If you’re living in Spain, you really should try to learn the language, no matter how daunted you are by the prospect. For a painless introduction to the language, you couldn't do better than to visit Jane Cronin’s website. Jane is a real celebrity on the Costa Blanca. She’s a bit like Victoria Wood in Spanish, telling funny tales about her struggles with the language when she first arrived in Spain, and singing songs about the Brits in Spain in her stand-up comedy show.
But there’s a serious side to Jane as well. She is an accomplished language teacher and runs a portable language school, teaching Spanish to the English and English to the Spanish. She writes regular columns for the local press, and organises cultural holidays twice a year. Jane’s approach to learning Spanish is holistic, as she rightly believes that, to really understand the Spanish language, you also need to understand the Spanish way of life.
On Jane’s website, you will find everything you need to ease you into the language and the culture of Spain. Like Julie Andrews, she ‘starts at the very beginning,’ with an A – Z of Spanish. Working through the alphabet, she explains in detail the pronunciations and uses of each letter. You can also catch up with her stand up show Not Mentioned in the Brochure via YouTube. There's a great blog, and you can purchase her DVDs and books, or register for a Spanish course through the site.
That said, the site is much more than a marketing tool. It is a veritable mine of information, with word lists to cover everything from calling the plumber to going to watch your favourite football team. After all, it’s not the same if you can’t shout ‘Expulsalo!’ (‘Send him off!) and ‘Arbitro, estas ciego?’ (‘Are you blind, ref?’) along with everybody else! There are even some choice swear words, should you feel the need for them. These are the sort of things that set Jane Cronin apart from other language teachers; she teaches you the sort of things that Spaniards say and explains how they do things, so you begin to feel at home with Spain and the Spanish.
There are several articles by Jane on Spanish life, including dealing with bureaucracy, the education system, and eating out. In addition, there are reprinted articles from the Costa Blanca News, ranging from interviews with lawyers and estate agents to an overview of life in modern Spain. Anything you can’t find out from the main site can probably be discovered through the ‘useful links’ page.
www.janecronin.eu is a lively, entertaining and informative site which you will want to bookmark and return to again and again. It’s a site which gives a balanced overview of life in Spain without taking itself too seriously. Visit the site soon and enjoy the magic of Jane Cronin.
