need some help!

[judith84]

I am 21 years old and want to go to Spain for a few weeks this summer to practise my Spanish (I started to learn Spanish in February) and also to get to know a new place on earth. I actually thought about going to Barcelona or Valencia but now I am not sure since a lot of people speak catalan there which I won't be able to understand. Do you think that could be a problem? Or is Spanish spoken in those cities as well? Is there a difference between Barcelona and Valencia concerning the number of people speaking catalan?

So now I think about maybe going to Málaga. Whereever I will end up, it should definitly be a place near the beach. ;-) And a place where I can meet other young people.

Do you know any websites or forums where I could look for a room? I would prefer to live in a shared flat with Spanish students, so that I have people to talkt to around me who could also recommend me clubs to go out, etc. I didn't find any forums or useful information on the universities' websites. I hope anyone can help me or at least tell me where else to ask.

[ValenciaSon]

They speak valenciano in Valencia, not catalan. Almost all speak castellano in Valencia so you will be OK.

[Greg]

You wouldn't have any problem speaking Spanish in Barcelona either; although a lot of people speak Catalan as their "first" language, I've yet to meet anyone who doesn't also speak Spanish. In fact, it's always amazing to me to watch the way that most Catalan speakers automatically switch to Castellano when they realize that someone doesn't speak Catalan. If you were from another part of Spain you might find some people who insist on speaking in Catalan for political reasons, but as a foreigner most people won't expect you to.

As for looking for rooms/shared flats, probably the best place to start is Loquo (http://www.loquo.com), which is essentially a Spanish version of Craigslist. Good luck, and enjoy your trip!

[JamesW]

Greg - that's a great site, thanks for the link.

Marina also pointed out this one a few threads ago. It's sometimes seems a little buggy to me but has plenty of listings:
http://www.segundamano.es/

[Marina]

Both segundamano (http://www.segundamano.es/) and idealistas (http://www.idealista.com/pagina/portada) are great for looking for a flat to rent or buy, however I'm not very sure if they would be of any use for sharing. Loquo seems like a better option in this case.

[Marbella]

The student thing is tricky just because universities and colleges are closed at that time but it does sound a great way to speak lots of Spanish and to quickly learn all the best places to go.

Barcelona would be a great choice and although Málaga is much smaller it does give you access to Granada, Córdoba and at a stretch Sevilla.

Hope it goes well.

[judith84]

Thanks a lot for all the quick answers!!! I will check out your links as soon as possible!

I know that most students will be away during the summer months, but hopefully some will stay at the cities. Maybe I am lucky and the universities offer sumemr courses, so that there will be something going on.

I think I will look for flats in all three cities and then just wait and see where I will end up. I will let my fate decide... *gg*

[Brian]

Another thing to consider is that during the summer, the coast cities are packed with people flocking to the public beaches. Valencia is one of the most beautiful places on the planet, definitely can't go wrong there!

[gary]

Barcelona has seven beaches and also gives access to the Costa Maresme, the Costa Brava and the Costa Daurada.

I am considering doing a couple of weeks course next Summer and my research so far has led me here...

http://www.learningspanish-spain.com/

Isla seem to have good prices, provide tuition and accommodation, there seems to be a social scene too plus they operate through the summer

[Edith]

Thanks a lot for all the quick answers!!! I will check out your links as soon as possible!

I know that most students will be away during the summer months, but hopefully some will stay at the cities. Maybe I am lucky and the universities offer sumemr courses, so that there will be something going on.

I think I will look for flats in all three cities and then just wait and see where I will end up. I will let my fate decide... *gg*

Hi Judith,

Some language schools offer classes as well as accomodation. I'm from the Netherlands and one of the language schools I could recommend to you is Don Quijote, which has got regional chapters in several countries:

http://www.donquijote.co.uk/

[judith84]

How long does it take me to get from the airport into the center of Barcelona? Is there a train going?

[Brian]

They speak valenciano in Valencia, not catalan. Almost all speak castellano in Valencia so you will be OK.

A funny aside, ValenciaSon. I was watching a political panel show on Valencia TV, and half of the panelists were chattering away in Valenciano, the other half in Castellano. It was quite amusing.

[ValenciaSon]

I'm sure they ended up with more opinions and conclusions then they started out with;)

[Brian]

I'm sure they ended up with more opinions and conclusions then they started out with;)

Ya, for sure. Did you have to study Valenciano in school? At my wife's school (I think that she studied at the Sorolla), it was required.

[gary]

How long does it take me to get from the airport into the center of Barcelona? Is there a train going?

