Cactus clients get creative in writing competition…
Wednesday, 20th February 2008
Cactus' new year challenge for its clients was to get the creative juices flowing!
We asked our clients to write a brief piece about why they would like to take a language course in one of five selected locations (Sorrento, Madrid, Nice, Berlin or Rabat), the winner of each category to be rewarded with a free 1-week language course plus accommodation in their chosen location.
We were delighted to receive many fantastic entries and thank everyone who put pen to paper, fingers to keyboard and even voice to microphone! It was great to see how much enthusiasm there is out there for language learning, and we’re excited to be sending our 5 lucky winners off on their language holidays soon. To everyone else who entered, we hope you’ll enjoy your 20% discount off any evening language course in the UK and get to practise the lingo soon!
Our 5 winning entries are as follows:
1. Sorrento - by Avila MacInnes:
curled up in front of the television, I felt like getting
active, perhaps learning a new language.
concentration on a course abroad, I thought,
teaches you much more than classes
under duress during the working week.
so I looked at
lots of different companies
and methods of concentrated learning.
nothing seemed to match up to
going to Sorrento in Italy with Cactus Languages.
undeniably fun, I imagined. In the sun,
and pizza for lunch in the centre of town. Perhaps also
getting to know some Italians. It seemed
everything I wanted from a language course abroad.
http://www.cactuslanguage.com/en/languages/italian/italy/sorrento.php
2. Madrid - by Richard Stokoe
Yo soy, you see as I see. The weather, the wild life, the wit and the women. From the samba and salsa to the rioja and rumba, the Spanish speaking world has it all. Unless you learn the language of love then nobody would expect the Spanish Inquisition. The history, the religion, the culture and the climate, it doesn’t matter what floats a boat or sinks your Armada the dialect and appreciation of all things South American or Spanish counts for nothing.
Whether it is Buenos Dias Buenos Aires, como esta Cuba or manyana Madrid, the sights and sounds of the Spanish speaking world blur into a meandering meaningless monologue without knowing the joys and passion of speaking with the locals. The humour and the humdrum gossip of the people in a country or continent will pass you by without the knowledge, nuances and understanding of the Spanish parlance.
The fun and the fantasies that greet you with even a basic grasp knowledge of the lingo will make any trip a hundred times more worthwhile. A chuckle may go with some elementary mistakes in your verbal jousting but will warm the hearts of those who you encounter in your travels.
http://www.cactuslanguage.com/en/languages/spanish/spain/madrid.php
3. Nice - by Kristelle Valentine
I would love to go to Nice and learn French. I love France. The culture and food are wonderful. I think the French know how to live. French is the most beautiful language in the world. You could say anything in French, “I hate you” “je vous déteste”, “you make me sick!” “vous me rendez malade!” - and yet, somehow it sounds sexy! I can tell you this because I have French-speaking friends. I would love to be able to converse, even very basically, with them in French and then build on that knowledge.
It has been a dream of mine to learn another language fluently. To me, languages create barriers and, learning a language would start to demolish this wall. I am aware that the best way to learn a language is to go to the country that speaks the language. That way you can immerse yourself in what you are learning. Then instead of learning how to say a few words, or phrases, it becomes a real language to you - which it is. I know that I will pick up the language because I can imitate accents and am a fast learner. Please send me to Nice to learn French, Cactus Language!
http://www.cactuslanguage.com/en/languages/french/france/nice.php
4. Berlin - by Jacqui Taylor
Why I would love to learn German in Berlin....
For years at night school I have battled to learn the German language. In drafty church halls and bleak urban classrooms, I have embraced the umlaut and compound noun. Yet I have never fully mastered the language and still only manage to ‘spreche ein bisschen Deutsch.’ To add to my frustration, I was born in Germany - child to a British military father and mother. Living in Dortmund during my early years, I was weaned on bockwurst and Berliners. So German should be in my blood!
Now in my 40th year I want to finally take command of the language. No more night schools - just total immersion!
I want to eat, drink and breathe German. And where better to do this than the amazing reunified city of Berlin? From Unter den Linden to Potsdamer Platz, I want to get lost in the city and the language. I want to explore the history and soak up the culture. Watch cabaret and dance till dawn.
At the moment I dream of Berlin. But my aim is to dream about it in German. Please help!
http://www.cactuslanguage.com/en/languages/german/germany/berlin.php
5. Rabat - by Chloe Shively
My name is Chloe Shively and I will be a third year Arabic student when I am able to resume my studies in the language some time in the future. I currently attend San Francisco State University and, unfortunately, there is no major or minor program for Arabic at my school. However, I am very determined to master the language, and have already sought outside sources for further language acquisition. Having taken first year Arabic at SF State and second year Arabic at Beloit University’s summer intensive program - and passed with full marks - I am more ready than ever to take my knowledge abroad and learn in an environment of native speakers, with whom I can practice the language while exchanging knowledge and broadening cultural understandings at the same time.
As for the location, Morocco is a place that has always enchanted me - the culture, the food, the Imperial cities, and the vast and beautiful Sahara desert. I have been to North Africa twice already (I have visited Egypt and I have friends in Tunisia) and for some reason I feel that my heart lingers there every time I leave. Having studied the history of Morocco, I would love to visit the actual places where that history was made. Also, Rabat is the perfect place for me to make friends and connections, as it is my goal to work for UNESCO’s World Heritage program some time in the future as a translator or interpreter of Arabic, because cultural preservation is something that is very important to me. Thank you very much for taking the time to consider my entry.
http://www.cactuslanguage.com/en/languages/arabic/morocco/rabat.php
Thanks again to everyone who entered and we look forward to launching our next language holiday competition soon…
Tags: french, spanish, german, italian, language, arabic, nice, berlin, rabat, madrid, sorrento
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