Spanish Placement Test

We received an e-mail yesterday with a written Spanish placement test attached. The entire test was in Spanish, except for a single English instruction "do not use dictionaries, buddies, etc." I'm thankful that I took the class at Instituto Cervantes and have used Rosetta Stone, but it was pretty obvious that I should be in a novice group. I completed about a third of the test and suddenly didn't recognize any of the words. Plus, it looked like they wanted me to conjugate verbs in non-present tense...which, I don't know how to do. Overall, it took me over an hour to complete what I could. They will use this test (plus a phone interview, if needed) to put us into competency groups so that we all learn at the same pace. I don't think I'll be getting a callback for that oral interview.

Hablo un poco espanol

So, one thing that everyone asks me after they hear that I am going to Mexico is if I know Spanish. Oddly enough, I know next to nothing. In middle / high school, I took 5 years of Latin, not exactly a widely spoken language. However, Spanish is a Romance language based off of Latin, so the Latin training seems to be helping. I am currently enrolled in a beginner's class at a place called Instituto Cervantes. One of my coworkers recommended it over the local university, and I am really glad he did. I love the class! Our teacher is from Spain, and she is hilarious. The entire class is a riot. I am somewhere in the middle of the pack--I understand the technical stuff (like verb conjugations--thank you, Latin!), but I can't hold a conversation worth anything. I just can't think fast enough to keep up, and that's just for the present tense! I will definitely need a lot more practice before I can even imagine conjugating in all the other tenses. But, at least I understand the fundamentals. Actually studying in my not-so-free time would probably also help, to expand my vocabulary if nothing else.

From the Yahoo PeaceCorps2 group, I had read that PC sometimes will give you access to Rosetta Stone before staging, to help you start learning the language. When I called DC to accept my invitation, I asked about this. The story I got was that it had been a pilot program for the last class of invitees, and PC was going to evaluate effectiveness before deciding whether or not to extend it to my group. Given the current budget issues with PC, continuing resolution for the entire federal budget, etc., I'm not holding out any hope that my Spanish skills will get that added boost.

At work the other day a couple of native Spanish speakers were talking about the local Spanish slang compared to other regional slangs. This quickly turned into one of those hilarious conversations about miscommunication, where people think you're talking about some vulgar body part but you think you're talking about some normal thing, like food. Can't wait until the first time I do that and get funny looks from people. Don't worry, I'll be sure to share.