User:Learnportuguese

UPDATED January 10, 2008

enThis user is a native speaker of the English language.

INFJThis user's MBTI type is INFJ.

introduction

Olá e bem-vindo. Hello and welcome.

My first name is Beth. I am a blind college student. I was born in South Korea, but I was adopted when I was 2 years old by white American parents. At the time of writing/updating, I definitely consider myself monolingual: an English speaker.

I am very very interested in Portuguese. I want to learn both European and Brazilian Portuguese in order that I will be effectively understood throughout the Portuguese-speaking world. I believe Portuguese is the fifth or sixth most spoken native language in the world. I want to be a radio or newspaper journalist with the ability to facilitate my own interviews (in other words, I want to be my own interpreter). My passport would look so cool with all those stamps on it! (See section on countries I'd like to visit, below.)

I also want to learn Spanish, but since Portuguese will be my second language, I chose the username learnportuguese.

If anyone has tips about learning Portuguese, or about trips they've made to Portuguese-speaking places (see section on countries I'd like to visit, below), please contact me on my talk page. My theory is that a person should spend three years in a Portuguese-speaking nation or territory in order to thoroughly learn the language. It forces you to wake up each morning saying bom dia, thinking, reading, speaking, listening to, and writing in Portuguese. It also helps, I am told, to listen to the news in Portuguese, to get used to all the different sounds. Two excellent websites for this purpose are bbcbrasil.com and bbcparaafrica.com.

countries I'd like to visit

Portugal, Brasil, Angola, Cabo Verde, Guiné-Bissau, Moçambique, São Tomé e Príncipe, Índia (Damão, Goa), China (Macau), Timor-Leste, Spain (España)

definition of fluency in my second language

A. Being able to think only in Portuguese.
B. Being able to speak Portuguese without thinking about it in English.
C. Being able to pronounce Portuguese well enough to be taken for a native.
D. Being able to switch my accent between that of Portugal and that of Brasil.
E. Being able to have dreams at night in Portuguese.

cities I'd like to visit in Portugal

Lisboa, Coimbra, Braga, Porto, Castelo Branco, Portalegre, Barrancos

cities I'd like to visit in Brasil

Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Porto Alegre, Florianópolis, Cuiabá, Curitiba, Itapetininga, Recife, Santos, Vitória, Brasília

cities I'd like to visit in Angola

Luanda, Benguela

cities I'd like to visit in Cabo Verde

Praia

cities I'd like to visit in Guiné-Bissau

Bissau

cities I'd like to visit in Moçambique

Maputo

cities I'd like to visit in São Tomé e Príncipe

São Tomé

cities I'd like to visit in Timor-Leste

Dili

cities I'd like to visit in Spain (España)

Santiago de Compostela, Madrid

questions for discussion on my talk page

What is easiest about learning Portuguese for an English speaker?
What is more difficult, mastering the vowels, or tensing verbs?
Which is harder to learn, European or Brazilian?
Is it harder for a European to understand a Brazilian? why or why not?
Is it harder for a Brazilian to understand a European? why or why not?

things I am curious about (please put answers on my talk page)

How do you pronounce r? I know it differs in Europe, Africa, Asia, AND South America.
Is s always pronounced like the sound in shell? I've read that this varies across the Portuguese-speaking world.
What is the difference between TENSING a verb and CONJUGATING it?

blind people in the Portuguese-speaking world

For any Portuguese speakers, I'm curious as to how people from the Portuguese-speaking world regard people who are blind. Do they feel sorry for blind people, or are blind people integrated into society? Here in the States, people generally regard blind people as people first whose eyes don't happen to work. It of course depends on who you're talking to, but culturally (at least nowadays) blind people are received well.

my simple Portuguese vocabulary

IMPORTANT: Please let me know if my vocabulary is wrong. Drop a note under the section incorrect Portuguese vocabulary. If this section does not yet exist on my talk page, please create it when you drop your note. Other users should post their comments under this discussion. Obrigada. (Thank you.)
NOTE: Most sentences presented here apply across the Portuguese-speaking world. Where they are the same across the Portuguese-speaking world, no special notes are given. When there is an additional variation of a phrase, a note is given.

Bom dia. / Muito bom dia. (Good morning. / A very good morning to you.)

