#004 - Interview with Laura Couch Polyglot

#004 - Gabi interviews in this episode Laura from couch Polyglot. The conversation touches on various topics including growing up multilingual, studying and working in international environments and much more. Be sure to listen to it!

Check out my blog:
https://learninglanguagesinsocietywithgabi.com/blog/

Click on the link below to check Laura's podcast:
https://open.spotify.com/show/0mPgiqwRhrP4E3tUtCiDX9 

Click on the link below to check Laura's YouTube channel 
https://www.youtube.com/c/CouchPolyglot


Click on the link below for transcriptions:
https://learninglanguagesinsocietywithgabi.com/podcast-transcripts/

Click on the link below for the first episode:
https://learninglanguagesinsocietywithgabi.com/001

Click on the link below for the first episode:
https://learninglanguagesinsocietywithgabi.com/002

Click on the link below for the third episode:
https://learninglanguagesinsocietywithgabi.com/003

Click on the link below for the fourth episode:
https://learninglanguagesinsocietywithgabi.com/005

Click on the link below for the first episode:
https://learninglanguagesinsocietywithgabi.com/006

Click on the link below for the third episode:
https://learninglanguagesinsocietywithgabi.com/007

Click on the link below for the fourth episode:
https://learninglanguagesinsocietywithgabi.com/008

Visit my website:
https://learninglanguagesinsocietywithgabi.com/ 

Don’t forget to hit the subscribe button!

Thanks!

Transcript

Speaker 1: (00:00)

Hi everybody. my name is Gabi, and here we are with the first interviewee of my podcast. I'm going to introduce you, introduce her to you guys. Her name is Laura, so please go ahead. 

Speaker 2: (00:17)

Hi, guys. . Yeah, I'm happy to be here. My name is Laura. I have a YouTube channel called Couch Polygloy, and I love languages. It's like my passion, so that's why I created my YouTube channel. 

Speaker 1: (00:30)

That's, that's great. Laura, I've been following your YouTube channel, and I've been listening to some of your stuff, some of your clips, and I think they're great. Oh, I think you do a great job. Could you tell us a little bit about what languages you speak and what sort of, what's your, what's your YouTube channel about? 

Speaker 2: (00:53)

Yeah, sure. What, I mean, I come from Barcelona, so where you live, so now I'm a little jealous. I would love to be there now, but, um, yeah, so I come from Barcelona. I grew up in Catalan and Spanish, and then I learned English at some point, and I actually realized, well, I didn't know I liked languages. 

It was more like, Hmm, I like what I can do with languages. Like, I was able to access music. I was able to access certain books without needing a translation or anything. So, and yeah, at some point I came the time to, to decide what to do with my life. So I decided to study translation, and I studied French at university. Uh, then, um, I started studying, German on my own and then after my studies, I moved to Germany and it just kept happening. 

Speaker 2: (01:43)

Like I didn't plan on learning more languages. I actually felt like, Hmm, maybe it's too much now. Like I shouldn't continue. But it just kept somehow happening. Then I met my partner who, whose family speaks Russian. Then we, so I was kind of not forced, but I felt like, well, I should learn Russian. 

And so I learned it and yeah. Uh, when the pandemic hit, um, I decided to learn Italian because I was, I don't know, I was feeling anxious and I wanted to be in control somehow and be like, Hmm, I always wanted to learn Italian, and I know it's a stupid idea, but I'm gonna do it. I mean, I felt like it was a stupid idea just for context, because I was like, you cannot retain that many languages. It's, it's a bad idea, you know? So I was like, I gotta be rational. 

Speaker 2: (02:29)

I also remember when I chose to study German, I actually was on the fan zone studying German or Italian, and I felt like, well, German is more difficult. And I was like, well, I will learn Italian when I retire. Right. 

And, um, yeah, because I was like, well, this is, you know, it's fun, but it's too much. Um, and then I realized, well, you can actually keep several languages. I mean, sometimes you will forget a bit, one language or a bit the other, but yeah, you can actually learn. I don't know if there's a limit. I guess there is, but it's not six languages, . 

