Learning Spanish in Barcelona?

Question

I am planning to go to Spain to improve my Spanish. I haven,t been there but I want to go to Barcelona. Even if I heard that Barcelona is not the right place to practice Spanish, my friends adviced this city. So I found two schools one is Enforex Langauge School and the other one is University of Barcelona. Have you ever heard anything about these two places or do you have other recommendations? Or shpuld I go to Madrid or any other City?

Answer 1

Spanish is one of the two official languages spoken in Barcelona. You should have no trouble practicing it there. And it is a fascinating city. For maximum benefit, ask to stay with a host family rather than in a dormitory.

Ask both schools for a reference or two from students who have completed the course. Then you will have a better idea what to expect.

Answer 2

Since Catalan is the primary language spoken in Barcelona, rather than Spanish, your friends are probably right if your goal is to improve your Spanish. Our Modern Languages faculty has made it very clear that they want programs only in locations in which Castillian Spanish is spoken, and I spent much of last year looking at possibilities.

There is a big difference between a language school (and I did speak with Enforex also) and a university. If you are planning on a few weeks in the summer, a language school might make sense, but if you plan to spend a semester, or a year, I would definitely advise the university. The language schools teach a lot of people other than university students - children, English classes to locals, etc., which means that your social contacts may be rather limited. If your Spanish isn't yet good enough to be able to take all of your classes in Spanish, however, you have more of a problem, and you may do best to sign up with some American university's study abroad program. Madrid or Sevilla are the places about which I have heard the best feedback. Obviously, Barcelona is a wonderful city, but probably it is less good if you really want to work on your Spanish.

Answer 3

Barcelona is a great city, but it may not be the best choice with the coexistence of two languages: español y catalán. Why would that be a problem? Well, imagine trying to pick up Spanish just by listening to people around you, or even reading billboard anouncements and hand-outs pasted onto windows. Then imagine that there is ANOTHER language that comes from the same language family, so there are plenty of similarities, and may even sound alike at times.

It is kind of hard!

I would advise learning in a university because a language school doesn´t seem to help as much. (I participated in both in Madrid) My friends studied at Enforex, and I can´t say I saw a big improvement in their language acquisition; a lot of language schools are just in it for the money.

I would advise Madrid. Sevilla, not so much, because the people in Andalucía have a different accent (well, EVERYBODY there differs on the accent also), and at times it can be very confusing to learn from people around you.

Answer 4

I reside in Barcelona. Defo pass with the Spanish, it is extra priceless ultimately and every person right here makes use of it. You'll discover that you simply choose up a few foremost Catalan terms besides. Also the Generalitat (council) run loose Catalan guides so you'll research right here in the event you particularly think the must. The Catalans are particularly proud folks so in the event you particularly desire to provoke them, opt for Catalan!