Looking for a Spanish Immersion school - Central/South America
Sep 1st, 2007, 02:42 PM
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Looking for a Spanish Immersion school - Central/South America
Can anyone recommend a Spanish immersion school in Central or South America? I have seen links to several schools on this forum in Mexico, but I do not want to study there.
Looking for a 7-10 day program in November. I am fairly fluent in Spanish, and am looking to brush up.
Looking for a 7-10 day program in November. I am fairly fluent in Spanish, and am looking to brush up.
Sep 1st, 2007, 03:11 PM
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Have you considered Ecuador? It's a great place to learn Spanish because the people speak relatively slowly and clearly. And the country itself is incredibly beautiful. You can see the Amazon, cloud forests, active volcanos, hot springs, spectucular mountains, beaches, the biggest indigenous artisan market in South America, and even the Galapagos Islands if your budget allows.
I spent three weeks last July at Academia Norteamericana de Espanol in Quito, Ecuador. I did a ton of research before deciding on that school, and I am confident I made the best decision. Here's why:
Location. The school is located in a part of Quito where people live and do business. There is a whole section of Quito where most of the language schools are located called Gringolandia. There, you'll find menus and signs in English, people speaking English on the streets and in the stores, and college kids partying late into the night. Not my idea of an immersion experience.
Facilities. The school itself is beautiful and well-maintained. It has a cafeteria, a snack bar, beautiful native plants everywhere, an open-air courtyard, a computer room with Internet access, and you can even live at the school if you don't want to stay with a host family. I easily made friends with the teachers and other students from different countries and traveled with them on the weekends. The school can accommodate about 40-50 students, which, IMO, is the perfect size. You can either be in a small group of 3-4 students or pay more to take individual classes, which is what I did.
Instruction. The teachers are all very well qualified and use a variety of fun techniques to teach Spanish. After 3 weeks, I saw a huge improvement in my ability to speak and understand the language.
Activities. The school provides activities and sight-seeing trips in and near Quito almost every afternoon. On the weekends, they offer longer excursions you can sign up for, or, if you aren't interested in what is being offered, you can get your own group together and the school's administrators will organize a personalized trip for you. They also offer several volunteer opportunities, like going to a women's prison to play with the children who live there with their mothers. I know there are other opportunities for volunteering as well.
I can't say enough good things about La Academia. I plan to go back to the school in Quito someday, and also would like to go to their other schools in Bolivia and Peru because I know the quality will be there. Here is their Web site: www.latinschools.com. If you have any questions, let me know and I'll be happy to answer them for you.
Julie
I spent three weeks last July at Academia Norteamericana de Espanol in Quito, Ecuador. I did a ton of research before deciding on that school, and I am confident I made the best decision. Here's why:
Location. The school is located in a part of Quito where people live and do business. There is a whole section of Quito where most of the language schools are located called Gringolandia. There, you'll find menus and signs in English, people speaking English on the streets and in the stores, and college kids partying late into the night. Not my idea of an immersion experience.
Facilities. The school itself is beautiful and well-maintained. It has a cafeteria, a snack bar, beautiful native plants everywhere, an open-air courtyard, a computer room with Internet access, and you can even live at the school if you don't want to stay with a host family. I easily made friends with the teachers and other students from different countries and traveled with them on the weekends. The school can accommodate about 40-50 students, which, IMO, is the perfect size. You can either be in a small group of 3-4 students or pay more to take individual classes, which is what I did.
Instruction. The teachers are all very well qualified and use a variety of fun techniques to teach Spanish. After 3 weeks, I saw a huge improvement in my ability to speak and understand the language.
Activities. The school provides activities and sight-seeing trips in and near Quito almost every afternoon. On the weekends, they offer longer excursions you can sign up for, or, if you aren't interested in what is being offered, you can get your own group together and the school's administrators will organize a personalized trip for you. They also offer several volunteer opportunities, like going to a women's prison to play with the children who live there with their mothers. I know there are other opportunities for volunteering as well.
I can't say enough good things about La Academia. I plan to go back to the school in Quito someday, and also would like to go to their other schools in Bolivia and Peru because I know the quality will be there. Here is their Web site: www.latinschools.com. If you have any questions, let me know and I'll be happy to answer them for you.
Julie
Sep 1st, 2007, 03:13 PM
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try:
www.langlink.com. she represents some good schools.
also try Ixbalanque in Honduras, PLFM in Antigua or Academia de Espanol in Quito or Intercultura in Heredia, Costa Rica. I have done all of these. LangLink represents them all except Ixbalanque in Honduras.
Also I know of another good one in Nicaragua but she is just getting her web site set up and doesn't have it yet.
www.langlink.com. she represents some good schools.
also try Ixbalanque in Honduras, PLFM in Antigua or Academia de Espanol in Quito or Intercultura in Heredia, Costa Rica. I have done all of these. LangLink represents them all except Ixbalanque in Honduras.
Also I know of another good one in Nicaragua but she is just getting her web site set up and doesn't have it yet.
Sep 3rd, 2007, 05:31 AM
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I studied at COSI in Manuel Antonio Costa Rica for 4 weeks. I went from Sesame Street Spanish to being able to talk to people & get around in espanol.
COSI is very professional and their building is beautiful. They always put out a yummy fresh fruit snack for the morning break & of course CR coffee! There were many students from Switzerland & Germany when I was there which was fun too. Usually after class many of the students go down to the beach to sleep or walk in Manuel Antonio park & do homework. The COSI students stake out a beach spot and watch each other's stuff and also do some side trips together. COSI also offers the usual optional cooking & dancing classes. CR is an easy country to get around in. The down side is that it's a bit expensive but you really can combine scool with vacation at COSI in Manuel Antonio. By the way Manuel Antonio is the name of the nearby National park the town is Quepos. The school is between Quepos & the park )a short bus ride). Quepos is fairly small, there are several internet cafes and coffee shops/restaurants. The people in Quepos are friendly & used to lots of student class tourists.
COSI is very professional and their building is beautiful. They always put out a yummy fresh fruit snack for the morning break & of course CR coffee! There were many students from Switzerland & Germany when I was there which was fun too. Usually after class many of the students go down to the beach to sleep or walk in Manuel Antonio park & do homework. The COSI students stake out a beach spot and watch each other's stuff and also do some side trips together. COSI also offers the usual optional cooking & dancing classes. CR is an easy country to get around in. The down side is that it's a bit expensive but you really can combine scool with vacation at COSI in Manuel Antonio. By the way Manuel Antonio is the name of the nearby National park the town is Quepos. The school is between Quepos & the park )a short bus ride). Quepos is fairly small, there are several internet cafes and coffee shops/restaurants. The people in Quepos are friendly & used to lots of student class tourists.
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