Report: Rachael's language course in Portugal

I am a Spanish and Beginner’s Portuguese student who is starting second year studies at Merton college Oxford. I have just returned from a month-long visit to Lisbon, Portugal where I completed a language course at the Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Letras. This was an invaluable opportunity for me, and I, as well as my course teacher, noticed the considerable improvement in my Portuguese language skills over the course of the month. Being exposed to a native Portuguese speaker for 4 hours every day within the classroom was incredibly useful, not to mention the grammar, vocabulary and speaking practice which was offered to me in the classes which ran from 8am-12pm, Monday-Friday for 4 weeks.

Thanks to Lord Grimstone’s generosity in providing me with the Gerry Grimstone grant, not only was I able to benefit from classroom-based learning, I was also able to immerse myself in the culture outside of the classroom. Along with classmates, I visited as many cultural landmarks and points of interest as I possibly could! This included traditional tourist hotspots such as: the Torre de Belém, Mosteiro dos Jerónimos, Sé de Lisboa, o Palácio da Pena and o Castelo de São Jorge, just to name a few. However, I was also able to visit attractions which are less frequently on the tourist path such as Casa das Histórias, Museu de Arte Contemporânea and Zé dos Bois.

Furthermore, with the money provided by this grant, I was able to try many of the local delicacies and dishes which I have heard about in class. Simply spending time in restaurants and cafes turned out to be very useful in increasing my confidence when speaking Portuguese as it was in these situations that I met native speakers. In this way I was able to practice my language skills and further my love for the language through fostering my appreciation for the Portuguese people who were consistently welcoming, especially when they heard us speaking their language!
Overall, my month in Lisbon was an unforgettable experience which I will always treasure, not only for its enrichment of my language skills, but also its support of my literature studies and my personal growth. Having completed this month, I am now refreshed for the new academic year and look forward to furthering my Portuguese studies.