Post: #1

I had originally started taking 3 lessons in Pimsleur Spanish but after reading:
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I'm now considering Russian for EE instead. Help me get some perspective on which language to learn first would be more beneficial for my goals.

Russian
I want to travel all over Europe, especially France, Austria, Spain, Portugal, Italy, etc and I think knowing English and French would suffice but I have no idea for EE. Countries in EE I want to visit specifically would be Ukraine, Poland, Russia, Estonia, and others. I'm wondering if being able to speak Russian would get me through EE on a conversational level well enough to game the women there who don't speak English. I know Russian is similar to Polish for example so to me it would be best to learn Russian then Polish after.

Spanish
I also want to head down and spend time in SA, specifically, Brazil, Columbia, Venezuela, Argentina. I would learn spanish first then Portugese after. I don't think learning Spanish would be too difficult considering I already speak French and English.

My plan for learning either language would be to use the resources on this forum first working through the Pimsleur lessons.

Post: #2

Spanish then Russian.

Post: #3

I know it isnt included in the poll but you should seriously consider learning Portuguese before or after Spanish as well based on some of your countries listed. With it you can converse and understand anyone who speaks Spanish without too much difficulty in case you ever decide to go to South America. Another plus is that some of the Portuguese language (from Portugal not Brazil) dialect is somewhat similar similar to Russian so it gets a little easier to speak Russian if you are already used to pronouncing some of the sounds the language has.

Post: #4

(12-20-2012 10:19 PM)Alpha Hunter Zero Wrote:  I know it isnt included in the poll but you should seriously consider learning Portuguese before or after Spanish as well based on some of your countries listed. With it you can converse and understand anyone who speaks Spanish without too much difficulty in case you ever decide to go to South America. Another plus is that some of the Portuguese language (from Portugal not Brazil) dialect is somewhat similar similar to Russian so it gets a little easier to speak Russian if you are already used to pronouncing some of the sounds the language has.

Really, Portuguese dialect is similar to Russian?

OP, you have some pretty lofty language goals there: Polish, Russian, Spanish and Portuguese. Although certainly not impossible to learn, it will take some time, and your level of fluency will vary greatly, especially with the Polish and Russian.

You're right that your ability to speak French will help you lean Spanish and Portuguese, if I were you, I'd go to south America and do three months in Brazil and three months in a Spanish speaking country. That should be plenty of time to become fluent enough in each language to game local women. I don't know about Polish and Russian but I'd say you'd likely need more time.

Also, living in multicultural Montreal, you can get a head start on each language by practicing with native speakers before you leave to each place. Good luck!

Post: #5

Spanish first, then Russian. Easy choice.

It'll be easier to get to grips with and then your language learning brain cells will be more adapted to deal with the challenge that is Russian.

Spanish is also a language of the future; there will be bigger business opportunities in South America in the coming years than there will be in Russian speaking countries.

Post: #6

Spanish first. I think kids at schools in EE (outside Russia) learn English as a second language now instead of Russian which was mandatory in the old days. So even if you do speak Russian you're gonna run into people who don't even speak it. 20 years ago, yes. Now no. But you have to verify this with EE goers on the forum.

Post: #7

(12-21-2012 05:36 AM)Neil Skywalker Wrote:  Spanish first. I think kids at schools in EE (outside Russia) learn English as a second language now instead of Russian which was mandatory in the old days. So even if you do speak Russian you're gonna run into people who don't even speak it. 20 years ago, yes. Now no. But you have to verify this with EE goers on the forum.

Well they learn english as a second language because russian is their mother language already...

Post: #8

I'd say learn 'em both... I know I'm going to be fluent in both before I get put in the dirt.

Post: #9

(12-21-2012 06:20 AM)pobreinvestidor Wrote:  

(12-21-2012 05:36 AM)Neil Skywalker Wrote:  Spanish first. I think kids at schools in EE (outside Russia) learn English as a second language now instead of Russian which was mandatory in the old days. So even if you do speak Russian you're gonna run into people who don't even speak it. 20 years ago, yes. Now no. But you have to verify this with EE goers on the forum.

Well they learn english as a second language because russian is their mother language already...

If we're talking about EE outside Russia, and we do, then English is the second language. Hungarians speaks Hungarian, Lithuanians speak Lithuanian etc etc.

Post: #10

Learning a language is a pretty big commitment. I have thrown a couple of years into learning German and I still have a lot of difficulties. I'd go for Spanish instead of Russian.

