Usapang Pinoy

Papaano nga ba ako nagsanay magsulat at magsalita ng wikang Ingles? Naalala ko nung unang taon ko sa mataas na paaralan, akako ay nagpasya na magsisimula akong sumulat sa aking talaarawan sa Ingles. Nasa akin pa hanggang ngayon ang mga talaarawan na ito ngunit ayoko na mabasa ang mga isinulat ko dahil malamang matatawa ako. Matagal na din akong nasanay sa pag susulat at maging sa pagsasalita ng Ingles. Sa palagay ko nga, nahasa lang akong magsalita ng Ingles dahil kailangan ito sa Kolehiyo ng Batas, at dahil din madami akong kamag-aral na mahilig mag Ingles. Masasabi ko na sa ngayon ay bihasa na ako sa wikang Ingles, at malamang, mataas ang makukuha ko sa mga pagsusulit na ibinibigay para malaman ang kabihasaan ng isang tao sa wikang ito tulad ng IELTS at TOEFL.

Habang ako ay nahahasa sa wikang Ingles, napansin ko na nahihirapan na ako magbasa at magsulat sa wikang Filipino. Di kasi nagagamit kaya pumupurol. Parang kahit anong gamit, kinakalawang kung nakatiwangwang lang. Mabuti nga noon at kahit paano, ang misang dinadaluhan ko at nasa wikang Filipino. Hanggang ngayon naman ay nanonood pa din ako ng mga programa sa telebisyon at nakikinig sa radyo ng mga programa na Filipino ang gamit na wika. Yun nga lang, napapansin ko din, na hindi na din mahusay mag Filipino ang mga brodkaster, maging ang mga manunulat sa mga peryodikong Filipino. Nakakainis nga kasi paano na lang ang mga nakikinig sa kanila, mali ang mapupulot at magagaya. Bukod pa sa mali talaga minsan ang gamit ng mga salita, masyado na talagang palasak ang paggamit ng mga salita na inihalili o inangkat lamang sa ibang wika gaya ng pangungusap na ito: "Isang bata ang namatay matapos malunod sa isang creek sa kasagsagan ng Bagyong Milenyo." Maaari naman gamitin ang salitang Filipino ng creek subalit creek pa din ang ginamit. Ang malaking problema nga lamang, o masa angkop na sabihin, ang malaking suliranin nga lamang ay kahit ako ay hindi matandaan ang katumbas sa wikang Filipino ng creek. Estero ba? Lalo namang hindi ilog o kanal. Dahil marahil sa hindi paggamit ng wikang Filipino ay nawawala na, hindi na mahalukay ang mga salita na sadyang Filipino. Marahil sa panahon na ako ay nabubuhay sa mundo ay masasaksihan ko ang pagbabago ng wikang Filipino. Marahil, naiinis man ako sa tanong na "Ano ang ginawa nyo sa school?" dahil dapat sana kung diretsong Filipino ang gagamitin ay "Ano ang ginawa nyo sa paaralan?" Ngunit kahit ang nauna kong pangungusap ay may mga salitang hiram - ang diretso ay galing sa wikang Español. Maari kong ituran (sa halip na "sabihin" dahil ang "sabihin" ay nagmula sa "saber" or "sabes" na wikang Español) ang pangungusap na "Ang estudiante ay gumagamit ng mesa at silya sa eskuwela at akalain ng iba na ako ay nagsasalita sa wikang Filipino ngunit ang totoo, ako ay hindi. Dahil ang tamang pangungusap ay "Ang mag-aaral ay gumagamit ng sulatan at upuan sa paaralan." Marahil, paglipas ng ilan pang taon, wala na ring makakapansin bukod sa mga ka-edad ko na ang pangungusap na "Mabait ba ang teacher mo sa bago mong school? May mga lunch mates at friends ka na bang bago?" ay hindi Filipino. Siguro nga ay ganun talaga ang mangyayari dahil nga ang wika ay buhay, patuloy na nagbabago. Kung tutuusin, ito nga ay kahalintulad ng isang tao: pinapanganak, sumisibol, lumalago, nagbabago hanggang sa tuluyang mamatay. Dapat siguro (muli, ito ay Español kung inyong napansin), tanggapin ko ito dahil ang paggamit sa Filipino ngayon ay siya nang bagong wikang Filipino. Kung iisipin nga, matibay tibay ang wikang ito. Isipin mo, sa tagal ng panahon at sa dami at lakas ng daluyong ng impluwensya (wala na akong maisip na ibang salita) na rumagasa sa wikang ito, ang nababago lamang ay ang mga nouns (hindi ko alam ang Filipino ng noun!) at verbs (hindi ko din alam ang Filipino ng verb!) ngunit hindi ang grammar (hindi ko alam!). May isang manunulat sa Business World na nagsulat hinggil dito at ang kanyang napuna, ang wika sa North America ay Ingles na, sa South America naman at Español or kaya ay Portuges, at sa Australia naman ay Ingles din. Patay na ang wika na syang taal sa mga lupaing iyon. Subalit sa Pilipinas, buhay na buhay pa din ang mga wikang Pilipino tulad ng Filipino (o Tagalog), Bisaya, Kapampangan, Ilocano, Ilonggo at iba pa. Kungsabagay, hindi lang naman tayong mga Pilipino ang buhay na buhay pa din ang wika. Sa totoo lang, higit na mas matatag at hindi masyadong naiiba nga pananakop ang mga wika sa ating mga kapitbahay tulad ng wika sa Malaysia at Indonesia kahit pa sila ay matagal ding nasakop ng dayuhan.

