Adventures in French and Spanish

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PeterMollenburg
Black Belt - 3rd Dan
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Languages: English (N), French (B2-certified), Dutch (High A2?), Spanish (~A1), German (long-forgotten 99%), Norwegian (false starts in 2020 & 2021)
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=18080
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Re: Mohave's Adventures in French and Spanish

Postby PeterMollenburg » Sun Feb 14, 2016 6:08 pm

Mohave wrote:
PeterMollenburg wrote:Interesting start to your Spanish journey there Mohave. It looks like you've really started at a good time. For what it's worth Destinos is awesome! Get into it, books and all. When I start Spanish (whenever that will be) I'm going to smash Destinos out of the park!

Keep up your French, I must read Le retour de Martin Guerre some time soonish too and we can compare notes.

Enjoyed your update!


Thanks as always PM! Do you recommend that I go ahead and purchase the workbooks etc? Do you recommend Destinos as a primary/core course? I've been looking at it as a supplemental course to either FSI or Assimil.

PS - I ordered a used copy of Le Retour de Martin Guerre from an UK seller that was listed on Amazon.com. I only paid $6 (US) - including shipping.


If it were me i'd be using Destinos solely. I wouldn't use Assimil nor FSI, but that's me. I think by the time I got through Destinos I may not even need those other courses at all. I think Destinos is the best and more comprehensive than the other 2. That's saying somthing as FSI and Assimil are decent. However since you already have access to Assimil and FSI and seem keen on doing them, maybe that's what's best for you. Whatever works really. I have older editions of the textbooks and workbooks, not sure how the later editions compare if you were to purchase them, but the older ones are very decent. Note there are also CDs that are an important component of the workbook exercises throughout. If you decide you need the audio I might be able to help. I also own all components to Nuevos Destinos, the follow on course from Destinos and that is another factor as to why I would bypass the other courses personally. As you don't own Nuevos Destinos (assumption) you could justify again going down a different course path to myself (if i ever get there!). Good luck!
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Mohave
Orange Belt
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Joined: Sat Jul 18, 2015 1:38 pm
Location: Florida, USA
Languages: English (Native),
French (enjoying and still learning the language)
Spanish (Beginner)
Language Log: http://how-to-learn-any-language.org/vi ... f=15&t=766
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Re: Mohave's Adventures in French and Spanish

Postby Mohave » Sun Feb 14, 2016 6:18 pm

PeterMollenburg wrote:
Mohave wrote:
PeterMollenburg wrote:Interesting start to your Spanish journey there Mohave. It looks like you've really started at a good time. For what it's worth Destinos is awesome! Get into it, books and all. When I start Spanish (whenever that will be) I'm going to smash Destinos out of the park!

Keep up your French, I must read Le retour de Martin Guerre some time soonish too and we can compare notes.

Enjoyed your update!


Thanks as always PM! Do you recommend that I go ahead and purchase the workbooks etc? Do you recommend Destinos as a primary/core course? I've been looking at it as a supplemental course to either FSI or Assimil.

PS - I ordered a used copy of Le Retour de Martin Guerre from an UK seller that was listed on Amazon.com. I only paid $6 (US) - including shipping.


If it were me i'd be using Destinos solely. I wouldn't use Assimil nor FSI, but that's me. I think by the time I got through Destinos I may not even need those other courses at all. I think Destinos is the best and more comprehensive than the other 2. That's saying somthing as FSI and Assimil are decent. However since you already have access to Assimil and FSI and seem keen on doing them, maybe that's what's best for you. Whatever works really. I have older editions of the textbooks and workbooks, not sure how the later editions compare if you were to purchase them, but the older ones are very decent. Note there are also CDs that are an important component of the workbook exercises throughout. If you decide you need the audio I might be able to help. I also own all components to Nuevos Destinos, the follow on course from Destinos and that is another factor as to why I would bypass the other courses personally. As you don't own Nuevos Destinos (assumption) you could justify again going down a different course path to myself (if i ever get there!). Good luck!


Ok I am going to pull out my textbook of Destinos and look a little closer at it, and take a look at how much the workbooks are to purchase. Also, I am going to do a little more Assimil Spanish With Ease to give it another shot and look at FSI closely. Nothing other than Pimsleur, Spanish for Reading and the Destinos videos has really grabbed me yet.

Thanks as always and have a great day! :)
2 x
Spanish Motivation: Dec 2018 - Costa Rica
Spanish Pimsleur 3: 6 / 30 Assimil: 56 / 100
Spanish Super Challenge Books: 2 / 50 Movies: 0 / 100
French Super Challenge Books: 24 / 100 Movies: 22 / 100

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James29
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Languages: English (Native)
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Portuguese (Thinking about it)
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Re: Mohave's Adventures in French and Spanish

Postby James29 » Mon Feb 15, 2016 2:23 am

With your experience in French I think you'll pick up Spanish quite quickly. All the resources you are choosing from are quite good (although the only part of Destinos I used was the video part and I did not know about Spanish for Reading until I was too advanced for it).