Speaker 1: (03:06)

No, no, that's for sure. 

Speaker 2: (03:07)

Yeah, you can speak more than that and it's fine. And then, um, yeah, so that's also when I started my YouTube channel, because I, yeah, I felt a little bit frustrated and I thought I would love to have my own project to, to be honest, at the beginning I was like, I wanna be distracted from Covid.

Speaker 1: (03:24)

 Yeah. 

Speaker 2: (03:24)

Yeah. So that's how it started, basically. And because your, 

Speaker 1: (03:28)

Your thing started in during the pandemic? Yeah, yeah, 

Speaker 2: (03:30)

Yeah, yeah, yeah. It was like April, 2020. Mm-hmm. . And, and then like, I started with this experiment actually to learn Italian. I was like, Hmm, how much Italian can I learn in a week? Then how much can I learn in a month? And, um, yeah. And then it turned into a year and I was using the, um, natural approach or, you know, the, um, input, uh, comprehensible input method. Mm-hmm. , uh, there's this, uh, YouTube channel called Italian Automatico. 

There are others. Um, but this is like the first one I found. And this guy, uh, Alberto, uh, he talks a lot about, um, yeah, comprehensible input. And this was something I had been using before, but I was never really conscious of it. Like, wow. Yeah. So it just kind of opened my eyes and I was like, wow, this works. And so , um, right now, like my channel is a little bit focused on that, like trying to give people, um, input and also tips on how to learn languages, but just randomly, also sometimes just randomly talk about a certain topic, uh, for instance, in Catalan or Spanish or, or German, and you can just activate subtitles. 

Speaker 2: (04:41)

And then at some point I realized, well, um, like I do multilingual content, but I have a lot of people who are asking for more Catalan content. So I was also kind of asking myself, Hmm, should I change my channel to like, just Catalan? But it didn't feel right to me because when I started it, I am a polyglot, I love languages and I love variety. 

So I would feel like I'm a little bit like betraying myself if I just speak one language, right. So I figured I just, okay, I will create a, a Catalan  podcast, so it's only in Catalan for people who need more, more staff in that language. And at the same time, I just keep my multilingual channel. Right. Uh, so that's what I did. And yeah, so sorry for the long answer. 

Speaker 1: (05:28)

No, not at all. I mean, um, uh, thank you so much for your feedback. That's, that's exactly what I was thinking about because yeah, I realize you do have this, uh, podcasting in Catalan, which is great. You know, you are your, you know, your fierce right there representing the Catalan language, and the traditions and all that. And I think it's beautiful that, you know, languages that are probably not as, uh, spoken by, you know, all those many million people across Europe are still alive. And, and there are people that show interest in learning them. Uh, yeah. 

And, you know, languages that are certainly in danger like Catalan or Sardinian or, you know, so I think it's, I think it is, I think it is quite, you know, quite a challenge mm-hmm and it's beautiful for you to do that. So that's that.  I wanna thank you also in a way to. No, thanks, you know, to for, for your, for doing all this, all this working Catalan, uh, great stuff. Now, uh, you said, uh, you said you have, uh, different, you know, methods or techniques to learn languages, which would be mm-hmm. , the three more, um mm-hmm. The three techniques that you use the most in order to learn languages, what would you say they are? 

Speaker 2: (06:41)

I mean, I rely a lot on listening, so I do lots of, um, like I said, comprehensible input. So, um, I know some people are like, ah, you just put on some content. Well, you need, it needs to be comprehensible. You need to be able to understand, if I would just play something in Chinese, it's not comprehensible because I don't have any, right. Any yeah. Sort of idea of that language. So, but if I would do that with Portuguese, it would work. I actually understand Portuguese pretty well. 

Exactly. Yeah. So, um, so it always depends on that. For instance, when I started, uh, learning Swedish, um, I relied a lot on comprehensible input because Swedish is quite similar to German. So that was possible for me, for Swedish, for instance. Um, if I were to learn, I don't know, Polish, because I speak some Russian, then I guess I could do the same, right? 

