I want to learn Spanish in SA

[Chimuelojones]

Originally Posted by Merovee

Get a part time job at Taco Cabana to learn Spanish. Although you will learn Spanish the way paisanos speak (Mexican dialect) and not the way we speak here (Tex-Mex dialect) or the way they speak in Spain (Castillian).

,

Say what? Or better yet...Que-Que?

Paisano means countryman. Unless this person is form Mexico, the TC workers wouldn't be paisanos; and if they were paisanos, why would he be needing to learn to speak spanish?

Personally, I got to Taco Bell to practice my Spanish...Yo quiero Taco Bell.

[Hedgehog_Mom]

Originally Posted by ranchodrive

I took spanish in high school because I needed so many credits to graduate.
I figured that it would be an easy course because Spanish was spoken at home.
I quickly learned that the Spanish in class is totally ''different " then what we
speak in San Antonio. For example, where I worked, there were people from
Mexico & certain words like "stamps" they would say " timbres " or for cars,
they would say coche. It's good to learn Spanish from books...but I feel
that you will have it easier with the way it's spoken here. Good Luck !

I had the same experience with Spanish in college, the professor was from Spain. But it seems like mostly the grammar and the verbs are the same, and the nouns vary.

The Rosetta stone program that we're using is Spanish for Latin America, and my neighbor who's helping us practice says that there are some words that are different, for example we were learning boligrafo for pen and she says it's pluma instead. But as long as we can get the grammar and the sentence structure right, then I think we can learn the words that are used here, kind of like someone who spoke British English would be able to adapt to the English we speak here.

[Sally_Sparrow]

Originally Posted by Hedgehog_Mom

I had the same experience with Spanish in college, the professor was from Spain. But it seems like mostly the grammar and the verbs are the same, and the nouns vary.

The Rosetta stone program that we're using is Spanish for Latin America, and my neighbor who's helping us practice says that there are some words that are different, for example we were learning boligrafo for pen and she says it's pluma instead. But as long as we can get the grammar and the sentence structure right, then I think we can learn the words that are used here, kind of like someone who spoke British English would be able to adapt to the English we speak here.

This was my experience too, with college Spanish. My first professor was from Mexico and he was very careful to tell us that while he was teaching us "proper" Spanish, that the Spanish we'd encounter in SA would be different and in what way it would be different. Very helpful guy. If anyone is considering taking Spanish at San Antonio College, message me and I can share his name. Super charismatic also and teaches you tons about culture.

Anyway my second professor was someone who had learned Spanish from being married to a Spanish speaker then went on to study and then teach it. I had an easier time with the guy that was from
Mexico.

I felt that my college Spanish classes were helpful but I tried very hard to spend as much time as possible outside of class conversing with Spanish speaking friends, asking for help, listening to Spanish language radio, watching TV in Spanish, trying to read things in Spanish instead of defaulting to reading it in English when I had the option, things like that. I have 2 more semesters of Spanish needed for my degree and I know I am not going to ever become fluent without a whole lot of extra outside study.

My brother, on the other hand, went to Mexico "just for a while", and ended up spending about 6 to 8 months there and returned completely fluent. That would be my ideal way to do it too (immersion) if I had the money to just leave for a while.

[Merovee]

Originally Posted by Chimuelojones

,

Say what? Or better yet...Que-Que?

Paisano means countryman. Unless this person is form Mexico, the TC workers wouldn't be paisanos; and if they were paisanos, why would he be needing to learn to speak spanish?

Personally, I got to Taco Bell to practice my Spanish...Yo quiero Taco Bell.

Thank you but I already know the dictionary definition of "paisanos" and also know the way Mexican immigrants use the word to describe themselves as a group.

You are right, they are not ours, we are not theirs, but they as a group are paisanos.

They also can use the word as a nickname by cutting it down to Paisa (PIE-suh).

I suppose you never heard the joke about Taco Bell and KFC because they don't speak much Spanish at Taco Bell?

Mine was not a joke at all because that is where I learned to speak better Spanish.

[zhugeliang1]

Really you aren't going to learn Spanish unless you go for immersion like in Spain or something like that for a few months, Mexico not a safe place for that though.

[San Antonian]

I tried New World Spanish in Alamo Heights, adn they are good!!!. The teachers are very well prepared and they follow a method. Classes one on one are amazing since you have the full attention of a teacher correcting your mistakes and pronunciation. I have learned in some months what I did not learned in years. Gracias Amigos.

[huckster]

Paisano also means Roadrunner in spanish, here in the southwest.

Originally Posted by Merovee

Thank you but I already know the dictionary definition of "paisanos" and also know the way Mexican immigrants use the word to describe themselves as a group.

You are right, they are not ours, we are not theirs, but they as a group are paisanos.

They also can use the word as a nickname by cutting it down to Paisa (PIE-suh).

I suppose you never heard the joke about Taco Bell and KFC because they don't speak much Spanish at Taco Bell?

Mine was not a joke at all because that is where I learned to speak better Spanish.

[ranchodrive]

Not sure if "angieut01 is still around.
But besides the nice information that has been provided.

I would suggest: "adopt-a-friend" that will only speak Spanish to you &
you have to reply only in Spanish on a daily basis...