The Singapore skyline

Singapore, Polyglot Delight

I write this a little further-flung than usual, in stunning Singapore. It’s not just a pretty face; Singapore is alive with the linguistic diversity of multicultural waves crashing together. English, Mandarin, Malay, and Tamil intertwine in a place not quite like any other.

The language blend is a living, breathing aspect of daily life, from official communications to street-side chatter. Supported by official language policy, every community’s language is accorded equal respect. Deliberate language planning promotes harmony among its diverse ethnic groups by fostering positive multilingualism. English serves as a lingual bridge, while Mandarin, Malay, and Tamil preserve the city state’s dominant cultural identities.

Add to that the snatches of a hundred tourist languages on the streets, and it really is a language lover’s paradise destination.

Singapore – a Celebration of Languages

Out and about the city this week, I was lucky enough to catch a performance by talented Indian popstar Armaan Malik. You couldn’t pick a more appropriate visiting artist to carry the torch for linguistic diversity. Malik is renowned for his linguistic versatility, with a repertoire of twelve languages. Hearing him effortlessly switch between languages from Hindi to Tamil, neatly mirrored how Singapore embraces and celebrates multiple languages (not to mention the plethora of pop fusion bangers he treated us to!).

Indian pop sensation Armaan Malik performing at the Esplanade in Singapore.

Indian pop sensation Armaan Malik performing at the Esplanade in Singapore.

Beyond the music venues, alive with the desi sounds of the Kalaa Utsavam festival of Indian culture, every corner of Singapore offers a new linguistic encounter. Singlish, the local flavour of global English, buzzes in the markets, whilst public signage bristles with diverse scripts. If language shapes our experience of a place, Singapore is many places, all in one.

Multilingual signage in Singapore

Multilingual signage in Singapore

Admittedly, I didn’t expect non-anglophone Singapore to be that evident or accessible to visitors. I feared English would dominate, consigning the others to be just home languages, out of the public sphere.

But on the contrary, a xiéxié here and there is as common and as welcome as a thank you; Singaporeans seem to anticipate a natural fluidity in everyday language use. That, of course, means you can dive straight in and have fun dabbling as a language tourist.

More than a destination

Singapore is more than a physical destination. It’s has a multi-dimensional linguistic identity, reminding us of the power of language in shaping our perceptions of the world around us. Here, languages don’t just coexist; they create a dynamic, inclusive community.

It’s a mind-opening experience for any language lover – I thoroughly recommend spending some time here if you get the chance!

The coastline of Banff, Aberdeenshire

Finding a Language Retreat : Peace and Quiet to Reset Your Learning

Do you have a retreat? A place to escape to, just you and your books? Maybe you have a few places that earn that title.

I’ve spent a bit of time at one of mine this week. And it has reminded me of the importance of pace, pause and a change of scenery in learning.

Macduff, viewed from Banff, Aberdeenshire - a special place, and a language learning retreat of mine

Macduff, viewed from Banff, Aberdeenshire – a special place, and a language learning retreat of mine

Sometimes, our special places are not always those we choose for ourselves. Instead, life moves in mysterious directions, and we end up drifting along its currents to surprising destinations. So it is with Banffshire for me.

A born Midlander, family, friends and work have conspired together to move my centre of gravity to Scotland over the years. Specifically, to Edinburgh, a wonderful place to come to rest. But Banff and Macduff, nestling in a far-flung corner of Northeast Scotland, have exerted an ever-stronger draw in recent years.

Thanks in part to family circumstances, and partly to their natural beauty, Banff and Macduff have become important pins on my personal map.

As a Midlander, of course, the sea was always something special. Being landlocked, it was only on long trips to the faraway coastline that we ever managed to see it. Perhaps, then, that is why Banff and Macduff have captured my affection and imagination.

Reset with a Learning retreat

Why, then, are our special places so useful as learners?

Well, if you are anything like me, life tends to pull you in all directions. Work, social life, family commitments are fulfilling, but take an energy hit on the body and soul. Somewhere in between it all, we need to fit our passion for language learning. It can sometimes feel, though, that languages are playing second fiddle.

Sometimes, we just need a reset. And a retreat can do that.

