Myth of truth: Do you learn a language faster when you live abroad?

It is a common saying, ‘if you want to learn the language, you will have to live there too’. As always, I think that depends on the person. Obviously not everyone learns in the same way, but from my own experience I can say that I consider it to be an advantage. When I was living in Japan, I was learning Japanese a lot faster. That has to do with the immersion, and especially for a language that uses a different alphabet, it just helps to see it around you all the time. Because the characters were everywhere, I could repeat and learn new kanji while biking to school, or on a train commute. This blog will highlight what I consider to be advantages of learning a language abroad, more specifically learning Japanese in Japan and English in the USA.

6 Advantages of learning a language abroad

First advantage: Immersion & exposure
As I already mentioned in the intro, being surrounded by the language generates a lot of passive learning. There’s many different skills that come with learning a language, including speaking- and listening skills. While you might not necessarily learn to speak the language better, your listening skills will quickly improve from hearing it around you all the time. I noticed this most when I was living in Japan, where it helped me improve both my listening and reading skills. It is also easier to study the language when you are immersed in it, because your brain is already wired and in ”language mode”. While I was living in Japan, there were (of course!) no Dutch people around so it was then that English became my first language. At school most of the classes would be taught in Japanese, and all my studying was of course in Japanese as well. I only used Dutch when I was calling my Dutch friends and family. In the beginning of my exchange year, I was exhausted all the time. I thought it was just me adjusting to Japanese university life (blog for another time, but school in Japan is HARD), and I was certainly a busy bee. Later I realized it had something to do with the constant switching of languages in my brain. Sure, I mainly used English and Japanese, but I would still frequently receive messages and emails in Dutch. On a regular day I would constantly use all three languages mixed together, and let me tell you, that costs a LOT of energy! Apparently there is a science to it: When speaking multiple languages and switching between them, they are actually competing with one another in your brain. That can also result in bilingual people mixing up their languages and temporarily not being able to speak either. Fun times!

Second advantage: Not just the language but also the culture
I am a big advocate for not just studying the language, but also studying the culture, because I personally don’t think you’ll ever fully understand the language if you don’t know it’s cultural meaning behind it. This specifically goes for idioms, but if we just study the usage of words, we might not always understand the meaning behind them. So much of a language is related to context. That’s why automated translation services such as Google Translate will never be a hundred percent accurate.
The Japanese language is a perfect example in this case. There are words and sentences in Japanese that cannot ever be accurately translated into English. ”Yoroshiku onegaishimasu” is one of those phrases, that we tend to translate to ”nice to meet you”, but there is a deeper meaning behind it. The phrase is infused with a sense of respect and politeness that reflects the Japanese culture, yet that gets lost in translation.

Fun fact: Did you know that people who speak a different language also adopt some of the differences in culture that come with it? For example, I hardly ever use profanity in Dutch. I am much more polite and calm when I speak Dutch compared to English. It’s like I prefer being mad in English, as I feel like I can express myself better.

Third advantage: No textbook learning
Not everyone is a fan of learning a language from a textbook. In Dutch we have a saying amongst students: ”dom stampen”, which literally translates to ‘stupid stamping’, and refers to how some things can only be learned by repetition. It implies that you don’t need a lot of mental capacity for this act of learning, and that it is not engaging at all. Learning a language is a lot like that, because repetition is key. When it comes to vocabulary, all you can do is just repeat the words over and over again. But the thing is, passive learning and learning from the people around you are very engaging things. It doesn’t require repetition, as you often learn new words from the context of other people’s sentences. I’m all for learning from the textbooks if you like structure, as well as to build a strong language foundation. However, for a lot of people learning from a textbook is dry and doesn’t really lead to having ‘real-life scenarios’- language skills. Some of the things that you’ll learn will not be very useful.

Fourth advantage: Jokes, slang, accent
Another great advantage of learning a language abroad is that you will learn all the good stuff! How to curse, to joke, to look cool, to look like a fool… Being able to joke in another language and be able to get rid of your accent demonstrates fluency. You will be able to fit in a lot more. Some of the Japanese students that were attending the same lectures as me sounded very British, and you could bet your ass they had studied in the UK before! I am unsure of the accent that I have acquired since living here, but according to most people here I sound like I’m from the Pacific Northwest (which is where I live, so that makes sense). In Japan, we adopted a ‘Kansai-ben’, so a Kansai-accent, since we were living in the Kansai area.

