During the
month of August, 2003, I decided to take a three-week vacation and use
it to study Spanish. Since I take my four-year-old daughter with me
when traveling, I wanted to study someplace fun and interesting for
her as well. I had heard good things about Cartagena, Colombia and I
found the Nueva Lengua program on the web. I was extremely pleased
with the entire experience and I would recommend it to everyone
I found
the teachers pleasant, professional and willing to make changes based
on our feedback. There were only three people in my program at the
time - something I considered a great plus. Huge programs generally
mean less one-on-one time with teachers. The classes were usually done
by mid-day which meant that we had the afternoon to enjoy one of the
most beautiful cities I have ever seen. For my work, I travel
extensively in Africa, the Caribbean and I often pass by Europe. I
must say that Cartagena was one of the most beautiful and fun places I
have ever been. One nice aspect of the city is that even though it is
very safe, there didn't seem to be as many tourists as I had imagined.
They do have many tourists from South America but most of them are
speaking Spanish so you rarely hear English in the streets and far
fewer people approach you and speak English than you might encournter
in other cities in Latin America. This meant that I was forced to use
my Spanish nearly all of the time. I have a doctorate in Education and
I can be quite picky when it comes to the quality of instruction.
Their ability to adapt to their students was probably the most
important quality of the teaching staff. Among them were college
professors and teachers from language schools. Nueva Lengua located a
beautiful little hotel that was perfect for myself and my daughter.
The price was extremely reasonable and, again, I was required to
communicate in Spanish. Nueva Lengua also located a day care center
for my daughter to attend while I took class. It was beautiful (and
included a room they could look into full of tropical birds), set
right across the street from the beach, and well-run. We also took
advantage of many activities in the area. The city is full of
interesting history that my daughter and I just loved...stories of
pirates invading the huge fort, etc. We went snorkeling with great
company called Cultura del Mar located right in the old city that
works with one of the tour groups leaving from the wharf. I was amazed
that they were able to take my four-year-old snorkeling and not let
her be at all afraid. She kept saying that she was looking for Nemo.
It was an amazing experience to see the reefs near the Islas del
Rosario. Again, I wasn't sure before leaving whether or not to trust a
language school I had found on-line with providing quality instruction
and with helping to make the kinds of arrangements I listed above.
This was one case where I am glad I did
Hej alla glada och
äventyrslystna svenskar som vill lära er spanska!
Jag heter Samantha
Rozi och bor i Stockholm. Jag har ett brinnande intresse för det
spanska språket.
Jag fattade mod och åkte
därför iväg till Latin Amerika under sommaren 2003.
Jag var först i
Venezuela och sedan tog jag mig enkelt och billigt över till
Colombia. Där kom jag oanmäld till en skola i Caratagena. Cartagena
är en mysig och vacker stad som ligger vid vattnet i norra Colombia.
Skolan heter "Escuela de Español Nueva Lengua".
För det första fick
jag ett oerhört varmt och vänligt mottagande. En värdfamilj
ordnades med en gång i stans bästa område och jag fick " one
to one" lektioner, fastän jag betalat för grupp lektioner.
Eftersom folket i
Colombia arbetar med hela sitt hjärta fick jag vara med om den bästa
semestern och den bästa språkskolan någonsin!
Jag är 25 år ,har
rest i över 24 länder och varit på 5 olika språkskolor, b.la. i
England, Malta, Spanien, Venezuela och Colombia. Av alla dessa skolor
har " Escuela de Espanol Nueva Lengua" i Colombia varit den
absolut bästa
Skolan gav mig utmärk
service och de mest pedagogiska lärare som jag nägonsin mött! De
arbetade med inlevelse och känsla och man blev genast vän med dem. På
två veckor lärde jag mig mer spanska än under två månader i
Spanien och Venezuela.
Folket i Colombia är
så varma och trevliga; det är lätt att förälska sig i dem.
Colombia är ett land
som ligger mig mycket varmt om hjärtat.
Vill du lära dig
spanska i den trevligaste miljön på jorden, så ska du åka till
Colombia, Cartagena och till den ovannämnda Språkskolan!