Leaving behind the to-and-fro for a while, travelling light (apart from your trusty books, of course), can be a tonic. For a start, it’s a chance to focus on what you love most – learning languages. Calendar cleared, long journey ahead of you, you can get down to study as soon as your train / bus / plane leaves. It’s time to focus on what you learn, how you learn, cocooned by a peace and quiet that rarely comes in the day-to-day.

Choose your landscapes carefully, and they can really inspire, too. For me, Icelandic is an important, currently active language project. And there is something very Nordic about the sweeping seascapes and weather-battered heath on the journey up north to my selected spot of Scotland. Reading the Icelandic sagas (albeit in simplified form) and glancing through the train window, it is engrossing to imagine the action taking place in settings not unsimilar. It does not hurt that some of the stories actually wind their way through Scottish soil on the way, too.

A language retreat can connect your subject to the whole world around you, as well as free you from distractions in order to refocus on learning. Near or far, find and nurture that special place for you and your books. Your brain / blood pressure will thank you for it.

Edinburgh, home of EdFringe (Edinburgh Fringe Festival)

#EdFringe 2018 : Picks for Language Lovers

EdFringe is here again! And, as always, there is something for everyone in the festival, including us language lovers. In Polyglossic tradition, here are some picks for learners – or simply the culturally interested.

The shows on offer are a mixed bag, some featuring target language, and others in English. But all of the picks here have some link to the target language country. Whether for language learning practice, or for cultural exploration, there should be something to keep linguaphiles happy this August in Edinburgh!

French

German

Italian

  • Neapolitan Songs
    The title says it all, really. Romance, Naples, beautiful music – for lovers of Italy, this one-date only concert looks worth noting.
  • Violetta
    Continuing the musical theme (and who can blame them, considering the country’s musical heritage?), the group Opera Allegra put on this contemporary twist on La Traviata.
  • Luca Cupani: God Digger
    Like Henning and Vince above, this is a chance to catch a bit of Italian comedy – in English. With four-star reviews, Luca looks like a good bet.

Spanish

Also gaining a bit of of purchase in the jostling of myriad shows is Specters [sic], a play in Ukrainian with English subtitles. A little different, and an unexpected treat if you are studying the language.

Of course, this is a miniscule representation of the shows on offer this year. Hopefully, some of the above will grab your interest if you are in the city during August. Apologies to all the wonderful shows we missed. To trawl through the multiple offerings yourself and buy tickets online, visit https://tickets.edfringe.com/. And have a wonderful #EdFringe!

The first step to language immersion is often the airport.

Immersion for language fluency: tips for affordable trips

Immersion is a tried and tested path to fluency in a foreign language. You won’t find much argument amongst linguaphiles about that. And while it is possible to immerse yourself in a language remotely, nothing is as exciting as  throwing yourself into the target language culture for a hefty dose of practice.

Immersion trips are just as important for your existing languages in ‘maintenance mode’ as they are for your new language projects. 2017 has been just that kind of year for me: I’ve been on a journey of rediscovery with Germany, the country of my degree language (an ever more distant memory!). Two trips to Berlin and a long weekend in Bremen might sound expensive, but there are some canny tricks for minimising the costs.

1. Follow the fares

The best approach to extremely cheap fares is flexibility. Airline websites often have ‘cheap fare finder’ calendar tools (see the EasyJet screenshot below). If you don’t care when you go, bargains are much easier to find.

EasyJet's cheap fare finder tool

EasyJet’s cheap fare finder tool (easyjet.com)

Booking a long way ahead is a good tactic, too. Airlines like easyJet release fares 6-12 months ahead of the date of travel, and that’s when there’ll be greatest availability for cheap seats. Follow the seat release dates, and you can forward-book a raft of cheap travel fares.

2. Don’t be fussy about where

Of course, the big, headliner tourist destinations often have the greatest pull factor. Berlin, Madrid, Paris, Warsaw… Who wouldn’t want to go where the big lights are? But often, lesser-known destinations can be cost-effective, off-the-beaten-path gems. Shunning the Polish capital, for example, I picked up a cheap Polish weekend in Gdansk for just £40 return with Ryanair in 2016.

