So guys, not proud of this but been living in Denmark for 10 years and still not able to speak Danish. I’m still at a beginner level and finally decided to seriously start learning it and be able to speak it fluently in 1-2 years. I’m very motivated and dedicated to do it.
For context, fortunately, I’ve been living in Copenhagen for the past 10 years and I was able to go around speaking only English; finished an education here, have a quite good job (which seems to maybe turn into a career) so I don’t really see getting any BIG benefits of speaking Danish.
I’d say I’m quite integrated and adapted well to Denmark, danish life-style, culture and values. Except the language. And, as you probably guessed I’m tired of being constantly asked how come I don’t speak danish yet and also constantly hearing remarks and, at times, being judged for it by colleagues, system workers (doctors, authorities, etc.).
But here’s the thing. My wife is Danish and she got pregnant not long ago so I’ve decided that it’s time and I want to learn this difficult language and speak it fluently in 1-2 years time, such that I’ll be able to speak Danish to my children and to their mom in front of them and so on.
I don’t want to and also really cannot go to ‘Danish school/lessons’. Instead, I want to be autodidact and learn it by myself - learning grammar, dictionary work, reading, listening and yeah, finally speaking it.
Besides the obvious ‘just practice talking to your wife, colleagues, friends, etc.’, what other tips, tricks and ‘hacks’ could you share that would facilitate and speed-up the process?
I need to mention that I do speak 3 other languages fluently: native language, English and French.