Boa tarde. / Muito boa tarde. (Good afternoon. / A very good afternoon to you.)

Boa noite. / Muito boa noite. (Good evening. / A very good evening to you.)

Muito prazer. (Pleased to meet you.)

Tchau. (Goodbye.)

Fala Inglês? (Do you speak English?) Falas Inglês? (European Portuguese)

Obrigada. (Thank you.) (if you're a girl)

Por favor. (Please.)

Sou Americana. (I'm American.)

Sou cega. (I'm blind.)

Penso... / Penso que... (I think... / I think that...)

Sim. (Yes.) É. (literally means It is.) (Brazilian Portuguese)

Não. (No.) (can also be used at the very end of a question, equivalent to English don't you?)

Mas não sou Brasileira. Sou dos Estados Unidos. (But I'm not Brazilian. I'm from the United States.)

Quero... (I want...)

Bem-vindo. (Welcome.)

Olá. (Hello.)

É verdade? / É verdade. (It's true? / It's true.)

Sei. / Não sei. (I know. / I don't know.)

Falo... / Não falo... (I speak... / I don't speak...)

Bom fim de semana. (Have a good weekend.)

Tenho... / Não tenho... (I have... / I don't have...)

Qual é seu nome? (What's your name?) Qual é que é o teu nome? (European Portuguese)

Como se chama? (How do people call you?) Como é que te chamas? (European Portuguese)

Meu nome é Roberta. (My name is Roberta.) O meu nome é Roberta. (European Portuguese)

Me chamo Andi. (People call me Andi.) Chamo-me Andi. (European Portuguese)

Entendo. / Não entendo. (I understand. / I don't understand.)

De onde é? (Where are you from?)
Sou de África. / Sou de Ásia. (I'm from Africa. / I'm from Asia.)

Olá João. Como está? (Hello João. How are you?)
Bem, obrigado Filipe. (Fine, thank you Filipe.)

more vocabulary

IMPORTANT: This is more advanced vocabulary. Please tell me using my talk page if anything is incorrect. If a section called more incorrect vocabulary does not yet exist when you drop your note, you will need to create it first. Other users should then make this a thread discussion.
NOTE: Most sentences presented here apply across the Portuguese-speaking world. Where they are the same across the Portuguese-speaking world, no special notes are given. When there is an additional variation of a phrase, a note is given.

Qual o problema? / Que foi? (What's wrong? / What happened?) (when someone is crying) Qual é que é o problema? / O que é que foi? (European Portuguese)

Sinto falta do meu país, da minha família, e dos meus amigos. (I miss my country, my family, and my friends.)

Claro. (no English equivalent) (when agreeing with someone in a conversation)

Qual é sua opinião? (What's your opinion?) Qual é a tua opinião? (European Portuguese)

Perdão? (Pardon?) (when you need someone to repeat something he/she just said)

Exatamente. / Precisamente. (Exactly. / Precisely.) (in the context of You're right about this topic.)

Ótimo. (Excellent.) (describing how you feel today) (also means very good or great in the same sense)

Sou exigente com a minha pronúncia do Português. (I'm particular about my pronunciation of Portuguese.) (literally means I'm demanding with my pronunciation of Portuguese.) (European Portuguese)

Ainda estou a aprender o Português. (I'm still learning Portuguese.) (European Portuguese) Ainda estou aprendendo Português. (Brazilian Portuguese)

Ainda não sei falar o Português muito bem. (I still can't speak Portuguese very well.) (European Portuguese)

não é? (used like English is it not?)

my likes

I've played the flute for 13 years, though I don't take lessons anymore. I've also played the guitar for a little over 4 years. I eventually want to teach myself to play the nylon-string guitar, the kind used in Portugal, Brasil, and Spain. As you know, I am fascinated with the Portuguese language, and also want to learn Spanish. I sort of know how to play the violin, but not really. It's a beautiful sound when it is played well.

reasons for learning Portuguese

It is a beautiful-sounding language. If I learn both European and Brazilian Portuguese, I will master as many sounds as I can. I will also be readily understood, even in Africa and Asia. European and Brazilian are the two major versions of the language.

