হ্যালো / hello! My name is Rachel and I run @banglanotebook. I am 26 years old and I’m an American studying Bengali. English is my first and only language and someday I’d like to know at least two others. Besides Bengali, I’m also considering Spanish, Hindustani (probably with an emphasis on Urdu), Czech, or Tamil, although I won’t start any of these until I’m more familiar with Bangla.

I have a Bachelor’s degree in English with a minor in English Education, so if anyone is learning English as a second language, or needs help or tips with essay writing, literature analysis, or almost anything else English related you can pop into the ask box on my main blog, @alvallah :D

Besides self-studying Bengali (which it appears I’m very slow at lol) I like to read, play video games, and watch movies/TV shows. I tend to like genres that are more emotional and poetic in nature --children’s to adults, fantasy or non-fiction, cartoons or live-action, I just like feeling things and thinking about things so send me your most thoughtful/mind-blowing/heart-wrenching recommendations!

Some other areas that currently catch my interest include: languages and writing systems, culture (especially traditional dress/beauty standards and folklore), sociological and anthropological topics (pretty broad I know but I just like learning about shit), fashion, design/aesthetics, and plants. I definitely lean heavy into arts and humanities; I live to learn and grow, and to just enjoy beautiful things <3

Photo credit here.

চা আমার প্রিয়! [ca amar priyô] Tea is my favorite!

আমার চার সাথে দুধ আর চিনি ভাল লাগে। [amar car sathe dudh ar cini bhalô lage] I like my tea with milk and sugar.

ওর কালো চা ভাল লাগে না। [or kalo ca bhalô lage na] He/she doesn’t like black tea.

আমি অনেক দুধ চাই। [ami ɔnek dudh cai] I want a lot of milk.

এটা চা খুব গরম! [eṭa ca khub gɔrôm] This tea is very hot!

আমরা দুটা কাপ আর দুটা চামচ চাই। [amra duṭa kap ar duṭa camôc cai] We want two cups and two spoons.

সে সুপ্তির সাথে চা খাইছে। [se suptir sathe ca khaiche] He/she is drinking tea with Supti.

চার জন্য ধন্যবাদ! [car jônyô dhɔnyôbad] Thanks for the tea!

তুমি দুধ আর চিনি চাও? [tumi dudh ar cini cao] Do you want milk and sugar?

চিনি দাও? [cini dao] Give me the sugar? **To my understanding, while there are ways to say "please” in Bangla, it isn’t absolutely necessary most of the time; you can convey politeness by tone alone if you’re asking for something.**

1. What time is it for you? 2:50 PM

2. Cats or dogs? I literally love both the same, but cats are easier to care for so I guess cats.

3. Favourite colour? Grey

4. Favourite food? I don’t have one, but I have a crazy sweet tooth and I love Thai, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, and Japanese cuisine? And seafood. Idk if that helps lol

5. Favourite song? Changes all the time, but right now it’s “No Fear” by Phil Ade (ft. Tate Kobang & Saba Abraha)

6. Zodiac sign? Capricorn

7. Where did you grow up? USA (NY)

8. Did you go to college? Yes I did, and I graduated with a BA in English, with a minor in English Education

9. How has quarantine been? Just a continuation of several years of loneliness lol. This just keeps me from even socializing with coworkers. Needless to say, my depression is destroying me :)

10. Are you quarantined with anyone? My dad, his girlfriend, my brother, his girlfriend. I love being in the house with two couples while my long distance partner is in NYC it’s awesome :)

TOTALLY not salty or anything, everything’s fantastic.

@ohshelearns tagged me (and I’m tagging @guillemelgat too) to do this so here’s my voice I guess?

The questions I used are here:

Your name and username.

Where you’re from.

Pronounce the following words: aunt, roof, route, theater, iron, salmon, caramel, fire, water, New Orleans, Pecan, both, again, probably, Alabama, lawyer, coupon, mayonnaise, pajamas, caught, naturally, aluminum, GIF, Tumblr, Crackerjack, doorknob, envelope, GPOY.

What is it called when you throw toilet paper on a house? 

What is a bubbly carbonated drink called? 

What do you call gym shoes? 

What do you call your grandparents?

What do you call the wheeled contraption in which you carry groceries at the supermarket?

What is the thing you change the TV channel with? 

Choose a book and read a passage from it.

Do you think you have an accent? 

Would you rather be a wizard or a vampire? 

Do you know anyone on Tumblr in real life? 

End audio post by saying any THREE words you want.

২৮ ফেব্রুয়ারি ২০১৯ | 28 february 2019

Bangla Word of the Day: পুরুষ [puruṣ] | man

I was tagged by the lovely @languagesandshootingstars!

Rules: We’re snooping on your playlist. Put your entire music library on shuffle and list the first 10 songs, then choose 10 people.

Billie Holiday | Warpaint   --haunting, atmospheric, indie

Beautiful Liar | Beyoncé & Shakira   --a bop, ‘nuff said

Estamos Bien | Bad Bunny   --chill partying in the summer kind of song

Mirrors in the Moonlight | Noosa   --lazy, dreamy, romantic

Explícale | Farruko   --sexy summer nights, rolls nice

Let Go | Beau Young Prince   --melancholy, depression, soft

Wild Ones | Bahari   --nostalgic, folky hints, echo-y, fun to sing

Remembering Myself | Stephen   --kinda like EDEN, also fun to sing

Me and a Gun | Tori Amos   --tragic, a capella, TW: explicitly describes rape 

Djin | Mashrou’ Leila   --definitely a jam, will get stuck in your head

This is @wisryder1‘s survey for a research project on racism and xenophobia towards Asian people. If you have any questions, feel free to contact them.

So Mango is pretty popular in the Langblr community, and I’d say its kinda like a competitor to Duolingo, although if you want to take advantage of more than 3 lessons you have to pay for it. The good thing about Mango is that it’s a polished program that includes a multitude of languages that Duolingo does not, including Bangla.

FEATURES: 

Teaches sentence structure with color coded sentences

Good at teaching phrases

Has native speakers pronouncing the sentences

You can record your voice so you can compare your pronunciation to the speaker’s

Scaffolds sentence structure so that you can learn in bite-sized pieces

Tap on words to see the romanized spelling to help conceptualize how the word should sound

Available on PC and on mobile

IF YOU HAVE A LIBRARY CARD IN THE US you have the ability to avoid paying for this program! Mango works in partnership with a variety of libraries and educational organizations across the US. If you have a library card, simply enter your number to prove a library you have access to has purchased Mango. Enjoy the services that your taxes have provided for you!

CONS: 

Pay to unlock lessons

Doesn’t teach alphabets

Doesn’t explain linguistic concepts thoroughly most of the time

Misses the nuance differences in dialect (for Bangla, at least)