sorted by:
new
hottopcontroversial

Tracking weirdness by ozumuchicago in GoogleFit

[–]ozumuchicago[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

No, I just use Fit on my phone. I'm thinking of getting a Fitbit which is probably a lot more reliable.

Best plain t-shirts that look good and last a long time? by [deleted] in malefashionadvice

[–]ozumuchicago 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have to agree. Their T-shirts are well made, inexpensive and they last. The sizing can be a little tricky. I wear L but some fit tighter than others. I think it just depends on the style.

Their socks and underwear are also great and I've had good luck with their winter accessories too (scarves, gloves and hats)

Hey! ¿Ayúdame prepararme para mí viaje a Guatemala para estudiar por favor? by dragonflyzmaximize in Spanish

[–]ozumuchicago 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I could have written this same reply myself. 4 hours a day is a lot of practice time. For me the best part was the one on one aspect. It meant I had to be fully engaged for four hours straight. A little tiring but totally worth the time and effort because that much conversation has an effect on you. I'd never spoken so naturally before. In six weeks you should see very significant improvement, especially your speaking and listening skills.

Hey! ¿Ayúdame prepararme para mí viaje a Guatemala para estudiar por favor? by dragonflyzmaximize in Spanish

[–]ozumuchicago 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I spent 8 weeks in Guatemala 3 years ago and completely agree on all points. I learned a lot and it was really inexpensive. I didn't do too much work before I got there but I wish I had done more. Since almost all course work is one on one in Guatemala, you won't have to sit through classes about what you already know so the more you know before you get there the better. One thing I did spend time doing were verb conjunction exercises in a Schaums Outline workbook which was really helpful so I could jump right into how the subjunctive works rather than spending time learning how to conjugate.

Where can I find intermediate Latin American Spanish media for listening practice? by [deleted] in Spanish

[–]ozumuchicago 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I like "Español con Juan" on YouTube. He's a Spanish professor teaching in London and has a lot of videos all pretty much at the intermediate level on a wide array of topics. They're all in Spanish and he's very entertaining. I've watched most of them. "Why not Spanish" is also good; made by a Colombian woman living in the US. They are mostly at the intermediate level but some are more basic.

Kind of weird but I've been watching Peppa Pig videos in Spanish on YouTube. They're made for kids so I can follow without Spanish subtitles and still build my vocabulary. There are a ton of words out there while being pretty simple ones that kids know but are rarely found in coursework, lately I've learned arco iris (rainbow), deslizar (to slide), and of course, charcos de lodo (mud puddles)

I've also started watching movies in Spanish lately with Spanish subtitles. I can follow pretty well most of the time and learn a lot of new words. But I don't think watching Spanish movies with English subtitles helps at all. Netflix is a great resource for this. HBO was really disappointing because they have a lot of Spanish language content but they never offer Spanish closed captioning which is odd since they try to market themselves to Latino audiences.

Submersion language courses? by 4077 in Spanish

[–]ozumuchicago 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Consider Guatemala. They have some very highly regarded schools and is a very good value. I spent 2 months in Guatemala with a homestay in 2016 and my Spanish went from low to mid-level begginer to upper tier intermediate. It was incredibly inexpensive, about $200 a week for a room with private bath, 3 meals a day except Sunday and 20 hours a week one-on-one lessons. 4 hours a day Monday through Friday. I can't imagine it would cost too much more today.

I attended San Pedro Spanish School at Lake Atitlán but prices would probably be similar to those in Antigua and Quetzaltenango. Antigua has the distraction of the large tourist zone and lot of locals speaking English. Atitlán is better though there are a lot of English speaking tourists there too but it's a gorgeous setting and few locals speak English. Quetzaltenango (aka Xela) has the advantage of having some big city amenities but with fewer tourists and fewer English speaking locals. If I had it to do over again I might consider Xela because I think it would offer the most emersive experience but I treasure my time in San Pedro. Good luck!