I am starting to learn Portuguese, where should I start?

Question

I want to learn Portuguese. Although I've heard portuguese is different in Portugal than it is in Brazil, do Brazilians still understand it? Where is a good place to start learning it? Any internet sources? Thanks!!

Answer 1

well...  which one would you like to learn ?  Maybe you can decide on which country you would like to visit more ?  

heres a great web site.  you have to download it .. but its free.. it has Audio .. flash cards .. games.. its great for starting.. have fun

http://byki.com/

Answer 2

you can visit www.weblinguas.com.br in this site you can find a way to learn portuguese more easier.

Answer 3

In the various portuguese types there aren't usually any understanding problems, and even the african portuguese can be very easy to understand...if u are american u should learn brazilian portuguese as it is more open in comparison to Portugal's portuguese (like british and american english), if not Portugal's portuguese is easier...but after a few weeks learning u'll come to understand that though they're different everyone understands each other perfectly...

boa sorte!=good luck!

Answer 4

Portuguese from Brazil and from Portugal are similar to English from the US and Australia, same language, different ways to say things and of course, different accents. Brazilians do understand Portuguese from Portugal, although it is noticeable in every word that the person in not from Brazil. A good start would be the Rosetta Stone course. Go to www.rosettastone.com

Answer 5

I took some night classes in Portuguese.  My teacher was from Sao Paulo but was treaching me European Portuguese.  The difference between the two is quite noticable, for example a lot of pronunciation is a bit different though people from Rio & the North East tend to have more Portuguese sounding accents, then of course there is the influence of the Indians/Africans/ other immigrant groups in the language too.  Personally speaking I find Brasilian Portuguese easier to understand & a more musical sounding language when spoken.

Answer 6

The cheapest way to start (and possibly the easiest) is to just get some language CDs.  The advantage of having language CDs (or tapes) is that you'll do better with the pronunciation than if you just try to learn Portuguese via a book.  Of course, if you're a visual learner then listening to a CD can be difficult.  Keep in mind, these are going to cover BASIC Portuguese and will not be as extensive as college-level courses, etc.

I've used Pimsleur before.  See link below. It's under $15.

You could also check out a local university or college in your town.  Some larger schools teach Portuguese every year (or every other year).  You could also check out craigslist (etc) for private tutors.

Another thing you could do is to travel to Brazil and take an "intensive Portuguese" class through a university.  PUC-RIO offers a 1 month course every January and July.  It's about $750 for tuition and then housing (with a host family) is another $200 - 300 and includes breakfast.  Of course you could always rent a flat for about $500 to $1,000 for 1 month.  Flying to Rio is another $1,000 - $1,800, depending upon where you're coming from.  Of course this all adds up.  BUT, what an amazing experience, eh!?  Not only do you get to learn Portuguese but you get to do it in an international setting!  (Many of your classmates will be European... and yet the school and community is obviously 99% Brazilian).