Exploring cultures – Language Teaching Centre | LTC

Nelson Mandela

LTC Team — Tue, 08 Oct 2019 12:07:49 +0000

Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was a social rights activist, politician and philanthropist who became South Africa’s first black president from 1994 to 1999. After becoming involved in the anti-apartheid movement in his 20s, Mandela joined the African National Congress in 1942. For 20 years, he directed a campaign of peaceful, nonviolent defiance against the South African government and its racist policies.

Timeline Nelson Mandela

18 July 1918: Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela is born

1925: Enters primary school

1937: Aged 18, starts college

1939: Enters university

1940: Expelled from Hare University for activism

1944: Co-founds ANC Youth League, marries Evelyn Ntoko Mase

1948: Elected national secretary of ANC Youth League, later to president

1952: Campaign of Civil disobedience and opens South Africa’s first black law practice with Oliver Tambo

1956: One of 150 activists charged with high treason

1961: Goes underground, Umkhonto weSizwe (MK) is formed

1964: Sentenced to life imprisonment, sent to maximum-security jail of Robben Island

1990: Released

1993: Wins the Nobel Peace Prize

1994: Elected president after the ANC wins South Africa’s first multi-racial elections

1998: Marries Graça Machel

1999: Steps down after one term as president

2004: Withdraws from public life

5 December 2013: Dies aged 95

What did Nelson Mandela do for South Africa?

When Nelson Mandela was a young man, white and black people in South Africa lived separate lives under a system called apartheid. White people, who were a small part of the population, were in charge of the country. It was illegal for black people to use the same schools, hospitals and even beaches as white people. Conditions in whites-only schools and hospitals were much better.
But Nelson Mandela believed that everybody should be treated equally. Mandela joined a political party called the African National Congress (ANC) and later co-founded the ANC Youth League, leading protests against apartheid. Mandela had spent 27 years in jail and was greeted as a hero on his release. He is famous for promoting a message of forgiveness and equality. Apartheid was abolished in 1991, and three years later, South Africa held its first elections in which black people, as well as white, were allowed to vote. Nelson Mandela was elected president and set about trying to bring people of different races together. In 1993, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize – the highest honour of its kind – for his work.

he will be remembered around the world for his message of peace and unity.

South African food

LTC Team — Thu, 12 Sep 2019 08:13:06 +0000

To truly enjoy South African food, you have to be in South Africa. It’s all about history, the surroundings and your company.

Due in part to its history of settlement and colonization, as well as its location on the coast, South-African cuisine has many influences including Dutch, French, Malaysian and indigenous cultures. Here are some traditional South African dishes that reflect the country’s diverse cultures and palates.

Beef Bobotie

Bobotie is a purely South African dish made with minced or shredded meat, fruit and spices. It is topped off with a savoury custard and bay leaves, and baked in an oven until the custard is ready.

Boerewors

Boerewors is a high-quality sausage often spiralled and presented in a circular shape. It is made using a high content of meat and can be made of beef, pork or game meat. It is a must-have at a braai.

Biltong

From its humble beginnings as a cured meat made purely for preservation, to the spicy snack it is today, biltong is ubiquitously one of the top South African foods to try. It is loved by many a South African but may be an acquired taste for others. If you have tried beef jerky and loved it, it is highly likely that biltong will go down very well.

Koeksisters

This tasty tea-time treat is made by frying pleated-dough pieces, while koeksisters become even sweeter after adding a sugary syrup. They have a golden, crunchy crust; a soft, doughnut-like centre and are super sticky. The Cape Malay version, compared to the more common sweet version, is rolled in desiccated coconut and has a slightly spicy flavour.

Malva pudding

Malva pudding, of Cape Dutch origin, contains apricot jam, is saucy and has a spongy texture with a caramel taste. Once taken out of the oven, those who bake it add a cream-based sauce over the pudding. This results in a sticky and soft yet cake-like dessert. A favourite among South Africans, it is usually served with hot custard or vanilla ice cream.

Vetkoek

Popular in Afrikaner cooking, vetkoek is basically a fried dough bread. The word means “fat cake” and is similar to the Dutch “oliebollen”. It can be accompanied by sweet or savoury toppings like minced curry and chutney.

Chakalaka
The name sounds exotic, but for locals this dish is a weekly staple. The chakalaka is a mix of cold veggies – like peppers, carrots, onions, tomatoes and beans – mixed in with some spice.

Melktert

Similar to the British custard tart or Portuguese pasteis de nata, melktert consists of a pastry case filled with milk, eggs and sugar, which is usually thickened with cornflour. The finished tart is traditionally dusted with cinnamon. A real South African comfort food, it is served as a dessert, and also available in many bakeries.

