I imagine that you started learning your target language with dreams of truly living it, but when you’re fighting to get your first sentences out or muddling through grammar, it’s easy to lose sight of the dream. This is your reminder that language doesn’t exist in textbooks alone.
Explore my musings on living your language here, with my tips for living abroad and travelling, as well as practical ways to make your target language a natural part of your everyday life.
GERMAN ›
-
Congratulations: years of living in Germany without German have actually prepared you to learn it
-
Two years in Germany: how German became my antidote to chaos
-
How immersed are you really in your foreign language? A quiz for learners living abroad
-
How to make friends in Germany and improve your German: 8 methods rated
-
Where to eat and drink over a weekend in Freiburg: 31 cafes, bars and restaurants
-
16 unusual gifts to give a language-loving friend (or buy for yourself)
-
16 things I’m doing to learn German as a new arrival in Germany: a beginner’s guide
-
How to live abroad at any age: 16 ways to move overseas
-
Work in the EU post-Brexit: Germany is the way
-
10 reasons to attend a language event: reflections from the 10th anniversary of the Polyglot Conference in Budapest
-
How to start learning any language: treat it like a crime you’re trying to solve
-
Work abroad with no experience: 7 reasons to participate in the European Solidarity Corps
-
How I prepared to give a talk at this year’s Polyglot Gathering and what I learnt from it
-
10 things I wish I’d known before doing my Erasmus year
-
10 reasons to attend the Polyglot Gathering
-
“Americans in Europe” films rated and what they say about us anglophones
-
9 tried-and-tested ways to live your best short-term language immersion abroad
OTHER LANGUAGES ›
-
What a week of studying Portuguese in Lisbon taught me about language learning – as a Brazilian Portuguese speaker
-
How immersed are you really in your foreign language? A quiz for learners living abroad
-
16 unusual gifts to give a language-loving friend (or buy for yourself)
-
How to live abroad at any age: 16 ways to move overseas
-
Decoding the Brazilians: 8 things to know before you visit Brazil or hang out with Brazilians
-
How can I avoid tourist-trap restaurants and eat like a local when holidaying in France?
-
Do a short-term French course abroad: why you should study French at Alliance Française Bordeaux
-
Which language is easiest to learn? Comparing French, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese as a native English speaker
-
10 reasons to attend a language event: reflections from the 10th anniversary of the Polyglot Conference in Budapest
-
How to start learning any language: treat it like a crime you’re trying to solve
-
15 things to do over a week in San Sebastian
-
Where to eat sensationally in San Sebastian for every budget
-
Work abroad with no experience: 7 reasons to participate in the European Solidarity Corps
-
Do a short-term Spanish course abroad: why you should study Spanish at Lacunza International House San Sebastian
-
A weekend in San Sebastian: pintxo-hop like a local
-
How I prepared to give a talk at this year’s Polyglot Gathering and what I learnt from it
-
10 things I wish I’d known before doing my Erasmus year
-
Want to get to know a country? Read the street art: 17 things I learnt from graffiti in Argentina and Brazil
-
10 reasons to attend the Polyglot Gathering
-
A week in Bordeaux: 17 amazing things to do
-
12 essential things I wish I’d known before doing an internship in Geneva
-
A week in Bergerac: 11 incredible things to do
-
Weekend wine tasting around Bergerac: 9 unmissable châteaux to visit
-
A week in Bergerac: where to eat and drink à la française
-
“Americans in Europe” films rated and what they say about us anglophones
-
Try this easy Brazilian passion fruit caipirinha recipe to “matar saudades”
-
San Sebastian tapas to impress: 8 show-stopping nibbles for your next drinks party
-
9 tried-and-tested ways to live your best short-term language immersion abroad
