Sol's Greek & Korean Log!

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Sol
Orange Belt
Posts: 176
Joined: Mon Jul 04, 2016 7:56 am
Languages: (N) Bulgarian, English
Learning: Greek, Korean
Future: French, Italian, Russian
Paused: Spanish
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=18342
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Sol's Greek & Korean Log!

Postby Sol » Mon Aug 01, 2022 7:17 am

Hi everyone!

It's been a long time since I posted here! I've since dabbled in many languages and meandered and generally achieved nothing due to my raging shiny object syndrome! I feel a bit embarrassed having made minimal progress in 5 (!!!) years!!

I decided that after all the languages I've tried to learn (Spanish, Russian, Greek, Korean, Mandarin, Turkish, Norwegian, Portuguese, etc etc) I only truly cared about 2 and that's Greek and Korean. I'm basically in love with Greece and learning it is super fun, so I'm committing to it. Korean has always been a love of mine and I was truly obsessed with it 5 years ago (in one of my posts, I was happy that I was fired bc I'd be able to study Korean all day :lol:). Well, I was only 19 back then.

I'm going to Korea next Spring so this is a great time to resume learning again (man, I'd be fluent if I didn't give up).

Resources I'll be using:

Greek: Language Transfer and the Deltos books. I completed LT once and can already read okay-ish.
Korean: TTMIK, Teuida and Lingodeer. Last time I used howtostudykorean.com but I realized that's a bad resource for a beginner. It's too grammar heavy, I was stuff writing out too much and wasting my time.

So uhhh, let's pray I won't give up this time!
9 x
Korean
TTMIK: 45 / 305 (45/305 lessons)
SC22-23 Books: 3 / 5000 (3/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 2260 / 9000 (2260/9000 minutes)

Greek
SC22-23 Books: 22 / 5000 (22/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 0 / 9000 (0/9000 minutes)

User avatar
Sol
Orange Belt
Posts: 176
Joined: Mon Jul 04, 2016 7:56 am
Languages: (N) Bulgarian, English
Learning: Greek, Korean
Future: French, Italian, Russian
Paused: Spanish
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=18342
x 198

Re: Sol's Greek & Korean Log!

Postby Sol » Tue Aug 02, 2022 5:33 pm

Korean
I am really grateful for how easy Hangul is. I think it may be the easiest alphabet out there. It took me only 20 mins to learn 5-6 years ago, didn't study Korean for 5 years, and I still remember it perfectly. I know with other languages like Japanese or Chinese the writing system is a big barrier, so I'm happy I was more drawn to Korean haha.

There are so many more resources in 2022 than 2017. Teuida for example is amazing. It's like virtual speaking, so there's no pressure as there would be with real people (esp. as a beginner, I'm no way ready for iTalki) but it gets you past that barrier of speaking.

TTMIK is also wayyy better than howtostudykorean.com, I can't believe I spent hours every day writing out lessons from HTSK then wondered why I understood nothing after almost a year of studying. I was warned but I didn't listen!

I'm consuming a lot of kdramas (which have also improved over the years), and I was using Lingodeer but they want a subscription after just one lesson.

Greek
Greek is going very well. The verb endings are so similar to Spanish it's quite funny lol. Making my way through the Deltos books. I had a look at some contemporary fiction books in Greek and understood a bit, I think I can buy a novel and read it during the holiday I have in Greece next week!

If anyone has any series of movie suggestions, I welcome them! Nothing depressing though, please :?

One of my friends commented how bizarre my selection of languages is. Greek and Korean, it's certainly an interesting mix.
6 x
Korean
TTMIK: 45 / 305 (45/305 lessons)
SC22-23 Books: 3 / 5000 (3/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 2260 / 9000 (2260/9000 minutes)

Greek
SC22-23 Books: 22 / 5000 (22/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 0 / 9000 (0/9000 minutes)

User avatar
Sol
Orange Belt
Posts: 176
Joined: Mon Jul 04, 2016 7:56 am
Languages: (N) Bulgarian, English
Learning: Greek, Korean
Future: French, Italian, Russian
Paused: Spanish
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=18342
x 198

Re: Sol's Greek & Korean Log!

Postby Sol » Sat Aug 06, 2022 9:21 am

Korean
I reluctantly started Duolingo despite its reputation for being really bad for Asian languages. And it's true, it is bad for Korean. However, the story section is great! I've been using Lingodeer for the lessons instead, which is much better.