Nahirapan ako isulat ang blog na ito. Isa lang ang ibig sabihin nito. Nanganaglawang na ang Filipino ko. At nakakahiya man, para bang hindi ito ang wikang nakakapagpahayag ng nilalaman ng isipan ko.

Kung sabagay, kahit tinuran man ni Dr. Jose Rizal na ang hindi marunong magmahal sa sariling wika ay higit pa ang amoy sa mabahong isda, kapansin pansin na kahit sya ay nawa'y hindi bihasa sa wikang ito dahil kahit ang kanyang mga liham sa pamilya at kaibigan ay nasa wikang Español. Ako ay nababahala. Ano ang pakahulugan nito?

One Step at a Time

Lo siento. Mas despacio, por favor...

After my trip to Instituto Cervantes this morning, it seems apparent I’d have to enroll at Instituto Cervantes quite soon.

And it may be best to start at Level 1.

Ana says so.

Ana is a staff at Instituto Cervantes who attended to me this morning. Actually, she is probably not just a staff as she had a room to herself, equipped and furnished quite similar to the rooms of some partners in my former law firm. She could have been the headmistress.

It was not quite easy to find Instituto’s new location. They have moved from their Leon Guinto corner Estrada Street building just this June to this new address at 855 Kalaw Street which actually not along the main Kalaw Street, as coming from Roxas Boulevard, you had to cross Taft Avenue, go past Masagana Superstore and find the building right beside Casino Espanol. I can see that their new building is architecturally pleasing to the eye. Plus, they have a swimming pool at their courtyard! The building has that academic feeling, bringing me back to my wonderful memories from school. I miss going to school, I realized that this morning at Instituto.

Of course, schools are not just about pleasant classrooms and interesting libraries. They are also about recitations and nerve-wracking tests, and I seemed to forget that. I actually went to Instituto today to have a diagnostic test to determine which on level I should start. Before I went there, I was told by a friend who’s been attending Instituto that there are actually 24 levels and she has already finished level 5, at which level she could already read texts but still couldn’t converse very, very well. Hearing that, I was quite relieved because I thought I had to finish at least 10 levels to be able to say I’m conversant in spoken and written Spanish, and that would take me 2 ½ months per level if I attend the Saturday classes only. I was hoping I’d qualify to skip even a few of the initial levels to save on time and money. Thus, my trip to Instituto today.