The railway station is within 200m of the terminal, trains are every half hour, last time i went it cost €2.60 and the trip takes 20 mins. Get off at Sants and you can swap to the Metro in house, get a multi journey Metro ticket for best value ( it is also valid on buses and the funicular railway at Paral-lel that takes you up to Monjuic. )If you arent going to make alot of journeys buy a single @ €1.05 per journey (any number of stops or changes.)

The same train continues all the way up the Costa Maresme & Costa Brava as far as Blanes then turns inland.

On all my visits (except the last) one the trains are clean reliable and run bang on time. BUT The last time I visited there were major trackworks and things did not work quite so well. that was in February so things might be okay now. forero Greg lives in Barça he might have more info on this. you had to change at Prat de Llobrigat which meant two flights of about 20 steps down and back up on a different platform. We taxied on our return after buying train tickets as a couple of trains had missed and the crowds were just too much. I stress that this is NOT the normal state of affairs....

Taxi to town is €20 or so

Everyone is happy to speak to you in spanish - after all you are a foreigner that has taken the trouble to make the effort to learn at least one of the local languages. You can work out what the Catalan means if you see it printes and have a half decent knowledge of french and spanish. You dont hear it spoken unless you eaves drop as people are polite enough to realise you need to speak Castellano

have a great time.....

[kyle]

Ya, for sure. Did you have to study Valenciano in school? At my wife's school (I think that she studied at the Sorolla), it was required.

As far as I know, there is a national policy for "Integración lingüística" for every region with 2 official languages (Galicia, País Vasco, Navarra, Valencia, Illes Balears, Catalunya, ...). The law says that there are 3 routes for studies: A) only Spanish, plus 3h/week of local language B) only local language + 3h/week of Spanish and a mixture of both were some subjects are taugh in spanish and others in the local language).

Particularly in Catalunya they've suffered a lot of lobbing in this issue; nationalist parties have tried to impose catalan-only education on schools and people are forced to register their children on routes B/C because of lack of places for A. Also there have been judges that have ruled in favor of such parents but they're still in the same situation.

Things will change with the new estatutos (laws that rule the relations between the State and the Comunidades Autónomas) but I think they'll only bring more trouble for those who only know Spanish :confused:

[Brian]

Particularly in Catalunya they've suffered a lot of lobbing in this issue; nationalist parties have tried to impose catalan-only education on schools and people are forced to register their children on routes B/C because of lack of places for A. Also there have been judges that have ruled in favor of such parents but they're still in the same situation.

Certainly this will make the Catalonian businesses more "inbred" without a fresh infusion of outsiders. I don't see how this isolationist tactic can be good for any region.

[kyle]

Certainly this will make the Catalonian businesses more "inbred" without a fresh infusion of outsiders. I don't see how this isolationist tactic can be good for any region.

Well, private businesses are another beast completely; if you have to work for the public sector (ie: as a contractor) you do have to use catalan, but for business it's OK to just use spanish (although is a good idea to know it, at least to answer clients in the language they want to be answered - ya know, the good ol' client-is-always-right rule people seem to obey)

[ValenciaSon]

Ya, for sure. Did you have to study Valenciano in school? At my wife's school (I think that she studied at the Sorolla), it was required.
I went to school in Valencia at Mare Nostrum from 72-73, so it was before the language resurgence movement started and during the Franco era, when other languages besides castillian were supressed.

[Bolboreta]

A funny aside, ValenciaSon. I was watching a political panel show on Valencia TV, and half of the panelists were chattering away in Valenciano, the other half in Castellano. It was quite amusing.
That's not that weird as it might sound. Well, the fact that it was on TV might be, but the bilingual conversations aren't (maybe they don't happen in the Basque country, but other than that...). I shared my flat for two years with a girl who never spoke anything other than Galician to me, and I always used Spanish, we can go on like that forever. It's all about understanding each other and using the language you're most comfortable with *shrugs*

As far as I know, there is a national policy for "Integración lingüística" for every region with 2 official languages (Galicia, País Vasco, Navarra, Valencia, Illes Balears, Catalunya, ...). The law says that there are 3 routes for studies: A) only Spanish, plus 3h/week of local language B) only local language + 3h/week of Spanish and a mixture of both were some subjects are taugh in spanish and others in the local language).
In Galicia it isn't like that. Certain subjects have to be taught in Galician by law (almost half of them), and the teachers can choose whatever they want in the rest (except in "Spanish language and literature" of course). How many subjects in each language you get mainly depends on the area; I lived in a place where most of us used Spanish, so that's how most of the classes were, my roomie, however, got all of them in Galician.

The Basque contry does have that system, with the schools all in Euskera called ikastolas. And my friends from Catalunya got all their classes in Catala (they weren't from the city, though). Teaching both languages is definitely mandatory, but how the rest of the subjects are taught might vary a lot.