Friday, November 20, 2015

Progress

I am continuing to move through the Colloquial Hungarian book. I am just starting Unit 7. While this may not seem like much progress, units 5 and 6 were fairly difficult for me.  Zsuzsa, my italki.com instructor follows my progress through each unit and we spend at least half of my session reviewing. Generally I have hour long sessions but have recently added an additional half hour session in the week just to have the ability to speak to someone in Hungarian. 

A few weeks weeks ago Zsuzsa started the session immediately in Hungarian. We had a slow conversation but when we were finished she said, "Did  you realize we just spent 15 minutes speaking only in Hungarian?"  That was a great thing to hear. 

It appears that the use of my book, Memrise version of the book and Zsuzsa is having a positive effect on my learning.

Until next time.

Sziasztok!

Monday, September 28, 2015

Back to Tanulok

I have finally realized why tanulok is correct. In my mind I have been using the -om/-em/-öm as the ending that has anything to do with me and not only "my" things. The blog started out at Tanulok magyarul, then tanulom magyarul because I believed it to be true and now magyarul tonulok. The blog address has to stay the same because someone else has magyarul-tonoluk and that's ok.

Since my last post I have started to utilize italki.com. I have found that my while I have only had three lessons they have been useful. My instructor, Plánka Zsuzsa, is very paitent and allows me to make mistakes. I have already been able to retain more information. She is following my progression through the Colloquial Hungarian book. My progress had been slow until I started to utilize italki.com.

Another tool I have but haven't stated to use is Glossika. Glossika uses daily repetition to reinforce the previous day's learning. They offer a 30 day trial. I am anticipating using this tool when I get more into a comfort level between Plánka Zsuzsa and Colloquial Hungarian.

I am hoping to update more often since I know this helps me stay focused on learning. So until then...

Sziasztok!

Thursday, July 16, 2015

To Hungary and Back Already

I looked back and see that it has been over two months since I posted anything. In that time I have continued to work with  Memrise and  Colloquial Hungarian to increase my vocabulary.

We returned to Hungary briefly on June 27th to visit friends in Szolnok. When we got together we primarily spoke in English since there were  six of us but our friends would make small comments to me or ask me how I would say something in Hungarian so it was a bit of practice. When we weren't together I was able to tackle the language a bit at their local market. Not too much English there and as in the past the residents were patient and helped me along.

We left Hungary on the 28th, driving to Croatia. Along the way I was able to figure out what road signs meant to keep me occupied. We stopped to eat in Somogy Megye (Somogy county). I was all set to speak some Hungarian and the server comes out speaking German... What? My family comes from this county so I knew there were many German speaking residents, but I wasn't ready for this. Her second language? English of course. Oh well, eat and go.

We returned to Budapest on July 1st. We stay outside of the "tourist area" so while some speak English, the residents start out the conversations in Hungarian. In flea markets I found myself asking for prices and negotiating them and asking how old items were.  It was fun to become the "center of attention" when my traveling companions were trying to communicate in English and leaned on my Hungarian.

Probably the best part of this stay in Budapest was the two hours sitting with two native speakers. This had been arranged through an online friend. I was able to make mistakes without being nervous about doing so and was able to help them with their English. Explaining "can" and "may" was a bit challenging.  They also took me to some book shops in Budapest to get more study materials. I'll post more about these later. Until then...

Sziasztok!

Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Motiváció

It appears that I have hit a wall. While I do my Memrise practicing a few times a day, I haven't really learned anything new. My library Colloquial Hungarian book sits in my bag and is due back tomorrow. I know it's there, I see it throughout the day but just don't take it out.

Nine weeks from today I will arrive in Budapest again. This should be motivation enough I just haven't pushed like I was. I ordered my own copy of Colloquial Hungarian and it is supposed to arrive today. I am hoping that will jump start me.

At lunch I am going to review these sites. Olly Richards: I Will Teach You a LanguageKevin Morehouse: Language Hero and Alex Rawlings: Rawlangs (who just happens to be in Budapest now). After this I am sure I will pick up some Motiváció.