Post: #11

You can learn both.

Is there a good cost efficient way to take a cheap Spanish class in Montreal? That's the best way to go. Pimsleur is great and all, but they make a lot of jumps into the subjunctive when you should learn that stuff via class/instructor at first.

At least in Poland, English is the 2nd language like every other EE country but Spanish is definitely the 3rd language now as Poles love everything about Spain and the Latin world. I think having Spanish down along with your other languages should work wonders on the women there. I'd say in EE, the women there are more appreciate of multilingual guys who show a ton of interest for their culture & culture in general as Spanish would bring more street cred to your overall portfolio.

If you want to learn Russian, I'd dabble with the Cyrillic alphabet a bit via torrented version of Rosetta Stone before getting fully involved in it.

Both languages are top 10 in the world so you can't really go wrong with either. I still think Spanish is the better one to start with though.

Post: #12

@Scotian-im not saying its 100% similar, more like 10%. It's difficult to explain but listen to a conversation in Portuguese & then listen to a conversation in Russian. You'll notice some sounds and pronunciations are similar.

Post: #13

I'm an oddball, but I prefer Slavic women so much that I'm starting with Russian. I also really like Italian, which will probably make me somewhat comprehensible to Spanish speakers.

I just can't deal with flakes, so this is a more personal preference than good general advice. For business, I think the commenters are right-- Spanish will be more important. I've heard in California, some health care employers won't hire people who don't speak Spanish.

Post: #14

I've actually asked myself this question many times - Spanish or Russian. If only because, aside from English, these two languages are spoken in entire regions spanning many countries with fuckable girls and low costs of living (Spanish - Latin America, Russian - Russia, Central Asian Republics, Caucusus countries, Ukraine/Belarus/Baltics)

I want to learn Spanish first, because its the easiest and closest to English. People underestimate the work and dedication it takes to become fully proficient in a language

Post: #15

I can speak fairly good Spanish but I also took a year of Russian. After a year, I went to the Ukraine and couldn’t hold a basic conversation without an interpreter. I wouldn’t bother with Russian unless you are really seriously going to use it because it will take years to learn. If you are going to visit, it may be useful to learn the Cyrillic script so you can read street signs. Also more educated women may speak German as a second language.

Post: #16

I speak both so can speak to the advantages of either.

Russian language is on the decline - in alot of Ex-Soviet Countries they are starting to phase out Russian in favor of the local language (Ukranian, Kazakh, Georgian....)

Plus Russian is mad hard, and Russia is getting more hardened to foreigners, you have to go further and further off the beaten path to still be a novelty (see my Kazan report). And many more Russians speak English then just a few years ago.

On the flip side, the number of Spanish speakers in the US is exploding, their countries are growing in population (even if their geopolitical relevance is questionable) and the dollar goes alot further then in Russia. Also, in Spanish speaking countries, English is not as common as in Russia, and the people are friendlier, so you get more social interaction out of speaking the local language.

I'm biased, though - though I'm a near fluent Russian speaker in Moscow and I've been shut out from most girls since I'm not white. Perhaps for someone who won't have that barrier learning the language may pay better dividends. But if I had to make the choice again, Spanish all the way.

Post: #17

I would and I am learning Portuguese before Spanish, after being in Latin America, you will find you won't be bothered with any other country other than brazil. I have lost interest in chile, Argentina, even maybe Peru after comparing with brazil. The rest Hispanic countries all got a sheep mentality, people like to follow each other. Maybe I am biased, but Spanish speaking Latham is very different to portugese speaking Latham, which is more exciting and encourage individualism.

Post: #18

(12-22-2012 02:23 AM)ao85 Wrote:  I speak both so can speak to the advantages of either.

Russian language is on the decline - in alot of Ex-Soviet Countries they are starting to phase out Russian in favor of the local language (Ukranian, Kazakh, Georgian....)

Plus Russian is mad hard, and Russia is getting more hardened to foreigners, you have to go further and further off the beaten path to still be a novelty (see my Kazan report). And many more Russians speak English then just a few years ago.

On the flip side, the number of Spanish speakers in the US is exploding, their countries are growing in population (even if their geopolitical relevance is questionable) and the dollar goes alot further then in Russia. Also, in Spanish speaking countries, English is not as common as in Russia, and the people are friendlier, so you get more social interaction out of speaking the local language.

