Welcome to the very first episode of the Coffee Break Swedish Travel Diaries! In Episode 1 we are introduced to a family of four as they drive down from the city of Uppsala to spend their summer holidays on the West Coast of Sweden. As we get to know them and follow their initial drive down to the coast we review some key grammar, including tenses and compound words, and are introduced to both new vocabulary and grammar points.
Month: April 2023
CBI 3.34 | Il tesoro di Montespelonca | Bentornata a casa, Stella!
Welcome back to Coffee Break Italian Season 3. In episode 34 we are listening to the fourth segment of our story series ‘Il tesoro di Montespelonca‘! Alessandro and his three friends visit Nina, Alessandro’s Nonna, who tells them about the legend of an underground cave going through the mountain near her wheat fields. Allegedly, hens would sometimes disappear when people took them to the market, and they would then reappear on the other side of the mountain, as if by magic. Alessandro wonders if Stella could be hiding in this legendary cave but when he returns home he is surprised to see his dog, found by a farmer in his own field, right on the other side of the mountain!
CBG 3.34 | Ein Zwilling studiert selten allein | Der Abiball
Welcome back to a new episode of Coffee Break German Season 3. In this episode we are listening to the fourth part of our story series ‘Ein Zwilling studiert selten allein‘! In this segment of the story the whole family are attending the “Abiball” to celebrate the end of the twins’ school career. It is a fabulous evening filled with speeches, laughter, music, dance and Lucie and Marian are enjoying their time with friends, family and former teachers. Listen out for some new vocabulary used to describe the exciting evening such as: in raschem Tempo, überaus gutaussehend and schnattern.
Meet the team: Thomas
Servus! My name is Thomas and I am a German Curriculum Developer at Coffee Break Languages. My role is mainly to create and develop content for the different German courses, but I also show up in videos from time to time.
What is your role in Coffee Break?
I mostly create and record content for the different German learning formats, whether that is Coffee Break German, the Club or shorts for social media. I really enjoy the variety this role brings in terms of writing resources and being able to focus on different aspects of the language. This role also includes the audio and video recording in the studio, which requires very different skills, but I enjoy just as much. Especially because it involves working together with a lot of different members of the Coffee Break Languages Team, either in front or behind the microphone.
What experience have you had speaking and learning other languages?
My first experience with learning languages was at school. I learned English for 9 years and Latin for 3. To be honest, I really didn’t enjoy languages in school and I was never particularly good at them either. My real interest for English started when I was 16 while watching films in English, translating song lyrics and most of all, traveling through Europe. I kept improving my English during my years at university and I also attended a Spanish course before spending a year in Seville as an exchange student. There, I met my Scottish wife and moved to Scotland a few years later which took my understanding of English, and indeed the local accents, to the next level. Since then, I have started a Gaelic course, tried to improve my Spanish skills and started raising a bilingual son.
What are your favourite memories of working with Coffee Break?
When I first worked with Mark, we recorded in a small studio behind his living room and there was a very small team. I really liked his approach to learning and teaching languages and was amazed at the business he managed to build. I loved coming up with the first season of Coffee Break German together and laugh fondly at the awkwardness of my first recordings and listening back to them.
Where would your ideal coffee break be and with whom?
It would definitely be back in Seville in Spain, at the small café in front of the university. Sun in the sky, a café con hielo and chatting with the friends I made during my exchange year, finding out what everybody has been up to over the last 10 years.
What’s your best language learning tip?
My first real motivation for learning languages came from doing things I enjoyed anyway, but in a foreign language. For me that meant starting to read fantasy books and watching films in English, or changing the language of my computer games to English. I think practising the language through something that you enjoy not only gives you a lot of exposure, increases understanding and builds your vocabulary, but also shows you the relevance and lets you use it in a practical way. Depending on your level you could even start with simplified language, for example from children’s books or switching on the subtitles for a film. However, over time your hobby or interest will be extended by a completely new culture, whether that is Spanish DIY videos, Italian poetry, Polish fantasy authors or German folk music!
The other tip, however not always possible, would be to move to a country where the language is spoken for a period of time.