Fifth advantage: Fluency
I think it is really hard to ever reach fluency if you haven’t at least spent a couple of months abroad. Why? Because of all the things mentioned above! Fluency requires a full understanding of a language, which includes cultural meaning, slang, jokes etc. I wish I was fluent in Japanese at this point since I have lived in Japan for a year, but to be honest I am not very good at languages. Contrary to what a lot of people would say, considering I am bilingual at this point, it costs a great deal of energy to study a language and I easily get overwhelmed. Luckily I like a challenge, so I’m shooting for trilingualism!

Sixth advantage: Well….you have to?
To sum it all up, when you live abroad and you study the language of the country you live in, you often are forced to learn. However, this is not a bad thing. I was not fluent in English when I moved to Japan (2017), and I was so afraid of making mistakes and being the ”odd one out”. As the only non-native speaker, I often felt insecure and excluded from conversations that I didn’t quite understand. It forced me to get out of my comfort zone and start engaging. It gave me the right push to start asking questions and pausing people whenever I had a hard time catching a joke. It is hard knowing that my vocabulary isn’t as broad as my husband’s, and that sometimes leads to the occasional language barrier, but I am not as limited as I was before. I’m very eager to learn and he’s willing to correct any mistakes, so my English is still improving!
I would recommend living abroad to anyone who is serious about learning a language.

Tell me about your own experience in the comments!
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7 Lessons in cultural differences

It has been almost a year since I moved to America and in this blog I would like to write about the things that I have noticed, appreciated and sometimes struggled with. Everyone experiences things in their own way, and I would like to say that even though this is written from a European perspective, I do respect these cultural differences (yet I might not agree with them).

One of the biggest differences that I’ve noticed when I moved here is that a lot of Americans haven’t actually traveled outside of their own country.

As a European I’ve been blessed with a lot of traveling in my childhood and teenage years. I spent almost every summer in France, Germany or Austria, visited a lot of European cities, and even went on a one-week trip to Barcelona in high school. Being exposed to different languages and cultures from a young age is a privilege, helps you understand the value of cultural differences, and teaches you to respect these differences.

I understand that a lot of Americans have not had this privilege, mainly because the USA is HUGE and flights to Europe are not very affordable. Traveling abroad is not encouraged the way it is in Europe. This may have contributed to the individualism that is the very core of American culture. That being said, let’s explore some of the other noticeable differences.

1. the american dream vs reality

I’m pretty sure everyone has heard of the ideology on which the USA was founded, namely ‘The American Dream’. The USA is a real immigrant country, and the ideals of democracy, freedom, equality, and ”hard work will earn you success”, are what got America so far in the first place. It was the country of endless opportunities.

Without going too much into the whole debate on whether or not the American Dream is still alive, I have experienced first-hand how dreadfully complicated, slow and expensive the immigration process is nowadays. From my other blogs (and if you follow the news) you will also know democracy and equality are currently very much under threat. The work ethic here is ‘live to work’ and not ‘work to live’, which can definitely help you achieve success, but at the same time the disparity gap is getting bigger every day. I’d like to point out these differences because I think the Unites States has changed a lot in the past 5-10 years, which also had an effect on some of the core values American society was built on. Before you pack your bags and want to start a new life in one of the most powerful nations in the world – know what you’re getting yourself into!

2. immigration is really really hard

Who hasn’t heard of the show ”90-day fiancé” and its many spin-offs? Even I had to deal with people saying that my situation was ‘just like that of the TV program!’ and let me set the record straight: that show is NOT a depiction of real life. Many couples on that show barely know each other before they get engaged, and once they do, immigration is just a breeze. No waiting times, no problems paying a large amount of money, no stress from having someone evaluate your entire relationship and decide your future for you.

I will write a blog just dedicated to my immigration timeline and experience, but what I can tell you now is that it is not and easy thing to do. At times, it will feel like the world is working against you. It will feel so unfair, needing to have the patience of a saint and a savings account, just to be with the one you love. Once you finally have that visa in hand – it’s just the start of a long and painful immigration procedure that you have absolutely no control over. And it’s like they are setting you up for failure. You will barely have any rights once you are married to your American spouse and will have to wait anywhere from 6 to 12 months to finally be able to establish your life here: to work, to open a bank account, to get a driver’s license. All of that while being locked inside the country (you are not allowed to leave the country until your paperwork is in order).

We had a strong relationship and were committed to making it work, but immigration still managed to break me. It’s a lot to deal with, and it puts a lot of pressure on your marriage as well.

Not to mention I am from The Netherlands, have a Masters degree, and speak several languages. Not everyone gets treated the same way as an immigrant in America, and not everyone is as ‘lucky’ as I am.

