Hi Patsy, I’m based in Saintfield (20 minutes outside Belfast). I’m working my through Level 2. Haven’t actually had a real life Welsh conversation but I’d be keen at some point to try one.
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Hi Brian!
Sorry, it’s been a while since I’ve been on here! I would completely be up for meeting and having a Welsh chat if you wanted to. Are you from NI or Wales originally?
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No worries. I’m local. Just started SaySomethingInWelsh as I heard that at some point they were planning on doing an Irish language version and I wanted to try the method out with a totally unfamiliar language. However I got too far along and i’m stuck now, can’t stop! Nearly at the end of Level 2 and will likely start Level 3 soon enough. I’d be keen to have the odd conversation and was looking into maybe doing some conversation classes if I could fit it in with work.
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You’re not the only one that has become accidentally addicted. One person only started using SSiW because she was coming to Wales on holiday and wanted to be able to pronounce the place names correctly. She is now a fluent Welsh speaker, occasionally contacted by Radio Cymru for an interview when they want comment on something from a person living in the US! Yes, she is American!
And imagine what it’s going to do for Irish once that course gets off the ground! The number of Irish speakers around the world will skyrocket!
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I know they’ve started doing Welsh classes - and Irish classes - in the Skainos centre in East Belfast - not sure if that would be any help to you. I was so surprised to hear that there were Welsh classes here but then I think it’s part of a drive to push languages.
I’d be very happy with accidental fluency! I’m really keen to see the Irish course, the results with the welsh are pretty remarkable given the relatively short time and effort put in when you compare to other systems.
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I didn’t know about the Skainos centre actually. I’ll have to look into that. I had just seen a few private tutors online offering conversation classes. It can only be a good thing with cross pollination of the different celtic languages. Given the negativity in NI to Irish anything to normalise language learning can only be good.
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It is a terrible shame when the baby and bath water are tossed out together! (If that saying is still known in this age when all have running hot water!)