FSI is amazing, but I'd recommend doing it after finishing Assimil. If you really want to focus on speaking and understanding I think Assimil followed by FSI would be the perfect way to go. You might not be aware of it, but there is a new Assimil course that might be worth checking out. If you do Assimil and FSI I cannot imagine you would need anything else.
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Mohave
Orange Belt
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Location: Florida, USA
Languages: English (Native),
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Language Log: http://how-to-learn-any-language.org/vi ... f=15&t=766
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Re: Mohave's Adventures in French and Spanish

Postby Mohave » Thu Feb 18, 2016 11:54 pm

James29 wrote:With your experience in French I think you'll pick up Spanish quite quickly. All the resources you are choosing from are quite good (although the only part of Destinos I used was the video part and I did not know about Spanish for Reading until I was too advanced for it).

FSI is amazing, but I'd recommend doing it after finishing Assimil. If you really want to focus on speaking and understanding I think Assimil followed by FSI would be the perfect way to go. You might not be aware of it, but there is a new Assimil course that might be worth checking out. If you do Assimil and FSI I cannot imagine you would need anything else.


This is great advice, and I am starting to feel a little better about Assimil Spanish with Ease., and I appreciate your sage advice/thoughts on how to proceed with the different course options. I am thinking of holding the course - and I like the idea of doing FSI after I finish Assimil. Thanks!
2 x
Spanish Motivation: Dec 2018 - Costa Rica
Spanish Pimsleur 3: 6 / 30 Assimil: 56 / 100
Spanish Super Challenge Books: 2 / 50 Movies: 0 / 100
French Super Challenge Books: 24 / 100 Movies: 22 / 100

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Fortheo
Green Belt
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Languages: English (N), French (?) Russian (beginner)
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Re: Mohave's Adventures in French and Spanish

Postby Fortheo » Fri Jul 08, 2016 10:05 pm

Mohave wrote:
James29 wrote:With your experience in French I think you'll pick up Spanish quite quickly. All the resources you are choosing from are quite good (although the only part of Destinos I used was the video part and I did not know about Spanish for Reading until I was too advanced for it).

FSI is amazing, but I'd recommend doing it after finishing Assimil. If you really want to focus on speaking and understanding I think Assimil followed by FSI would be the perfect way to go. You might not be aware of it, but there is a new Assimil course that might be worth checking out. If you do Assimil and FSI I cannot imagine you would need anything else.


This is great advice, and I am starting to feel a little better about Assimil Spanish with Ease., and I appreciate your sage advice/thoughts on how to proceed with the different course options. I am thinking of holding the course - and I like the idea of doing FSI after I finish Assimil. Thanks!


Late bump, but I just went through your log and found a lot of good tips on learning French and Spanish, so thanks for that. How have you been lately? Have you been progressing with your languages?
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Mohave
Orange Belt
Posts: 198
Joined: Sat Jul 18, 2015 1:38 pm
Location: Florida, USA
Languages: English (Native),
French (enjoying and still learning the language)
Spanish (Beginner)
Language Log: http://how-to-learn-any-language.org/vi ... f=15&t=766
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Re: Mohave's Adventures in French and Spanish

Postby Mohave » Sat Jul 09, 2016 8:44 am

Fortheo wrote:
Mohave wrote:
James29 wrote:With your experience in French I think you'll pick up Spanish quite quickly. All the resources you are choosing from are quite good (although the only part of Destinos I used was the video part and I did not know about Spanish for Reading until I was too advanced for it).

FSI is amazing, but I'd recommend doing it after finishing Assimil. If you really want to focus on speaking and understanding I think Assimil followed by FSI would be the perfect way to go. You might not be aware of it, but there is a new Assimil course that might be worth checking out. If you do Assimil and FSI I cannot imagine you would need anything else.


This is great advice, and I am starting to feel a little better about Assimil Spanish with Ease., and I appreciate your sage advice/thoughts on how to proceed with the different course options. I am thinking of holding the course - and I like the idea of doing FSI after I finish Assimil. Thanks!


Late bump, but I just went through your log and found a lot of good tips on learning French and Spanish, so thanks for that. How have you been lately? Have you been progressing with your languages?


Thanks for your kind words Fortheo! I didn't realize it had been so long since I updated my log! I'm still plugging away on my French- more in a maintenance mode and having fun, than upgrading levels right now. I'm working on another Super Challenge now, and I still have language exchanges with my long-time partners. I'm heading for the airport in just a few minutes, but promise a more in-depth update on books, series, etc when I return.
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Spanish Motivation: Dec 2018 - Costa Rica
Spanish Pimsleur 3: 6 / 30 Assimil: 56 / 100
Spanish Super Challenge Books: 2 / 50 Movies: 0 / 100
French Super Challenge Books: 24 / 100 Movies: 22 / 100

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PeterMollenburg
Black Belt - 3rd Dan
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Joined: Wed Jul 22, 2015 11:54 am
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Languages: English (N), French (B2-certified), Dutch (High A2?), Spanish (~A1), German (long-forgotten 99%), Norwegian (false starts in 2020 & 2021)
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 15&t=18080
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Re: Mohave's Adventures in French and Spanish