Away from the big cities, there’s another benefit. Places that are less geared up to overseas visitors are often places where your language skills will have to work harder. While you might find plenty of confident English speakers in Madrid, your Spanish will have to go further in Vigo or Salamanca.

Generalise, generalise, generalise

There are several ways to generalise your search away from the major destinations. One essential tool for bargain hunters – and a secret worth sharing again and again – is the little-publicised website Google Flights Explore. The great thing about this tool is how general your searches can be. Start with you preferred destination airport, and pop in a whole country or region name. The search results will list forthcoming flight deals across a range of cities in that area, with the cheapest first. It’s an immersion junkie’s dream!

Google Flights Explore

Google Flights Explore – an immersion junkie’s dream!

The general search is catching on, though. Some airline websites like easyJet and Ryanair allow you to type in a country name to see a list of routes to search on. While you can’t search for prices on more than one at the same time, it’s a quick way to see what’s available to browse.

A general search by country on the Ryanair website

A general search by country on the Ryanair website

3. Reap the rewards

There’s a whole mini-industry specialising in optimising travel rewards like air miles. This kind of advice is not so helpful when it comes to short-hop mini-breaks, though. Many low-cost, regional airlines have no useful reward scheme, as the ‘reward’ is the cheap fare, in effect. The best exception I’ve found to this is the British carrier FlyBe, which partners with Avios to offer reward flights.

However, it’s worth looking into other aspects of your travel to see where loyalty accounts can help. If you use hotels on your trips, then Hotels.com is worth a look; for every ten nights you book, you get a free night worth the average of those previous ten.

More generally, cashback sites like TopCashBack.co.uk allow you to earn a little discount on your travel bookings. It’s not usually a huge amount, but can add up. What’s more, you can often claim your cashback in travel vouchers like Avios – and, usually, at a slightly better rate than when you claim it as cash.

Check your High Street rewards cards, too. Some of them can pay out in travel rewards. Tesco, for example, offers a good conversion rate on Clubcard points to Avios, while Sainsbury’s / Nectar can be exchanged for Expedia vouchers. (It’s also worth pointing out that you can collect Nectar points on Expedia, too!) If you choose one supermarket and remain loyal to it, the travel treats can stack up.

Lastly, if you need to eke out as many extra pennies as possible, consumer rewards sites like Swagbucks can be useful. Completing surveys via these sites results in points that can be exchanged for vouchers or PayPal payments. It can be a slow process, but if you do it with a goal in mind, it can be fun!

4. Make the most of every minute

It stands to reason, but it’s crucial to take advantage of every moment you spend in the target language country. This kind of ‘immersion hop’ travelling is necessarily brief, often just a couple of days here and there. Frequently, it’s also solo travel, unless you have a willing travel bud / partner / language pal to share in the madness!

Fostering an attitude of throwing yourself in is key. It doesn’t need to be too challenging to your sense of social boundaries (chatting randomly to strangers is something few people find comfortable!). Instead, look for everyday opportunities to converse.

The easiest conversations in the world, for example, are those across shop counters. Dare yourself to go a little bit further than asking for what you want; talk about the weather, ask what is in that cake over there, say you’re learning the language and ask the word for something. It’s when we stretch those everyday interactions that we get our trip’s worth of language practice.

Three simple rules for affordable immersion trips

In a nutshell, the ideal approach is:

  1. Don’t be particular about where or when.
  2. Do be particular about your reward scheme memberships.
  3. Talk, talk, talk.

That’s a good credo to live by if you want to fill your life with target language trips and not break the bank!

Edinburgh Castle is a stunning backdrop to the Edinburgh Fringe each August (EdFringe)

Edinburgh Fringe for Language Lovers: Shows for Linguists!

Edinburgh Fringe has filled the streets of Scotland’s capital for another colourful August. There are literally thousands of shows available to see. The sheer number of them means that there is bound to be something of interest to everyone. And that includes linguists!

After trawling through the masses on offer, here are some promising-sounding events for students / teachers / fans of languages. Inevitably, it’s the ‘mainstream’ languages of French, German and Spanish that crop up most. But amongst them, there are shows that will appeal to non-speakers, too. And that’s a great excuse to take along a friend or two to spread the language love!

