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Solfrid Cristin TAC 2012 Team Sputnik | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Language Learning Log |  | |
| tarvos Super Polyglot Winner TAC 2012 Senior Member China likeapolyglot.wordpr Joined 4705 days ago 5310 posts - 9399 votes  Speaks: Dutch*, English, Swedish, French, Russian, German, Italian, Norwegian, Mandarin, Romanian, Afrikaans Studies: Greek, Modern Hebrew, Spanish, Portuguese, Czech, Korean, Esperanto, Finnish | Message 193 of 270 26 July 2012 at 7:52am | IP Logged |
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I have a Nordic name, I can pass
Iceland is lovely. Did you see the cans of fresh air they sell? 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| prz_ Tetraglot Senior Member Poland last.fm/user/prz_rul Joined 4857 days ago 890 posts - 1190 votes Speaks: Polish*, English, Bulgarian, Croatian Studies: Slovenian, Macedonian, Persian, Russian, Turkish, Ukrainian, Dutch, Swedish, German, Italian, Armenian, Kurdish | Message 194 of 270 26 July 2012 at 8:53am | IP Logged |
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Iceland! I envy you, no doubt.
1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Solfrid Cristin Heptaglot Winner TAC 2011 & 2012 Senior Member Norway Joined 5332 days ago 4143 posts - 8864 votes Speaks: Norwegian*, Spanish, Swedish, French, English, German, Italian Studies: Russian | Message 195 of 270 27 July 2012 at 8:46am | IP Logged |
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@Serpent: I opted for the serious choice in the end, and am taking Russian. I would have broken into tears if
I had learned just enough Mandarin for it to block my Russian, so that I speak nothing of neither language. @tarvos: No, no cans of fresh air have been spotted, but I bought some stones to put in your drink to keep it cold without being diluted. They were called "on the rocks". My husband will go of up the wall when he receives them as a gift, since buying rocks for a Norwegian is like buying sand for a Beduin. @prz: As well you should. Iceland is like no other place I have ever been to. DAY THREE IN ICELAND Another fantastic day in Iceland. We went on a tour today, and saw some of the more stunning features here. First we saw a crater, then two glorious water cascades, and then it was topped off by a geyser and the oldest parliament known to man. The krater and the cascades were all great, but being Norwegian we have a lot of cascades at home, but what really was blood chillingly amazing was the geyser. I had seen it on film, but seeing it in the flesh was so much more impressive. You stand next to what is basically a tiny pond, and then the water starts to move and boil, and suddenly at 10 meter tall tower of water erupts before your eyes. There is no way I can describe how out of this world that was. We were a group of Norwegians, a Russian, two Chinese, three Scots, two Canadians, two Italians and two Germans, so we were really a mixed lot, and we had a wonderful Icelandic guide. He knew no dates and very little formal facts "read the signs when you get there" was his usual advice, but he was really candid when it came to Icelandic society, and very frank by the the way Icelanders feel about the world.. He also told a lot of jokes. In Iceland three trees is a forest, three houses is a village, and three people on the street is a riot... The other tourist must have felt a bit left out, because I and my Norwegian friends were sitting up front talking to him, and he would constantly use Norway as an example. Yay! Finally a country for whom Norway is a big important power! We had vivid discussion about what a forest was like ( they do not have many fthrees on the island) so whenever he pointed to a few bushes and claimed it to be a forest we would protest. ( Do you know what to do if you are lost in an Icelandic forest? First you sober up, and then you stand up...) I have by the way fallen in love with Icelandic clouds. Now before you think I have been munching on some of the mushrooms my forefathers were famous for digesting, I hasten to add, that the clouds on Iceland are some of the the most varied and fascinating ones I have ever seen. I must have taken 500 pictures of Icelandic mountains and clouds! In the evening my cousin called me out and took me out to dinner, to a place which served "Icelandic tapas" , and boy, can these guys cook!!! In fact I have not had a meal I did not like so far. Love the place, It looks like I will have to read up on Icelandic, by the way. My cousin wanted to stay in touch, but he said he was not comfortable writing in English, he had always only spoken it. Which leaves us with Icelandic :-) Now this being me, I have of course said I am willing to try, so we'll see how far we'll get. I how by the way felt closer to my mom being here. It is her cousin I set out to visit, and he spoke so nicely about her. I also found out that she understood everything in Icelandic and Faroese. I asked if she spoke them too, but my cousin said she spoke a mix of Norwegian and Icelandic, which was perfectly understandable, but which was not exactly Icelandic. They did however not have to slow down when talking to her, so her passive understanding was very high. I would have loved to have a full week in Iceland, to explore the island better, and get to know the rest of my relatives, but today our rose program starts. I have loved this so much so far, that I do not really care if they do not have much roses here. The only thing which is unimpressive is the hotel. We had asked for a standard room - which turned out to be the size of a ship cabin. We then upgraded to superior room, which is like a normal, small double room. And I will in the future put on my black list anyone who is involved in "design bathrooms". Design meaning impractical and uncomfortable. I H A T E it! Those responsible for them should be condemned to a life sentence using the bathrooms they have designed. However with that very minor issue, I love everything else here. The people are really nice, everyone below 50 speak English very well, the nature is breath taking and the food is as I mentioned fantastic. Hurry up and go, all those who can! Edited by Solfrid Cristin on 27 July 2012 at 10:43am 5 persons have voted this message useful | |
| ellasevia Super Polyglot Winner TAC 2011 Senior Member Germany Joined 6140 days ago 2150 posts - 3229 votes Speaks: English*, German, Croatian, Greek, French, Spanish, Russian, Swedish, Portuguese, Turkish, Italian Studies: Catalan, Persian, Mandarin, Japanese, Romanian, Ukrainian | Message 196 of 270 27 July 2012 at 9:35am | IP Logged |
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It sounds like you're having a fabulous trip to Iceland! I've had a mild obsession with Iceland for the past eight years or so, and I'm glad that I can enjoy it vicariously through your posts!
