The ups and downs of living in a foreign language: What to expect during your year abroad

By: Sol Tovar is an EFL teacher and freelance content writer from Argentina. She writes on Medium about English Linguistics and Foreign Language Education and is the creator of the blog Fat In Translation.

If you are considering spending a year living in a foreign country, doing an internship or volunteering while learning the language, your brain is probably full of questions: What if I don’t understand native speakers? What if native speakers don’t understand me? What if I get lost and don’t know how to ask for help? What if, what if, what if…

I consider myself a big language nerd. When I was in first grade, I would get on my mom’s brand new PC, open Encarta 97 and go to the World Languages section, and spend hours practicing the numbers from one to ten and some phrases in all of the languages available. It was so much fun! As a child, I had always dreamt of living in another country, where I would have to speak in a foreign language all the time. Little did I know that’s what I was going to be doing in 2018 when I left my country for the first time to go study a year abroad in Germany.

The truth is, however, that even though living in another language was my dream come true, in reality, it was an emotional rollercoaster with its ups and downs.

Up: You are learning the language all the time

Living in another country is not like going to an intensive course at home. Learning does not stop once you step out of the classroom, it continues all day long. Every single aspect of your life is dominated by the language of the place that you are living in. This means that little by little you will be incorporating new vocabulary related to the things that you do the most which are perhaps not so common in textbooks. For instance, I very quickly learned that Sonderangebot and Aktion meant reduced prices at the supermarket, and I also learned a lot of new words I didn’t know before moving to Germany just by browsing through postcards!

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

Down: You have to make sure you are learning the language all the time

One of the biggest problems I encountered in Germany was that almost every single person spoke either English or Spanish fairly well, and, as soon as I mentioned I was an English teacher, or that I came from Argentina, it was very hard to make the conversation go back to German (unless I really tried to). This requires a lot of commitment on your end. If there’s someone learning your language, or a language you are very proficient at, they will try by all means to speak in that language. You need the willpower to tell them that you prefer speaking in the language that you are trying to learn or reach a compromise where they speak your language but you speak theirs, so both of you can practice.

Up: The satisfaction after a “nailed it” language moment

Probably, one of the best things that happened to me in Germany was being part of a writing course that focused on creative writing. I was able to polish my language skills in an incredibly short amount of time, and at the end of the course, our teacher made books with all our writings. In our last class together, he gave us the books and a handwritten note. I was ecstatic to read that he was proud of me and that he hoped I kept on writing in German because I was really talented. I don’t like bragging about this but it’s definitely one of my greatest accomplishments!

Down: The devastation after a huge language fail

We all make mistakes, but sometimes those mistakes have consequences that make us feel extremely sad for a long time. Not everything went flawlessly during my year abroad. In fact, I made a lot of mistakes and faced problems I didn’t know I would have. My most dreaded foe during my time in Germany was phone calls. It may sound weird, but not being able to see the person I was speaking to made it really hard to communicate over the phone. Actually, finding a job was very hard for me, because I would flunk every phone interview. I even got told to “learn German and try again when I really knew the language”. Brutal, I know. However, you don’t have to let this stop you. You are learning, and you will get better!

Up: You get to know many people from different backgrounds

Living in a foreign country allows you to meet people you wouldn’t have met if you stayed home. One of the things I enjoyed the most about my year abroad was getting to know and making friends with people from a lot of different places. Since I was in an exchange program at university, I met a lot of other exchange students from all the continents. And I was also able to make friends with Germans and other students who had moved to Germany to pursue their university studies. I also had the incredible chance to join an ex-professor of mine who was taking part in an integration project with Syrian refugees in Eastern Germany. I would have never imagined meeting all these wonderful people.

Photo by Duy Pham on Unsplash

Down: You might have to deal with some difficult natives

Some people are not as open-minded and would much prefer you weren’t there. Thankfully, I did not have one of these nasty encounters, but sadly some friends of mine did. One of my male friends was hit with a plastic bottle on a bus and told to “go home” and called names. A group of my Korean classmates was pointed at in the middle of a shopping mall and mocked. Most of the time, people are friendly, but you have to make sure you avoid the unfriendly ones.

Up: You can learn a lot about the culture when interacting with native speakers

During my year abroad, I had the chance to experience German culture at its finest. I spent Easter with a German family and got to know all the traditions around religious festivities there. We ate traditional dishes and had a great time. I was also able to go to several festivals, called Dult, and I even wore traditional dresses (Dirndl). Yes, I even went to the Oktoberfest! This wouldn’t have been possible if I hadn’t interacted and made friends with natives.

Down: You might find it hard to share your thoughts and show your full personality

It was really nice to share Easter dinner with a German family, but when it came to me sharing what I thought I found that it was hard for me to find the words and express myself in German. As a result, I felt that when I was speaking German, my personality changed, and I was quieter and did not speak as much as I would in English or Spanish. Whenever I had completed a sentence in my mind, the conversation had already shifted towards another topic, and whatever I wanted to say was not relevant anymore. I learned to start speaking without having the full sentence in my head. It may take longer to finish your ideas, but people are forced to listen to what you have to say once you start speaking, and they will help you finish your thoughts.

All in all, living in a foreign country doing an exchange program and speaking a foreign language 24/7 has both its positive and not-so-positive aspects. However, the pros most definitely outweigh the cons. So, what are you waiting for? Start planning your year abroad with us at CW Abroad. It will be an amazing experience!