Meine
Erfahrungen an der Universität de la Sabana (Nueva Lengua- Bogotá)
Jeder weiss, dass sich eine Sprache am einfachsten und
effizientesten im entsprechenden Sprachgebiet aneignen lässt. So
entschied ich mich im Sommer 2003, nach Bogotá zu reisen und dort eine
Universität zu besuchen. Ich lebte in Cota (Vorort von Bogotá) bei
einer Familie, die ich in der Schweiz kennen gelernt hatte. Die
Universität de la Sabana ist von Cota aus gesehen die nächste, so
entschied ich mich, natürlich mit gemischten Gefühlen, dort die
Spanischkurse für Ausländer zu besuchen, was sich aber als durchaus
positives Erlebnis herausstelle. Das Universitätsgelände umfasst eine
Fläche von ca. einem Quadratkilometer, das sich wie eine Oase erhebt.
Unglaublich gut gepflegt und schön gestaltet fand ich den Campus vor:
die Gebäude und Einrichtungen sind eingebetet zwischen Gewässern und
Eukalyptusbäumen und es gibt sehr viele grosszügige Zurückziehungsmöglichkeiten;
ein Erholungsgebiet pur, so schien mir. Aber nicht nur das Gelände,
auch die Infrastruktur ist in einwandfreiem Zustand. (Ich habe mir während
meinem Aufenthalt mehrere Universitäten angeschaut, aber keine kann
sich in diesem Punkt mir der Universität de la Sabana messen.)
Besonders gespannt war ich auf den Spanischunterricht, da ich wirklich
nur ein paar Wörter sprechen konnte. Durch die kleinen Lerngruppen von
höchstens drei Personen, ist es den aufgestellten Lehrern möglich, den
Stoff deinem Niveau angepasst zu vermitteln. Durch diese intensive Art
des Unterrichtens, können die Studierenden natürlich grosse
Fortschritte verzeichnen. (Ich unterricht inzwischen auch schon eine
Weile Sprachen in der Schweiz und behaupte, dass ich ein bisschen Ahnung
von Unterrichtsführung und Planung besitze, muss aber neidlos
zugestehen, dass in der Universität de la Sabana wirklich Unterricht
von höchster Qualität geboten wird.) Ich besuchte zehn Wochen
Spanischunterricht und konnte riesige Fortschritte machen, zu meinem
Erstaunen. Nebst Spanischunterricht ist es einem möglich, das grosse
Freizeitangebot, das übliche und ausgefallene Sportarten und natürlich
auch viele musische Tätigkeiten umfasst, zu nutzen. Es ist einem
erlaubt, das universitäre Leben völlig auszukosten. Mir ist
aufgefallen, dass der durchschnittliche Kolumbianer sehr offen gegenüber
Ausländern ist, ja sie sogar herzlich empfängt und um sein Wohlergehen
echt bemüht ist, und konnte dementsprechend sehr viele positive
Erfahrungen machten. Ich kann wirklich keinem aus irgendeinem Grund
abraten Kolumbien zu besuchen, im Gegenteil, ich empfehle jedem einen
Aufenthalt in diesem Land und speziell an der Universität de la Sabana.
J’ai
étudié quatre semaines à l’Universidad de la Sabana/ Nueva Lengua
à l’automne 2003.La
beauté du campus est ce qui m’a tout d’abord séduite.L’université s’étend
sur de grands espaces verts qui sont traversés par une petite rivière.Cette nature permet ainsi à
l’université d’offrir plusieurs sports.
Pour
ce qui est des cours d’espagnol, j’ai appris beaucoup et j’ai
vraiment amélioré mon espagnol.Les
professeurs sont sympathiques et compétents et surtout, sont à l’écoute
des besoins des élèves.Les
cours sont ainsi très personnalisés.J’ai souvent fait des activités avec mes professeurs après
les cours.Un
aspect original de l’école Nueva Lengua est qu’on peut choisir
plusieurs programmes de leçons d’espagnol.Il y en a vraiment pour tous les goûts.Durant mes quatre semaines, j’avais des cours seulement
l’avant-midi.J’ai
pu suivre des cours de danse et de photographie avec les étudiants de
l’université l’après-midi.Ce
fut une manière de faire des liens avec les étudiants colombiens.