During your English course with Language Teaching Centre, you can even take some cooking classes as activities.

The Afrikaans Language

LTC Team — Fri, 03 Mar 2017 09:58:12 +0000

Afrikaans is one of the modern antique spoken languages in South Africa. What makes this language so unique?

Afrikaans is the first language of most Afrikaner and Coloured people of Southern Africa. It is a West Germanic Language and it is spoken in South Africa, Namibia, and to a lesser extent, Botswana and Zimbabwe. Afrikaans is South Africa’s third mother tongue; it is spoken by fifteen percent of the population. There are more people that speak Afrikaans as their mother tongue. Only nine percent of the South Africans speak English as their native language.

Approximately 95% of the words from Afrikaans comes from the Dutch language. Modern Dutch and Afrikaans share over 90 percent of their vocabulary. Afrikaans speakers are able to learn Dutch within a comparatively short time. Native Dutch speakers pick up written Afrikaans even more quickly, due to its simplified grammar, whereas understanding spoken Afrikaans might need more effort. Afrikaans was first called ‘’Kaap-Hollands’’ which means ‘’Cape-Holland’’ before it changed to Afrikaans. There are about 10 million native speakers. The language has not only influence from Holland but also English, German, Low Saxon, Scottish and Yiddish.

South African Flag

In 1682 the first signs of people speaking Afrikaans were reported when a Dutch East India Company official from the Netherlands complained about a ‘’distorted and incomprehensible’’ version of Dutch being spoken around modern-day Paarl. In the nineteenth century the language was widely spoken in the Cape by both white and coloured people, but was looked down on by the elite.

In 1925 Afrikaans was recognized as one of the official languages of South Africa. To remind the people of this event, they build a statue called the Afrikaans Language Monument at Paarl in 1975. This is one of the two statues that is dedicated to the language; you can find the other statue, the Dutch Language Monument, in Burgersdorp in the Eastern Cape. The Afrikaans Language Monument is a 45 minute drive from Cape Town. They built the statue on a hill and it offers a beautiful view over the Western Cape.

A funny detail to this monument: When you pass Paarl, you officially enter the ‘boerewors gordyn’, as the locals call it. This means that the language you hear after you passed this ‘border’, it’s probably Afrikaans. When you are at the language monument, you must check the quotation from the poet N.P. van Wyk Louw.

‘’Afrikaans is die taal wat vir Wes-Europa en Afrika verbind… Dit vorm ‘n brug tussen die groot helder Weste en die magiese Afrika… En wat daar groots aan hulle vereniging kan ontspruit – dit is miskien wat vir Afrikaans voorlê om te ontdek. Maar wat ons nooit moet vergeet nie, is dat hierdie verandering van land en landskap as’t ware aan die nuwe wordende taal geslyp, geknee, gebrei het… En so het Afrikaans in staat geword om hierdie nuwe land uit te sê… Ons taak lê in die gebruik wat ons maak en sal maak van hierdie glansende werktuig…”

What means:

‘’ Afrikaans is the language that connects Western Europe and Africa … It forms a bridge between the large, bright West and magical West Africa … And what great things spring from this union – which is perhaps something to discover for Afrikaans. But what we must never forget is that this change of land and landscape as it were, cut the new language, has kneaded and knitted … And so Afrikaans been able to express this new land … Our task is in the use we make of this shiny tool, and will make … “

When the National Party took power in 1948, its apartheid policy went hand in hand with promoting the interests of its Afrikaans-speaking supporters. Because of this the Soweto uprising arose in 1976, when the government tried to force Afrikaans as a required subject in African schools. During this time, the repression of the 1970s and 1980s and the forced removals under the Group Areas Act, made a lot of African people to rather speak English than Afrikaans.

Are you interested in learning the Afrikaans language? LTC – Language Teaching Centre, is the place for you! Contact us and we will get in touch with you as soon as possible.

The secret to learning a new language successfully

LTC Team — Mon, 10 Oct 2016 09:46:01 +0000

Want to know the secret to making your attempt at learning a new language more successful? Want to find out what will keep you motivated and learn much faster? Well, that secret is…confidence.

“Confidence comes from not always being right, but from not fearing to be wrong.”

-Peter T. Mcintyre

Yes, that secret might not seem like much, and may come across as more of a disappointment, but if there is one thing you can do to fast-track your language learning it is being confident. Your success depends on your level of confidence. It may sound obvious, but it isn’t actually. Confidence is the biggest hurdle anyone who is trying to learn a new language has in the beginning. Languages are about talking to people, putting yourself in situations where you might not feel very comfortable. If you lack the confidence , you will never truly be able to speak the language you are learning properly.