As soon as I stepped inside the administration office of Instituto, I was reminded what tests are all about. I was quite intimidated by the fact that, except for the security guard, I haven’t encountered another person who wasn’t speaking in Spanish. After waiting for a few minutes, I was ushered in by Ana inside her office. Still not an English word spoken. She said, “Me llamo Ana” and stared at me, seeming to expect an answer. After some dead air, I figured I had to say “Me llamo Mary Rose.” She went on to ask me, still in Spanish, where I studied Spanish. She went on and on with her questions, still in Spanish. Nobody told me the diagnostic test was an interview! Talking about not being prepared. Needless to say, I only went as far as partially answering her question why I wanted to learn Spanish. For the first time in my life I was embarrassed to be speaking in English. Think about those times when, while you were still learning English, someone talks to you in English and you are aching to express yourself in Tagalog. That’s how it was in my interview.

I thought the exam would be written, and if I had known it was an oral exam, I wouldn’t have thought of taking it in the first place cause I know very well that I could understand a bit of written and spoken Spanish but definitely couldn’t express myself verbally.

And so, Ana gave the verdict, saying “It may be best to start at Level 1.” Since I also wanted to know if there will be classes in the Ortigas Building, I filled up a form and gave it to her. They are supposed to contact me if there will be enough students enrolling in Ortigas for them to create a class. If there won’t be any class in Ortigas, I think I’ll still enroll in their main office. I’d love to go to class again in a proper classroom. Hopefully, I’ll learn fast enough to be able to enjoy their library, libraries being my eternal favorite place.

A Long Way to Go

I'm still reviewing Spanish on my own using my Teach Yourself Spanish book but eventually, I intend to enroll at Instituto Cervantes in Manila, obtain a certificate and eventually be able to pass the DELE. I intend to go to Instituto this coming weekend to take a diagnostic exam which they conduct for free from Tuesdays to Saturdays, at 9am and at 3pm. Hopefully, I would qualify to attend at the very least Level 1 of the Intermediate Level.

Lessons at Instituto are structed this way: there are 5 levels in the Beginners level and another 5 levels in the Intermediate level. If you wish to pursue it, there are another 4 levels in the Advanced level and anothe 4 levels in the Superior level. The following is the descriptions of the four levels:

ñ Elementary Level (150 hours).

Students learn to express opinions, physical sensations, feelings and needs in a simple way. Students will be able to read brief letters and texts related to daily life.

ñ Intermediate Level (150 hours).

At this level students can express opinions, speak on the telephone, understand conversation spoken at normal speed, enjoy television and radio programs, grasp the main idea in print media, and write letters and brief reports.
Advanced Level (120 hours)

ñ Advanced Level (120 hours).

Upon completing this level, students can hold complex conversation with native speakers using standard Spanish, read texts, understand lectures, and write casual letters, business correspondence and reports.

ñ Superior Level (120 hours).

Students enrolled at this level perfect and maintain their Spanish language skills. Students converse at normal speed with native speakers, understand mass media and literary texts with relative ease, and write in a variety of genres.


Right now, I have decided that I am committed to finish the Intermediate level and take the corresponding DELE for that level which is the Diploma Basico de español. The other DELE exams are the Diploma Inicial de español and the Diploma Superior de español.

Looking at the Instituto schedule of classes, it seems that if I start attending Saturday classes on November 25 and assuming I qualify in the Intermediate level, I would finish my study late November 2007. That would be too long, I think. On the other hand, if I take the twice a week classes and start this November, and again assuming I start in the Intermediate level, I'd be finished by the latter part of May 2007. I think that is better. Still, I see this as an uphill climb, considering the schedule but since I've set my sights on this, I am determined to pursue this. :) I just wish I started earlier cause if I had, I might have finished studying by now. Oh well...

