Living in a Different Language

The language barrier while living in Honduras has definitely provided me with many challenges.  The misunderstood slang and local phrases have kept me asking many, many questions.  So many questions in fact that I'm surprised my friends and coworkers don't actually groan aloud whenever I begin with "Hey, I have a question for you..."

I knew that moving to a Spanish speaking country would be a challenge, but I underestimated how challenging it actually would be.  I've never had to use Spanish in my workplace, at the grocery store, with waitresses and bartenders, or in many other daily situations. 

 I've finally realized that no questions are dumb questions and that often times simply trying to communicate with others makes all the difference.  Of course, I've been laughed at too many times to count, but sometimes language mix-ups can be amusing.  Here's one recent mix-up...

               For me, love should be like coffee.  Sometimes strong, sometimes sweet,
         sometimes alone, and others accompanied. But never shout it be cold!

I walked into our equivalent of a Starbucks to order a coffee during a break from work.  When the barista asked me what type of milk I wanted, I knew in my head that I wanted almond milk.  But instead of asking for almendra milk, I asked instead for aleman milk.  After an odd look from the barista, I quickly realized my mistake...  I had asked for German milk instead of almond milk.

To a native speaker, these mistakes are cringe worthy and only come from gringos.  I'm sure many locals have gotten a good laugh from some interactions with me but I laugh, too.  What many of them don't realize is how hard I have worked to make these mistakes.  I've pushed myself to communicate with people I could've just ignored and I've made Honduran friends who also push me to learn more.  They will patiently sit by my side while I'm reading a book and answer every question I have about words and meanings.  Some days it feels like I'm making genuine progress in the language, while other days if feels as if I'm back at square one.

All in all, I've learned to just 'go with the flow' and accept my mistakes.  No matter how serious of funny they may be, mistakes mean I'm learning and that's what I'm here to do.