Speaker 2: (07:34)

So yeah, if you have some sort of basis through another language, then you can do it. And if you don't, well then I would take a course, so mm-hmm. , the first strategy would be, okay, like, what's your level? And see what your situation and if needed. Sure. If you, you don't know anything, then I would recommend taking a course. 

And then the thing I do use a lot, and I think it has like many layers, um, why this, this works so well is music. Because music mm-hmm. , well, you have, you know, repetition mm-hmm. up until a certain point you have, uh, pronunciation, um, yeah. You have, um, emotional connection. So it's not only, yeah, oh yeah, I am doing this boring exercise, but it's like, wow, this song, it's just, you know, it's just impacting my feelings in a way. So it's just not exactly. 

Speaker 1: (08:24)

Yeah. 

Speaker 2: (08:24)

So mm-hmm. , it's mu So I think music is perfect for language. 

Speaker 1: (08:28)

Absolutely. Yeah. 

Speaker 2: (08:28)

Yeah. You can also sing along. It also helps, uh, pronunciation. Yeah. . Yeah. . And, uh, one thing I always also recommend is, uh, self-talk, because I feel like, um, people sometimes struggle with speaking, and I think it's a lot easier. Like, they go from not speaking at all to speaking to a group of people, and this is really, really, really difficult. And if you're an introvert, I think it's really challenging. And then maybe, so they never speak, they're afraid of speaking, then they speak, uh, in front of a group, and then they are not that good. Well, how should they be? Right. They didn't practice. Yeah. 

Speaker 1: (09:08)

So, exactly. Yes. 

Speaker 2: (09:10)

So I think when it comes to speaking, it's about, well, self-talk, talking to a person maybe you, you trust and where you're Yeah. You know, in a safe space where you don't feel, uh, ashamed or anything. 

Speaker 1: (09:23)

Exactly. Yeah. People are gonna like, 

Speaker 2: (09:25)

Or something. Yeah. Yeah. These steps. But it's like people would prepare for an, you know, for an interview, for a job interview. Like, why wouldn't you prepare for conversation? Um, and I think self-talk is really a great technique. Um, that's a great technique, but at the end of the day, you know, those are my tips. That's what works for me. But what I always say is, everyone's different. I know Polyglots were like using more, I don't know, like, uh, reading or, um, 

Speaker 1: (09:52)

Textbooks and Yeah, 

Speaker 2: (09:53)

Textbooks. For instance, Luca Lampariello, he uses, um, I think he also uses translation. He has his notebooks where he takes notes. So everyone's different. So don't 

Speaker 1: (10:03)

Exactly. I 

Speaker 2: (10:04)

Wouldn't listen to those gurus say, I found the way to learn language. That's 

Speaker 1: (10:09)

Not the way. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. There is no one way to do something. I met this, uh, Russian guy when I was very young, and, uh, I remember I was about 16 years old. I was living in France at the time, and he spoke pretty fluently, seven languages. And I, and I asked him what he is, you know, technique was because mm-hmm. , I had learned English at the time, just by listening to people speak to me in English and try to make an effort to talk to them in English as well. So, uh, it was pretty much a, a matter of, of need, you know, to be understood. 

And, and I, and, and then he said to me something that was, uh, that was quite shocking at the time. He said to me that he learned languages, right from textbooks, grammar textbooks. Mm. And I was like, wow. So it's possible, , you must so well, yeah, it's possible you master so well a language you understand so well, how to learn a language and what to do with it that you can, you know, with retrieve the information from textbooks and then, and then use it, you know, and then use it out there and talk to people. And so it is possible. It's, it's what you do with the information, what is actually important. 

Speaker 2: (11:17)

Yeah. I think it's what, what drives you. If you are really interested in grammar, you can learn a lot from it. But the problem is mm-hmm. when you take one thing and you make it the standard for everyone. 

