Hey Everyone,

I was wondering if anyone had any experience with programs in BsAs that teach intensive spanish. I have an education award from Americorps and I think that a 2 month program to learn spanish would be an amazing use of it, especially in bsas...

I've looked around and there are just so many that look great and then have horrible reviews (eg expanish), anyone have any first hand experience?

Thanks!

Would you not prefer to learn in Spain?

The Universidad de Buenos Aires has a program for visitors that want to learn Spanish.... let me see if I can dig up the website and post it here. BRB.....

Here you go.....

http://www.uba.ar/ingles/foreign/spanish.php

Thanks Gaucho, I'll look into that.

HIDDY- I've been to both Spain and Argentina and while spain is cool, I love BsAs. This is just as much an excuse to go back there as it is a quest to learn Spanish.

Gaucho, their summer intensive program looks like it might be exactly what I was looking for. Thanks again.

But they talk strange Spanish here and mine is even stranger.

Several people recommended http://www.coined.com.ar/ - but they'd gone to the Bariloche location.

Strange? It's the most natural sounding spanish in the world!

+1 to strange.

Argentinean Spanish can be regarded as gibberish by Spanish speakers from countries further north. My experience (as someone who learned his Spanish in Central America) is that before heading off all wild-eyed to learn the language, you should actually take a moment to think about where and with whom you will eventually be speaking. If you are an American, you are far better off learning in Mexico or Central America as those are the people you are more likely to be interacting with. If you are British/European then go to Spain. Argentina is fine if you're just doing it for the hell of it, or if you intend to only ever really use it here, but trust me, you will get blank and quizzical looks from native Spanish speakers in other countries when you attempt to use your Argentinean Spanish, as so many of the nouns are unique to this country.

Proper Spanish is spoken in few places...... please dont ask me to elaborate.

Me thinks thats cause' the RSJ is doing some of the talking...?!

Especially when he drinks the SJ that isn't even R

Here is my personal experience. I'm what I'd consider highly functional, but not completely fluent. I learned the majority of my espa�ol in both Chile and Argentina, with a bit of US education thrown in (including a short time @ Berlitz). The "ideal" in the Americas would be to learn what is considered the most neutral, which is Colombia (so they say). But nothing is really neutral.

Here is what I ended up with. More of my vocabulary is chileno, but most of my grammar is argentino, as well as the cadence of my speech. My earlier travels were in Argentina, then the ones where I really started making friends and having long conversations were in Chile, now, a lot more traveling to Argentina. Both of which have people looking at you when you speak in the US or Mexico (more in the US, than in Mexico), but you will function just fine, save the occasional faux pax because an innocent word in one country is super mal dicho in another. (A couple of examples would be the filling in an alfajor in Mexico is a female anatomical part slang in Argentina, or rush hour in Argentina would be male anatomical part hour in Chile. )

I would suggest you learn espa�ol wherever you want to hang out for awhile, because if you like it, you'll be returning. And if you travel around, you'll function just fine, even if you accidentally ask for something inappropriate from time to time, or can't figure out where the food is on the highway when you hear that there are "tacos en la autopista."

Virtually every country has its own unique nouns, idioms and slang ..this is not just an issue in Argentina. As a British guy who learnt Spanish in Buenos Aires whilst living there for 6 years, my experience is the complete opposite of what you have posted. I am pretty much fluent now and have had long and interesting conversations with many other Spanish speakers in numerous countries in South America, Mexico and Spain. I obviously grade my language to avoid using slang, lunfardo etc when conversing with non-Argentines but to suggest another Spanish speaker will not be able to understand you or think you're talking gibberish is nonsense

^

I learnt some basic stuff in the UK....then came here and found nobody understood what the hell I was saying.
Many years later and nothing much has changed. One good thing is.....I don't have to converse with the mother in law. I just smile at her which seems to keep her happy.
She probably thinks I'm daft.