French

The festival can’t get enough of Piaf this year. There are at least five cabaret shows featuring chansons from the renowned songstress! They include:

If you prefer your music folksy, then a set from Les Poules à Coulin looks like a good bet. For dance / physical theatre with a French slant, check out “La Maladie de la Mort d’Après Marguerite Duras”. Check the website, though, as some performances may be in English translation.

Something that really captures the imagination is a bilingual puppetry and storytelling event in French. “The Wonderful World of Lapin” looks like a particularly cute way to introduce the little ones to a bit of français. Most likely, quite a few big ‘uns would also find it magical!

German

German is a little under-represented compared to French (keine Überraschung, sadly!). However, there are a couple of interesting listings that might be worth a punt.

Absurdist theatre your bag? Well, there’s a show for you, performed in German with some English explanations. “Leere Zeit – Idle Time” is on at theSpace on the Mile, a venue that promises a global aspect to its line-up.

For some more classical, musical entertainment, you can enjoy Strauss’ opera Ariadne auf Naxos in the church setting of Broughton St Mary’s.

Spanish

As ubiquitous as Piaf is for French, you can’t seem to get away from Flamenco at this year’s Fringe. There are three shows that feature the quintessential Spanish musical / dance style:

The poetry of Lorca takes centre stage at “Frost and Lorca”. The event features artwork by Sir Terry Frost, inspired by the Spanish writer; the presentation is in Spanish and English, so should be suitable for non-hispanist friends!

And for a proper melting pot of storytelling, try “Mimi’s Suitcase”, which blends English, Spanish and Persian to explore themes of identity and displacement.

Even the good old Edinburgh Ghost Tour gets the Spanish treatment this year. “Tour de fantasmas en español” sounds like a fun way to get a stock Edinburgh tourist tick and practise español at the same time!

Russian

Although it’s chiefly English-language comedy, Abi Robert’s show Anglichanka (Englishwoman) is worth a mention. Abi spent considerable time in Russia, and weaves her many tall tales into a wonderfully hilarious hour of laughter. I caught her performing a similar show at my very first Edinburgh Fringe (quite) some years ago, and it’s great to see her back at the festival with more of that hugely funny format!

Culture (without the language)

As well as the above shows, there are hundreds more without a specific language hook, but of cultural interest to linguaphiles. Russia is under the spotlight in several satirical / topical shows, for example.

Less controversially, Russian classical music is on the programme at a number of concerts. Scottish Sinfonia’s line-up sounds like quite a treat. Likewise, you can learn about imagined lives in Russia at theatre events like “The Girl Who Loved Stalin”.

If the aim is to steep yourself in the culture of Russia (or many other target language cultures), then there is a wealth of choice.

Edinburgh Fringe: take a punt

I’ve always found that the best way to enjoy the Fringe is to take a risk. With shows priced so reasonably, you can easily try something you wouldn’t normally see. Thought you hated Piaf? Give her a chance at one of the several shows on offer. Irritated by flamenco? Then give the Scottish twist on it a chance! Personally, the German absurdist theatre tempts the risk-taker in me. It could be worth a shot! And if not, then at least it gets me out of the house for an hour or two…

Have you managed to catch any of the shows above? Are there any others that you’d recommend? Please share in the comments below!

Digital scrapbooking can be a wonderful way to link your language learning to real-world memories

Scrapbooking, linguaphile style

As a linguist, I love travel. I love that act of putting myself out in the world. I love immersing myself in the unfamiliar. And I love interacting with everyday objects from other cultures and systems, the ephemera that are mundane to their native users but exotic and exciting to me. Tram tickets, event flyers, receipts from wonderful restaurant experiences – they are all physical objects soaked in language and tethered to the culture they belong to. As cultural symbols, they appeal to the collector in us. But there’s a fine line between collecting and hoarding clutter. That’s where digital scrapbooking can be a great strategy for the travelling linguist.

Digital scrapbooking

Maybe it’s something I notice more as I get older, but the drag of stuff on my life seems more and more noticeable these days. Perhaps it’s because we live in a system where stuff is getting cheaper and easier to amass. But over the past few years, I’ve made a conscious effort to declutter and cut away the dead wood.