In addition, I'm using Teuida, Anki and TTMIK. My goals for 2022 are:

    • Finish TTMIK
    • Finish Teuida
    • Finish Lingodeer Korean I
    • Read 3 books (TTMIK has some basic ones)

I've also started replaying dramas I've already watched, but with Korean subtitles instead. I still can't understand anything but my vocab is non existant still. Grammar is really easy for Korean, which I really appreciate.

Greek
I also started Duolingo for Greek, and it's alright. It's been hard finding resources. 1-2 years ago I did a lot of iTalki lessons but it was a waste of time at my level - I didn't know enough to chat, and typical school-like lessons with grammar tables did me no good.

I found some great websites to watch Greek shows! Ertflix.gr and Megatv.com. I'm also watching some Konilo videos and I do get the gist of conversations. For example I just finished this one where a Spanish speaker has learned Greek and is talking about it. Spanish and Greek have very similar sounds and I can imagine it wasn't hard for him to get the accent right: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiI4JZjps8I

My goals for 2022 are:

    • Finish Greek Duolingo tree
    • Finish reading all Deltos books
6 x
Korean
TTMIK: 45 / 305 (45/305 lessons)
SC22-23 Books: 3 / 5000 (3/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 2260 / 9000 (2260/9000 minutes)

Greek
SC22-23 Books: 22 / 5000 (22/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 0 / 9000 (0/9000 minutes)

User avatar
Sol
Orange Belt
Posts: 176
Joined: Mon Jul 04, 2016 7:56 am
Languages: (N) Bulgarian, English
Learning: Greek, Korean
Future: French, Italian, Russian
Paused: Spanish
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=18342
x 198

Re: Sol's Greek & Korean Log!

Postby Sol » Mon Aug 08, 2022 1:19 pm

Bought new notebooks! I missed posting my journal pages here. To make them more interesting, for Korean I've gone with a sticker per day, and Greek has a drawing per day. They don't really have anything to do with the topic lol, as all the stickers are mostly food related things :lol:

I noted my Korean handwriting is becoming slightly more fluid now.

Image
6 x
Korean
TTMIK: 45 / 305 (45/305 lessons)
SC22-23 Books: 3 / 5000 (3/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 2260 / 9000 (2260/9000 minutes)

Greek
SC22-23 Books: 22 / 5000 (22/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 0 / 9000 (0/9000 minutes)

User avatar
Sol
Orange Belt
Posts: 176
Joined: Mon Jul 04, 2016 7:56 am
Languages: (N) Bulgarian, English
Learning: Greek, Korean
Future: French, Italian, Russian
Paused: Spanish
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=18342
x 198

Re: Sol's Greek & Korean Log!

Postby Sol » Tue Aug 09, 2022 6:01 pm

Today for Korean I learned Sino-Korean numbers, present tense and talking about location.

Numbers are surprisingly easy. I can count from 1 to 9999 now, and it only took 15 minutes to learn :shock:

Lingodeer is amazing but uses a higher formality than TTMIK and every other resource. Considering subscribing to Drops too as it's amazing for vocab. I still can't get 계란 out of my head.

Here's a photo of my Lingodeer exercises - the sticker today is of some spilled 우유. I'm surprised I can understand the things I can, I'm now able to pick up things from dramas too. I remember why I was so obsessed with Korean. It's just so fun.

Image
3 x
Korean
TTMIK: 45 / 305 (45/305 lessons)
SC22-23 Books: 3 / 5000 (3/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 2260 / 9000 (2260/9000 minutes)

Greek
SC22-23 Books: 22 / 5000 (22/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 0 / 9000 (0/9000 minutes)

User avatar
Sol
Orange Belt
Posts: 176
Joined: Mon Jul 04, 2016 7:56 am
Languages: (N) Bulgarian, English
Learning: Greek, Korean
Future: French, Italian, Russian
Paused: Spanish
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=18342
x 198

Re: Sol's Greek & Korean Log!

Postby Sol » Wed Aug 10, 2022 4:55 pm

Finished my first Greek Deltos book! It was quite hilarious as it's trying to get so much vocab in, there are all these different bizarre situations in one tiny book. There is only one left in the Stage 1 Easy Readers. I go to Greece in 2 days so let's see how confident I am speaking.

For Korean, I've decided to finish TTMIK, Teuida and Lingodeer by 2023 then start iTalki. I'm trying to get somewhat conversational before my trip in April. I also want to start reading soon, and might go for "Korean Stories for Language Learners: Traditional Folktales" despite it being very very early.

These are those rare few days where I can study hours every day. I've given myself 2-3 weeks before I ramp up my work and have to tone down the language studying.