I'm biased, though - though I'm a near fluent Russian speaker in Moscow and I've been shut out from most girls since I'm not white. Perhaps for someone who won't have that barrier learning the language may pay better dividends. But if I had to make the choice again, Spanish all the way.

What is your ethnicity by the way ao85? I just wanted to know for reference as I'm Eastern Asian and would not like to suffer the same fate if visiting Western Russia. Thx for insight.

I agree that English is not that commonly spoken in Latin American countries or in the majority of Brazil. I'd say Spanish over Russian for now. The only way I'd pick Russian over Spanish is if you somehow have the resources, teachers, etc to learn Russian in Montreal opposed to Spanish.

In Slavic countries, the women there tend to be fascinated with the culture, people, language, and some beaches of Spain so showing them that you can speak Spanish or multilingual and cultured in general should be good enough! I'd say maybe only having English down with certain phrases in Russian without fluency or literacy in another language might make anyone seem like an "obvious sex tourist."

I was 6 months in on a regularly paced Spanish course before I got a 7K grant to take Brazilian Portuguese in September 2011. Though I wanted another year to finish Spanish off, I made the switch to Portuguese because A) The professor was old and thought of retiring and B) That 7K grant was not a guarantee to return the next academic year.

We covered about 2.5 years worth of material in an 8 month intensive class as I finished everything in 5 months and won student of year in a classroom full of 30 with Portuguese. There was no way I could've gotten that far before graduating in 2007 because I was too honed in on the social aspects of college, work, and all the other upper level courses that were predicated towards my so called "career path" at the time.

The downside to sacrificing Spanish then is that my pronunciation and thinking is completely geared towards Portuguese now as it's much harder to get a hold of those tougher Spanish conjugations & grammar when attempting to study again. Doesn't also help as I'm in a critical time in my life where it's easier to really perfect Portuguese opposed to finishing off my old Spanish courses.

Post: #19

Yb13 which school did you learn your portugese? I am thinking of signing up for same when I go to São Paulo next year. I need to up my level abit furthe, especially conversation.

Post: #20

Thing about Spanish speaking Latam is that there is few cities that I wanna actually live in when compared to of sp or rio which are much more international and cosmopolitan.

Lima : bad foggy weather, but big enough for jobs though. And on the coast.
BA- everyone saying girls difficult there and mentally retarded and immature, not to bother
Santiago- ugly chicks
Bogota- shitty cold weather all year round. 6 to 16 degrees c
Cali- size too small, not many jobs, not cosmopolitan enough, although nice city

Only city I can think of to live is Mexico City df, it's international, a lot of things going on, nice weather, close to us, ok chicks, some jobs, etc

Post: #21

Caracas, too dangerous,
Quito - probably worse than Lima,
La Paz - too poor , ugly chicks,

So although you got so many countries that speak Spanish,there is few that I wanna live and settle down in.

Post: #22

(12-23-2012 04:33 PM)east and west Wrote:  Yb13 which school did you learn your portugese? I am thinking of signing up for same when I go to São Paulo next year. I need to up my level abit furthe, especially conversation.

I studied Portuguese through a university in Texas. If you have the money, the university every gringo studies at in Sao Paulo is Fundacao Getulio Vargas I believe.

Post: #23

Don't think fgv has language courses, most are business ones eg, finance in portugese.,

Post: #24

(12-21-2012 11:38 AM)Alpha Hunter Zero Wrote:  @Scotian-im not saying its 100% similar, more like 10%. It's difficult to explain but listen to a conversation in Portuguese & then listen to a conversation in Russian. You'll notice some sounds and pronunciations are similar.

Agreed, first time in Portugal I remember thinking to myself how some of the conversation I heard definitely sounded slavic.

Post: #25

(12-23-2012 06:06 PM)Carmo Wrote:  

(12-21-2012 11:38 AM)Alpha Hunter Zero Wrote:  @Scotian-im not saying its 100% similar, more like 10%. It's difficult to explain but listen to a conversation in Portuguese & then listen to a conversation in Russian. You'll notice some sounds and pronunciations are similar.

Agreed, first time in Portugal I remember thinking to myself how some of the conversation I heard definitely sounded slavic.

When I was first hearing a lot of Russian, I ran into Portuguese and thought that the sounds were like Russian. Odd because those two languages are otherwise very different from each other, but have some phonetic similarities.