Sadly, that includes the boxes and files of bits and pieces gathered over years of travel. Museum entrance cards, train reservations, old magazines in German, Spanish and so on… Somehow I’d held on to all this clutter, considered it precious, yet never glanced at it once since bringing it back. Aside from the nostalgia stirred by dredging it out of the cupboard to chuck, it was almost entirely unnecessary.

Ticket for the GDR (DDR) Museum in Berlin

Ticket for the GDR (DDR) Museum in Berlin

There’s another way modern life can help us, though. In an age of high-quality camera phones and vast (often free) cloud storage, it’s no problem to digitise these physical language links and discard the original. We can also organise them using myriad free tools, too. (Of course, we now face the brand new problem of digital clutter – but that’s a topic for another post, another day!)

Scrapbooking tools

Note-taking applications seem ideally suited to digital language scrapbooking. All of them allow the creation of documents / notes, to which you can add text and multiple images. Simply snap your tickets / leaflets / receipts instead of keeping them. Many of them also have more advanced formatting features for laying out your memory pages.

As well as keeping your memorabilia together, you can use them as travel diaries and learning logs, too. I like to record notes of conversations I’ve had, or new vocabulary I’ve come across. Juxtaposed with visual material, they become more meaningful and vivid as language memories.

All of the tools below are cross-platform, so you can enjoy them whatever the make of your phone / tablet / computer.

Evernote

Evernote is the justified king of note-taking apps. Notes have rich text formatting, and you can add not only pictures, but sound to your pages! Imagine using that to record clips of your conversations with native speakers…

However, there are some caveats. The basic version of Evernote is free. Unfortunately, this limits use to a maximum of two devices – not handy if you want it on a phone, tablet and computer.

Additionally, the basic tier allows only very limited upload traffic a month Evernote – just 60mb. If you’re adding lots of pictures to your notes, then that will run out extremely quickly. To work within the limits, make sure your pictures are tiny / compressed first – but even then, you’ll probably want to upgrade sooner or later.

Microsoft OneNote

OneNote is a completely free offering from Microsoft, with great integration into its Office services. One of the nicest things about this app is its reflection of real-world notebooks; you can create separate ‘books’ with multiple sections and pages. Ideal for repeat trips, or a trip with multiple destinations. You can also choose authentic-looking paper backgrounds for your pages, too. Great if you want the look and feel of physical scrapbooking!

Scrapbooking a trip with Microsoft OneNote

Scrapbooking a trip with Microsoft OneNote

Google Keep

Google Keep is a minimalist’s dream. Totally free, its simplicity stands in stark contrast to the two apps above. There are fewer formatting and organising options, but that makes for a click-and-go process that is hard to beat on ease of use.

As well as apps, Google Keep is available via the browser at https://keep.google.com/.

Trip scrapbooking with Google Keep

Trip scrapbooking with Google Keep

Language travel scrapbooking is a great way to stem the build-up of holiday detritus; it’s also a superb way to track memories and keep a learning journal all in one. And the best thing: it’s free to give it a go, thanks to the apps above!

Are there other apps you can recommend? Feel free to share you own tips in the comments!

Avoiding English can be hard in a very anglocentric world

The English trap: avoiding your native language abroad

It’s too easy to be lazy in an anglocentric world. It happens to the best language learners in the world: you come out with your best Deutsch / français / español on your trip, only to get the reply in English. GRR! – for a moment – before we give in to the easy option.

I’ve found that the trick to beating this is a bit of Bond-style subterfuge. This is one area of life where dishonesty can be the best policy, as you try to obliterate all traces of your original linguistic identity. Specifically, you need to eliminate any native-English intonation from your speech.

Easier said than done, admittedly. There are some quite large targets to hit, though, and here are some of the easiest to de-anglifying yourself on your language trip!

Down with diphthongs

In most varieties of English, vowel sounds clump together and are rarely pure. Just think of the word ‘too’. That ‘oo’ isn’t a straightforward, single sound, but for speakers of most varieties of English, contains at least two stages – the ‘oo’ followed by a glide down to what is almost a ‘w’ sound at the end. These kinds of multisound syllables are called diphthongs, and are very characteristic of English.

By contrast, languages like Spanish and Italian have much purer vowel sounds. Spanish  (you), for example, sounds much more clipped and singular than the homophone too.

