the so-called Gulf English, with its own grammar and vocabulary.

Weeks 7-8-9-10-11-12 - 15th February-28th March
My main focus was Japanese, as planned. A lot of English, but I mainly watched season 1 from The X Files, a good throwback to the early Nineties ;-) And a few films in other languages, too (I didn't sleep on my flight back and forth Dubai).

ENGLISH - 20h00'
I did a conversation class with my tutor, as well as I went on lesson 8 from Assimil (Employment).
I also watched some videos on YouTube, episodes 3-16 from season 1 of The X Files, as well as an American movie, Crawl.



FRENCH - 11h00'
I did Assimil's lessons 9 (Les taxis) and 10 (Un taxi futé). I discovered that, in formal written French, the verbs pouvoir and oser don't require pas in their negative form. I wasn't aware of that, even though the ne...pas... negative form is perfectly accepted, and doesn't sound pretentious as the form without.
I also watched a French film, Venise n'est pas en Italie



and started a great TV series on Netflix, Dix pour cent, binge-watching the first three episodes of season 1.



I had a conversation class with my tutor, and watched some videos on YouTube.

GERMAN - 6h25'
Since I'm a food enthusiast, I have quite a large collection of cookbooks. Most of them are in foreign languages, so that I can kill two birds with a stone (no pun intended :lol: ). I took a recipe of a simple smoothie (Green-Power-Smoothie) from Martin Krupp's Vegan für Faule, made it, and analysed the text, too, so that I could write down a few specialist verbs and expressions I didn't know.
I also had a couple of conversation classes, did my homework for them, and listened to some podcasts while driving.

ITALIAN - 1h05'
I read the 15th canto from Orlando furioso, as well as some verb irregularities from the booklet Bada a come scrivi.

JAPANESE - 32h20'
Revised kanji: 受・取・合・吸・拾・誘・疲・比・決・伝・流・落・晴・投・逃・過・捨・発・到・計・定・注・意・説・解・参・加・練・研・究・連・絡・濯・結・婚・運・案・卒・業・用・去・趣・味・授・橋・花・薬・色・服・客・犬
Newspaper article reading and a couple of conversation classes, speaking about various topics.
Some podcast listening while driving and some videos on YouTube.
I also watched a couple of films: 月極オトコトモダチ and のさりの島.



Oh, and I also went on reading 隣の外国人.

SPANISH - 5h55'
I had a couple of conversation classes, and did some reading of culture-related articles from El País, speaking about them during my online lessons.
I also watched a couple of films, Invisibles



and Gente que viene y bah.



SWEDISH - 11h50'
I had a series of conversation classes, and revised some old lessons.
I watched a film, Unga Astrid, about young Astrid Lindgren.



I went on reading my easy reader (Iskallt mord), and listened to some podcasts while driving.

And, of course, tons of Anki repetitions in all my languages.
8 x
I'm a man from Italy, not an owl from Japan :mrgreen:

Please correct my errors!

User avatar
vegantraveller
Yellow Belt
Posts: 88
Joined: Wed Sep 07, 2016 8:39 am
Location: Turin, Italy
Languages: Italian (N), English (C2), French (C2), German (B2-C1), Japanese (B2), Spanish (B2-B1), Swedish (B1). Just started: Icelandic, Romanian, Occitan/Provençal.
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=16482
x 273

Re: Vegantraveller's 2021 Language Log

Postby vegantraveller » Tue Apr 06, 2021 10:06 pm

I have set down my quarterly goals for April-June: apart from Japanese, I'd like to focus on English and French. They are of course my strongest foreign languages, but I want to advance in my Assimil "Using..." courses during these three months. I will also go on with German, Spanish, and Swedish on the side.

Week 13 - 29th March-4th April

ENGLISH - 6h05'

I went on lesson 8, writing down and studying the related notes. There was a great explanation of fewer-less (I happen to forget to use fewer instead of less with countable nouns, even though it seems acceptable in spoken English).
I also went on watching season 1 of The X Files (episodes 17-21), and chose a very simple fruit juice recipe (Apple-Blueberry Juice) from an American cookbook, called The 30 Minute Vegan, reading and writing down unknown vocabulary and idioms (yeah, and I also made the juice).

FRENCH - 7h10'
I had a conversation class with my tutor, mainly speaking of... coronavirus ( again! :D ) and the recent law enforcement in France.
Assimil: lesson 10 + review of the last lessons.
I also finished season 1 of Dix pour cent, started season 2, with the first two episodes, and watched another French film on Netlix, Madame Claude (a biopic about this famous character in 60's and 70's France).



GERMAN - 1h40'
Absolutely nothing, except watching a German comedy on Netflix (Meine teuflisch gute Freundin):



JAPANESE: 5h15'
Revised kanji: 文・物・族・公・園・医・宿・題
I also started lesson 69 from Assimil (お見合い1) listening, reading and writing down the dialogue.
Some podcast listening while driving.

SWEDISH: 2h55'
I finished reading my short detective story (Iskallt mord), and did the exercises in the book. I also studied and reviewed past conversation lessons and had half an hour lesson with my tutor on Easter.
5 x
I'm a man from Italy, not an owl from Japan :mrgreen:

Please correct my errors!

