Word for the Travel Wise (02/11/06)

by Adrienne Wilson on

While this Eastern European city may be the country’s third in terms of size and population many residents would actually place it in second. Capital city and first place holder is said to have the kind of ambiguity and diversity of influences that keep it from feeling anything like Russia, Germany, or Scandinavia and has its own kind of earthiness and charm. Most who have traveled Eastern Europe a great extent will fall in love with this city over say, Tallin or Riga. The third place city is far more cosmopolitan than the actual second place holder and hosts a pretty wicked Sea Festival each year due to its thriving port. Hotels tend to book up pretty fast during this time and when they do your closest and best bet is to turn to the coast in Palanga some 25km away. So where are we? Klaipëda, Lithuania.

Today’s word is a Lithuanian word used in Lithuania:

Viesbutis – Hotel

I don’t suppose many of you have plans to go to Lithuania or learn the language, but I’m putting out there just in case. I know little of the country, but after searching for online resources I uncovered quite a few interesting details. First and foremost the best guide to the Baltics seems to be City Paper. They were the only ones who even offered a small list of commonly used Lithuanian words. The paper states you’ll be okay if you know a little Russian and the Lithuanian lingo is closely related to the now extinct Old Prussian. Otherwise finding resources on this one were pretty hard and um, weird. This afoto site lets you learn the parts of the face and hair by clicking on a picture of a young girl. Something about this felt awkward, but it works, I guess. Ominglot has their usual written language guide and Orbislingua has a few audio and reading recommendations. To purchase talking dictionaries click here.

Word for the Travel Wise (02/08/06)

by Adrienne Wilson on

For the most part English, French and Arabic language capabilities will help mostly anyone wanting to travel the length of Africa. Many countries have embraced the three as one if not two of the official languages, but I’m still a fan of real indigenous African words. You just never know when they’ll come in handy. I can’t stress this enough, but let me hop off my soap box. It’s been a moment since I last posted a word from the continent so I’ll cut to the chase with this post.

Today’s word is a Twi word used in Ghana:

akwantuo – travel

A very basic word today. Before you head out on your travels or ‘akwantuo‘ to Ghana be sure to play around this word a few times. This word comes from a specially made list of words I requested from a friend of a friend who is a native Ghanaian and Twi speaker. (I know, I know – I do my best to keep them coming just for you guys.) Pronounced ‘chwee,’ the language is spoken by some 7 million people concentrated in southern Ghana and is a dialect of the Akan language which belongs to the Kwa language family. Wikipedia is a good place to start for the background info. Unfortunately there aren’t many Twi resources on the web so I encourage you all to make some friends from Ghana, take a trip or exercise some of these useful books and CD’s found on Amazon. You could also try My Language Exchange, but the chances of there being a fully Twi speaking person wanting to swap your language knowledge for yours doesn’t seem too bright. Sorry, but worry not. I still have my list and more words to follow.

Word for the Travel Wise (02/04/06)

by Adrienne Wilson on

Last month a friend of mine tried to call me out on my short Hostel horror film write-up saying how my recommendation of the film actually duped him into seeing it and how horrible it was. First piece of clarification – I did not tell anybody to go waste their 10 bucks on lousy cinema. I was curious to know who out there was willing to do so. Secondly, another reader pointed out a small error I had made in the trivia (which is still actually very interesting) found on IMDB. Originally I had noted that a good portion of the film was shot in Iceland, when what I really meant to say was “the director asked the President of Iceland for an official pardon for making Icelanders look like drunken sex maniacs with the character Oli and any damage the film might cause to the country’s reputation.” Yes, that was rather off from what I wrote the first time, but I think everything is cleared up for the most part. See Hostel at your own risk and the film was shot in the Czech Republic.

Today’s word is a Czech word used in the Czech Republic:

zmrzl – froze to death

While it is certain this ‘zmrzl’ word has something to do with freezing there has been a call for verification on this particular word over at Wikipedia. Some state that it is the past-tense form of the word ‘zmrznout’ which means to freeze to death. Another person noted ‘zmrzl’ simply means (he) froze and doesn’t always result in the death of a person. Either way that’s got to be one tough way to go and considering the amount of confusion from my Hostel post I thought this was a good word to explore today. If you’re not too fond of this one stick to ‘zmrzlina’ or ‘zmrzlinový‘ which both mean ice cream according to this Bohemica.com dictionary.

Bohemica is a great, extensive, online starting point for new students. Their site is free from what I can tell and includes additional sources to helpful books and offline learning. Also, check out Amazon to purchase the Lonely Planet phrasebook and other beginner’s guides.

Word for the Travel Wise (01/29/06)

by Adrienne Wilson on

With all the hoo-rah in the media about Oprah feeling “duped” by author James Frey of A Million Little Pieces I started thinking of other books in her prized Book Club. There was one novel I had read a while back, Breath, Eyes, Memory by Edwidge Danticat which aided in developing some first ideas about Haiti. Fueled by her own experiences growing up as a young girl in the country, Danticat creates a rather vivid and touching piece of enjoyable literature recommended for anyone with an interest in Haitian art, culture, reading, and language. There are a few words one might pick up and shelf for later use. Maybe on a volunteer vacation to the country?

Today’s word is a Kreyòl (Haitian creole) word used in Haiti:

evite – avoid

Haitian Creole is a language based off the French language and the two are both official langs of the country. When I saw this word I found it interesting because I had just recently received an E-vite from a friend of mind and here this word is similar in spelling (not sure of pronunciation), but quite opposite in meaning. At first I thought finding language learning resource son the web would be difficult considering it’s hard to find a good tourism site, but to my surprise there are a number of good ones.

This Kreyol website features comprehensive cultural and travel info on Haiti. Their overall goal is to spread positive messages about the country and create positive images. Their online Kreyòl dictionary is one of the best! iCreole is a good place translation tool if you wish to know a word within seconds. For a fun look at some popular proverbs check out this Discover Haiti site. Make note that the Creole used in the proverbs is not that of the Creole spoken in Port-au-Prince. Lastly, leave it to good old Pimsleur to have audio books dedicated to learning Creole. Expensive, but you can also look for them in your local library.

Word for the Travel Wise (01/27/06)

by Adrienne Wilson on

I believe it was the great Homer Simpson who made such profound statements like “Mmm beer” and “Ah, beer, my one weakness. My achilles heel, if you will.” While one of televisions greatest Dad’s ever may be beer’s biggest philosopher, guzzler, and lover of all time, it is the Germans that truly know the brew inside and out. On the other hand, I know nothing of the fermented alcoholic drink brewed from malt. A stein of Eder & Heylands, Pilsner, or Früh Kölsch are unlikely beverage orders to fall from my lips with that being said you’ll probably find me at the party posted against a wall with mineral water in hand. So, I’m the definition of lame.

Today’s word is a German word used in Germany:

Vorglühen (s)– To pre-party, have a drink to get you started. Lit. Warm up your battery before starting the engine.

My friend would call this ‘pre-gaming’ to keep it simple, but you can find the audio and any additional German slang at BBC Languages, who continue to impress on the online scene. They probably have one of the BEST FREE German language guides on the net. Make no mistake in passing this one up! When it boils down to it there are several good sites to learn the Deutsch lingo. Deutsch Lernen and German for Travellers are two other good picks. First Step World offers study abroad courses in Munich and Berlin. A good side activity to all the futbol watching many of you will probably take in during World Cup.