Esperanto or Latin as the lingua franca? 
I know one person who’d support the former. 
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Oh yes…ond:
Is apparently the safe word 
And indeed the correct one. 
I’ve just gotta know
a: what is a Volapükist
b what is a Sperantapük
Put me out of my misery, please. 
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Volapük is a created international language.
https://www.omniglot.com/writing/volapuk.htm
Then I am assuming that a Volapükist is someone who speaks the language or is an enthusiast for it.
Sperantapük must be Volapük for Esperanto.
Sue
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I always thought it was random sounds, turns out there’s a language sounding more or less like this? 
p.s. @Novem even though I can guess it has something to do with Finland, Suomessa still sounds quite funny to an Italian!
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O Dioch yn fawr iawn / Thank you very much.
I shall be able to sleep tonight.
Correct! 
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Ive jumped over here now so as not to Hijack Aran’s important Spread the word type topic -
Ha ha, come to Cardiff, and catch the free weekend coach to North Wales Bring a pillow for the slow journey and you will be totally fluent by the time you get to Bangor 
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You mean coaches like those from Cardiff to Aber that are free on weekends?
You can go up to the north on those as well?
Good idea, it may work as long as there’s a fluent speaker travelling the same route, I guess! 
Yup, there’s one from Aberystwyth to Bangor as well as a few other routes. You’d have to either stay up very late or spend a night in Aber, though.
(edit - oh actually it’s definitely a night in Aber, the connection doesn’t actually work on the weekends)
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Yes I think it’s a two bus journey. Also the Cardiff to Aber one goes past our window, so you can jump off for a cappuccino or wave as you pass.
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it’s definitely a night in Aber
I’ve a “cunning plan” for that which I’ve shared with Gisella.
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Hi Gisella, I enjoyed reading your diary and find your story fascinating.
I tried to listen to some Datblygu songs and I really like them but I haven’t been able to find the lyrics to almost any of them and I am not yet advanced enough to get something from it without them (currently level 1 challenge 13). I would like to know how you got from hearing them for the first time (while not knowing any Welsh) to being able to understand them.
Also, I hope you will visit the North one day, I am a Czech girl totally in love with North Wales, living in a Welsh speaking village but not having the courage to speak Welsh yet.
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Hi Ani - I’m glad you enjoyed my diary and story.
From my experience I’d say it’s way easier to start speaking in learners groups (or with other forumists that might be in your area, have you checked if anyone’s close?)
But I also think it’s really great experience to just try and say something in a store, or bar or with someone on the train or at the bus station. It really helps overcoming anxiety and perfectionism because even when it’s quite a disaster…you see you can do it, and survive! And it gets better every time.
Of course I’m happy to hear you liked Datblygu 
It took me a bit of an effort to find the lyrics - but now I have:
- all songs from Wyau, Pyst and Libertino LPs (from a booklet - I just copied and pasted them all in a file)
- 4 songs from an EP (someone posted on the web a photo of the typewritten sheet that was included in the record, and I re-typed them)
- 1 song of which I had somehow transcribed the sounds I heard. Recently I got it quickly checked by a native who turned it into actual words, but might still contain a few mistakes!
I can send them to you as an attachment in a message, if you like (just let me know).
By the way it’s always nice for me to meet other continental-Europeans who decide to learn Welsh.
I hope we can meet at some other International Clonc-edigion or when I visit North Wales!
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Thank you, I would be very happy if you can send the file to me.
BTW I can also relate to your experience with your host family. When we (with my husband) moved to the UK five years ago we started in Newcastle and even though I’d tried to practice before our move (by watching things like Benefits Street), it was horrible. 12 years of English in schools almost worthless. And the worst thing wasn’t not understanding others but the fact that nobody understood me.
I have many opportunities to practise around here (including some learners group) but I’ve been postponing it… it’s always “one more lesson and I will do it”…
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Yes!
At the time I also considered the fact Newcastle is probably not one of the most popular cities for international visitors, they’re also less used to foreign accents. So maybe that didn’t help.
The good news, at least from my experience, is that in Welsh nuances in pronunciation seem way less relevant than in English. So we have a better chance to be understood - even as learners.
I totally understand and sympathize with the “just one more lesson and I will do it”.
I think that in this sense the fact I’d be in Wales only for a few days helped me overcome the resistance that I believe we all naturally have: visiting Wales and meeting new nice people would be great anyway, but the purpose of my trip was trying to speak Welsh with people in person so I’d better not waste my chances.
Maybe you could try and trick your mind into thinking that for one day or even just one hour, English does not exist and go around town and see what happens? 
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Hey, why are you all picking on me? 
No, seriously I don’t know if anyone’s been following the twitter account when you mention a place that locals pronounce differently than outsiders.
I suggested Maesycymer, Penyrheol and Nyucassel 
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Oh sorry, John, didn’t mean to!
Despite the language problems, everybody was very nice and I really had a great time in Tyne & Wear (by the way, doesn’t it sound like a clothing brand, rather than a County? 
)
But now I’m curious, what is this twitter account? Never heard of it.
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Ha ha
The one that I am following is Y_Wenhwyseg Named after the old dialect of SE Wales
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