Caromarlyse
Green Belt
Posts: 387
Joined: Fri Dec 06, 2019 2:31 pm
Languages: English (N), French (C1-ish), German (B2/C1-ish), Russian (B1-ish), Portuguese (B1-ish), Welsh (complete beginner), Spanish (in hibernation)
(All levels estimates and given as a guide only)
x 1611

Re: Vegantraveller's 2021 Language Log

Postby Caromarlyse » Sat Apr 10, 2021 7:14 pm

vegantraveller wrote:There was a great explanation of fewer-less (I happen to forget to use fewer instead of less with countable nouns, even though it seems acceptable in spoken English).


My parents will shout at the TV when they hear these being used incorrectly. I think you're right that the distinction is dying out in spoken English, and there are other common mistakes that sound worse to my ears than this one. There will always be pedants/grammar lovers, though ;-).
1 x

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vegantraveller
Yellow Belt
Posts: 88
Joined: Wed Sep 07, 2016 8:39 am
Location: Turin, Italy
Languages: Italian (N), English (C2), French (C2), German (B2-C1), Japanese (B2), Spanish (B2-B1), Swedish (B1). Just started: Icelandic, Romanian, Occitan/Provençal.
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=16482
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Re: Vegantraveller's 2021 Language Log

Postby vegantraveller » Thu Apr 22, 2021 9:36 pm

Caromarlyse wrote:My parents will shout at the TV when they hear these being used incorrectly. I think you're right that the distinction is dying out in spoken English, and there are other common mistakes that sound worse to my ears than this one. There will always be pedants/grammar lovers, though ;-).


:D I'm a grammar geek, myself, so I can fully get you (and your parents). I hate it when people mistreat their mother tongue. :mrgreen:
1 x
I'm a man from Italy, not an owl from Japan :mrgreen:

Please correct my errors!

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vegantraveller
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Posts: 88
Joined: Wed Sep 07, 2016 8:39 am
Location: Turin, Italy
Languages: Italian (N), English (C2), French (C2), German (B2-C1), Japanese (B2), Spanish (B2-B1), Swedish (B1). Just started: Icelandic, Romanian, Occitan/Provençal.
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=16482
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Re: Vegantraveller's 2021 Language Log

Postby vegantraveller » Thu Apr 22, 2021 10:23 pm

Saturday was my birthday, so I got a full range of grammar and vocabulary books from the Teach Yourself's Tutor series, for Japanese (but it's way too easy, so I think it will just go into my collection :mrgreen: ), Swedish, and Spanish. I also got a Kindle reader: I've always been against e-reading, but now I must admit it's really practical, and you don't need to carry heavy books with you. I've just purchased a 19th-century Italian short story, Senso, by Camillo Boito, which I'll be reading soon. New purchases will follow :lol:

Weeks 14-15: 5th-18th April (no Swedish :evil: )

ENGLISH - 7h40'
I'm still taking the plunge back to the Nineties, and continue watching The X Files: I finished season 1 and started season 2.

FRENCH - 10h25'
I read and studied lesson 11 from Assimil - Il faut sortir de temps en temps.
I also watched some videos on Youtube, and listened to an episode of a podcast I really love, Instinct Voyageur , while driving. I'm also binge-watching the TV series Dix pour cent: I finished season 2 and started season 3. Definitely addictive!

GERMAN - 2h35'
I had a conversation class with my tutor, and did some exercises he gave me for our lesson. But we ended up talking about his recent move to Madrid, so we will check and correct the exercises next time :lol:

ITALIAN - 1h10'
I went on the fourteenth canto of Orlando Furioso, and read some pages of my grammar booklet Bada a come scrivi, with articles dealing with double negation, how to accord past participles, and regional words.

JAPANESE - 12h40'
Kanji revised: 寺・図・館・室・席・度・機・場・県・府・都・暖・涼・悲・苦・楽・辛・甘・痛・有・退・屈・同
I also listened to a few podcasts while driving to my office in Cremona.

SPANISH - 3h15'
I went on my grammar book, dealing with masculine and feminine. Nothing difficult; of course there are some differences between Spanish and the other Romance languages I speak (French and Italian). It was good to see that "spider" is feminine (la araña) as in French (l'araignée), while masculine in Italian (il ragno). Also "snake" is feminine (la serpiente) while it is masculine in the other two Romance languages (le serpent and il serpente respectively). I also wrote down the notes I took during my conversation class back at the end of March, and listened to a few podcasts (mainly travelling) while driving.
I also read and translated a recipe (Ensalada niçoise) from the recipe book Cocina con vegetales. It's a tiny booklet, definitely not vegan, but I like it since it was a gift from one of my best friends travelling that time in Argentina. Speaking of Argentinian Spanish, I noticed some differences for vegetable names with Castilian Spanish: chauchas instead of judías verdes, and morrón instead of pimiento.

And, of course, lots of Anki repetitions.
Last edited by vegantraveller on Tue May 18, 2021 9:32 pm, edited 1 time in total.
5 x
I'm a man from Italy, not an owl from Japan :mrgreen:

Please correct my errors!


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