Speaker 1: (11:28)

Yeah, 

Speaker 2: (11:28)

Exactly. Mm-hmm. That's what happens in school, basically, because it's, well, maybe not anymore. We're, we're not that young. Right? Yeah, 

Speaker 1: (11:34)

Exactly. I I was gonna ask you Yeah. . Yeah, I, I was gonna ask you that. How do you, what do you think about how, you know, how people usually teach languages, uh, uh, at school, you know, the traditional methods to learn languages at school. What do you think about it? 

Speaker 2: (11:50)

Well, I mean, I think it's changing, and it's also interesting to compare different countries. Um, but when I was growing up, it was very theoretical and there were a lot of mm-hmm. , you know, yeah. Grammar exercises. And I felt like most of my peers didn't learn English, to be honest. And I didn't learn it at school. I didn't learn it at school. I learned it with Harry Potter books and with music , to be honest. Like I, of course it helped maybe a bit, but, um, yeah, after studying English for like 10 or longer, 10 years or longer, people don't speak it. 

And if you look at other countries, I mean, in Germany it's not like people speak it perfectly either, but yeah. Young people have a better level in general. So there might be, yeah. Something they've done. I mean, sometimes, okay. Right now a lot of people watch YouTube on, uh, in English, I think it helps a lot. It just depends on the country. But when I was in Portugal, I noticed, well, Portuguese people speak very well. English. Yeah. And also Spanish, so it's like, yeah. Um, people say it's quite a surprise, 

Speaker 1: (12:54)

Right? People say, 

Speaker 2: (12:55)

Yeah. Because some people be like, well, I mean, in Sweden or in Finland, you know, their system is completely different or whatever. But no, in Portugal they speak better English than in Spain. Yeah. Or 

Speaker 1: (13:05)

In, exactly. Yeah. So, 

Speaker 2: (13:07)

You know, 

Speaker 1: (13:07)

I think it's a matter of necessity in a way. It's a matter of being in, uh, of needing to be able to express yourself in that language so that you become more international and you potentialize your possibilities out there in the world. 

Speaker 2: (13:19)

Yeah. And maybe it has to do with the fact that Spanish is like a bigger language, let's say, from the point of view of number of speakers. Yeah. And people feel like, why would I bother learning English? Right. But yeah, I don't know, like, maybe, 

Speaker 1: (13:35)

And at this, at this point, what's your favorite language? 

Speaker 2: (13:38)

Oh, favorite language. I love them all. right now. I mean, I think, I don't know, Swedish. I think it is Swedish. 

Speaker 1: (13:47)

It's so beautiful. I love Swedish. Yeah. I, I love Swedish music and all the thing is beautiful. Yeah. Yeah. It's like a song. It's like the Italian of the Scandinavian languages. Right? Exactly. 

Speaker 2: (13:57)

Yeah. It's beautiful. I, I really love it. But I was in love with Italian for a long time too, and I mean, , even when people say German sounds so ugly, I all, I'm, I'm hurt. I, I don't know why I like 

Speaker 1: (14:10)

It. He doesn't actually. Yeah. I kinda like it too. Yeah. Yeah. I think, I think you get the liking for all of those languages because you know how beautiful they are, you know, they are, they're just like, they're different. And, and, you know, the difference in each one of them is what makes them truly beautiful. Yeah. Like, I listen to languages in, uh, in, uh, areas in Africa, and you'd say, wow. Mm-hmm. 

They're completely different, you know? But, but they, they sound so cool. The, the cadence of the words and everything, they're beautiful as well, so mm-hmm. You need to get used to the fact that not every language is gonna be, you know, uh, beautiful in the same way. So each one of them is beautiful in its own different way. And what, what word, um, what word would you say is the, is your favorite word in Swedish? 

Speaker 2: (14:53)

Uh, in Swedish? Mm. Uh, 

Speaker 1: (14:56)

Or the most interesting word you would say in, uh, or in any language you would say that, that you think mm-hmm. , that, that's a beautiful word right there. Well, and I, I can tell you why 

Speaker 2: (15:06)

Right now, it's, uh, funnily enough, like, uh, I'm learning Swiss German, which is completely different from German. Mm-hmm. . 