Postby PeterMollenburg » Sat Jul 09, 2016 10:36 am

I was wondering today Mohave if you were still out there on planet earth somewhere, good to see you're still in the language learning game ;)
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Mohave
Orange Belt
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Location: Florida, USA
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Re: Mohave's Adventures in French

Postby Mohave » Mon Jan 22, 2018 12:51 pm

Hello everyone! It's been a long time! I never intended to take a break from this forum, but it happened... Life happened.... I needed to deal with family illness and then the resulting grief. (Please do not post condolences - I don't want my log focused on that). I've continued with French in a "maintenance mode" during the break - continuing a mostly weekly exchange on Skype with a pen pal. Sadly, I don't believe I have finished a book in French - although I started numerous books. I think I just had trouble getting my mind focused. So after completing a double Super Challenge in 2015, and having amazing results, I didn't even come close to finishing the last one. Thankfully all of EMK's tricks of making French a part of your everyday life (Facebook and Twitter feeds, etc) at least kept my French going.

As I've thought about my current goals in French, it made me realize I love the language and I worked hard to "re-learn" it as an adult. I think for now, I am going to start small and commit to reading a French book each month. January's book is Journal du Dehors de Annie Ernaux. It's short - only about 100 pages - and the January 2018 selection of the "Ma Vie Française" Book Club. I have never read anything by Annie Ernaux before - would love you to share thoughts if you have.

A+

PS - Thanks PM!


Here's a good little synopsis in English of Journal du Dehors de Annie Ernaux: https://www.myfrenchlife.org/2018/01/24 ... ie-ernaux/
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Spanish Motivation: Dec 2018 - Costa Rica
Spanish Pimsleur 3: 6 / 30 Assimil: 56 / 100
Spanish Super Challenge Books: 2 / 50 Movies: 0 / 100
French Super Challenge Books: 24 / 100 Movies: 22 / 100

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Mohave
Orange Belt
Posts: 198
Joined: Sat Jul 18, 2015 1:38 pm
Location: Florida, USA
Languages: English (Native),
French (enjoying and still learning the language)
Spanish (Beginner)
Language Log: http://how-to-learn-any-language.org/vi ... f=15&t=766
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Re: Mohave's Adventures in French

Postby Mohave » Sun Feb 04, 2018 8:18 pm

I finished Journal du Dehors de Annie Ernaux. I had never read Annie Ernaux before - and it was a lovely introduction. I hope to read more Annie Ernaux. It's been a while since I've read a book that is just "snippets" of the normalcy of everyday life....conversations that take place on the metro, train, or in a grocery store. Observations that seem to have no connections - and yet they do - Ernaux contrasts the snippets with similar and different ideas. I was glad I had an ebook to be able to easily look up vocabulary. I need to do better at capturing the words I don't know. Journal du Dehors is a short read - only about 100 pages -- and would be perfect for a first read (after easier children's books) in French and it's available fairly inexpensively as an ebook on Amazon.com.

I have ordered the book La Première Gorgée de Bière de Phillipe Delerm for my February read . It is a short - only 91 pages. But until it arrives, I am going to play with Les Jeux Sont Faits de Jean-Paul Sartre. I know I've read Huis Clos - but honestly, I can't remember if I read it in English or French - and it was probably 30 years ago......

Happy Language Learning!
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Spanish Motivation: Dec 2018 - Costa Rica
Spanish Pimsleur 3: 6 / 30 Assimil: 56 / 100
Spanish Super Challenge Books: 2 / 50 Movies: 0 / 100
French Super Challenge Books: 24 / 100 Movies: 22 / 100

My Goodreads

User avatar
Mohave
Orange Belt
Posts: 198
Joined: Sat Jul 18, 2015 1:38 pm
Location: Florida, USA
Languages: English (Native),
French (enjoying and still learning the language)
Spanish (Beginner)
Language Log: http://how-to-learn-any-language.org/vi ... f=15&t=766
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Re: Mohave's Adventures in French and Spanish

Postby Mohave » Sat Feb 17, 2018 8:15 pm

I've watched a couple episodes of La Mante on Netflix (US Catalog). While not having completed Season 1, I can recommend the series. I'm watching with English subtitles as: 1) my husband and I are watching this together and he doesn't speak/understand French, and 2) While I find the French easier to understand than Engrenage, I think my listening skills slid a little during my "maintenance mode". I've re-started listening to RFI most days, and just in a few short days, I'm able to tell an improvement. Here's the bande-announce.

https://youtu.be/bYU7jp27L14
1 x
Spanish Motivation: Dec 2018 - Costa Rica
Spanish Pimsleur 3: 6 / 30 Assimil: 56 / 100
Spanish Super Challenge Books: 2 / 50 Movies: 0 / 100
French Super Challenge Books: 24 / 100 Movies: 22 / 100

My Goodreads


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