Viente poemas de amor y una cancion desperada

More reasons to learn spanish.

Veinte poemas de amor y una canción desesperada XX	Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair XX
Puedo escribir los versos más tristes esta noche.	Tonight I can write the saddest lines.
Escribir, por ejemplo: "La noche está estrellada, y tiritan, azules, los astros, a lo lejos".	Write for example, 'The night is shattered and the blue stars shiver in the distance.'
El viento de la noche gira en el cielo y canta.	The night wind revolves in the sky and sings.
Puedo escribir los versos más tristes esta noche.	Tonight I can write the saddest lines.
Yo la quise, y a veces ella también me quiso.	I loved her, and sometimes she loved me too.
En las noches como ésta la tuve entre mis brazos.	Through nights like this one I held her in my arms.
La besé tantas veces bajo el cielo infinito.	I kissed her again and again under the endless sky.
Ella me quiso, a veces yo también la quería.	She loved me, sometimes I loved her too.
Cómo no haber amado sus grandes ojos fijos.	How could one not have loved her great still eyes.
Puedo escribir los versos más tristes esta noche.	Tonight I can write the saddest lines.
Pensar que no la tengo. Sentir que la he perdido.	To think that I do not have her. To feel that I have lost her.
Oir la noche inmensa, más inmensa sin ella.	To hear immense night, still more immense without her.
Y el verso cae al alma como al pasto el rocío.	And the verse falls to the soul like dew to a pasture.
Qué importa que mi amor no pudiera guardarla.	What does it matter that my love could not keep her.
La noche está estrellada y ella no está conmigo.	The night is shattered and she is not with me.
Eso es todo. A lo lejos alguien canta.	This is all. In the distance someone is singing.
A lo lejos.	In the distance.
Mi alma no se contenta con haberla perdido.	My soul is not satisfied that it has lost her.
Como para acercarla mi mirada la busca.	My sight searches for her as though to go to her.
Mi corazón la busca, y ella no está conmigo.	My heart looks for her, and she is not with me.
La misma noche que hace blanquear los mismos árboles.	The same night whitening the same trees.
Nosotros, los de entonces, ya no somos los mismos.	We, of that time, are no longer the same.
Ya no la quiero, es cierto, pero cuánto la quise.	I no longer love her, that's certain, but how I loved her.
Mi voz buscaba el viento para tocar su oído.	My voice tried to find the wind to touch her hearing.
De otro. Será de otro. Como antes de mis besos.	Another's. She will be another's. Like my kisses before.
Su voz, su cuerpo claro. Sus ojos infinitos.	Her voice. Her bright body. Her infinite eyes.
Ya no la quiero, es cierto, pero tal vez la quiero.	I no longer love her, that's certain, but maybe I love her.
Es tan corto el amor, y es tan largo el olvido.	Love is short, forgetting is so long.
Porque en noches como ésta la tuve entre mis brazos, mi alma no se contenta con haberla perdido.	Because through nights like this one I held her in my arms my soul is not satisfied that it has lost her.
Aunque éste sea el último dolor que ella me causa, y éstos sean los últimos versos que yo le escribo.	Though this be the last pain that she makes me suffer and these the last verses that I write for her.

Notes on "Antes de Empezar", Teach Yourself Spanish

Lesson: There is an informal and a formal way of addressing a person you are speaking to.

Informal:
Como te llamas?

Literally, it means "how are you called? "Como" is "how" while "te" is equivalent to "you". Llamas is the conjugation of llamar which is to call. This is an example of a conjugation:

Verb - llamar
I- Llamo
You - Llamas
He/she/polite You - Llamo
We - Llamamos
You (Plural) -Llamais
They- Llaman

Incidentally, the first few chapters of my Teach Yourself Spanish book did not include the conjugation for we, you and they so I will have to check later if "llamamos", "llamais" and "llaman" are correct.