Quick-fire round
- Favourite language: Overall German, even though it’s my own language. I love how complex it is and that I still learn new grammar rules after 34 years. I also love the different dialects, especially in parts of Austria, and generally find it to be a beautiful language to listen to, even if others may think it sounds a bit harsh.
- Favourite word/phrase: zach which is an Austrian colloquial word that just sounds exactly like what it describes, being anything from “tough, chewy, difficult, stubborn” but also “hardy, strong, endurant”.
- Favourite film: I really liked the last “Dune” film but as an all time favourite, it would probably be “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy.
- Favourite TV show: Currently “The Witcher”
- Favourite destination: Mountains, all kinds of them. I love the Alps, the Scottish Highlands, the Sierra Nevada and its white villages and basically every mountain range I have been to in the world.
- Favourite Bands: Alt-J, Kettcar
Do you have a message for the Coffee Break community?
Firstly, a massive Danke to the whole community. It is amazing to see how your support, contributions and loyalty helped Coffee Break Languages to develop, add new languages and courses and grow its team within the last 10 years. I am incredibly excited to be part of it again and create new and exciting German content for all our learners.
CBP 1.04 | Where you live — How to talk about where you live in Portuguese
Ready to learn some more Portuguese on your coffee break? In this fourth lesson, we’ll be learning how to ask someone where they live and how to talk about where you live. We’ll also be taking some of our knowledge from previous episodes a step further by learning how to use the verb ser (“to be”) to talk about where other people are from, as well as how to form negative phrases.
Introducing the Coffee Break Swedish Travel Diaries
The Coffee Break Swedish Travel Diaries will be starting next Thursday 27th April! In this short introductory episode we share some details about what you can expect from the series. You’ll be following the adventures of a Swedish family as they take a road trip down the west coast of Sweden, from Marstrand down to Halmstad. Throughout the lessons you will have the opportunity to practise your Swedish, increase your understanding and build your vocabulary through travel.
We’ll also have an online course for the Travel Diaries which will offer additional materials like lesson notes, a video version of the lesson and bonus audio materials. Further information coming soon!
CBGa 1.03 | Where you’re from — Countries in Gaelic
Welcome back to the next episode of Coffee Break Gaelic! In this episode you will learn how to talk about where you are from. We’ll also cover the names for different countries in Gaelic and take a closer look at the verb “to be”.
Meet the team: Léa
Salut ! My name is Léa and I joined Coffee Break in September 2021 as the French Social Media Assistant. I come from Ile-de-France, France and I am currently based in Glasgow, UK.
What is your role in Coffee Break?
My role as Social Media Assistant is to write Facebook posts for the Coffee Break French page and answer questions and comments from our community. I also take part in the content creation for the Coffee Break Club – this means that I write reading and listening activities as well as exercises for learners to practise their French in the Club!
What experience have you had speaking and learning other languages?
French is my mother tongue and I started learning English at school at 11 years old. During middle school, I chose Spanish as my second language and grew more and more passionate about both English and Spanish. I was lucky to be surrounded by friends who shared the same interest as me and we quickly improved by speaking English together or reading English books. After high school, I decided that I wanted to keep learning about languages while studying astronomy, so I moved to the UK to attend university. So far, my favourite aspect of studying in Scotland has been meeting and getting to know people from all around the world and exchanging information about our different cultures.
What are your favourite memories of working with Coffee Break?
There has been many great memories working with Coffee Break! Although I only joined recently, I feel so lucky to be part of such a great team. My favourite memories so far have all been around Christmas time, as the office is always decorated with fairy lights and a Christmas tree. It’s a very nice environment to work in!
Where would your ideal coffee break be and with whom?
My ideal coffee break would be in a wooden cabin in a snowy landscape around a fireplace with my family, after a day out hiking in nature.
What’s your best language-learning tip?
I think that the best way to learn a new language is consistency – doing some learning every day and mixing hobbies with the language learning to make it fun (watching movies, reading books, …). I find that it’s also very useful to interact with native speakers either through written chat or calls whenever possible!
Quickfire round
• Favourite language: Swedish
• Favourite word/phrase in French: Éphémère– which means short-lived
• Favourite TV show: Lupin
• Favourite French book: La Fortune des Rougons by Émile Zola
• Favourite French Singer: Pomme
• Favourite destination: the Scottish Highlands
Do you have a message for the Coffee Break Community?
