Job Discussion Forums

RyanS · Joined: 11 Oct 2005 Posts: 356

I'm going to Peru In December, how is the job market in Lima?

naturegirl321 · Joined: 04 May 2003 Posts: 9041 Location: home sweet home

Good. You'll be arriving just when schools are looking for teachers.

virgo · Joined: 10 Aug 2006 Posts: 8

virgo · Joined: 10 Aug 2006 Posts: 8

JZer · Joined: 16 Jan 2005 Posts: 3898 Location: Pittsburgh

tomteacher · Joined: 30 Jul 2006 Posts: 34 Location: Changwon Korea

In my experience Spanish is far easier to learn than Korean. Korean is damn difficult. For a native English speaker like me Spanish is pretty easy to learn. I think travelers in Latin America can get by without learning Spanish, but obviously it would make an easier, safer and more enjoyable experience to try and learn. After all it's not rocket science.

JZer · Joined: 16 Jan 2005 Posts: 3898 Location: Pittsburgh

I wonder what percentage of the words in the Spanish language are the same as English. There are many cognates in Spanish.

corporatehuman · Joined: 09 Jan 2006 Posts: 198 Location: Mexico City

I'd be interested in that too...(cognate total)

I've been studying Spanish for about six, seven weeks now, and the cognates are helpful. Sometimes too helpful, what I mean is, so often the words are so similar to English, that when I try to say them my pronounciation slips back to the English alphabet. Its weird, also sometimes I find them hard to remember, because of the similarity.

However, for the sake of listening and understanding people, it makes a world of difference, those cognates.

One note I'd say to the poster Virgo: while I understand it can be frustrating, and disheartening when people make little or no effort to immerse themselves in a new culture, and instead transport their own everywhere, there's no real need to be angry about it. If anything, applaud them for being of the small percentage that actually leaves their home country to go abroad. Regardless of what they do in the country, they'll probably come out with a more open-mind.

And of course, there is little you can do to control, or instruct other people's experiences, only your own.

- Chris

JZer · Joined: 16 Jan 2005 Posts: 3898 Location: Pittsburgh

I also can see why some people would not learn the language just for a short trip. They feel that it is a waste of time since they do not plan to return to the country again. Furthermore, not everyone travels to country X to learn about the culture. Some people just want to see some famous sites or they want a cheap vacation.