Speaker 1: (15:14)

Okay. 

Speaker 2: (15:14)

And, uh, this is, there's this word, um, hu wait, it's difficult chuchichäschtli And it's like Dhi, it's like chuchi like the kitchen, right? The kitchen. Mm-hmm. , uh, häschtli . It's like, um, how can I translate häschtli ? Well, it's like a kind of wardrobe from the kitchen or something. 

Speaker 1: (15:39)

I get it. Yeah.  Okay. 

Speaker 2: (15:41)

And it's like chuchichäschtli, it's sounds so sweet. And in here, um, in Swiss German, there's like things like, um, when it's a diminutive, it ends with Lee. Okay. So, for instance, um, uh, in German we have the word frost Boyer, which is for someone who, um, who's called a lot, you know, when it's, I don't know, it's, they're, they're freezing or whatever, right? Uhhuh, . And then, uh, in Swiss German, it's thirdly. 

Speaker 1: (16:11)

Okay. . Yeah. It's 

Speaker 2: (16:12)

Quite, it's also nice, quite, I dunno, I like it. I like this lee at the end. 

Speaker 1: (16:16)

Yeah. Yeah. It sounds, sounds, sounds nice. Yeah. That's it. Is that  or something, right? Yes. What is it? Mm-hmm. Okay. 

Speaker 2: (16:23)

Yeah, exactly. 

Speaker 1: (16:25)

So, what's, what's been the, in your opinion, or in your experience, what's the hardest language or what languages have been the hardest to learn and why? 

Speaker 2: (16:34)

I mean, for me personally, Russian has been the hardest one to learn, um, even though it's in the European, but it's, and in the European language. Yeah. Yeah. It's actually difficult for me, for the whole, the declensions and things and so on. Right. And I mean, I, I always struggle. And 

Speaker 1: (16:50)

You have them in German too, anyway. 

Speaker 2: (16:51)

Yeah. It's a little more complex, but I would love, like, a part of me would love to learn Japanese, but I feel like it's too difficult. Like, I mean, I know I could, it's not like I'm saying mm-hmm. , I couldn't, but it's just the investment of time. 

Speaker 1: (17:08)

Right. Yeah. I 

Speaker 2: (17:08)

Don't, like, I, I don't wanna say it's not worth it. It's just a very personal decision. Um, but yeah, I feel like, wow. And for instance, I like, I like, I don't know, accessing languages very fast and being able to read about interesting topics very fast. And I feel like, yeah, with Japanese I could be like, it could be years before I can, 

Speaker 1: (17:33)

That'd be a lot harder to achieve. Yeah. 

Speaker 2: (17:36)

Maybe I'm just saying things like, I don't know, the house is nice, or things like that that I'm not interested in. You know what, like you cannot Yeah. Talk about philosophy or things, I don't know. It doesn't even need to be philosophy, but, you know, something beyond read the newspaper, 8:00 AM and, and just, you know, I don't know. Like, that's the thing. If there was a chip I can buy in the future, , 

Speaker 1: (18:01)

Japanese chip , you know, maybe like even being able to read the newspaper or read the news, that would be enough, you know? But with languages such as Chinese or Japanese, you know, it just takes a real long time to learn. Yeah. Um, but yeah, it's, uh, anyway, I get it. Uh, just a second. Uh, uh, can you hear me? 

Speaker 2: (18:23)

Yes. 

Speaker 1: (18:24)

Okay. Can you hear me? Uh, yeah. Yeah, sure. So I was gonna ask you some more things. Um, could you tell me, um, an anecdote or something funny about translation or or learn, you know, learning languages that would you, you would, that you would think? It's interesting to know. 

