Aero: Brianna Cardina – Costa Rica 2016 – Learning the Language

… English is my first language. In middle school and high school I took French. I learned how to speak Japanese during my year abroad. But I barely knew Spanish going in to this exchange. Before our travel to Costa Rica, I took Spanish 101 – That’s where I learned hellos and goodbyes, numbers, days […]

Aero: Brianna Jackson – Costa Rica 2016 – Learning the Language

… Living in a country for two weeks, where the language is not one that I am fluent in, was certainly a culture shock. It was very overwhelming at first, and very hard at times to try and communicate with the people of Costa Rica. The most difficult experience concerning the language had to be […]

Aero: Tiffany Bane – Costa Rica 2016 – Learning the Language

… Being in a country where Spanish is the primary language was definitely a challenge. I had some previous knowledge of Spanish from high school but I had forgot a lot of it. Being immersed in the language, and with the people I felt like I learned more about the language then I did than […]

Aero: Kelly Bailey – Costa Rica 2016 – Learning the Language

… Before going to Costa Rica I knew little to no Spanish. In just two weeks I feel as though I learned a lot of Spanish vocabulary and several important phrases. Yet, I do not feel as though I have the sentence structure and all question phrases down pact. Still I feel as though I […]

Aero: Alaiza Dominguez – Costa Rica 2015 – Learning the Language

Aero: Alaiza Dominguez – Costa Rica 2015 – Learning the Language … … Despite already having a little bit of a background knowledge with the language there were a few bumps in the road. Among them were dialect, the speed at which some folks spoke, and my big ol’ American accent. Overall it was pretty easy […]

Aero: Annie Livingston – Costa Rica 2015 – Learning the Language

Aero: Annie Livingston – Costa Rica 2015 – Learning the Language … … When I was in Costa Rica, I was always surrounded by Spanish, and it was a weird feeling at first. As I looked around the city, I noticed signs, posters, advertisements, and even graffiti all written  in Spanish. I remember one of […]

Aero: Autumn Clearwater-Day – Costa Rica 2015 – Learning the Language

Aero: Autumn Clearwater-Day – Costa Rica 2015 – Learning the Language … … When I was around my host family, I was constantly thinking of Spanish words to form into sentences. Some words came easier than others; I easily used “si”, “gracias” and “¿Como estas?” multiple times throughout the day. I was eager to expand […]

Aero: Kevin Urbaitis – Costa Rica 2015 – Learning the Language

Aero: Kevin Urbaitis – Costa Rica 2015 – Learning the Language … … Visiting a country where English is not the main language was a completely new experience for me. Prior to arriving in Costa Rica, I had only been learning and practicing Spanish for a rather short period of time, around four months or […]

Aero: Tiffany Bean – Costa Rica 2015 – Learning the Language

Aero: Tiffany Bean – Costa Rica 2015 – Learning the Language … … Before Costa Rica my Spanish vocabulary was little to nothing. I have taken some Spanish classes before in high school and in college, but when I took those classes I would often feel discouraged and because of this I would not want […]

Aero: Marriah Gough – Costa Rica 2015 – Learning the Language

Aero: Marriah Gough – Costa Rica 2015 – Learning the Language … … Before attending this trip, the term Spanish had not been in my vocabulary or mindset since sophomore year in high school. During that time, I was finishing up my third year of classes, preparing for the final assessment, the regent’s exam. When […]