[SPIKE ARRESTOR]

Originally Posted by mjumrani

Guys I am planning to do my Masters in Germany and I wanted to do a course in the language.

Which course are you applying for and what level German do you plan to study?

My friends in Germany say that Max Mueller is over-rated.

Why do they say so?

Originally Posted by Abhay

In what way is Max Mueller over-rated? If you are in a hurry, it is your best bet.

Yes, they have courses meeting all kinds of requirements - short term intensive, long term, German for kids, clubbed courses. In India, they are the best bet and value for money.

Spike

PS- Companies like BMW, Mercedes, Audi have German language in-plant training for their employees and in most cases the teacher is from a Goethe Institut (Max Mueller Bhavan).

[mjumrani]

Originally Posted by Abhay

In what way is Max Mueller over-rated? If you are in a hurry, it is your best bet. There are plenty of private tutors around as well (atleast here) but not sure why MM should not be good enough for you (assuming it is a beginner/intermediate course you need)

Originally Posted by SPIKE ARRESTOR

Which course are you applying for and what level German do you plan to study?

Why do they say so?

Yes, they have courses meeting all kinds of requirements - short term intensive, long term, German for kids, clubbed courses. In India, they are the best bet and value for money.

Spike

That's what I've been told by them. Will ask the reason next time I chat with them.

I will be applying for intermediate, but not sure yet.

[carboy]

The best place to learn French in Alliance Francaise. The teachers are fantastic - they speak french as well as Native French Speakers. Most of them have done 3-4 years of intensive study & also spent time in France.
And their teaching style is unique - from Day 1 on there is no other language spoken in class except French - i.e french is taught in french from day 1. During a 4 month course - there wasn't a single word of Hindi or English spoken in class. This is how a child learns his first language, without the aid of other languages. And some of their courses are even audio visual - i.e. you watch short movies(5-10 minutes) & discuss it as part of the course few day. You learn French songs etc. They also have French teachers visiting from France occasionally.

The pronunciation is perfect in Alliance Francaise - in most other schools.
I have seen French Teachers have a bookish knowledge of French - i.e. I have seen people who have studied french ask "Quel est votre nom" - which translates to "what's your name?" - but this is a question which a native French speaker will never ask - they would ask "Comment vous appellez-vous?" which translates to "What do you call yourself" which is how a french guy would phrase the question.

If anyone wants to learn French, Alliance Francaise is the place.

Big Disclaimer : I must add that I studied there in 1993 or 1994, so my experience is not current. And this was when they had only in one center in Bombay - in Churchgate.

[AlphaKilo]

Originally Posted by mjumrani

That's what I've been told by them. Will ask the reason next time I chat with them.

I will be applying for intermediate, but not sure yet.

Mate, take it from me(I have done my B.Eng in Germany, completely in German! and now doing my Masters again in Germany!) Learn German from the Germans! yes max müller bhavan is over priced but you get the quality for the price that you pay. And also, when you hold a Goethe Zertifikat, its all over valid in Germany. I am not sure about any other certificates. Also, what ever you learn there at Max Müller Bhavan will surely come in handy when you come over here. If you are planning to do from MMB, keep atleast 2 years in hand, so that you can atleast complete level B2 (Zertifikat Deutsch 2). When you have this level, you can easily converse in German and with some practice can even conduct presentations in German. Accent will be the biggest issue, but that the guys at MMB will train you and any other colloquiual accent, you will get to know once you land here.

[mjumrani]

Originally Posted by AlphaKilo

Mate, take it from me(I have done my B.Eng in Germany, completely in German! and now doing my Masters again in Germany!) Learn German from the Germans! yes max müller bhavan is over priced but you get the quality for the price that you pay. And also, when you hold a Goethe Zertifikat, its all over valid in Germany. I am not sure about any other certificates. Also, what ever you learn there at Max Müller Bhavan will surely come in handy when you come over here. If you are planning to do from MMB, keep atleast 2 years in hand, so that you can atleast complete level B2 (Zertifikat Deutsch 2). When you have this level, you can easily converse in German and with some practice can even conduct presentations in German. Accent will be the biggest issue, but that the guys at MMB will train you and any other colloquiual accent, you will get to know once you land here.