3. The american hospitality

Whereas in The Netherlands, inviting someone to your home is kind of a big deal, in America you can almost just walk right into someone’s house. Their fridge is your fridge; suit yourself! Their idea of ‘hosting’ is a lot more casual and laid-back than it is in The Netherlands. The house doesn’t need to be tidy and cleaned up, and a first-time visit is usually not accompanied by a tour of the house. If you are the guest, there aren’t as many expectations you have to meet either. While you can very easily make friends here, the downside is that it’s hard to get past all the small talk, and it will take you a lot of time and effort to really get to know someone. In my experience, a lot of relationships are quite superficial compared to European standards. The kisses (and sometimes the hugs) when you greet or say goodbye to friends are also not done.

In terms of hospitality, you will notice the ”I am your friend” mentality everywhere: In the supermarket, a bank, restaurants, or even from strangers on the street. Be prepared to be asked the extremely overused ”how are you”, and occasionally questions such as ”how is your day going” and ”what are your plans this weekend”. Not something I would really like to tell the cashier in the local supermarket… But they are just doing their job (and can apparently lose it if they don’t show interests in customers)!

4. most americans are not very direct

This is very dependent on where you live; East or West Coast. The saying goes that people from the East Coast are cold, rushed, and somewhat rude. People on the West Coast are considered to be warmer and more open-minded. Dutch people are known for being direct, open, and somewhat rude as well, so I think I would fit right in with the East Coasters! I can’t speak for all States or all Americans, but overall a lot of people are really good at beating around the bush. It can take a while before you know what they really mean, as people tend to not get straight to the point. That can be very annoying for Dutch people, since we love just speaking our minds. We grew up in an environment that doesn’t punish you for doing so. You aren’t considered rude if you quickly get to the point and avoid unnecessary small talk. You are also not considered blunt when you are openly speaking about certain taboo topics, such as drugs, racism or sex. Luckily, most Americans that I’ve asked find it ‘refreshing’ to have someone be so direct and open about things.

5. some of the stereotypes are right!

The cars are big, the houses even bigger, and drive-thru’s are EVERYWHERE! Especially now during Covid-times, these drive-thru’s are very convenient. It’s not just for food, there are also ATM drive-thru’s, post office drive thru’s, coffee drive-thru’s..

Burgers can be found anywhere. In the couple of blocks around my apartment building, there are already 6 different burger chains. On the plus side, I’ve also had the best burgers of my life in this country!

Groceries are definitely more expensive compared to The Netherlands, but going out for food (and not just fast food) is a lot more affordable. Whereas eating out in The Netherlands is much more of a social happening that you don’t do that often, here in The States it’s a lot more like ‘grabbing a quick bite to eat’. It depends on where you live, but here in Portland, Sport Bars are huge and thus eating out is sometimes accompanied by large tv screens that are very distracting and take away part of the social aspect.

A non food-related remark I have that’s part of the American stereotype is the many ”I love you’s” that are constantly being exchanged between partners, parents and kids. It usually follows the end of a phone call and replaces a regular ”bye”. Personally, I feel like the phrase loses some of its meaning by being overused. I can’t speak for every Dutch person here, but in my family it isn’t really common to say ‘I love you’ to your family members. It’s kind of a heavy thing to say.

6. the flag overkill

You literally cannot ever forget where you live, because the second you step outside there will be at least one American flag proudly waving in the wind. I honestly can’t tell you whether this is a patriotic thing or serves some other purpose, but it is definitely fascinating for Europeans to see that many flags out every day. In The Netherlands we actually have a law that determines on what days we can raise the flag, which includes Liberation Day, Kingsday, and (this one seems weird to non-Dutchies) when we graduate high school. Apparently you can get fined when you display the flag on other days, though I’m sure that isn’t really enforced by anyone.

7. you see armed security guards everywhere – and guns

Also very dependent on where you live in the States, but here in Portland you see armed security guards in every supermarket, bank, mall, gas station, etc. In our case we even see them about every 15 minutes outside our apartment. Sure, I’ve seen security guards in some stores in some big cities in the Netherlands, such as Amsterdam and The Hague, but they’re still not as prevalent as here. You very quickly get used to there always being security guards around, but when you really need them.. they somehow are nowhere to be found. From an outsiders’ perspective, I have to admit that I am unsure whether it makes me feel safe or not. But I guess this goes hand in hand with one major cultural difference: guns here are legal. The exact regulations regarding carrying a weapon are state dependent, but I have seen people with guns. That was very surreal to me!

I hope you enjoyed this blog about some things that I find fascinating about the USA.

Tell me about your own experience in the comments!