Finalement,
ce que j’ai vraiment adoré, c’est que l’école offre des visites
culturelles deux fois par semaine.Elles sont pour les étudiants étrangers et permettent de
visiter Bogota et ses environs.Comme
je n’avais pas de voiture, j’étais bien contente de visiter les
endroits éloignés du centre.Il
va sans dire que la dame qui nous accompagnait était vraiment
sympathique.En plus, elle
connaissait très bien Bogota et nous a montré la vraie vie des
Colombiens.
Mon
séjour à l’Universidad de la Sabana fut bref, mais extrêmement
enrichissant.J’aurais
bien aimé y rester plus longtemps.Il va sans dire que je recommande à tous d’y étudier, car
j’y aie passé une expérience formidable.
I'm very happy to write
about my experience at Nueva Lengua Bogota. The program you have developed
served me wonderfully, and I expect I will return.
Two things made the program work especially well for me. On one hand, its
flexibility made it possible for me to squeeze the most out of the limited
time I had to spend. Rather than having to wait until the first of the
month to start a fixed course, I was able to begin when I was available
and, so, make the most use of my time. More important, though, than even
the flexibility was the character of the staff. The careful attention the
instructers paid to my specific needs helped my progress enormously. The
fact that you and the teachers were clearly interested in listening to
what I wanted to say pushed me to speak much more than I would have in a
less personal program.
Thanks again.
Steven Werlin
Dean of the College
Shimer College
I
really enjoyed my time at Nueva Lengua . The teachers were quite good
and made an effort to teach about the culture of Cartagena as well as
the language. They were all wonderful, fun individuals, and the
administration was also essential in guiding the students as we settled
into the city. They were so generous with their time and really went
above and beyond what I had expected in terms of helping us make
connections, find cultural opportunities and see local sights -- the
most memorable of which was bathing in a mud volcano! On our cultural
excursions, the teachers were knowledgable and passionate about the
history of Cartagena and made excellent instructors.
Cartagena
itself is a beautiful city (and well removed from the dangers of certain
parts of Colombia, ( finally managed to convince my Mom). It is a unique
and interesting city with its unusual combination of history, visual
beauty, tranquility and climate, which is just perfect with its warm,
tropical weather. I particularly loved the beaches at Baru Island, one
of the islands near the coast of Cartagena, easily accessible by boat.
Cartagena is a nice size, neither huge nor tiny, and is pretty easy to
get around by bus or walking around the main parts of town.
When I told the staff at Nueva Lengua that I am a dancer by profession
and expressed an interest in hooking up with the local scene, they were
quick to connect me to both a local gym where I began teaching classes,
and to a folkloric dancer with whom I was able to do a cultural trade. I
really appreciated their efforts in helping me to find things of
interest, down to making phone calls for me when I wasn't yet ready to
speak Spanish on the phone.
When
I expressed that my first host family didn't seem like the right fit for
me, they were quick to place me with another which worked out really
well. Although both homes were nice, the second one was more suitable
for what I wanted in terms of a host situation. Overall, I recommend
Nueva Lengua in Cartagena; I spent a month there and wish I could have
stayed longer. Especially since there seem to be constant festivals
going on. It was a great experience.
Nueva Lengua was
the third language school our family had attended. It was the first to
put us with a family that had a child with whom our 12-year-old could
relate. When my wife couldn't come due to an emergency, they were very
flexible and helpful. The family with whom we stayed was simply
wonderful and the house was just around the corner from the school,
which is in a beautiful neighborhood. Cartagena was very safe and a
great tourist destination.
The instruction was well organized into lesson packets. Mine covered the
cities of Colombia, the Colombian civil war, the individual rights
section of the Colombian constitution, and the Trojan war. They created
three new ones for my son, two based on cartoons and one on animals. All
the students did one on the ecology of the islands where we went on one
of our activities, which included the boat ride, snorkeling and lunch.
Our other activity was a visit to an organization that works with street
children and to a mud volcano (try it, you'll like it).
