Does anyone have a recommendation of a good school for Castillian in the Washington, DC metro area? I would be looking for at least an intermediate class. My experience so far is that I've taken 4 years of Spanish classes during my high school years. Since then I've done quite a bit of studying, but it's been on my own with books and computer software. I figure a formal class would be beneficial at this point, especially since the 4 years of Spanish class I had during school was the Latin America variety.

I believe the best way to go about is through the ministry of education of spain in DC. Consejería de Educación is an part of the ministry.

Wáshington
Embajada de España - Consejería de Educación
2375 Pennsylvania Ave. NW; Washington DC 20037 Tel.:+1-202-728 2335
Sra. Dª. Carmen Velasco Fax:+1-202-728 2313
http://www.sgci.mec.es/usa carmen.velasco.usa@correo.mec.es

http://diplomas.cervantes.es/inicio.asp?CodMenu1=1&CodMenu2=2

the way I took classes was at Cervantes in NYC. Cervantes was creeated by the spanish government so... you will most likely be taught in castillan spanish. I say the best was is to just go to Spain ! hehe well, I hope this has helped.

I tried to do this in DC last year and was unable to find any classes. Cervantes doesn't have a branch in DC and the Embassy didn't have any suggestions. Perhaps you could find a private lesson by posting in the City Paper.

All that said, unless you are super-advanced, a class taught by a Latin American teacher will do you worlds of good. The USDA Grad School is a good place to check out.

I believe you are right that continuing along my self education of the Latin American variety will still be most beneficial. I guess what I need to make myself aware of are the differences between that Latin American and Castilian so that I don't wander around Spain saying "¿Qué?" every time a Spaniard speaks to me (hopefully I can reduce it to every *other* time lol). The differences I know so far are as follows:

1) In Spain you change the sound of "z" and "c" (as in hacer not comer) to a "th" sound instead of a "s" sound. I imagine I'll understand the native speakers just fine regarding this, but making myself say the "th" won't come natural I don't think.

2) In Spain, "ll" makes the "ly" sound rather than just the "y" sound. Take "caballo" for example, LA = kah-buy-yo where Spain = kah-ball-yo. This is what I'm told but I had trouble actually distinguishing this when listening to some samples.

2) The use of vosotros rather than ustedes for informal plural "you". I need to first of all learn the vosotros conjugations as I was not taught these originally. Second I need to figure out exactly when to use this instead of ustedes.

3) Similar to #3, when to use informal v. formal. Would it be impolite for me, in brief conversation with someone I just met on a bus for example, to ask "¿Como te llamas?" as opposed to "¿Como se llama usted?". After all I do not want to come across as rude as obviously I do not intend to be.

4) Common phrases in general I'm sure are different in Castellano v. Latin American Spanish. I do not know what all of these are but one I picked up on was for example when asking someone if they speak Spanish. LA type would be "¿Comprendes tú Español?" while Castellano would be "¿Entiende Castellano?" (I think this is correct). Someone told me that "¿Que pasa?" is uncommon also in Spain, can someone confirm that?

Needless to say I'm searching for knowledge on these differences as I will be in Spain soon. I know I can adapt rather quickly once there, but it would be nice to be one step ahead if possible. Can anyone confirm the accuracy of what I stated above? Also, does anyone know of a good resource that goes into good detail regarding these differneces?

¡Muchas grácias!

-Loc

"Coger" in Latin America is "to rape (sexually assault)", while in Spain, it is very common form of "to take".

yes, vosotros is used a lot in Spain, but they understand you if you use the Usted form. "Gafas" is in Spanish while "Lentes" are in LA for glasses. But there are various words for different things throughout LA as well. I work with a Hondoran and a Venuzuelan and sometimes when we speak Spainsh, we don't even understand each other!

I am having the same problem! I live in DC and looked for a while and found nothing. So I signed up with a private tutor, but he would get upset with me if I spoke with the Spain accent. I finally gave in -- I am signed up for a class at the USDA grad school beginning in April. Oh, one thing to watch, however, is www.craigslist.com -- sometimes there are ads for people from spain teaching private lessons. I had already signed up for this class when I discovered that.

I don't think you'll have much trouble understanding us. Some latin americans complain than we talk too fast, but people will politely talk slower to you.

Now, regarding your question about the use of "ustedes", you will find that people under 40 or so rarely use "ustedes". However, when in the bus and talking to someone older, I would use the "ustedes" form.

By the way, in Spain there are as many different accents as latin american countries. All you've said applys to Madrid, but take Seville, for example: In Seville they say "ustedes" a lot, but the conjugate it as "vosotros". In the south, the "c" and "z" sound are "s" in most cases. To make everything "easier", in east andalucia sometimes "s" is pronounced as "th".... But don't worry, u'll do just fine.

I’m from Mexico and have never had any problem talking to or understanding someone from Spain. Obviously, there are differences in the way we talk, you know different countries have different accents. So, all the Spanish you can learn in a formal setting, even if it’s from a Latin-American teacher, will be to your advantage when getting to Spain. Don't let the stereotypes work against you.

While a kid I attended a catholic school where most of the priests and some professors were from Spain. Most times, if they were from small towns the accent was pretty thick, but those that came from larger cities had a more “clear” accent. Also the accent changed depending on the area of the country they were from. So I don't know how important it is to choose an accent from Spain you like and go study there.

By the way, “coger” can also be used as a bad word in Mexico, but mostly it is a slang word. So you can hear the word as used in Spain, however, in South America, don’t use it at all.

About the pronunciation of the "ll" and the "Y", in Latinamerica is used the sameway than in Spain. In some Latin countries they make the "ll" sound even stronger than in Spain, like in Chile or Argentina. For example, my American friends were worried about me when I said that going to "jail" was a good opportunity for anyone. However I meant Yale... Do you get it?

If you use "Comprende tu espanol" you will sound so American!! At least in LA, just say or ask “¿Hablas español?" or the more formal ¿Habla usted español? and that's it.

Another way to getting used to the Spanish accent is to listen to radio stations from Spain. MM has some links to good radio stations from Spain on this website.

If you are in the DC area and want to practice your Spanish from Spain, email me!