Do you speak Filipino?
It is widely agreed that speaking Filipino is essential for a successful integration in the Philippines. Do you agree? Share your experience!
Do you speak Filipino? If so, where did you learn this language? Where can one attend a language course in the Philippines?
If not, how do you cope with daily activities? Is it easy to communicate in a different language with Filipinos?
Thank you for sharing your experience.
Priscilla
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I am learning with a skype teacher who is Filipino but living in USA. Finding a teacher for Bisaya was difficult as was finding good resources, most of the books I came across seemed to be mainly phrase books with some discussion of grammar later. However I bought a few of those. I also subscribe to a couple of Facebook groups. Once I am there I will try to enrol at a language school. I have only found one on Google, NALA I believe it is called. I am awaiting the publication of the Glossika Cebuano course, but that may not be for another year down the line. That works by a process of multiple (talking hundred or thousands of repetitions) of phrases makng them become automatic. It is great for learning pronunciation and the prosodic features of a language (flow and rhythm in a sentence)
I find the dearth of resources a great hindrance. It is the total opposite to when I learnt Thai for which there are countless teachers and resources available.
Is it necessary? I am in no position to judge, I have spent a number of months there on holidays and "fact-finding" trips and was mostly able to get by with English. But having friends in rural areas and in rural parts of Mindanao my lack of Bisayan was enormously limiting. But apart from those reasons, I have 3 extra reasons for wanting to learn the language. 1. I hate going to a country and missing so much of what is going on around me because I don't have the language. 2. In a strange way I feel that being a guest in a country and making an effort to learn shows respect for the country/people. 3. I am getting on in age and see the language learning as workouts for the brain. I no longer work and I used to be in a mentally stimulating and challenging job. I need to give my brain exercise and challenges to keep it fit.
After I have been there a while and am more confident in my use of Cebuano then I will of course need to tackle Tagalog
Im ranklin i live in cebu city phils., 38 years old (ex- overseas worker)
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could listen into the conversations, but now he is sorry that he did
because he hasn`t heard anything of interest...... always the same
conversation.聽 Cellphone, Load, Singing shows, Food, Foreigners and
their money, Babies, Jealousy talk, etc, etc, etc.
Dont you just love it?聽 haha.
To be successful in learning, you should be observant and constant practicing.
and she does it better than me...... and she loves it when she talks slang to her friends and they dont know what she is talking about.聽 She reckons that Aussie slang is the best language (if you can class it as a language ) that she has ever learnt.聽 Hooroo.
And yes it's very easy to communicate Filipinos, because almost everybody can speak English even a little child in my country.. thanks and more power!
DavidWF wrote:he hasn`t heard anything of interest...... always the same
conversation
since that was the case then i suggest he needs to mingle with more interesting people at least those who shares same interest as his.
By the way if you dont know what a Oncologist does I suggest that you Google it. lol.
Lucky that I am not thin skinned and can take a ribbing, unlike some.聽 What a great world it would be if everybody went with the flow, instead of nitpicking, and saw the funny side of things.
DavidWF wrote:By the way if you dont know what a Oncologist does I suggest that you Google it. lol.
what an offensive comment
Most everyone I have encountered speaks English
But if you guys wants to learn Filipino, I could be a good teacher for Tagalog (Filipino) and Binisaya (Cebuano)
I noticed that most of the expats in the Philippines who studied Tagalog or Filipino language could not say the correct pronunciation even the word "Mahal kita" .. they are still following the standard pronunciation of English alphabet instead of the Philippine alphabet that pretty sounds different.
Take note:
In Luzon they have 5 vowels (A, E, I, O, U) of different pronunciation
But for Visayas and Mindanao they only have 3 Vowels ( A I U) in which there are words with vowel "i", or "e" that sounds the same as "i" and words with "o" and "u" and sound the same as "u"
Compare to Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao have different language and sometimes could be considered as having different alphabet because some people in the south does not have consonant "w" instead they use "io"
Take note:
1.) Letter "a" in English pronunciation is /蓹/ - but in Filipino/ tagalog/ Cebuano it sounds / 蕦 / as sun, run
so the correct pronunciation of word "mahal" should be "m 蕦 h 蕦 l"
2.) Letter "u" in English pronunciation is /ju/ or you - but in Filipino/ tagalog/ Cebuano it聽 sounds聽 "oo" as book, look
3.) letter "i" in English pronunciation is /蓱瑟/ - but for Filipino/ tagalog/ Cebuano it sounds /i/ as e-mail, e-commerce
so the correct pronunciation of the word "kita" is K i t 蕦
"mahal kita" - should be pronounce as "m 蕦 h 蕦 l"聽 聽 K i t 蕦聽
This is really interesting to be honest... and so far no one I noticed correcting the Expats how to pronounce the Filipino words correctly.. not tolerating it but making fun of it silently and talking about it how their expats friends pronounce the words for their expression "pampa good vibes" because it is funny and really sounds funny.
聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽I have been in Phil. for 5 years.
聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽I think I speak more Tagalog than 90 percent of expats.
聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 No, I do not think it is essential to "fully integrate."
聽 聽 聽 聽I think Filipinos who laugh at the accents of Expats who try to speak Tagalog are very rude and show a lack of sophistication.聽 In other words they act like hayseeds or people from mga bundok.
聽 聽 聽 聽 But that is okay because I do not care what many Filipinos think (especially about my accent).
聽 聽 聽 聽 聽Anyway, if Filipinos could hear how they speak (or attempt) to speak) English through the ears of a native speaker, they would know I am stifling my laughter also and thinking how poor their English instruction has been.
聽 聽 聽 聽 Only thing is I am smart enough and old enough to never let a Filipino know what I am thinking by giggling or laughing up my sleeve (which I see naive Filipinos do lahat ang oras and this betrays their uber-ignorance).
So theoretically, a knowledge of English should be enough to get by here. Of course. Outside the Cities. Many People, especially older ones do not speak English very well.
So we should all learn Tagalog?
My Wife is a filipino. Born in Manila almost 70 Years ago. She has spoken Tagalog all her life.
Now we live in Bohol, and when anyone speaks Visayan to her. she doesn't understand them.
Any one heard of Esperanto?
'Look up ONCOLOGIST and when you understand what it means get back to me, otherwise
dont waste my time trying to sound intelligent.
Cheers
Hope you'll drop by there. See you.

Most of what i am told of the talk by relatives and others in our barangay, in relation to myself as a foreigner, and my wife聽 is jealousy.......聽 聽i dont need to hear it 1st hand.....as it comes to me 2nd hand over and over.
An English friend in Tagaytay with girlfriend came to have a "meaningful conversation" with me at times through the year and we enjoyed the meetup.聽
In our local bars in the UK I'd "rub shoulders" with the locals and make conversation but that's not possible in the barangy.聽 Something to consider when choosing a retirement place.
聽 聽 And milk me she did.聽 And I, willingly paid, because I was lonely and I figured if I would take a woman out for a date in the US I would spend uh...maybe $50 or more.聽 So I sent her $50 or so on more than one occasion.聽 IF I would not have sent her any money, she probably would not engage me in the hours' long talks and occasional sexy peep shows like she did.
聽 聽 聽 Point is, after years living here, I surmise many Filipinos just do not see a profitable percentage in talking with a slightly disgusting foreigner.聽 First of all, if they do, then their family and friends and acquaintances, start to rib them and tease them about having "Foreign" friends--sort of like they are betraying the "struggle" like a wanna-be White person.聽 They are embarrassed to be seen with you..聽 So聽 unless there is a darn good reason (like money),聽 many Filipinos (not all), would rather not chew the fat with their former colonizers.
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