In that case I will call MMB and see if any seats are available for the B2 level course.
Availability is doubtful though as weekends tend to be generally full.

[girishglg]

Did anyone notice yet another Japanese word or phrase hitting us in a ad campaign without anyone of us not knowing what it means -

'Waku Doki'

Courtesy ET - Toyota rides on Waku Doki to connect with youth - Economic Times

Toyota (TKM) launched its new advertising campaign targeted at the youth, titled Waku Doki - Japanese for heightened anticipation and excited heart thumping.

Loosely translated the term also means 'an exciting adrenaline rush.'

Saw some of the print ads and never understood the meaning till one researched on it. Come on guys what is the use of all this when the words are alien to us?

[joslicx]

Originally Posted by girishglg

Saw some of the print ads and never understood the meaning till one researched on it. Come on guys what is the use of all this when the words are alien to us?

The use is that it made you look for the meaning of it!

Thats what advertisers want to do. They want to grab your attention (for positive or negative it does not matter). They succeeded in your case. What more is needed?

[blackasta]

Originally Posted by AlphaKilo

yes max müller bhavan is over priced but you get the quality for the price that you pay. .

Absolutely agree - I started learning after my 10+2, but had to drop out after A1 for many reasons (College started/ house was too far/ near impossible for a student to pay the fees by himself )
Had a great experience - they really teach you the language as it is meant to be taught - without uttering a word in any other language!

[girishglg]

Right since my first foreign jaunt to Thailand in 2006, me and my very good friend greet each other in pure Thai over the phone-

sawasdee ka - Hello
kapun kaap - thank you

Everytime we do that we remember our first memorable trip.

[vagu]

Hi AlphaKilo, I'm going for my MBA to Germany and my course will start in August last week. I am hoping to complete upto A2 level before I land in Germany. I contacted Max Muller Bhavan in delhi and they are only offering me A1 course for 18k and the duration will be 3 months.

Should I take up the course or go for a private tutor or maybe learn on my own through youtube videos and audio files?

Originally Posted by AlphaKilo

Mate, take it from me(I have done my B.Eng in Germany, completely in German! and now doing my Masters again in Germany!) Learn German from the Germans! yes max müller bhavan is over priced but you get the quality for the price that you pay. And also, when you hold a Goethe Zertifikat, its all over valid in Germany. I am not sure about any other certificates. Also, what ever you learn there at Max Müller Bhavan will surely come in handy when you come over here. If you are planning to do from MMB, keep atleast 2 years in hand, so that you can atleast complete level B2 (Zertifikat Deutsch 2). When you have this level, you can easily converse in German and with some practice can even conduct presentations in German. Accent will be the biggest issue, but that the guys at MMB will train you and any other colloquiual accent, you will get to know once you land here.

[AlphaKilo]

Originally Posted by vagu

Hi AlphaKilo, I'm going for my MBA to Germany and my course will start in August last week. I am hoping to complete upto A2 level before I land in Germany. I contacted Max Muller Bhavan in delhi and they are only offering me A1 course for 18k and the duration will be 3 months.

Should I take up the course or go for a private tutor or maybe learn on my own through Youtube videos and audio files?

Youtube videos and audio files - NO. If you want to learn it the right way, please go to Max Müller Bhavan (MMB). Its way too costly by the way at MMB. If you can find a person who can teach good German privately, you may do so and probably write the MMB exam as an external. You would only have to pay the exam fee (I am not sure if this system still exists!) MMB has changed a lot since my days, they have become more money oriented! Check with MMB, give them a call and talk to them regarding writing the exam as a private candidate. If your course/uni mandates German language, please do it preferably from MMB. Also, do please check with visa regulations whether it mandates knowledge of German to be necessary or not.
All the best!

[sajo]

Originally Posted by Abhay

but spanish is something which is very close to my heart. I have learnt it and can read/write well enough..speaking is slightly more problematic since I don't get much if any practice .

Abhay and other Spanish language experts , need some help here.

If I have to write something like One thousand and twenty three in Spanish , is uno mil veintitrés just as acceptable (or atleast, technically correct) as un mil veintitrés ?

- Muchas gracias

If its printed on a legal document in the first format, is it acceptable ?

PS : Dont know a word of Spanish.

PPS : Even after all these years I am still amazed at the variety and the depth of the knowledge floating around here.

