An Update on my Integration in Spain

We have been in Spain for almost two months now, minus a trip to Andorra, and I can say, without sounding too big headed, that my spanish has come along in leaps and bounds. I am actually amazed at myself! Ok, now I’m just rubbing it in.

I would like to say that I have kept using Duolingo and now my grammar is top notch. Thats not the case. I haven’t opened that app since we arrived in Andorra. That little owl must be fuming, just when I had unlocked him a new outfit and all!

Nevertheless, I can basically have a conversation without any major issues. Obviously there are still a few Portuguese words chucked in there and sometimes it takes a few goes before getting the right word, but that is to be expected.

Speaking of Portuguese, the language which I could speak as well if not better than English (which is my native tongue) when I first moved back to England in 2010, I am slightly worried it has been severely damaged by my learning Spanish.

I always feared it would, and low and behold, a couple of weeks ago I was put to the test when attempting to speak in Portuguese to David’s mum on skype. Now, Davids mum is Spanish but lives in Portugal and as a result she speaks what we call ‘Portuñol‘ – a mixture of Português and Español, I have always spoken to her in Portuguese.

Bearing in mind her Portuñol and the fact I was surrounded by Spanish at the time, I have hope that in reality my Portuguese isn’t as bad as it was that day. It was terrible. And I’m not even exagerating. I couldn’t put a single phrase together. Trust me when I say I was shocked, it is the strangest sensation. Imagine opening your mouth to say something in English and it coming out in some crazy twisted mix-max of French, for example! Ok, maybe not the best example because Spanish and Portuguese are very similar. Imagine what would happen if I learnt Italian too?

I gave up and spoke in Spanish. Which delighted her.

I have decided to leave Portuguese for Portugal and not worry about it until then. Hopefully it will all slip back into place seamlessly.

In other news, David’s aunty has decked me out in the local fashion! I haven’t had a skirt this long since I talked my dad into getting me a denim one with white crochet stripes aged 11 or so. No, I don’t know what I was thinking. And yes, of course it gets worse.

It had a matching top too.

I loved that outfit.

Back to the present day: