Recently, I decided to start learning Turkish. Falling into the category of *very* stereotypical Brit with minimal language skills (GCSE French...), I had an inkling that this would be a struggle. However, I have found in the past that surrounding yourself with a language is the quickest way to learn it and (way) back in 2008/9, after a year spent working in Bangkok, I had managed to get to a semi-conversational stage, without doing any formal learning.
Thus, I took it upon myself to start and decided to use three main learning tools:
Duolingo - after trying out a few language apps in the past, Duo is definitely one of the most user-friendly, with modules designed to target cognitive recognition through what can seem like repetitive practices but actually works really well. It is also very piecemeal so if you're wanting to learn very quickly, you'd need to spend a lot of time in the app or get some in-person lessons in. One downside: You can no longer download modules so once you're in that tube tunnel, unless you have wifi at stations, you'll be unable to move onto the next section in the app.
Let's Learn Turkish Podcast - OK, so this one I go through phases with *but* see, that moment when your Duolingo stops working on the tube or flying somewhere? Well, you don't need to worry about that here as you can simply listen to one of your pre-downloaded episodes. If you're one for structure then this maybe isn't for you as the podcast takes the form of a number of 5-10 minute recordings made by Meltem, a Turkish person from Istanbul who is concurrently educating us at the same time as her non-Turkish speaking partner. I have found the pod to be very useful so far and have found that it further cements some of the Duo learnings, but with that human element that you don't get from app study.
Midnight at Pera Palace - yes, it's a Turkish netflix series and I only recognize 2-3% of the words I'm hearing... but it's a start, and it's actually not too bad a series, if you don't mind a bit of a fantasy plot line. So, if all else fails, it's an addition to the binge-worthy viewing list!
Anyway, I'm hoping to use this space to update you on my progress on what will probably be a bit of a struggle. But it'll also act as a form of accountability for me and I'm optimistic about making some mini inroads (being very realistic of course). At the very least, if you've found this page and are pondering where to start your learning journey, maybe it'll provide some direction for you - good luck!
***DISCLAIMER - the blogs in this section won't necessarily follow any particular order - I highly recommend you follow the suggestions above if you're wanting to learn substantial Turkish. This will be more of a "as I learn it" documentation, and I'll share any key breakthroughs or quirks that I notice in case these could prove useful***
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