1 person has voted this message useful | |
| tarvos Super Polyglot Winner TAC 2012 Senior Member China likeapolyglot.wordpr Joined 4705 days ago 5310 posts - 9399 votes Speaks: Dutch*, English, Swedish, French, Russian, German, Italian, Norwegian, Mandarin, Romanian, Afrikaans Studies: Greek, Modern Hebrew, Spanish, Portuguese, Czech, Korean, Esperanto, Finnish | Message 197 of 270 27 July 2012 at 10:39am | IP Logged |
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Golden circle? When I did that tour the guide spoke English and Scandinavian , ie adapted Danish. I could
follow that well as I remember although I needed the English to confirm. Iceland is my fave country for a reason 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Марк Senior Member Russian Federation Joined 5054 days ago 2096 posts - 2972 votes Speaks: Russian* | Message 198 of 270 27 July 2012 at 11:13am | IP Logged |
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Very interesting log. I'm enjoying reading it.
1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Solfrid Cristin Heptaglot Winner TAC 2011 & 2012 Senior Member Norway Joined 5332 days ago 4143 posts - 8864 votes Speaks: Norwegian*, Spanish, Swedish, French, English, German, Italian Studies: Russian | Message 199 of 270 28 July 2012 at 1:31am | IP Logged |
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Sometimes I hate the Internet. I just spent an entire hour updating my log, and the whole thing disappeared
into cyber space. The short not anywhere near as funny version is that we had a hot day, had a great lunch, and saw a lot of roses. 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Solfrid Cristin Heptaglot Winner TAC 2011 & 2012 Senior Member Norway Joined 5332 days ago 4143 posts - 8864 votes Speaks: Norwegian*, Spanish, Swedish, French, English, German, Italian Studies: Russian | Message 200 of 270 28 July 2012 at 2:19am | IP Logged |
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@ellasevia: try to visit, it is great!
@ tarvos: Yes, it was The Golden Circle, Loved it, @ Mark: Thank you! FOURTH DAY IN ICELAND I'll make a new attempt for a medium length one. Today the rose convention started, and it was fun to see everyone speaking their respective languages ( with the Finns speaking Swedish and the Icelandics something which sounds like Norwegian. ) English is banned. no translators were used, and it worked like a charm. I do not know if the Icelandics actually understood anything, but they did not complain. It was also really hot today. Well, it was 17 degrees, but it was sunny, and the locals were sun bathing in the parks. I almost joined them, but one fat, middle aged lady , white as a fish pudding due to this year's shitty summer, might not get the Mrs. Attractive 2012 prize. I got hold af a gardening book in Icelandic today. It weighs close to 4 kilos, but it alone would fill half the reading requirements for half a Super Challenge in Icelandic. Which I am not going to do. No way. Not at all. Not in a million years. Won,t happen. Though just in case, I got Bridget Jones as an audio book, and the film Pirates of the Caribeeans 4. I also got Game of Thrones, figuring it would be smart to have a series. It turned out to have subtitles in 14 languages. Icelandic not being one of them... We also had the most amazing lunch today. I asked how much I would have to pay to get the receipe. The waiter said it was free, but I would have to marry the chef. I am still thinking... In general the food is so good it is almost freaking me out. Who would have thought that the best food ever was to be found not in France, not in Italy, but in Iceland? Edited by Solfrid Cristin on 28 July 2012 at 2:22am 1 person has voted this message useful |
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