Sziasztok!

Friday, April 10, 2015

On Pinterest

I've been using Pinterest for a few years now, actually since the days of having to be invited. I've been pinning things like cabins, gardening ideas, helpful hints and travel destinations. It wasn't until this morning when Kevin Morehouse from Language Hero tweeted about Lindsay Does Languages using Pinterest for her language learning did the light go on for me.

learn this - Hungarian is my newest board. I've put a few pins in there already and I have a feeling it will fill up faster than my other boards. As Lindsay mentions, as you pin something Pinterest will suggest other items. So far it has brought up other Hungarian pins, which I have pinned to my this is - Hungarian board, but from those pins I am hoping to stumble across other language related pins.

So, off to learn and pin.

Sziasztok!

Friday, March 27, 2015

A Phone Call and a Letter

A received a voicemail yesterday from the Consulate General of Hungary in New York stating I needed to call back regarding my application for citizenship. As soon as I called and left a message, Edina Papp, the Consulate Assistant, called back. She explained to me that a letter had been received from the Office of Immigration requesting some more documentation.


The first was a copy of the marriage certificate of my maternal nagyszülei (grandparents). Ms. Papp  was surprised to hear that I had recently obtained a copy and could send it right away.


The second was proof that my grandfather had left Hungary after September 1, 1929. This has been a challenge since I first started this process. I was able to supply her with a copy of his US naturalization paperwork dated 1938 but nothing from Hungary.


I do have until October 1, 2015 to gather all that I can.


This process would grant me citizenship by birth.


I then asked if I would be able to qualify for Simplified Naturalization. She informed me that I would have to know intermediate Hungarian and that when I did I would have no issues obtaining citizenship through these means.


I told her I would continue to learn Hungarian since I was learning it prior to applying for citizenship. She said that was good but we (her and I) should continue to try through birth at the same time.


Talk about motivation!

Friday, March 13, 2015

Unit 2 Dialogue 1

I had a small breakthrough in my Hungarian. I opened up my  Colloquial Hungarian book to the next section I am working on: Unit 2, Dialogue 1: Az egyetem és a diákok

It is written:

John: Mi ez?
Réka: Ez villamos. As pedig egy busz.
John: A budapesti villamosok sárgák?
Réka: Igen, a régi villamosok is sárgák és az új villamosok is sárgák.
John: A new york-i taxik is sárgák! Mi az?
Réka: Az a megállo. Nem a buszmegálló, hanem a villamosmegállo.
John: Itt van az egyetem?
Réka: Igen, itt van balra.
John: És mi van jobbra?
Réka: Nem tudom.
John: A ’Nem tudom’ hogy van angolul?
Réka: A ’Nem tudom’ angolul: ’I don’t know.’
John: Köszönöm.
Réka: Szivesen!

I read through it before I listened to the recording and realized I had actually read and understood the whole dialogue!

Sziasztok!

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

It's Working

I can't believe all of this time has passed since my last post.

As I mentioned on my February 27th post I picked up a copy of Colloquial Hungarian. That along with the Memrise Course has boosted my learning. At the end of each dialog it a list of vocabulary. Someone has taken the time to take each dialog and input the vocabulary into Memrise. The real life situations also make it easier to comprehend what is taking place.

One thing I keep noticing is that I keep picking out words or small phrases as I stream in Hungarian radio.

It's the little victories that keep me moving. I am up to 400 words and growing.

Sziasztok!

Friday, February 27, 2015

Triple Force

I now have the book Colloquial Hungarian to go along with the lesson of the name on Memrise. Someone took the time to take the vocabulary from the book and add it all to create a Memrise course.

I am hoping that the book, the CD's and the Memrise course will start to move me along much faster than I have been.

I now know that I will be visiting friends in Szolnok and will see thier parents. The parents do not speak any English so I am hoping they will notice I have improved since our last visit.