Speaker 2: (18:43)

I mean, um, I think you shouldn't be afraid to make mistakes, because that's how we learn languages. And I mean, if you've lived abroad, you've had these situations. I remember my first, uh, mistake was when I was in Australia, uh, and learning English. And I somehow said something like, I'm gonna lie in the couch or something. And the guy, this guy was laughing so hard, and I was like, so 

Speaker 1: (19:09)

Mean. 

Speaker 2: (19:10)

I think I was thinking, you're a monolingual dude. . 

Speaker 1: (19:13)

Yeah, exactly. What are you laughing at? Yeah. 

Speaker 2: (19:16)

Yeah. But I mean, uh, at that moment, I remember I was 19 or 18, and I was like, I felt hurt, like, oh, 

Speaker 1: (19:25)

That's he 

Speaker 2: (19:26)

Saying like, but right now we're like, haha. Like I made a mistake. Yeah. So 

Speaker 1: (19:30)

Who cares? You wanna share? Yeah. , yeah. You wanna share what's funny about it. That's, that's really cool. Tell me a little bit about the, tell me a little bit about your, your language journey. What languages do you speak? How, when did you start learning them and mm-hmm. . Mm-hmm. . 

Speaker 2: (19:46)

Yeah. Yeah. Like I said, like, um, I mean, I grew up in Catalan and Spanish, then English came along through school, but also through content I was interested in. Then French, I started Okay. When I was 16. Okay. High school. Uh, and then I continued, um, so when I was studying translation, I, I took mm-hmm. , English and French. Um, okay. And then in parallel, so 

Speaker 1: (20:07)

You studied translation and interpreting, right? You, you studied the same thing. I did. But you studied at a different school Pompeu Fabra, that was your university, right? So you were there for five years, 4 years, I would say. Right? Four, 

Speaker 2: (20:17)

Four years. Yeah. Four 

Speaker 1: (20:18)

Years. Right. Okay. 

Speaker 2: (20:19)

Uh, then I was, uh, so in parallel, 

Speaker 1: (20:22)

What did you take there? 

Speaker 2: (20:24)

Uh, so it was just English and French. 

Speaker 1: (20:26)

English and French, okay. Okay. 

Speaker 2: (20:27)

Through Spanish and Catalan. And then I was, um, in parallel, I went to the a EOI like scholar, uh, 

Speaker 1: (20:35)

Yeah. 

Speaker 2: (20:36)

Yeah. So, and I was studying German there. Okay. And I did some short stays in Germany, like a month in the summer in Berlin, um, things like that. Um, and then, yeah, so when I left Barcelona, it was probably, I don't remember exactly, but maybe it was 2011, 

Speaker 1: (20:59)

Uhhuh 

Speaker 2: (20:59)

2012. Right. Um, and I, uh, yeah, so I moved to Hamburg in Germany, so I was focusing a lot on my German. And the funny thing, I, I don't think like, um, learning languages is like a linear thing where it goes up or it just progresses all the time. No, it's not, like when I moved to Germany, I almost forgot my French completely. So 

Speaker 1: (21:23)

, yeah. 

Speaker 2: (21:23)

Yeah. And then I didn't use it for a long time. Then I got back to it, like I, I enrolled in a, like B2 test, so that I had some sort of motivation , right. Yeah. Some sort of goal. And, um, so then I got back with French. And actually, uh, then at some point I started also working in French in Germany. Like, not only in French, but like French, German, English, and Spanish. So mm-hmm. I've always tried to integrate language use in my daily life. Uh, um, so that's why I always wanted to have a multilingual job, basically. 

Speaker 1: (22:01)

Job. Yeah. Yeah. No, that's great. And I, I think languages are like a, a friend of mine once told me or once said, uh, languages are demanding lovers, you know, they, they get 

Speaker 2: (22:11)

Attention right now. Yeah. You don't take care of them 

Speaker 1: (22:13)

. If you don't take care of them, they just disappear. They fade away. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That's great. So you've always worked in, um, multinational or multilingual environments, right? 

