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Living abroad is one of the best ways to experience a different culture truly. It’s a fantastic feeling to wake up in a new timezone with new food options, scenery, people, and another way of viewing the world. Moving to a new country can be frightening and intimidating–especially at first. However, after you learn the ropes and adjust to the differences, the experience takes on an entirely new feel.
When you move to another country, everything is fresh and new. It feels great to learn and explore unfamiliar territory. However, the terrain is the only thing that should be entirely new for you. This is because having a vague sense of the culture and knowing a bit of the language is expected.
If you’re thinking of going to a new country or are looking to learn how to speak a foreign language in a different country, the tips in this article will help you find the support you need. Below are ten tips to help you learn new languages quickly, just in time for your next global adventure.
- Listen for phrases that get said in passing conversation throughout your day. Keep a notebook or cell phone with you to make and maintain a list of words you aren’t familiar with and need to learn.
- Try to find an employee at a local restaurant or department store to help you with languages. When restaurants or stores aren’t busy, employees are paid to ensure you find everything you need. When it’s slow, or there aren’t many other customers, asking a few questions about the language or brushing up on a few verb tenses may be appropriate. However, don’t abuse this privilege. While most employees are polite, they aren’t paid, tutors. This is an excellent technique for learning a phrase or two and having someone who is a native speaker correct your pronunciation.
- Carry a pocket dictionary with you. This is one of the most important things you can do because it will program you to listen for words you aren’t familiar with. Always wait until after your conversation to look up words–unless it is an emergency. You don’t want to spend five minutes thumbing through a dictionary while discussing the weather.
- Work with a language teacher online. This option doesn’t require you to wait until you arrive at a new place since you can do it anywhere in the world. The good news is that you can continue to learn with your language teacher even if you move to a new location. Check out websites like Rype, which offer unlimited access to handpicked professional language teachers for 1-on-1 language lessons.
- Speak to the hotel/hostel staff about tight areas that speak the place’s native tongue. Usually, the staff on-hand are trained to work with people from multiple countries and have a process to assist them. However, it would help if you didn’t count on it in every country you visit. Before you leave to go on an adventure, make sure to ask the front desk if they have any recommendations for places that will speak the place’s native language.
- Join Facebook Groups, online forums, or other virtual places. You can learn more about people living in your intended destination who are from your home country. More and more frequently, groups of people worldwide are sharing their travel tips thanks to a boom in what is known as digital nomadism.
- Practice with the bartender. It’s the best way to feel like you’re the one calling all the shots! Plus, you can lose your inhibitions over mispronouncing a word or two and, in the meantime, develop confidence in a language you might not be very comfortable using.
- Look for Meetup groups. If you are new to a location or looking for new things to do, Meetup.com has organized meeting groups worldwide. Meetups occur at coffee shops, bars, and other public places every week for about every passion, interest, hobby, or activity you can think of. You can likely find or start a local meetup group devoted to learning your chosen language.
- Live with a host family. There are certain advantages to staying with locals. Whether it’s getting home-cooked cuisine or learning the local slang, it’s always great to meet other people in a new country rather than journeying alone. Local host families may be free, but working out those arrangements is up to you. If you want paid accommodations that are guaranteed, try Airbnb.com or homestay.com.
- Find someone who needs to learn your language. One of the most rewarding aspects of going to a new country is meeting new people and forming new relationships. When you create a friendship with someone who needs to learn your native tongue, you can bond and help them while they help you.
Language learning is a lifelong skill and ideally is something that happens before you visit a country. However, if you want to go somewhere, don’t let a lack of language knowledge stop you. Cut down the barrier by expressing yourself more amicably, and make sure to smile a lot–at least until you get a better handle on what everyone else is saying.
