LANGUAGE SCHOOL REVIEW: Expanish, Buenos Aires
Having spent a month travelling in Europe I arrived in Latin America with the foolish notion that I could get by anywhere with a big smile and slow, carefully pronounced English. Arriving at Buenos Aires airport it quickly became apparent that this approach stood no chance. It was like being a baby again, adrift in a world full of strange but familar-sounding words, with new places to explore and a whole new set of social and cultural rules to learn. There was but one solution; I was going back to school.
Realising the urgency of my situation, having landed in a country where I now had virtually no ability to communicate with people, I sought a course which would immediately equip me to survive here. One good option is the "The Ultimate Spanish Crash Course" offered by Expanish language school, located right in the heart of the city. The concept behind the week-long course is to arm travellers with the basic phrases they will need to get by in Latin America. The structure is extremely flexible; you may choose to take all five of the 2 hour daily sessions, or just select those which most appeal. Sessions are from 4 to 6 pm, giving you time to spend the morning exploring, and each day covers a different topic, beginning with Eat and Drink, then Shopping, Travelling in Latin America, Everyday Fundamentals, and finally Making Friends and Socialising.
I decided to go for two, starting with Travel, since my ability to get lost was improving daily, and this was only exacerbated by the fact I still had no idea how to ask for directions. Signing up is really simple and can be done right up until half an hour before the lesson; the incredibly enthusiastic admissions staff give you a full tour of the building and facilities, explaining in depth the structure of the course and teaching methods. This encounter was actually extremely enjoyable, given my limited contact with English speakers, so I was already pretty content by class time. My class was actually fairly large, with eight of us, which created good opportunities to meet like-minded people from Europe and America, and it soon became apparent as our tutor bounded in and introduced herself that this was going to be fun.
The sessions are short, but packed with information, exercises, and plenty of opportunities to test out what you have learnt. Particularly useful was being made to watch a video of a conversation on the street, featuring Expanish staff members, and repeat what was said in the conversation. For the most part, though, the focus is on learning a few key phrases to help you get around, the likes of "How do I get to ..." and "Go straight ahead". I must point out that the course is basic, and thus it is all about equiping yourself with the bare minimum you will need to survive out here. It´s particularly good for those who are new to the city and language; I felt the afternoon acted as a kind of orientation to the city, with good introductions to the tourist sights in the city and one of the clearest explanations I have heard of Buenos Aires´ bewildering grid pattern and avenue layout. I´d been here a few days by this point, and so had seen the most of the sights mentioned, but I did enjoy our tutor´s personal recommendations, with photos, of places to go to within Argentina.
The whole experience was enjoyable, learning a bit of lingo, meeting fellow travellers, and getting some decent tourist information, and it works out at fairly good value at 80 pesos, or around US$20, per two hour class. The teaching is good, although I did feel the class size made learning more difficult, and our tutor´s tendency to forget the English meaning of a word was ocassionally problematic. Overall, though, her bubbly porteño personality and enthusiasm made it almost worth paying up just to spend an afternoon with a local. And hopefully now I´ll be able to ask for directions to get me back to the school for my next session where I´ll be Making Friends and Socialising.
Chau amigos.
Expanish can be found at Tte. Gral Juan D Peron 700, C1038AAN, Buenos Aires. For more information and bookings call +54 11 5252 3040 or go to the website.
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