There are many theories on acquiring a second language; some researchers say it is best learnt by starting with simple vocabulary, others say languages should be learnt in sentences and expressions, not single words.

I spoke to a brave young woman, Larissa Erath, who moved from a Central-European to a Latin-American country for a year, without knowing any Spanish prior to the decision.

What was the main reason for your decision to move to a country that far away?

I basically did it because I wanted to get to know a new culture and a language so different to my native language (German). I also wanted to experience what it’s like to be that far away from all my family and friends, not always having someone around who knows and understands me. I wanted to be entirely independent and on my own.

What was your experience of the Spanish language prior to moving to Ecuador?

To be able to immigrate to Ecuador I had to prove that I was capable of communicating at least a bit and therefore had to bring a certificate stating that my language level is at least A2 (the very basics). To get such a certificate I had to take a course at home in Austria, which took me a few months with classes twice a week. The course however did not fulfil what I hoped and expected it to. At the end I had my certificate stating that I can communicate at least the basics, but my actual knowledge of Spanish was pretty much non-existent. I mean, I knew a few words which might have been useful, but that was about it.

The moment you landed in Ecuador and were exposed to the Ecuadorian language & culture, how did you feel?

I wasn’t really shocked per se but when I first spoke to the people I thought, ‘Sh**, I know nothing about this country and language, I don’t even understand them’. At the beginning it was quite the challenge to make any sense of the things they said and even more so to express myself and bring the message across correctly. With time I learned how to do the typical “small-talk” and I quickly started to memorise words and expressions I needed on a daily basis. The funny thing is that I started to recognise my own mistakes and thought, ‘All this time I said it wrong, but now I know better’.

Which aspect of a language, to you, was the hardest to learn?

Well, I think it was grammar. Even though I never really struggled with the tenses or conjugations because most Spanish verbs are “regular”. I struggled a bit with the formation and structure of sentences, because it is a bit different to other languages, for example the adjectives go behind the noun, not in front (i.e. “the cat brown” instead of “the brown cat”).

Would you say you are fluent in Spanish now?

Let me put it this way, after nearly a year in Ecuador I can, more or less, speak Spanish fluently, but there are still some words I am not too sure about or I simply don’t know. Still, it works out pretty well for me. I think being directly confronted with Spanish day by day really helped me acquire the language way faster than I normally would have. In Ecuador I simply couldn’t avoid speaking Spanish and had to improve my skills, otherwise I would have been completely lost. I think I would have lacked motivation to keep on doing that only by going to classes.

The experiences of Larissa show us that “learning by doing” is indeed the easiest and also most successful way to actually progress in learning a new language. It’s like learning to cook: At the beginning the food might taste a bit strange and, simply put, horrible, but when in need of food, one has to learn how to prepare it. Once you know which combination of seasonings and herbs work out, you are a few steps away from being a well rounded cook. So, if you are really eager to finally get your Italian going, why not pull a good old Liz Gilbert and “Eat, Pray, Love” your way through?