Julen nærmer seg, og mange av oss har en uke fri fra skole, studier, jobb eller praksis. Helligdagene betraktes av de aller fleste som en avslappende tid, mens andre for øyeblikket er svært bekymret. Uroligheten handler om det enspråklige vakuumet som de snart skal ta del i. De heldige få med tospråklige familier misunnes av tusenvis av språknerder fanget i monolingvistiske omstendigheter. Kommunisering på kun ett språk i over en uke? Det er ufattelig lenge! Nei, det vil rett og slett ikke fungere dersom nerdene skal opprettholde sunn mental helse gjennom hele jula. Dette språklige marerittet er grunnen til at vi serverer noen tips til hvordan språknerdene enkelt kan snike fremmedspråkene inn i julefeiringen sin. Dersom du kjenner deg igjen, ber vi deg lese videre.

Christmas is coming up and many of us are having a week off from school, studies, work or internships. And as much as the holidays are meant to be a relaxing time, some of us are deeply concerned. The hesitation is about the one-, or even two-week monolingual vacuum we are about to take part of (no, it’s not about the Mayan prophecy on the upcoming Armageddon). Those fortunate ones with bilingual families are envied by thousands of nerds trapped in monolingual circumstances. Communicating in just one language seems impossible and nerve wrecking? It simply won’t work out while staying sane at the same time. That’s why I have come up with some guidelines or tips on how and why to sneak a second language into typical Christmassy incidents.

Zůstaneme ještě chvíli ve Vánoční náladě, co vy na to? Během mé krátké návštěvy v předvánočním Česku jsem si nemohla nevšimnout, že trdelník (spolu se svařákem) se stává nedílnou součástí Vánočních trhů.

Let’s stay in the Christmassy mood for a while, shall we? During my short visit in the pre-Christmas Czech Republic I couldn’t help but notice that trdelník (together with mulled wine) is becoming an integral part of the Christmas markets. So what is it and where did it come from?

Every country has their own different way of celebrating holidays. So why not take a look at how Christmas is celebrated in the Czech Republic? A lot of things are very similar, but for instance, unlike in Britain or United States, we get presents on the 24th after dinner. Unfair, isn’t it?

V každé zemi se slaví Vánoce trochu jinak. Tak se podíváme, jak se slaví Vánoce po česku. Hodně věcí je samozřejmě velmi podobných, ale narozdíl třeba od Velké Británie nebo Spojených států, dostáváme dárky už 24. večer. Nespravedlivé, co říkáte?

El lunes 25 de noviembre, y una vez finalizada nuestra jornada laboral, algunos compañeros de trabajo y yo nos dirigimos a uno de los mercados navideños más famosos en Hamburgo, el mercadillo ubicado en la plaza del Ayuntamiento. Ese día fue el elegido para dar el pistoletazo de salida a todos los actos que tienen [...]

On Monday, November 26, after finishing work, my colleagues and I headed to the probably most popular Christmas market in Hamburg, called the “Weihnachtsmarkt auf dem Hamburger Rathausmarkt”, located in the Town Hall Square. As we approached to the square we started taking a lot of photos to capture the true emotion of the moment [...]

For this special season we would like to share with you our Christmas Article Collection. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

It’s friday and the Christmas spirit is all around!