Learning is a lifelong process! It will never be too late for you to start learning a new hobby/language. I hope that you will find all the future amazing Coffee Break launches as exciting as I do and thank you so much for your support so far!
Capítulo 10 – ¡Esto pasa de castaño oscuro!
In Chapter 10 of La penúltima voluntad, Pilar searches for Carlos and calls Marta looking for answers before finding out that Carlos has been plotting a secret plan. Throughout the episode we hear some Galician words such as fochicar and estragar as well as some interesting Spanish expressions like: ser muy suyo/a and llevar por la calle de la amargura.
CBI 3.33 | Il tesoro di Montespelonca | La paura fa novanta
In this episode of Coffee Break Italian Season 3 we listen to the third instalment of our story series ‘Il tesoro di Montespelonca‘! In this part of the story the residents of Montespelonca gather for a dinner in the square followed by a night walk to enjoy the stars. Alessandro and his friends tell a little lie and decide to look for the wolf instead but as they are searching they hear a terrifying noise! In this episode, among other things, you can observe how adjectives change their meaning depending on whether they are placed before or after nouns. There are also some nice set phrases like: in lungo e in largo and a gambe levate.
CBG 3.33 | Ein Zwilling studiert selten allein | Vorfreude und Vorbereitungen
In episode 33 of Coffee Break German Season 3, we listen to the third instalment of our story series ‘Ein Zwilling studiert selten allein‘! After enjoying a delicious meal with their family to celebrate Marian and Lucie’s exam results, they sit down with their father Michael to further discuss preparations for moving to California. In this episode, among other things, you can observe how the infinitive is used in subordinate clauses (with and without “um”) and review the use of reflexive verbs. Listen out for some new and useful vocabulary such as: zigmal, erheben and sich etwas entgehen lassen.
Meet the team: Max
Salut ! I’m Max, I’ve been working for Coffee Break Languages since October 2021 as a French Curriculum Developer. I come from Grenoble, in the beautiful French Alps but I’ve been living in Glasgow since 2014. I love languages and I love learning and teaching. I am a teacher of French as a foreign language.
What is your role in Coffee Break?
I create French content in various formats and for different projects. I write texts, produce audio recordings and record videos too. I also provide feedback for our Masterclass and I’m involved in our French monolingual podcast Il était une fois.
What experience have you had speaking and learning other languages?
I’ve been learning English since I was 8 throughout the school system and I have a Bachelor’s degree in English. After seven years in Scotland, I’m still learning new words and phrases every day. I also studied Spanish for a long time, and I’ve been teaching it for a few years too. I’m currently learning Portuguese and I’ve been picking up some words and phrases in Polish from my friends too.
What is your favourite thing about working with Coffee Break?
My favourite aspect of the job is the constant variety of tasks. Writing content from scratch, filming videos, providing feedback, recording podcasts, I find it very refreshing and challenging to work on different things all the time. I also love the atmosphere in the office and the in-depth discussions about specific language points in many languages.
Where would your ideal coffee break be and with whom?
Anywhere sunny! Maybe in the south of France, in June or September. I would love to share a coffee and a conversation with… anyone I’ve never met! I would love to meet someone new and listen to their story.
What’s your best language learning tip?
This may sound a bit odd, but one thing I always do when learning a language, and recommend doing, is to speak out loud and describe what you are doing when you are alone. When you are cooking or cleaning, for example. It is a great way to identify exactly what you need to learn next (vocabulary, grammar etc…).
Other than that, I believe consistency is key. A little bit of learning every day goes a long way, and of course, don’t worry about making mistakes, it’s part of the learning process. Everybody makes mistakes, even in their own mother tongue!
Quickfire round
• Favourite language: French, of course!
• Favourite word/phrase in French: C’est la vie !
• Favourite film: Je vais bien ne t’en fais pas. A beautiful movie about all kinds of love, and the lengths one may go to keep their loved ones happy.
Favourite singer: Jacques Brel
Favourite destination : Le Grau-du-Roi. From ages 5 to 18, I spent all my summers in this lovely town along the Mediterranean.
