日本語 + Русский + norsk (part 1, CLOSED)

[brilliantyears]

Arabic course starts next week - still trying to get the script down. I wonder if there's going to be a 6 Week Challenge starting in August (err, today? whelp I didn't even realise it's August already) but I guess everything points to 'no'? Would be nice to do one for Arabic to get the most out of this course.

Of course, the great irony is that now that my Arabic course is about to start (and it's going to be intense), I'm suddenly feeling very motivated about Russian again I don't think I can (mentally) afford to do both at the same time though, so yeah. I might stick to just doing a little Russian reviewing on Memrise to catch up before (hopefully) classes start again in September. I'm only about 900 reviews behind
Mini-bonus-Russian-thingy: spoke some Russian in Italy last week.

I also kind of want to go back to Ainu. Why is everything I do always all or nothing?!

Dear self: 100% Arabic for the next 3+ weeks, please?

Oh, and completely forgot to mention this before, but finished reading Momo by Michael Ende in German back in June. So good! And very satisfying to read (honestly it was a breeze).

[brilliantyears]

Had my first Arabic class yesterday. Our teacher is pretty great so far, and class was interesting enough! But it's fascinating how different languages affect me differently. Where I fell head over heels in love with Russian from the very first moment, I feel somewhat weary about Arabic. This might just be the result of my general mood lately. I've got another 14 3-hour classes to go, so we'll see
I'm tracking my hours/study progress, just in case the 6 Week Challenge is returning on time

I'm now appreciating Russian a lot more. It made me realise that I definitely don't want to give it up. I feel same deep love for it that I have for Japanese (and with that: loving frustration ). I may not be using it daily, or working on it regularly, but I love it a lot and I want to keep it in my life. (Already considering the next trip east!)

[brilliantyears]

Signed up for the 6WC with Arabic
(Give me three weeks to get a head-start, then y'all can catch up )

[brilliantyears]

No interference between Russian and Arabic, apart from the fact I sometimes feel the urge to say и instead of و . Good, because I'm still catching up on my Russian Memrise reviews.

[brilliantyears]

It pains me to say this, but taking this intensive Arabic course was a mistake. I clearly wasn't as ready as I thought I was. My burn-out and depression are hitting me hard. Working, then doing three hours of class a day, then on top of that multiple hours of studying to prepare for next day's class... I've only had 4 classes, 11 more to go, and I don't know how I'll do it. Somehow, I suppose.
No surprise, it affects my enjoyment of the course and the language

[tarvos]

It pains me to say this, but taking this intensive Arabic course was a mistake. I clearly wasn't as ready as I thought I was. My burn-out and depression are hitting me hard. Working, then doing three hours of class a day, then on top of that multiple hours of studying to prepare for next day's class... I've only had 4 classes, 11 more to go, and I don't know how I'll do it. Somehow, I suppose.
No surprise, it affects my enjoyment of the course and the language

Are you allowed to quit? Self-care is important. I've quit things that were too hard before; I left a chess tournament early for that reason, because my depression flared up and I wasn't performing.

[brilliantyears]

No. I mean, of course yes, but that comes with consequences and just doing the course is preferable to dealing with those.
So I’m just going to hibernate this weekend.
Don’t try this at home, kids.

[brilliantyears]

I suffered. Suffer along with me.

It seems every language class needs at least one hysterisch kutnummer and tbh I love it (I don't think I'll ever get rid of the earworm that is Колобок).

But Sesame Street is pretty cute, I love the song For whoever reads Dutch, this article is pretty interesting.

(And I kind of feel like I'm missing out never having seen Russian Sesame Street )

Finished 7 out of 15 classes and with that level 1 - technically I'm at CEFR A1.1 now. I'm still putting in a lot of time. Just like with Korean and Russian I had a lot of trouble memorising any vocab at first, but it's starting to get easier. I'm also starting to get used to the script, writing is fine and reading is starting to become easier too (although the guessing-the-vowels-part is still a pain in the ass).

I took a good rest this weekend (with a little studying, homework and reviewing, but not too much) and went into class fresh and rested and I feel a lot better about it now. But who knows how I'll feel by the time it's Friday

I'm now (at the time of writing this) 36 hours and 17 minutes into the 6 Week Challenge So there's that.

If anyone has tips on interesting Arabic language stuff that I should watch/listen to, let me know. I have no clue where to start. Pop/rock music, series or movies and the likes. If it's on Spotify or Netflix that's a plus

[brilliantyears]

Week two of Arabic classes is finished. I am glad to say I'm getting the hang of it, so it has also become a lot less tiresome. I had my level 1 exam last Friday and I am fairly sure I did well on it, so that would mean I've passed CEFR level A1.1. Woohoo!

I've got one week (5 classes) left to go, with the level 2 exam at the end (CEFR level A1.2, aka full A1 level).

I'm fairly sure I won't continue after that, at least not actively (except a little DuoLingo, maybe? probably as intensively as Chinese aka super lowkey). Learning Arabic has been a really cool opportunity that I'm grateful for, but I'm still not in love with the language, although I'm appreciating it more and more. I do count 'language learning' as one of my hobbies, but I don't think I can be as indiscriminate towards languages as some polyglots out there. I'm more and more realising I'm not a language hoarder. I love getting to know different languages! But if I don't fall in love, my motivation is approximately zero

Anyway! While it lasts, I'm trying to slowly work in more immersion. I do wish I had more time for this on weekdays, and not just weekends. During work hours I'm listening to Arabic music recommended by our teacher, but our tastes in music are... quite different I started watching some tv shows though - turns out there are a lot of great Dutch documentaries on the Arab world. I love the one I'm watching right now, called Op zoek naar de granaatappel, about two Dutch women (one of Moroccan descent) travelling around the Arab countries while cooking with women there. Food is the connection, but I especially love learning about all these women's lives!


On another note: I'm feeling the Russian itch big time. Classes are most likely cancelled for the upcoming semester due to lack of interest, but I've planned a dozen private classes for me and a couple of classmates Glad to be continuing!

[Cèid Donn]

Congrats on (soon) completing your Arabic class and good luck with continuing with Russian. I understand that feeling of "wow, this isn't an absolutely grueling task for me anymore" feeling! I'm starting to feel that way about Russian with my 6WC.

I do count 'language learning' as one of my hobbies, but I don't think I can be as indiscriminate towards languages as some polyglots out there.

I get what you're saying, but while there are definitely times to let oneself indulge one's curiosity, most people--and I count myself among them here--who have studied multiple languages beyond dabbling do so with some logic behind it, whether they explain that to anyone else or not. Sure, there are a few people out there who can sit down and study another language just because it's something new. But I think those people are the exception. One of the things I've learned over the years is that I personally cannot make any real progress with a language unless I have real motivation to study it. Both time and energy are finite resources, and learning languages consumes a tremendous amount of both. So trust me when I say that most learners, especially once they get to my age, need a solid reason for doing this as oppose to literally any easier pastime.