Jenna's Adventures

   Don't let anyone stop you from following your dreams.

   From a young age, I have been exposed to different languages. From being at my best friend's house and hearing Croatian to listening to Italian at family parties, I had an understanding of different languages. Knowing only English, I was jealous of my best friend as she spoke Croatian with her family. I wanted to be able to speak in a different tongue like her.
   I have tried many methods and many languages. From Japanese to Italian to French to Greek, I tried a variety of online programs and textbooks. I still think the best way to learn a language, other than immersion of course, is through a class. I take Italian at school and learn a lot. Lately, however, I have been interested in Brazilian Portuguese. Being that I cannot take this class at school and that I am too cheap to buy a $20 workbook (and way too cheap to buy $500 Rosetta Stone!), I found Mango Languages, available free through my library. It is great!
   First of all, there are over 40 languages! Want to 
learn Dari, Biblical Hebrew, Pirate? No problem! I was literally so excited when I saw this. Being a language nerd, it was like Christmas for me. (Well, maybe not quite.. but you get the point.)
   I clicked on Brazilian Portuguese. There are three courses available: Basic, Complete 1.0, and Complete 2.0. I think they start of the same, but the Complete programs obviously go further with the language.
   It starts off with a conversation between two people. You probably will not understand anything in the conversation, although it provides a translation. The point of the lessons are to understand the conversation at the beginning.

Mango Languages works with flashcards. I have tried making flashcards on my own, but it is a pain and buying flashcards constantly adds up. Having digital flashcards is an effective way to memorize words and phrases. First, you see both the word in English and Portuguese. Next, the word appears in English and you turn the card over to see the Portuguese. The flashcards repeat often, providing easy memorization.The voice is nice, but one complaint would be that it is mostly a male voice. I prefer having a mix of voices. There are many different chapters, each with five lessons and a quiz.
   For anyone who wants to try Mango Languages, check your local library's website. While my library has Mango, yours may not. If they do not, you will have to buy the program, but it is at a more affordable price than some programs. Mango Languages is also available in the App store. I have been very pleased with Mango Languages so far, and plan to use it while I go on exchange. As I learned it Portuguese, Tchau!

   One of the hardest things about exchange is choosing where you want to go. Do you want somewhere hot? Cold? A large country? Rich? Poor? Mix that in with concerns about the language, and choosing your country becomes a huge ordeal.

I am Jenna and I want to be an exchange student. I am Jenna and I want to be an exchange student. I am Jenna and I want to be an exchange student. I am Jenna and I want to be an exchange student.

I will keep telling myself this over and over. I will not let myself down by what others say. I will not give up. I will not listen until I get my way. I know what I want. I will get what I want.

I want to travel. I need to travel. There is an itch inside me and it won't stop until I travel. I need to see what's out there. I need to stand apart. I need to do the thing I must do.

I need to be an exchange student.