So, when trying to disguise your English accent, be aware of your natural tendency to diphthongise. Keep your pronunciation clipped and terse, if that helps.

Have a back story

Sometimes, out-and-out fibbing is the only way. Be ready with a “sorry, I don’t speak English” to force the speaker to use the target language. Have a back story, if that helps – why don’t you speak English? Where are you actually from, if not from the UK / USA / Australia etc.? (Make sure it’s unlikely the speaker won’t also know the language of that country, else it could get pretty embarrassing.)

It’s an untruth, but see it as a little white lie that  might grab you some more language practice opportunity. And it might also prompt the speaker to switch back to a more careful, clear form of the target language to use with you (you poor non-English-speaker!).

English penalties

Can’t beat the temptation to switch? Then turn target language speaking into a game. Keep a tally of the times you give in and lapse into English each day. Go a step further and devise a list of penalties for hitting X/Y/Z digressions. Nothing too self-punishing, please – maybe buying dinner for your travel buddies or relinquishing control of the travel itinerary for a day. Keep it positive!

If all else fails – be honest

We’re not all cut out (or bothered) to be masters of disguise. You can always take the heart-on-your-sleeve option: simply explain why you don’t want to use English. You can prepare this in advance of your trip – just a few phrases will suffice, such as:

  • I’m learning X
  • I need to practise my X
  • Can we speak X?

Most of the time, you’ll also elicit some sympathy and a smile or two from the speaker, too. And who knows? You might even make friends.

You’ve paid a lot of hard-earnt cash for your chance to go abroad and speak. Protect that investment, by hook or by crook!

 

Travel with the bare essentials

Travel and the ‘Stuff Monster’ : Lessons from the road

Travel has always gone hand-in-hand with a love of languages for me. As a kid, I realised how languages were a key to opening up huge swathes of a fascinating world, a world I wanted to explore. And, sure enough, I grew up into something of a travel addict and extreme commuter.

But travel isn’t just about wonderful life experiences, but also a huge learning opportunity. The lessons at hand touch on a couple of fundamental aspects of humanity: freedom and footprint. Here, I look at some of my favourite lessons learnt from travel.

The less, the merrier

Modern, Western lives are stuff-heavy. Our lives are full of things. And we’re often not content with just one of something – we like choice. Multiple pairs of shoes, the same shirt in three different colours, a rack of coats to suit every mood. It sounds great, until you realise how closely a surfeit of stuff – clutter – and depression are interlinked.

As soon as you start to travel, though, it becomes apparent how unburdening it is to break that link. I’ve long abandoned taking a suitcase on a journey – that just encourages you to cram a load of unnecessary choices – and weight – that you won’t end up using anyway. Lugging your life about like that only creates stress.

Instead, it’s become a bit of a game to see how lightly I can pack. I challenge myself to take ever-smaller backpacks with me on trips. I work out the minimum I can get away with. The challenge is not only fun, but it leaves you incredibly streamlined – how ace is it to simply jump off the plane / train / coach with your lightweight bag and nothing to slow you down?

Neat ‘n’ tidy

Stuff eats space. If we feed the stuff monster, it hogs more and more of life’s real estate. And it’s true what they say: a messy place more often than not leads to a messy mind.

It’s the same with travel, especially if you’re moving between multiple destinations. With too much stuff, there’s a lot to think about when you pack up to move on. Did I pack this? Have I picked up everything from the room?  Keeping your stuff to a compact minimum helps enormously with stuff-stress. Keep yourself tidy and be ready to move on at the drop of a hat!

Waste not, want not

The world doesn’t want your stuff, either, or at least the detritus from it. So use up what you have before throwing it away. And if possible, stick to refillable containers.  These squidgies from GoToob are brilliant for minimising packaging waste, and saving money on those rather poor value mini-sized toiletries! Frugality can save the world and spare your pocket.

Travel, Respect and learn

Wherever we go, we’re guests. And the very least you can do to be a thankful guest is to learn a few words of the language. Whether you’re a linguist or not, some local vocab invariably wins smiles and opens doors if you’re in a foreign country.

There’s no excuse not to learn the absolute bare minimum, which would be:

  • Hello
  • Thank you
  • Goodbye

Head to Google Translate and find them out before you go!

