Language Lore

Welcome to our Language Lore page. This section is filled with our culture and language learning stories. As the site grows, we’ll add the best stories from our readers to our own stories. We hope to see you back soon.

We start with a blogs from Terry, Ann, and Shawn as they experience a language study odyssey in Cusco, Peru.

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Language Lore:
Peru blog

On the trail to Machu Picchu

By Terry Marshall

In exactly one week now, we’re off to Cusco, Peru, then on to Machu Picchu, the famous once-lost Inca city recently voted one of the Wonders of the World.We’ll do some traveling on this blog – first Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley, later click for more …

We had this plan, see, but . . .

By Terry Marshall

I’ve had a month to plan and prepare for this trip. I finished up the penultimate draft of my Mexican-American civil rights novel, Soda Springs, late last month and began the agonizing process of sending out query letters to find an agent. Then I set to work on the trip: researched language schools, figured out a basic travel plan, listed click for more…

Quick, drill some Spanish into my brain

By Terry Marshall

The final countdown: less than 12 hours before we leave for Cusco, and unfinished tasks are raining down like hail. Amid all the normal last-minute flurries comes one of those great language lore lessons in why we need to learn other languages. To wit click for more ...

Free Spanish Lessons

By Ann Marshall

We’re surrounded by Spanish lessons – free micro-lessons, that is. Here we are in Cusco, Peru. Just arrived five hours ago. The realization about the free Spanish lessons came click for more …

The Longest Day: Thirty Hours to Cusco

By Shawn Marshall, Language Lore Learner

October 3, 2:30 a.m., preparing to embark on one of many daily flights to Peru: wake up for a 6 a.m. departure. We spent our first three-hour Miami layover having lunch with our local family, and then click for more …

Beginning Life in Cuzco

By Shawn Marshall

Friday, October 6: 9 a.m. came early. The maid in my new Peru host family, Benita made it better with scrambled eggs, bread, and some sort of banana jugo (juice). No sign of life, other than Benita and me, so I spent click for more …

It hurts . . . in my, ah . . . here and here

By Terry Marshall

Time for practical health care during travel. My notion of practical language learning is that by immersing ourselves in practical situations (on the ground, as the politicians like to say when they talk about Iraq) we learn useful click for more …

I Need a Doctor

By Dr. Language Lore (Terry Marshall)

Peruvian Health Care. Here’s the setting: Monday, 6:45 p.m., a holiday. Someone mentioned to the folks at Maximo Nivel language school that I’m down with a sore throat. The word gets around click for more …

Would you believe: Altitude Sickness!?

By Shawn Marshall

Sunday, October 7: My dad is feeling a little under the weather today, so my mother and I journeyed off to the plaza square. My only mission today was to click for more …

Taxi-ing our way to Learn Spanish in Peru

By Terry Marshall

It’s too far to walk to school from our house, so we take a taxi to and from classes (one-way, 2 sols; 67 cents USD). Cusco is a city of click for more …

Chela's Story

I’m going shopping … well sort of. Today I’m looking for a jewelry buyer while I sit in a ten-foot-square vendor’s stall practicing Spanish and learning about tourism, politics, and click for more …

Peruvian Inca Architecture: View from the Mountaintop

We’ve entered the mythical world of the Peruvian Inca. A thousand feet below us, Machu Picchu sits nested into a mountaintop like click for more …

New Seven Wonders of the World

When you hear the words Cusco or Peru, Machu Picchu immediately comes to mind. The mystical, sacred city of the Incas is now one of the new Seven Wonders of the World. I’m still trying to figure out click for more …

Místico Machu Picchu

La ciudad mística y sagrada de los Incas es ahora una de las siete maravillas del mundo moderno. Cuando se oyen las palabras Cusco o Perú, el nombre de Machu Picchu viene inmediatamente a la mente. Todavía estoy tratando hagan clic aquí …

Peru Hiking Tour Puts Machu Picchu at Top of Life Experiences

This wasn’t your typical Peru hiking tour, if there is such a thing…and I’m not sure words can accurately describe my experience at Machu Picchu today. But here are a few click for more …

Spanish tutorial: Meet my tandem

In addition to taking formal classes, I’m taking advantage of a special Spanish tutorial. Our language school, Maximo Nivel, offers a valuable supplement to click for more …

Learn Spanish Grammar in Peru

So you want to learn Spanish. Be forewarned: it may be easier to learn Spanish grammar… My objective: learn to speak Spanish. I scoured the web for click for more …

Typical Day Learning Foreign Language

By Ann "Language Lore Sage" Marshall

Writing about learning foreign language has been overtaken by the intensity of our daily routine. But we’ve finally settled into a doable schedule. Click for more …

Tandem Learning: Real Life Practice

Want to practice basic Spanish grammar? Try a tandem. My tandem learning is a voluntary one-on-one Spanish exchange click for more …

High finance in changing money

Ready for a poignant lesson about changing money? You’re in back-country Peru shopping for click for more …

Mario Vargas Llosa Teaches (Practical) Spanish

Learn Spanish in Peru, with small classes, a flexible school – and help from Mario Vargas Llosa. Plus, good teachers make it possible to click for more …