Speaker 2: (22:24)

I guess, I mean, when I, before I started working, ah, I forgot to tell you about this. So before I started to work at the company I'm working at right now mm-hmm. I worked as a teacher for two years, no, even three years. Wow. Um, great. Hmm. Like there was a program 

Speaker 1: (22:40)

You taught Spanish 

Speaker 2: (22:40)

Or, yeah, uh, the first year I taught Spanish, I was, uh, well, there's this program called like, Hmm, uh, in, in Spanish is . Auxiliar de conversación

Speaker 1: (22:52)

. Okay. 

Speaker 2: (22:53)

So I don't, I wouldn't know how it's called in English. Um, yeah, 

Speaker 1: (22:56)

Like language assistant or something like that. 

Speaker 2: (22:57)

Something like that. Yeah. Um, so I, so I got this, um, yeah. Uh, opportunity to, yeah, 

Speaker 1: (23:04)

I've heard of it. 

Speaker 2: (23:05)

Mm-hmm. . Yeah. It's like a grant or something. Yeah. And I was doing that in, in Hamburg. Um, and then I actually, also, after that, I, that's when I started my master's because I also got a grant to, to do a, like mundus program. Uhhuh. Great. So it took place in different, 

Speaker 1: (23:22)

What did you study? 

Speaker 2: (23:23)

Uh, yeah, to become a teacher, Spanish teacher. Oh, okay. Great. Mm-hmm. So it was like a master degree in teaching Spanish, and That's great. So it was really interesting. And I mean, I got paid for it, so it was really nice because, um, yeah. I didn't have to work , so, yeah. Um, so I was leaving, uh, the first semester I was in Bilbao. The second semester I was in Barcelona. And the third and fourth semester I was in Berlin. Wow. Great. Mm-hmm. . So, um, it was a nice international program mm-hmm. . And then I actually got a position as a Catalan teacher in, uh, German University. Um, 

Speaker 1: (23:59)

Nice one. 

Speaker 2: (24:00)

Yeah. That, that was during two years. And I actually thought when I got that, I thought I wanted to Yeah. To become like a professor. 

Speaker 1: (24:09)

Pursue Yeah, yeah. 

Speaker 2: (24:11)

Pursue some sort of, um, yeah. Academic, academic career. Yeah. Um, but I didn't I realized, oh, okay, this is maybe not for me. Like, I never found a topic I was passionate enough, um, about to mm-hmm. to create a PhD on like , I don't know. And I felt like it was kind of forced. It was like, and I also felt in a way, okay, I've, that's the only thing I've seen so far university, and I wanted to see something else, and then I found this job mm-hmm. at an international company. 

And I think, well, it's, it suits me. And yeah, like I was telling you before, now I got to reduce my, um, working hours to four days, so 32 hours. And that's a really, I have a balanced life. Like, I have my project with, uh, couch Polyglot, my YouTube channel, and I just have my job. So it is sounds great. It, it's, it, it fits me well, . 

Speaker 1: (25:07)

Yeah. No, no, no, it sounds good. Uh, yeah. You need to find a balance between your, your personal projects and, and obviously your, your daily job, right? You need to do mm-hmm. Things that make you feel whole and, and make you feel good about yourself and about what you're doing. So, so it's great that you were given this opportunity to do both things. 

And, um, I understand also what you said about, um, you know, the university career. There's something about it that's, that's very, um, there's, there's, uh, there's an, there's, there's something naive about pursuing, you know, the academic, uh, path in the sense that you never get sort of, uh, I don't know. This is just an impression that I have. You never get to actually feel the taste of real life when you're in a 

Speaker 2: (25:51)

Yeah. I mean, 

Speaker 1: (25:52)

Within the premise 

Speaker 2: (25:53)

Of university, this, you know, paper writing papers and Yeah. 

Speaker 1: (25:58)

It's a bit, 

Speaker 2: (25:59)

I mean, you, you do have a job and it's well paid, paid and everything, 

Speaker 1: (26:02)

But Exactly. Yeah. Yeah. 