So going back to "Como te llamas?", that is the question you ask when meeting a classmate for the first time. However, when asking an elderly person his name, you are supposed to say:

"Como se llama, usted?"

It is really bad when you just memorize and do not understand the use of the word. On second thought, I could have just forgotten but anyway, I now know why sometimes, instead of saying "you" to a person your are speaking to, in Spanish, you have to refer to the person in the third person. I find it weird cause its just like saying "What is his name?" rather than "what is your name?"

Note that, literally it means, "what is his name?" which actually sounds weird in English. In Filipino, this is similar to asking "Ano po ang pangalan nila?" which is a more polite way of asking "Ano ang pangalan mo?" , the "po" being used similar to "usted". Unfortunately, I rarely hear the distinction lately which is bad because it reflects either the fact that the Filipino language is deterioration into an impolite language or it is so badly taught or ignored by Filipinos that it has begun its natural death. But don't make me start ranting about that!

Anyway, this is how to reply when asked the "how are you? question:

Como te llamas? ---> Me llamo Maria. Y tu? (literally means, "and you?")

Como se llama? ---> Me llamo Maria? Y usted? (Note that the reply is also formal or polite.)

Another basic lesson to learn is the equivalent of the I, you, he/she, we, you (pl.) and they. Here it is:

I - Yo (pronounced as "dyo" as in george)
You - Tu/Usted(formal)
He/she - El/Ella
We - Nosotros/as
You (pl.) - Vosotros/as/ustedes
They - Ellos/Ellas

Note that El is he while Ella is she; Nosotros is we if we are all male and nosotras when we are all female. Same with vosotros/as.

The first verb that is important to learn is the verb "to be" or "ser". It denotes a permanent state such as one's nationality or name or gender (uh, well, biological gender that is) or the place you are from. There is another verb "estar" which is also losely translated as "to be" but refers to less permanent state of things such as where a thing is presently located. There is a helpful website on "ser" and "estar" which you can access here.

Here it the comparative table:

Pronouns	Ser	Estar
Yo	Soy	Estoy
Tú	Eres	Estas
Él / Ella/ Usted	Es	Esta
Nosotros/as	Somos	Estamos
Vosotros/as	Sois	Estais
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes	Son	Estan

I already has my Menudo album in cassette entitled "Somos el hijos del rock" for a very long time before I learned that what is actually mean was - (you guess)

We are the sons of rock!

Hehe.

Hola! Ni hao ma?

I am so excited! I have finally resolved to really pursue this goal:

I resolve to learn Spanish and Mandarin!

When I say, learn, I mean to say I would like to be able to conversant in the language and be able to read in write as well. (Read my previous blog here.) In fact, I plan to take the DELE and the HSK, as I mentioned in my other post. I have background in both Spanish in Mandarin but I haven't gotten the chance to be really conversant in it both in writting or conversationally. I have actually been attempting to self study the past few months and I have even gotten as far as having a study schedule but I haven't been able to keep up with it. This time though, I resolve to review really well before I take the diagnostic tests at the Confucius Institute at the Ateneo and the Instituto Cervantes.

I was inspired to write this blog when I encountered a sentence in my morning lessons today. I then thought I might as well post my questions here to help me remember them and who knows, someone could have an answer for me. Also, this would help me keep up with my lessons as I will obligate myself to write my comments on the difficult parts of my lessons and hopefully make it easier to go back to these questions later.

Right now, I'm reviewing Spanish using Teach Yourself Spanish by Juan Kattan-Ibarra (2003 edition, Contemporary Books) and Hola! Que Tal? Libro I by Salvador B. Malig, Jr. and Trinidad O. Regala of the UP College of Arts and Letters, Department of European Languages, which is the text book which I used in college.

First question: I wonder how to put Spanish punctuation marks (such as the inverted question mark at the beginning of a question) on my posts?