Image
1 x
Korean
TTMIK: 45 / 305 (45/305 lessons)
SC22-23 Books: 3 / 5000 (3/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 2260 / 9000 (2260/9000 minutes)

Greek
SC22-23 Books: 22 / 5000 (22/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 0 / 9000 (0/9000 minutes)

User avatar
Sol
Orange Belt
Posts: 176
Joined: Mon Jul 04, 2016 7:56 am
Languages: (N) Bulgarian, English
Learning: Greek, Korean
Future: French, Italian, Russian
Paused: Spanish
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=18342
x 198

Re: Sol's Greek & Korean Log!

Postby Sol » Wed Aug 17, 2022 3:55 pm

I’m in Greece right now and I’m pleasantly surprised at how much I understand. I am able to eavesdrop in conversations when people don’t think I understand them haha. I also understand almost all tourists here since they’re either English, Russian, Spanish, or something very close to those languages.

I also find it quite funny how despite being in Greece, I’m studying Korean several hours a day once I come back to my hotel room :D I finished the first level of TTMIK. I just made a list of all the vocab I know very well and can recall almost immediately both ways. It has almost 200 words which is not too bad actually. There’s probably more I’m not thinking of, but this will be a good way to track how much I know. Reading other people’s Korean journeys, it seems common to know grammar very well but to struggle with vocab.
7 x
Korean
TTMIK: 45 / 305 (45/305 lessons)
SC22-23 Books: 3 / 5000 (3/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 2260 / 9000 (2260/9000 minutes)

Greek
SC22-23 Books: 22 / 5000 (22/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 0 / 9000 (0/9000 minutes)

User avatar
Sol
Orange Belt
Posts: 176
Joined: Mon Jul 04, 2016 7:56 am
Languages: (N) Bulgarian, English
Learning: Greek, Korean
Future: French, Italian, Russian
Paused: Spanish
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=18342
x 198

Re: Sol's Greek & Korean Log!

Postby Sol » Thu Aug 18, 2022 11:24 am

Guess who studied Korean for 8 hours yesterday? Me. Insanity. Well, I’m out until the afternoon speaking Greek then I come back and do TTMIK and LingoDeer until it’s time for sleep. I made some friends on HelloTalk, and I also discovered HelloTalk has some good easy readers for Korean. Yesterday I read 도서관 고양이 오스카 which really cemented the word 도서관 for me.

I also rediscovered one of my favorite old Korean songs by Shin Joong Hyun called Beautiful Rivers and Mountains. I translated and the lyrics are quite easy.



Also bought some proper Greek books today. I’m tired of the graded readers and want to read real novels now.

Image
4 x
Korean
TTMIK: 45 / 305 (45/305 lessons)
SC22-23 Books: 3 / 5000 (3/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 2260 / 9000 (2260/9000 minutes)

Greek
SC22-23 Books: 22 / 5000 (22/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 0 / 9000 (0/9000 minutes)

User avatar
Sol
Orange Belt
Posts: 176
Joined: Mon Jul 04, 2016 7:56 am
Languages: (N) Bulgarian, English
Learning: Greek, Korean
Future: French, Italian, Russian
Paused: Spanish
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=18342
x 198

Re: Sol's Greek & Korean Log!

Postby Sol » Tue Aug 23, 2022 3:03 pm

My Korean has improved rapidly this past month, probably because I've been doing it all day. I also signed up to HelloTalk and have been talking to natives a lot. I'm considering studying Korean in a Korean language institute next year but we'll see.

Surprisingly I can read normal Greek books well too! With trips to google translate here and there haha, but about the same amount as with the easy readers.
6 x
Korean
TTMIK: 45 / 305 (45/305 lessons)
SC22-23 Books: 3 / 5000 (3/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 2260 / 9000 (2260/9000 minutes)

Greek
SC22-23 Books: 22 / 5000 (22/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 0 / 9000 (0/9000 minutes)

User avatar
Sol
Orange Belt
Posts: 176
Joined: Mon Jul 04, 2016 7:56 am
Languages: (N) Bulgarian, English
Learning: Greek, Korean
Future: French, Italian, Russian
Paused: Spanish
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=18342
x 198

Re: Sol's Greek & Korean Log!

Postby Sol » Sun Sep 11, 2022 9:21 pm

I haven't been posting much here but I'm still doing Korean every day! I'm almost done with level 2 TTMIK.
2 x
Korean
TTMIK: 45 / 305 (45/305 lessons)
SC22-23 Books: 3 / 5000 (3/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 2260 / 9000 (2260/9000 minutes)

Greek
SC22-23 Books: 22 / 5000 (22/5000 pages)
SC22-23 Films: 0 / 9000 (0/9000 minutes)


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