Speaker 2: (26:04)

It feels like cheating . It's like, it's not real life, it's just university law. It's 

Speaker 1: (26:09)

Yeah. There's something, exactly. There's something that's not quite , let's say. It doesn't quite feel real in the sense that real life feels real when you have a job and you are dealing with people 

Speaker 2: (26:19)

Real. Yeah. You have to talk about your salary. You have to deal with certain Yeah, it's true. Like you, when you, I don't know, maybe it depends on the country, but such jobs, you just, you have no way to Yeah. To negotiate your salary. You have no way to negotiate maybe your vacation or work well, working hours probably. Yes. But I mean, it's just a, a different kind of world, and I wanted to see it's 

Speaker 1: (26:45)

A different kind of world. Yeah, yeah. 

Speaker 2: (26:48)

Yeah. And one thing that I don't like about it, like I, I, I have thought about becoming a teacher, but I feel like it's like the same rules apply to everyone, and then there are people who do nothing and Okay. Get the same rec, uh, like the, the same money and everything, you know what I mean? 

Oh, okay. Like there's this, okay, you're, you're a teacher, you've been working for three years and this is your conditions for, you know, it's like everyone gets the same and not everyone's putting the same work, not everyone's Yeah. Putting, putting, yeah. Same passion. So if you are going to a private company, um, depending on your performance, then you can ask for 

Speaker 1: (27:28)

More. You keep the job or not. Yeah. Oh yeah. Yeah. Exactly. And not 

Speaker 2: (27:31)

Only money wise, just changing positions or, um, doing something maybe you're more passionate about, you know what I mean? 

Speaker 1: (27:40)

Uh, yeah, 

Speaker 2: (27:40)

Absolutely. Yeah. But, sorry, we're changing the topics. I forgot. So you asked me actually 

Speaker 1: (27:44)

No, no, no. That's great. That's great. I love how, you know, the conversation is going on, and I think it's quite interesting you say you're comparing these two worlds. I mean, basically one thing is to learn a language within a university, you know, university premises and a different things is to be out there in the world, and experience, what it, what it feels like to actually speak to people, native speakers. Mm-hmm. , uh, in, in real life, in their native Yeah. In their native tongue. 

And trying to make yourself understood. That's when you really get the feel of what it feels to be in a culture, uh mm-hmm. , what it feels, what it feels to be, uh, within that, you know, social group of people who speak that language and, and what, what they feel in their hearts when, when they speak that language, when you really see the nuances of the language, when you feel the emotional pain, when they don't understand you or when you don't get the jokes or Yeah. 

Speaker 1: (28:38)

You know, there's so many things that you learn out there in the world that you would probably not learn, maybe not as fast anyway, uh mm-hmm. within, you know, your university premises or you know, in a university classroom. So that's, that's very true. Mm-hmm. . Um, yeah. No, that's great. Uh, I think, um, we've covered most of, most of the ground so far, so mm-hmm. 

So anyway, uh, Laura, thank you so much for your, for your efforts, for everything that you're doing for , for languages, and for all those people who love languages. And, and, uh, I don't know if you wanna add anything else, any question, or anything else you wanna add? 

Speaker 2: (29:17)

No, I think, um, yeah, I was happy to talk to you. I am always, I try to answer the questions, but then I just get caught up in the moment, . 

Speaker 1: (29:25)

No, they're great. I love it. I love it. I love it. Um, 

Speaker 2: (29:28)

But yeah, anyway, um, but it's what I was telling you, like my project is kind of very spontaneous, so, but yeah, it's always good to have a script, 

Speaker 1: (29:37)

. Yeah. 

Speaker 2: (29:38)

I know. Uh, thanks a lot. Um, I was happy to meet you and to be here with you. Thank you. Um, thanks for 

Speaker 1: (29:45)

Inviting me. Thank you for coming. Thank you for coming and it's, it's been a great conversation and I really hope to talk to you. Talk to you again. Yeah. All thank you so much, Laura. Bye-bye, . Big hugs. Bye-bye. Big, 

Speaker 2: (29:56)

Big hugs. Bye.