It doesn’t matter whether you make mistakes or that not everyone you talk to reacts positively. All that matters is that you are out there trying your best with what you know – and ultimately learning from your mistakes.

“Belief in oneself and one’s powers or abilities; self-confidence; self-reliance; assurance”
– Webster’s New Universal.

Once you start believing in your abilities and start saying you “speak” a language rather than that you are “learning” a language, your learning will speed up. As a result, you will focus less on what you are getting wrong and start focussing more on what you are getting right. Just keep at it – the more you speak, the less you will worry. Remember that any progress is good and means you are getting better at the language. Perfection isn’t nearly as important as believing in yourself.

Once you are confident, you will start thinking about correcting your mistakes. Yes, some native speakers will correct you, but that’s how you learn! No need to be embarrassed.

Learning a language by yourself is taxing – and usually unsuccessful. Most people quit once they hit a speedbump in their learning. But taking a Language Course in Cape Town with the Language Teaching Centre (LTC), you are not alone! At LTC you are encouraged to work hard and strive to learn the language you have chosen. With the help of our highly qualified teachers, you will be taught in a nurturing and positive environment where you will be encouraged to try your best. You don’t have to struggle by yourself – let the Language Teaching Centre help you.

Volunteer in Cape Town – The time of my life – by Lukas, Germany

LTC Team — Tue, 08 Dec 2015 10:13:20 +0000

My journey to as a volunteer in Cape Town, South Africa: The time of my life.

From September to November, I was a volunteer at DARG, a rescue center for neglected or injured dogs and cats. I chose this project on the one hand of course to help, but on the other hand for the experience to help me . I had dream of becoming a vet afterwards, so I was also seeing whether I would enjoy working the whole day with animals or not.

And yes, I did! I enjoyed it very much! I handled every single difficult dog: the one who doesn’t like women, the one that bites you when you give it treats, and also the dog with the record for biting the most people. I learned so much about the way dogs think and their behaviour and I am sure it will contribute to me becoming a good vet! I basically found my passion in working with dogs.

My colleagues at the animal shelter

And of course my adventure was not just working, but also enjoying beautiful Cape Town, my new home. At least it is where my heart is. I had an awesome host mother that helped me organize trips and who gave me many ideas. Also, I found amazing friends, the kind of friends you know you will visit in the years to come. People from all over the world have been part of my journey: South Africans, Brazilians, Swiss, Italians, Polish and Germans.

With those people I had so many adventures, for example driving the garden route, shark cage diving, bungee jumping, safari driving, snorkeling with seals and standing face to face with cheetahs, elephants and eagles.

I ran my first half marathon, hiked Table Mountain three times, climbed Lions Head two times and all the twelve Apostles. These are just a few examples – I was busy day and night! I only missed Devil’s Peak, but I did this on purpose: I still need something to do on my next stay in Cape Town! I had the best three months of my life, and I can recommend South Africa to anyone reading this. It is a wonderful country and has so much to offer. You won’t regret it, for sure!

Cape Town braai

Erin Hartogh — Thu, 08 Oct 2015 12:20:13 +0000

Traditional braai

A braai (barbecue), like sunny skies and rugby, is one of the main elements of the South African way of life and provides us with a lovely traditional pastime. Cape Town has many different beautiful places to have a braai, just to spend a quiet afternoon with friends or family enjoying a meal together.

Cape Town Braai Spots

There are many braai spots in Cape Town but here are a few to give you an indication of where to go.

Meulwater Wildflower Reserve, Paarl

This is a spectacular place to go with many picnic sites and braai spots. There are also hiking trails that you can use to walk off that boerie roll.

Oudekraal, Camps Bay

This beach/grassy area is situated on the coastal road between Camps Bay and Llandudno. It gets busy on weekends and public holidays, so if you want a good spot you have to arrive early! Oudekraal offers braai facilities with a fantastic view of the ocean. It is situated at Victoria Road and the entrance is R25 per adult, R10 per child, or free if you have a Wild Card.

Silvermine Dam, Tokai

With an excellent view of the fynbos-covered mountains, Silvermine Dam offers stunning picnic and braai spots. During the summer and early autumn, however, no braaiing is permitted because of the high fire risk. Picnics are allowed all year round. The entrance is R40 per adult, R20 per child, and free with a Wild Card.

Cape Town restaurants

Besides the traditional braai experience, Cape Town also offers excellent restaurants and bars such as The Long Street Café, located in Long Street, and Beluga in Green Point. The Gold restaurant is a great traditional African restaurant, which is also highly recommended!