[nipcarlover]

Have been learning German since the last year, after my 10th exams.

Learning from Goethe-Zentrum Ahmedabad. Already finished A1 a few months back and now doing A2.

One amusing thing I learned recently: 'Gift' in German means Poison!

[Abhay]

^^sajo,

as far as I know, "un mil" is the correct version. "Uno" is used just for the number One itself or any number ending in one (when just writing a number)
"Un" is used for "a/one thing" for the masculine gender - e.g , a car, or 1 car will be un coche. Also the number one thousand becomes un mil. but if it is 1001 then it would be un mil y uno.

[karpusv]

A good compilation of phrases which any Non-Japanese can use when visiting or even conversing to break-ice and get that smile across on the other person.

Please allow me to make some changes to your post with reference to the words and pronunciation. I will mention them as (like this) after respective words/phrases. No offence meant to point out as mistakes.

Originally Posted by trammway

A blog post of mine after my long stay in Japan:

arikato, arikato gosaimasu and Thou arikato gosaimasu are Thanks, Thank you and Thank you very much respectively in English are Japanese words most pronounced among Japanese people.
Arigatou, Arigatou Gozaimasu, Domou Arigatou Gozaimasu
(The difference between them is the varying degree of politeness)

Sumi masen means excuse me; you need to know this to get japanese attention during the busy hours train journey to get way for you. Not only that for many places like asking for a path or information from a station master you can use sumi masen as sorry or excuse me.
Thou chou means Sorry; you can use this instead sumi masen too. Based on location you can change between sumimasen and Thou chou.
(Gomen Nasai is the formal word for saying sorry or tendering an apology)

‘Hai’ or 'Hi' and ‘So’ in Japanese means yes in English. Some times when a person next to me says hi to somebody takes my attention as I used hi for different purpose don’t we?

‘Nie’ (iie - pronounced as ee-yah) in Japanese means no in English, the pronunciation of nei is similar to saying nai in Hindi language. (Nai - pronounced as Naai refers means Not and usage is contextual)

‘Ah So’ means Is it what sounds to me.

‘Mush mushi’ (moshi moshi, which is short for Moshiemasu moshiemasu) is another word used very commonly while attending a phone call, this means hello in English. (It literally means I am listening, I am listening)

Adding ‘ne’ in the end of conversation soften the phrase, hence you can hear sentences ending with the sound ‘ne’ very frequently. (It is also a way of getting a confirmation from the other person like Isn't it? or Hai na in hindi)

Rey, ichi, ni, san , shi (or Yon), go are zero, one, two, three, four and five in English.
(Roku, Shichi (or Nana), Hachi, Kyu, Jyu are six, seven eight, nine and ten.)


Sore wa - this is (That is - any thing nearby but not with you)

Kore wa - that is (This is - something near you or in front of you)

(Arey-wa - that is - something which is far away or cannot be seen).

Sayonara is used to say Good bye in Japanese

Othskare Samidesu (otsukare samadesu) is widely used to say work has finished, leaving for the day etc. You can see people saying this while coming out of toilet, after smoke, after work leaving home and even after food or tea.
(It means Cheers for the good work.
When leaving office before others, one says Shitsure Shimasu - means excuse me)

Ohaio Gosaimasu says Good morning, if you look at some of the phrases the Gosaimasu will be postfixed. It is nothing but a word for wish.

Konnichiwa means Good day

Kombawa or Konbawa means Good evening
(Normally upto 10am Ohayo Gozaimau is used.
From 10 onwards it changes to Konnichiwa and can go on upto 6pm.
Konbanwa is Good Evening but people still say konnichiwa in the evenings.
Yasumi Nasai means good night)

Othachiwa (Watashiwa) means "I am" when you wanted to say I’m Siva(replace with your name), you need to say Othachiwa Siva desu. Looking at this you would have found desu is postfixed to make the proper form of saying I’m Siva in Japanese.

Yoi sumatsuwo ne (Shoomatsuwo); the sentence says that Happy weekend to you. Sumatsu means week and sumantsuwo means weekend. Yoi should be happy and ne to soften the phrase.

I believe the current versions of Google translate can also read out the words. However, some of them are tricky as the tones of women and men are bit different.