Why should you learn another language?
The 26th September is the European Day of Languages!
This is a great initiative to celebrate the languages spoken through Europe & to try to encourage more people to learn a foreign tongue.
Along with celebrating the different languages on the continent, it also promotes the rich cultural diversity of Europe - which is as numerous as it's dialects - to preserve and foster the art of learning languages throughout life, not just in school.
In this blog, we lay out why we think you should learn another language and the benefits this has:
It will completely transform your travel experience
Travelling is not all about 'checking in' on Facebook & posting pictures on Instagram. Learning the language of a place you're going to will vastly improve your whole experience - even if at the start it is just a few words. Your efforts will illicit warm smiles from locals and perhaps even invitations and opportunities that just wouldn't be available if you didn't speak the language - or even attempt to. Speaking the local lingo really does enrich your life by allowing you to immerse deeper into a different country and its culture.
Discover & understand new culture
Language and culture are intrinsically linked. It's not too far fetched & poetic to say that language in itself is a culture (after all, many countries are fiercely proud and protective of their language & the heritage it underlines). You can go to another country without knowing a language and get way with it while still having a great time (we ALL do this), but this is like walking through a museum with blinkers on or watching a foreign film with no subtitles. You'll see the show and get the plot - but you'll miss the buzz, understanding and the subtle details that are sometimes the best bits. You can learn a LOT about culture by simply viewing it, but you can't feel it or immerse in it fully without throwing yourself completely into it - and that begins with the language.
Meet new people and develop life-long friendships
By being able to speak a person's language, you can communicate easier with each other and makes socialising that much better. This is particularly helpful if you're a solo traveller! We're not just talking about chatting with locals either, as hostels are full of non-English speakers and knowing French, German, Spanish or Italian opens up a whole new world of possibilities to connect with everyone staying at the same place as you. Plus trying your language skills on those who's mother tongue it is, can be very fun (and a useful learning tool)!
Improve your confidence
Learning a new skill always helps cultivate you as a person and learning a language is no different. This is a level of personal growth that only a few can claim and will give you a massive confidence boost. This is because learning a new language helps you to learn more about yourself, will help you meet new people as you can converse in their langiage & it will enable you to travel to places and immerse in the culture in ways you perhaps wouldn't (and couldn't) dream of usually.
You'll impress EVERYONE
OK, this most definitely should not be the primary reason you should learn another language, but it's a great offshoot!! You can't not be impressed by someone who can instantly switch languages!
There are many reasons to learn a new language and these are just some!
If you've been thinking about it for a while and just needed that extra reason to book on one of our language experiences across Europe, then perhaps this European Day of Languages is just what you needed!
If you book TODAY (Monday 26th September) then quote EuroDayLang and receive 5% off your language experience!!
Get in touch for more information.