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February 28, 2018

Travelling Corner: 50 shades of blue. Cornwall in winter.

Those who follow my travelling stories know that I often visit Cornwall (at least once a year) and I’m a huge admirer of the Cornish coast. My most recent visit to Cornwall was in winter and it was spectacularly beautiful. I experienced all kinds of weather which changed from minute to minute, so good shoes for muddy paths is a must (especially if you plan to do some hiking). But this was completely compensated for by the views of the ocean and lots of fresh air. We walked on the South West Coast Path in the areas of Gylly Beach, Swan Beach and Meanporth Beach.

Do you visit the same place every year? Please let me know in the comments below.

Kinga Macalla

February 21, 2018

The Language Journey – Suzannah’s Story (in 6 Languages)

Hello, my name is Suzannah and I’m a linguist and freelance translator.  In this video, I answer questions about my journey to speaking 6 languages. I give one answer in each of the languages I speak: French, Dutch, English, Polish, Italian and Spanish. Firstly, in French, I talk about how I discovered I had a talent for the language and almost accidentally ended up spending some time in France and eventually studying French at university, which opened the door to me learning other languages – something I never imagined I would be able to do when I was a shy, quiet teenager. Then, in Dutch, I talk about the story behind why I started to learn other languages – mainly out of curiosity and thanks to friendships I made, as well as having the opportunity to live and work abroad.  I then give away a few tips on how to learn a language – or at least I explain what works best for me and how I have gone about learning each language – in English. After that I explain (in Polish) why I chose to learn Polish, my latest language: it came down to friendships again; plus, it was/is a fun challenge for me.  Then, in Italian, I talk about the advantages of speaking and learning different languages and what I like best about being able to speak other languages. Finally, in Spanish I reveal how I keep up my language skills and what I do to practise every day so I don’t forget them!  Bon visionnement! Veel kijkplezier! Happy watching! Bawcie się dobrze! Buona visione! Disfrutéis de la película!

Suzannah Young

We need your help! Suzannah, our multilingual student speaks 6 languages and we’ve recorded an interview with her speaking them (available on YouTube). But, we need your help with translations from Dutch, French, Italian, Spanish and Polish into English.

Leave your translations here below our blog post and we’ll then add them to our video as subtitles! Good luck 🙂

February 7, 2018

Book Review: Silence by Erling Kagge

I read this book in one day and couldn’t to put it down because it was so fascinating. The book is written by Norwegian explorer Erling Kagge who once spent 50 days in silence walking across Antarctica. The author explores the idea of silence by answering some fundamental questions: what is silence? Where can we find it? And why do we need it? He finds answers not only in his solo travels, but also in his busy life back in Norway. The book is written in a poetic and philosophical style yet it never loses its attachment to realism. One of my favourite quotations is: “Being on the journey is almost always more satisfying than reaching the goal.” (p. 126)

Erling Kagge, Silence. In the Age of Noise. UK, Viking, 2017.

Written by Kinga Macalla