Do you have a message for the Coffee Break Community?
Learning a language is a wonderful journey on many levels and at any stage of the learning process. It gives you confidence, self-esteem and can open your eyes as to how you can perceive the world from a different perspective. I have never met anyone who learned a second or third language and regretted it. N’hésitez pas, foncez !
CBP 1.03 | Where you’re from — Countries and nationalities in Portuguese
Join teacher Rafael and learner Ava in this third episode of Coffee Break Portuguese. This time, we’ll be focusing on talking about where you’re from and learning some words for different nationalities.
CBGa 1.02 | Introducing yourself – How to say “my name is…” in Gaelic
Join teacher Susanna and learner Mark for Episode 2 of Coffee Break Gaelic. In this lesson, you’ll learn greetings for different times of day, how to introduce yourself and how to ask the question “what is your name?”. In this episode you’ll also meet our Cultural Correspondent Rae, who will tell you how to address people in Gaelic.
Meet the team: Jack
Bonjour ! My name’s Jack and I’m the Audio Visual Production Coordinator at Coffee Break Languages. I joined the company full-time in October 2021 after doing undergraduate degrees in Economics at the University of Aberdeen and Filmmaking and Screenwriting at the University of the West of Scotland. Although I was born in Scotland, I grew up in Belgium and Luxembourg where I went to the European School of Luxembourg, so I am fluent in both English and French I even know a little bit of Spanish from studying it at school and university too.
What is your role in Coffee Break?
The main part of my job involves editing our videos and podcasts so I spend most of my time at work editing, receiving feedback and then making corrections before sending it off for uploading. I also spend 1-2 days per week working on The Club and other video content in our Ayr office, where I do everything from adjusting cameras and lighting to sound checking and vision mixing on our state-of-the-art mixing board. Finally, I also occasionally help out with the creation of Coffee Break French content.
What experience have you had speaking and learning other languages?
Growing up in Belgium and then in Luxembourg, French was the language I would use day-to-day, while speaking English at home, so I essentially grew up bilingual. About half of my classes were also taught in French while I was at the European School of Luxembourg and it was also mandatory to do a 3rd language for at least 3 years during high school. So I studied French and used it in casual conversation everyday, and studied Spanish as a third language. I then studied Spanish for a year while I was at the University of Aberdeen and I have friends from Spain and France who I keep in regular contact with and I always relish any opportunity to speak French or Spanish when I meet a native speaker.
What are your favourite memories of working with Coffee Break?
As I edit a lot of our content, I get to see the “bloopers” that the audience doesn’t, so it’s always funny to see and hear some of the flubs and goofy faces our presenters make when they’re a little flustered. One of my first days in the office was filming Club content with Pierre-Benoît and I can assure you, he is just as flamboyant off-camera as he is on it!
Where would your ideal coffee break be, and with whom?
If I could pick one person to share a cup of tea with (I’m actually not a coffee drinker, don’t tell Mark), it would probably have to be one of my favourite filmmakers. Maybe someone like Denis Villeneuve who I could talk French to as well, although Quebecois is it’s own unique language if you ask me!
Quickfire round
- Favourite languages: French, Spanish
- Favourite word/phrase in French: Nom de Dieu !
- Favourite film / TV show: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Mighty Boosh
- Favourite destination: My two favourite places that I’ve visited (outside of Scotland) are Holland and Quebec, but I’ve also always wanted to visit New Zealand and recently have been looking into a holiday in Newfoundland or Patagonia in Argentina.
Do you have a message for the Coffee Break Community?
One great way I’ve found to help me practise my French and Spanish is watching football or rugby matches with the commentary in that language. If you understand the sport, then you can understand what the commentators are talking about in context and learn new words and phrases as a result.
Capítulo 9 – Una entrevista con sorpresa
Following her latest clue, Marta finds herself at the Teatro Clásico and is taken aback by what is waiting for her there. While listening to this chapter, pay close attention to the interesting expressions which come up, including: tener delito, moririse de ganas de, costar trabajo and al borde de. We also learn about corrales de comedia, open-air theatres in Spain during the 16th century. Listen to the episode to find out more!
