I have been now four months in Zagreb, so what have I learned so far? Not only have I learned some basic words, but also little something about the culture, people, and general lifestyle. I am lucky to be a foreigner who is working with locals. Sometimes I feel lucky and sometimes it is a bit frustrating to be the only one who doesn’t speak the language. I miss a lot of good jokes and I know that at times people might also get frustrated at me, because they have to switch in English when talking in a group. But I have learned something.
I know what is thank you, hvala. This was the first word I learned and I have used it in as many situations as possible. There are also some similarities between Polish and Croatian which helped me greatly with simple phrases, such as saying goodbye is in Polish do widzenia and in Croatian doviđenja. Sounds pretty much the same when spoken. Good day in Polish is dobry dzień (although it is said dzień dobry) and in Croatian dobar dan. Thank you is completely different, because in Polish it is dziękuję. I like hvala more, in written and spoken :D Generally, I find Croatian language much easier to pronounce as a Finnish person, but obviously I have a lot more reason to learn Polish.
I have also learned how to react when people says dobar tek while I am eating. This was funny thing in the beginning. I know that during common dinner people usually give an opening line to start to eat, like Bon Appetit (hyvää ruokahalua in Finnish or smacznego in Polish). But here it is almost a rule to say dobar tek even if you just pass by the coffee room, when you see your colleagues are eating their dinner. It is very polite and I like the politeness, but in the beginning it was confusing. Is it a situation to say hvala, or reply the same (even though the person itself isn’t eating) or just continue eating? After four months, I have found myself saying the same if I see someone eating, or some variation such as “enjoy your food” etc. Catchy phrase!
We have been asked many times why aren’t we signing up for Croatian language classes and reason is because we are lazy. Problem is that we both already have one new language to learn as a priority. M continued his Finnish language studies even here in Zagreb until the woman who was teaching him left one month ago and I was hoping to continue my Polish lessons while I was in Poland. Then I moved here and unfortunately haven’t found time or energy to continue. It is also difficult to find a qualified teacher to help me with the difficulties.
We both have to think if there is a point to start to learn intensively the local language as we do not need it and we both should actually concentrate to learn our own languages? If I was further with my Polish studies, I would probably pick Croatian a lot faster. I am also worried that more words I learn here, the more I forget Polish language. I still have goal to be able to speak with my mother-in-law who doesn’t speak English. That is the biggest downside in a relationship with a foreigner.
I know what is thank you, hvala. This was the first word I learned and I have used it in as many situations as possible. There are also some similarities between Polish and Croatian which helped me greatly with simple phrases, such as saying goodbye is in Polish do widzenia and in Croatian doviđenja. Sounds pretty much the same when spoken. Good day in Polish is dobry dzień (although it is said dzień dobry) and in Croatian dobar dan. Thank you is completely different, because in Polish it is dziękuję. I like hvala more, in written and spoken :D Generally, I find Croatian language much easier to pronounce as a Finnish person, but obviously I have a lot more reason to learn Polish.
I have also learned how to react when people says dobar tek while I am eating. This was funny thing in the beginning. I know that during common dinner people usually give an opening line to start to eat, like Bon Appetit (hyvää ruokahalua in Finnish or smacznego in Polish). But here it is almost a rule to say dobar tek even if you just pass by the coffee room, when you see your colleagues are eating their dinner. It is very polite and I like the politeness, but in the beginning it was confusing. Is it a situation to say hvala, or reply the same (even though the person itself isn’t eating) or just continue eating? After four months, I have found myself saying the same if I see someone eating, or some variation such as “enjoy your food” etc. Catchy phrase!
We have been asked many times why aren’t we signing up for Croatian language classes and reason is because we are lazy. Problem is that we both already have one new language to learn as a priority. M continued his Finnish language studies even here in Zagreb until the woman who was teaching him left one month ago and I was hoping to continue my Polish lessons while I was in Poland. Then I moved here and unfortunately haven’t found time or energy to continue. It is also difficult to find a qualified teacher to help me with the difficulties.
We both have to think if there is a point to start to learn intensively the local language as we do not need it and we both should actually concentrate to learn our own languages? If I was further with my Polish studies, I would probably pick Croatian a lot faster. I am also worried that more words I learn here, the more I forget Polish language. I still have goal to be able to speak with my mother-in-law who doesn’t speak English. That is the biggest downside in a relationship with a foreigner.
I am still childishly proud when the salesperson at cheese desk is smiling at me and is genuinely happy that I am able to ask "deset deka sir gauda. Hvala, doviđenja". Great success!
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