@Katie, that’s awesome, it sounds like a great motivation for learning the language!
And you’re lucky to have his dad to practice with as well. Non-English speakers are a goldmine for practice time since you’re guaranteed to always stay speaking Portuguese.
I hope your partner also helps you out with the language a lot too. If so, kudos to him! I believe that someone helping a learner with the language is using just as much brain power as the person actually trying to speak it. They often need to work hard to find words and expressions that you’ll be likely to understand, so they have to be constantly filtering their thoughts, which is a skill in its own right!
Curious how you like Figueira da Foz, as we have lots of members who are curious about discovering more regions outside Lisboa!
Thanks guys! @joelrendall, I love Figueira!!! It is absolutely beautiful! People are so friendly and everyone tries so hard to help me. We also go to Coimbra frequently. I really am in love with the country. I’m heading back on the 6th and I can’t wait! @Joseph, his family does enjoy talking to me about the differences between the US and Portugal and I know my pronunciation is a constant source of amusement!!!
And Joel, you are correct about my SO helping me. When together we honestly just speak English…I like to talk and don’t like slowing down!! With his dad I can’t cheat…sometimes I cheat with his mom and we do a little Spanglish/Portuguese. It drives my SO crazy! What he has noticed is how difficult it is to interpret for me at times. He either speaks English or Portuguese, to interpret some of my phrases to Portuguese can be a challenge…and vice versa.
The important thing is not being shy about practicing when you get the opportunity!
It sounds like you have a lighthearted approach I think which definitely helps.
eu vou para Portugal para minhas ferias todos anos… Ha dois anos eu caiu da minha bicicleta e quebrei a minha perna. Nao pode trabalhar para duas meses e decidiu de aprender portugues.
Ouch. Espero que a recuperação tenha sido total, @ohalloran.jacinta. Ao menos, serviu de motivação para aprender uma nova língua Espero que não te importes que eu tenha feito algumas correções à tua mensagem, é só para ajudar. Bem-vinda!
My story is that wife & I are hitting retirement age, and are seriously contemplating Portugal (Porto area). Even if it doesn’t materialize, the exercise in ‘neuro-plasticity’ is a great thing for the aging brain. Also, on our last trip, I was marginally conversant (ie able to make ‘small talk’) and it greatly increased my sense of being in the culture, rather than observing it from the outside.
I know some Spanish, French, Dutch & German (sub-sub A1, believe me…). That, plus a fairly extensive English vocabulary has allowed me to guess the general sense of nouns/verbs and be close to correct most of the time. The difficulty has been the different pronouns & their contractions with prepositions. Have been hammering on these for the past week or so. Plus, I meet with um brasileiro e um profesor da idioma português uma vez por semana para conversões. Oh yeah - and the verb conjugations
Grande ideia, Joseph, a corrigir algumas mensagens escritas em português! Vocês os nativos deviam fazer isso sempre que for possível (até comigo também) – quando tiveres a paciência e o tempo, claro. Acho muito útil para podermos aprender dos erros dos outros neste ambiente relaxado!
Bem vindo ao fórum, Stephen! I hear you, prepositions are definitely one of my biggest weaknesses, so you’re in good company. It’s an area we plan to address deeper in the Learning Studio as well.
My maternal grandfather was fluent in Portuguese (his parents were immigrants from the Azores - Horta, Faial, specifically, and came to California in 1912). When my mom was a child, he owned and managed a dairy and cattle farm/ranch that I later grew up on. I’m also an “unconventional” person, as I have my maternal last name (Garcia - which, by the way, many people assume is strictly Spanish in origin - clearly not the case). I was always baffled as to why my grandfather never taught my mom and her 6 siblings Portuguese (however, they were immersed in the culture - attending festas and parades - my mom was even “Portuguese Queen”). So, my respect, love, appreciation for, and desire to pay homage to, my familial roots, has really fueled my passion for learning the language. I apologize for not attempting to share this in Portuguese. However, I did write an essay in college about it if anyone is interested.
I was born in France, my parents are both portuguese like all my family. Because of the fascism, my grand parents moved to France with their kids and my parents are more French than Portuguese.
They have been living here since they are 5. And speak only french at home even if I remeber portuguese channel was always put on TV.
We used to go on Portugal each summer for holidays. My parents still do but not me. So that’s why I started learning portuguese. To go on holidays with MY own family one day. And that’s my “blood” and “root” too…
Ah, yes, France welcomed a large number of Portuguese immigrants in the past and still has a big Portuguese community. Your story actually vaguely reminded me of the movie A Gaiola Dourada/La Cage Dorée (also suggested in another topic about films in Portuguese), which explores some of that reality. I wonder if you’ve watched it, @Julie.Helena!
@allentackett, espero que estejas a gostar de viver em Lisboa! Que sejas bem-vindo à cidade, assim como ao fórum
Olá todos! Eu quero aprender Português porque a minha mulher nasceu em Portugal, mas vivemos nos Estados Unidos. Ela veio aos Estados Unidos quando tive 7 anos assim não fala muito. Fomos a Portugal para férias sobre 5 anos atrás. Depois tivemos dois filhos e não voltámos. A minha sogra e avó da minha mulher falam português. Vamos a Portugal para o próximo ano agora que os nossos filhos são muito velhos! Quero falar a língua do país vou visitar!
Espero que não te importes que eu tenha feito algumas correções à tua mensagem, é só para ajudar. Bem-vinda!
It’s an area we plan to address deeper in the Learning Studio as well. 
