From our blog
News, developments and articles from Regina Coeli
Correct word order in Dutch sentences
The structure of Dutch sentences is something that many people who learn Dutch struggle with. That is not surprising. While many languages have a fixed sentence structure, Dutch has three! In this article, we look at the general rules concerning Dutch sentence structures.
The difference between ser and estar
One of the first things you discover when you start learning Spanish is that there are two words for the verb ‘to be’: ser and estar. So in Spanish—to paraphrase Shakespeare—the question is: ‘to be or to be’? In this article we briefly explain when you use one and when you use the other.
Hoooked on Portugal
When Dutch entrepreneur Geesje Mosies taught herself Portuguese as a teenager, she could never have guessed that she would be using the language in the future when managing her Portuguese staff. Nor could she have predicted that she would unleash a knitting and crocheting rage when she learned to crochet out of curiosity in Brazil. This year, she decided to update her Portuguese knowledge at Language Institute Regina Coeli.
The Spanish of Latin America
Spanish is an official language in no less than 21 countries, most of which are located in Central and South America. It is not surprising that Spanish sounds a little different on the American continent than it does in Spain, just like English differs from continent to continent; after all, the English spoken by Londoners is very different to the English spoken by Texans. How big are the differences in Spanish? Do you have to learn other things when you need Spanish for Spain than for Latin America?
The Dutch and time
The Dutch place a great deal of emphasis on time. If you are not originally from the Netherlands, you may have to get used to the fact that the Dutch always arrive on time, do not want to waste it and plan their professional and private lives well in advance. This is also reflected in their language: the Dutch are direct in their communication (in order to save time) and often refer to time. Where does this fascination with time actually come from?
Learn a bit of Chinese to break the ice
If you are planning to do business in China or Taiwan, learning to speak fluent Mandarin might not be your first priority. Sometimes it can be better to first see whether you can get your foot in the door before investing in learning the language. For this reason, Regina Coeli is now offering a short Chinese culture and language course—one which will give you a good understanding of the culture and a bit of language to break the ice.