Catalan for Beginners

Anyone who questions how different Catalan and Spanish are need only have a look at the nonsensical Catalan tongue twister "Setze jutges d'un jutjat menjen fetge d'un penjat" (Sixteen judges from a courthouse eat the liver of a hanged man) in Spanish: "Dieciseis jueces de un juzgado comen el higado de un ahorcado." Catalan is derived from Latin and Provençal French, whereas Spanish has a heavy payload of Arabic vocabulary and phonetics. For language exchange (intercambios), check the bulletin board at the Central University Philosophy and Letters Faculty on Gran Via or any English bookstore for free half-hour language exchanges of English for Catalan (or Spanish). It's a great way to get free private lessons, meet locals, and, with the right chemistry, even begin a cross-cultural fling. Who said the language of love is French?