The Road to Moray: Our Peru Adventure Vacation

We were off on our own Peru adventure vacation, an ad hoc group of 10: teachers and students from Maximo Nivel, organized by Luz, our Spanish teacher, headed for click for more …

Staying Connected – UFC Ultimate Fighting Championship and Other Jousts

Imagine me trolling Cusco bars in search of a UFC Ultimate Fighting Championship bout. Can’t imagine it? Me, either click for more …

Images of Peru Housing

Our Peru housing is one of many bright spots in our trip. Maximo Nivel provided for great accommodation, matching us with a Cusco host family that keeps students regularly, so they are click for more …

Little Known Facts about Peru History: Choqequirau

Add this to your facts about Peru history: Choqequirau. What’s that? I didn’t know about Choqequirau until Carlos, our Peruvian host "father," grew absolutely ebullient click for more …

Ecotourism Travel in Lake Titicaca: Amantani overnight

This is ecotourism travel at its most engaging: we’re sipping quinoa-laced potato soup by candlelight at Juan Quispe’s. We’re huddled around a tiny table in his dirt-floored kitchen on click for more …

Coffee Time: Spare Me the Nescafé

Coffee time: It shouldn’t be this hard to find a cup of java. It’s Peru, after all. They grow it here. We’re in Chivay and I’ve checked two restaurants click for more …

Peru Vacation Package Introduces Us to Colca, Condors, and Guides

On this leg of our Peru vacation package, our tour guide, "Juan Pablo," rousts us at 5 a.m. Quick breakfast – Nescafé, white roll with jam, Tang-like "juice." The minibus rolls up click for more …

Contaminated Bottled Water = Urgent Errand!

Sometimes mundane events drive your foreign language learning needs. In fact, a swig of contaminated bottled water can create urgent motivation click for more …

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Language Lore:
India blog

Introduction to India blog

Have you ever called your credit card company and got a phone agent in the Philippines? Have you called for technical support and been helped by a representative in India? If you have, you have experienced the new world of off-shore customer support. Read an introduction to my blog and learn how I came to work in India.

India's Culture: Welcome to Delhi

I am at the centre in India. It is pretty cool. They are discussing American slang: "going postal" "slam dunk," "I'll take a rain check." It is amusing, this is the essence of language lore stories. India is a crazy place--even after my other travels, I'll admit I've been surprised a few times click for more ...

Holy Cow, What Happens When One Dies?

By Leslie Woodford

Namaste (which is Hindi for Hello). Well, this has been a question in my mind all week. What happens when one of the apparently ownerless cows dies? Does someone remove the corpse? Little did I realize that I would have the opportunity to find out so quickly click for more ...

More Cow Tales

By Leslie Woodford

I went shopping at the market today. That was fun. Versha, the proprietress of the guest house, took me so that she could do the bargaining. After some trial and error, we figured out click for more …

Good Clean Bathroom Humor

By Leslie Woodford

Bathroom routines vary from country to country, so although I wasn't terribly excited the first day when I discovered that only ice cold water came out of the shower spout, click for more …

Paint a Picture of Road Traffic Safety in India

By Leslie "Language Lore Guru" Woodford

Let's see if I can paint a picture of traffic here in India. It is so picturesque that I'm not sure if I will be able to do it justice in a verbal picture, but we'll see. First off, you must turn your thinking completely click for more …

Call Centers in India: Am I Talking to … Myself?

By Leslie Woodford

I called American Express. I suspected that my call had been routed to one of the call centers in India because the customer service agent sounded Indian. To confirm, click for more …

No water? India’s Dilemma. Power out? No biggie.

By Leslie Woodford

Here is an interesting thing: the power goes out here at least once a day, usually a couple times a day. (At the guesthouse that is; at work they have a UPS.) It is only off click for more …

Indian Clothing Here and There

By Leslie Woodford

Well, apparently, I've settled into the routine here, as I can't think of anything cultural quirks to highlight for this week. The week passed quickly at work. I am busy from click for more …

Indian Music: Singing Songs and Swimming Swamp

By Leslie Woodford

Yeah, I have been working too hard. 13 hours yesterday, 12 the day before. The training isn't going the way that we expected. I feel that I’m really running up against cultural differences about click for more …

Favorite India blogs: Whatever You Do, Don’t Spoil Your Car

By Leslie Woodford

Life here is going fine. It is such a different world that I can hardly believe the differences sometimes. Like when we have to stop because there are 10 cows crossing the street single file click for more …

Explore the Taj Mahal in a Unique Way

By Leslie Woodford

I finally made it to see the Taj Mahal. It is amazing in a way that can hardly be described in words. Few things that I've seen have been spectacularly more amazing in person than in photos, but click for more …

Poverty in India: A little TV tonight? Your tarp or mine?

By Leslie Woodford

You'll enjoy this language lore blog. By far the most entertaining thing about India is the traffic. (You have probably already discerned this from my blogs since many of them revolve around this activity.) Every day is an adventure, and going places is always an exotic journey click for more …

Sweet Shops

By Leslie Woodford

I got sick today after my first meal at the new hotel. I got sick the first day at the Taj too. You’d think these fancy 5 star hotels would be more click for more …

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