Sziasztok!

Thursday, February 19, 2015

Négy hónap!

Négy hónap = Magyarországon

Knowing the dates I will be back in Hungary I have a renewed sense of urgency to learning basic phrases. While I will continue with my online learning I feel it is necessary to purchase a phrasebook to practice from and also take along.

I am still trying to find someone local to meet with occasionally that I can speak with but haven't had any success. I will keep trying.

I still have time left today so I am off to study.

Sziasztok!

Tuesday, February 17, 2015

Száz nap!

While I have been working on my Hungarian for about a year. I did have a milestone today on www.memrise.com : száz nap! 100 days of using their services. Köszönöm!


Szia!

Friday, February 13, 2015

Tükröm, tükröm

Thanks to Kádár Mátyás , a twitterer I follow for his recent tweet: Tükröm, tükröm

I didn't have any idea as to what tükröm meant, but he had a link to a picture: https://www.flickr.com/photos/124435995@N05/16476060632/ and it all made sense.

Figure out the meaning by looking at the picture?

Szia!

Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Több mint kilencven napon


Több mint kilencven napon.


I  am staying diligent with Memrise supplementing it with Let's Learn Hungarian, Interpals and books.





I am happy to say one thing I have started to do is have small questions or sentences pop into my mind and then work them into new sentences. Does this make sense?


Take the statement "Szeretnék két hétjegyet." I would like two seven day tickets. If you recall from an earlier post. I learned this sentence but was not able to use it. I have taken "Szeretnék két..." and worked it into new questions. "Szeretnék egy vízzel.- I would like a water" or "Szeretném kenyér - I would like bread." Doing this has brought words to the forefront of my thoughts and is helping me keep them in my vocabulary.

Any suggestions on other exercises?

Szia! 

Thursday, February 5, 2015

My first Keresztrejtvény






I found this crossword puzzle (keresztrejtvény) on a Facebook group I belong to. I am going to try to find more visual ones like this. It forced me to put in the two that I knew and look up the rest. Give it a try, but watch out for #2.

Szia!

Saturday, January 31, 2015

Paprikás Csirke


A winter storm is coming so I got in the mood to make Paprikás Csirke (Chicken Paprikash).

It's fairly simple to make. Of course the two main ingredients are chicken and paprika. The one thing to remember is not to let the paprika burn. This is done by  removing the pot from the heat prior. And, it's not about the amount listed in the recipe, but the color. It should be a nice, rich, deep red.

Also, don't just by paprika, make sure it's Hungarian. It's worth the hunt. If from Szeged, even better. We buy our stash when we are in Budapest from an older gentleman. I stock up.

Szia!






Thursday, January 29, 2015

Születésnap = Torta

While speaking Hungarian is a slow and steady process, cooking it is another story. I first started cooking Hungarian food a few years back while in Budapest. My now friends Agnes and Istvan have a cooking class in Budapest. My sister and I decided we would spend the day learning how to cook a meal. We were shown the importance of when and how to properly add the paprika so it doesn't get bitter and how to judge the amount by the redness in the pot. Our partners came later and enjoyed our meal and wine. After a wonderful day I kept in touch with them and our friendship developed. So did my love for cooking Hungarian food.

With my birthday (születésnap) coming up in February (februar) I have been asked to make my own cake (torta). There are so many to choose from and I have made none of them so it will be intresting. The three that are standing out are:

Dobas torta
Esterházy torta
Geszteny torta

There is a Hungarian Food Group on Facebook that has offered up these as torta's for my születésnap.

Now only to decide!

Szia!

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Teljesítmény

One thing I like about Memrise is ths Performance (teljesítmény) Monitor. Eighty-One (Nyolcvanegy) days and I have been climbing. If  you remember from earlier posts I was on a long weekend and had limited access. I had to use my iPhone and wasn't able to practice as much as I would like. That weekend clearly shows up on the monitor.





Try out one of my favorite tools.


Szia!