Put your phone away

Technology is wonderful. But like stuff, it’s also a monster, and needs taming. Dogged by notifications, I find that Airplane Mode can be my very best travel buddy. Disconnecting from the ‘net can relieve some of the ‘always on’ stress, and get you focussed on what’s around you in the physical world. But at the same time, it’s the perfect strategy for making your battery last longer between fizzle-outs.

Granted, phones are often our cameras these days. But even then, do you need scores of photos from each location? After finding how infrequently I look at them afterwards, I set myself a max limit of just a couple of photos per sight / special location when I travel. It means you’re messing less often with your phone, taking in more of the experience with your own eyes and brain, and thinking a bit more carefully about the very best shot to get when you do reach for the camera. Hopefully, the shots that come out of that will be really special.

At the crux of all these lessons is materialism and freedom. Humans love stuff, physical or digital. But travel teaches you that masses and masses of it bog you down. Downsize, minimalise and economise – and travel through life that bit more aerodynamically!

Aeroplane

Language travels on a shoestring

Despite brill online face-to-face services like iTalki for practising and learning languages with native speakers, you can’t beat time spent in the country as the best way to immerse yourself in your chosen language. Seems like an expensive way to fluency, doesn’t it? But it doesn’t have to be, with a range of web tools for sourcing super-cheap travel to your target language country.

Top of the list, and indispensable to the travelling linguist, is Google Flights Explore. It’s not particularly well signposted online – in fact, it’s practically clandestine, and you have to be told by someone else ‘in the know’ before you can find it! Why the experimental extension to Google’s flight search is not promoted more is a mystery, but it’s second-to-none at sourcing cheap flight offers with very general search terms (and I mean very – you can pop in ‘Scandinavia’ or ‘Eastern Europe’, and it will check the lot!).

For instance, say you’re learning Polish. Enter your preferred airport of origin, then Poland as the destination. You can adjust the length of the trip if you like, but the default 3-5 days is a good short break duration if you’re looking for a cheap getaway to practise your language skills. You don’t even need to add a date, as when you select your start and end points, you’ll be presented with a list of destinations along with time charts of the cheapest flights to each. It will even order them, with the cheapest, on average, at the top.

The example below shows that I can get to Warsaw from Edinburgh for as little as around £20 return (USD$25, although prices in your local currency appear when you click through to one of the flights on the time chart).

Google Flights Explore example

Google Flights Explore

Switching to a traditionally more expensive flight destination, such as Norway, still yields great results; a quick search today threw out some £30 returns on London-Oslo routes. It’s just as handy for longer-haul flights, too; flying from New York, Norwegian students can get to the country for under USD$300 return in a sample search made at the time of writing.

But how to minimise costs when you get there? Accommodation will be perhaps the biggest expense on the tick-list. It’s no big secret that, for value, you can’t really beat private rental services like AirBnB. Combining with the sample Polish flight search above, you could add a private room in a shared house for just £11 a night at the time of writing. That amounts to less than £100 for a 5-night stay, flights and accommodation included.

But there are more benefits to using these services like this than low rates. For a linguist / cultural explorer, a private rental property will likely:

  • come with a direct contact, and so more opportunity to meet a local and practise a bit of language as soon as you’re off the plane
  • give you a more authentic experience of what it’s like to live in the target language country, especially as it’s more likely to be self-catering (think of all that shopping vocab you can practise!)
  • give you day-to-day, lived experience of the language if you’re in a shared property / room in someone’s home

Compare that to the often sterile, internationalised hotel reception experience, and private accommodation offers big boons for the language traveller!

There are ways to minimise living costs while you’re there, too. They may not be glamorous – buying food supplies at supermarkets rather than going out to eat, grabbing a cheap pølser i brød (hotdog) at an Oslo kiosk for tea – but again, they bring you into direct contact with the target language, rather than sanitising your experience through safe, familiar settings like restaurants.

It might seem an extreme measure – and, intuitively, an outrageously unaffordable one – to ‘pop abroad’ when you need some target language practice. But it needn’t be bank-breaking, if you know where to look. Commit to a cheap cultural scouting trip once every month, or at least couple of months, setting yourself a tiny budget and seeing what you can do with it. Your inner linguist will thank you!