The differences between European Portuguese and Brazilian Portuguese are more complex than the differences between English English and American English. English English and American English differ in pronunciation and some minor spelling. Portuguese is diverse in aspects of grammar, pronunciation, and spelling. These would challenge me for a very long time, even after I got fluent in understanding. Understanding a language is a completely different skill than speaking.

It is more difficult to learn than Spanish. There are more sounds to master, and also more verbal forms.

I want to visit the Portuguese-speaking world. The only Spanish-speaking country I want to visit is Spain.

I want to be a radio or newspaper journalist.

I don't want to put my trust in someone else to speak for me. They might say something I did not say, then I'd be in trouble. If I could think, read, speak, and write for myself, I wouldn't have to worry about people talking about me, someone saying the wrong thing, and, best of all, I could conduct my own interviews, in both English and Portuguese.

more about me

I'm an English major. I want to get my bachelor of arts in English. I also want to get my master of arts in English.

college courses I am currently taking (current semester: spring 2008):
major American writers level 1, world literature level 2, macroeconomics

college courses I have taken:
English composition level 1, introduction to interpersonal communication, creative writing level 1, introduction to sociology, world geography, English composition level 2, western civilization level 1, beginning self-defense, world literature level 1, environmental science, Spanish level 1, career development and decision making

great music

Portugal: Amália Rodrigues, Carlos Paredes, Mariza (Fado em Mim, Fado Curvo), Mário Barreiros
Brasil: Caetano Veloso, Bebel Gilberto, Maria Rita, Luciana Souza, Moreno Veloso
Angola: Waldemar Bastos
Cabo Verde: Maria de Barros

practice, practice, practice!

In order to learn ANY language, Portuguese or Spanish or any other language, practice the pronunciation. Of course that's the one thing I'm a perfectionist about (and I'm not a perfectionist by nature). Since I want to be a radio journalist, I have this crazy idea in my head that I should sound as native as possible. I want to be understood as much as I possibly can. Maybe you should not practice your pronunciation as much as I do, but you SHOULD practice it.

Portuguese is the harder of the two languages (Portuguese and Spanish) to pronounce, at least for me. Portuguese has more vowels in particular than Spanish. Some of these don't even exist in English.

random stuff

My favorite Portuguese name is Miguel. My second favorite is Bruno.
I don't have a lot of favorites.
I like international music very much. I could never tell you the top 10 or top 40 charts in American/pop music.
I think it's great when I'm listening to Portuguese media and there's an English name. I don't understand a word and then I hear something like James Smith (pronounced in perfect English). It's great. I guess there isn't a Portuguese name for James Smith, so it has to be the same. James Smith is James Smith no matter what. It's just funny to hear it though right in the middle of concentrating so hard to understand the Portuguese language. I pick up words here and there like organização, internacional, and other random things like e finalmente (and finally), primeiro (first), É verdade (It's true) (as both a question and a declaration), exatamente (exactly), and lots of others. I don't understand any contexts of things yet though. I figure I'll get to that point once I'm completely surrounded by the Portuguese language (i.e. in Portugal or Brasil).
I believe we should buy more Fair Trade coffee, tea, and chocolate.
The only Chinese food I like is sweet and sour chicken and shrimp fried rice.
A really good book, which was also made into a movie, is Jarhead by American author Anthony Swofford. His new fiction novel is called Exit A.
A really good American actor is Jake Gyllenhaal. (I'm told he's good-looking, very tall and with blue eyes.)

push-ups

Sunday November 18, 2007: I did 14 diamond push-ups (thumbs and index fingers touching) and 14 wide-handed push-ups (hands spread out wide). Next Sunday I'll add 1 push-up to each set, till I've reached 2 sets of 28 (meaning 1 set is diamond, the other set is wide-handed). After that, I want to learn those clap push-ups they do in the Marines (where you clap in the middle of the push-up).

---

I've scaled back on my push-ups because my form is not good. I do them now in sets of 7: 2 sets of 7 diamonds, 2 sets of 7 regulars. I canceled doing wide-handeds because I don't want to overdevelop my pectoral muscles.

cities I'd like to visit in the United States

New Orleans, Vancouver, Boston, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Charleston (South Carolina)

other places I'd like to visit

Yosemite National Park (pronounced iusémiti), Twentynine Palms Marine Corps Base, Camp Pendleton Marine Corps Base, Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego, Travis Air Force Base