We had a great experience with Nueva Lengua in Cartagena. There is
something about being in a real city that challenges you to become
fluent, but at the same time there is a safety net of tourism and the
school to give you confidence and support.
Roger Friedman
Atlanta, Georgia
Just a short note to say to
Pedro and his staff how much I enjoy the Spanish Language experience at
the Nueva Lengua Escuela de Español (www.nuevalengua.com)
located at the Universidad de la Sabana. I certainly learned a
foundation in Spanish on which to build. I would recommend the school to
anyone desiring to learn Spanish and knowledge of the Culture of
Colombia
Nueva Lengua
provided me a great introductory learning experience with the Spanish
language. Nueva Lengua is comfortably located on the Universidad de la
Sabana campus just outside of Bogotá. The staff is very friendly, and
they tailored the instruction according to my needs. I especially like
the flexibility of schedule and content, and I hope to return soon
Please
do not trust a word on this page it's all lies. The site is too modest
and intentionally downplays and even outright lies about the quality of
this program. For whatever reason it omits the fact that the staff are
the nicest people on the planet. Not only are they attentive to all your
needs and concerns about your education in the university, but they go
as far as they can to make sure that your entire experience while in
Colombia (in and out of the university) is as positive as it humanly can
be. Where is this in the brochure or on the website? Distortions and
lies here, nothing but distortions and lies. Where does this website
talk about how the quality of education is absolutely phenomenal? Where
does it mention that the instructors are simply extraordinary? It just
seems obvious that all this information should be included on the
website, yet Pedro, for whatever reason, has decided to distort these
obvious facts. So please, don't let Pedro's dishonesty steer you away
from learning Spanish at Nueva Lengua, you will have the time of your
life while there!
Zasílám
pozdrav z Prahy kolumbijské škole Nueva Lengua, kde jsem strávila
překrásný měsíc studia španělštiny. Kromě
samotných kurzů jsem díky škole měla možnost seznámit se
s kolumbijskou kulturou, vidět zajímavá místa v Bogotě
a jejím okolí a poznat obrovské množství milých a přátelských
lidí. Poznala jsem také, že Kolumbie není až tak nebezpečná,
jak se o ní ve světě píše.
Za měsíc
pobytu jsem se naučilaběžné
komunikaci a musím říct, že výuka byla na vysoké úrovni.
Také ubytování v rodině bylo skvělé. Poznala jsem
zvyky kolumbijské rodiny a měla jsem tak možnost porovnávat rozdíly
jednotlivých kultur. Díky poznatkům, které jsem v Bogotě
získala, jsem se rozhodla nadále studovat španělštinu a do
Kolumbie se vrátit.
For egen del spenderade jag en vecka i Cartagena och 4
veckor i Medellin pa Nueva Lenguas sprakskola. Jag blev upphamtad direkt
pa flygplatsen. Enligt min mening var Nueva Lengua en mycket organiserad
och professionell skola. Dessutom erbjods olika former aktiviteter vid
sidan om som museum, snorkling etc. val integrerat med skolarbetet.
Lararna var professionella och erbjod undervisning enligt den niva du
befinner dig. I Medellin erbjuds dessutom olika amnen, sasom
finansiering, geografi, historia, nationalekonomi, beroende pa vilket
omrade du ar intresserad av. Nivan pa undervisningen har du stor
inverkan pa. Vill du jobba med basal grammatik utfors detta, antingen i
grupp eller individuellt beroende pa vad du anser vara bast for dig. En
kombination tycker jag var bast.
Efter 5 veckor, 20 timmars undervisning per vecka, ar jag flytande
rent konversationsmassigt. For egen del var detta en god forberedelse
infor universitetsstudier pa spanska i Mexico.
aprenda espanhol, curso de
espanhol intensivo, escola de idiomas, escola com hospedagem, espanhol
para executivos, curso para médicos, curso de espanhol e medicina, curso
para jornalistas, espanhol e jornalismo, curso de espanhol para negócios,
estude espanhol, cursos de espanhol no caribe, cultura do caribe, espanhol nos
andes, cursos de espanhol na América Latina, curso individual, espanhol para
estrangeiros, aulas de espanhol, cursos para professores de espanhol, espanhol
como segunda língua
