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[lilitiger2]

Wow...this is really, REALLY helpful. And I am going back to some earlier lessons to see what else I have misheard. What comes to mind right away is challenge 7 (I think) and "what you said"...going for pure phonetics, I hear " beh VI testi" or something like that. Is that V sound actually a TH sound (like "the")?

Truly, this is awesome. On the "she said" bit from challenge 14, i was hearing, purely phonetically, "vidov hi bod hi" , Soooooooo, glad to clear that up! Will be listening again (I think my horses and cats are now fairly conversant!)

I feel like those folks listening to Jimi Hendrix - 'scuse me while I kiss this guy!"

[brigitte]

What comes to mind right away is challenge 7 (I think) and "what you said"...going for pure phonetics, I hear " beh VI testi" or something like that. Is that V sound actually a TH sound (like "the")?

You are right. You said is: "Ddudest ti" (at least this is what we learn, the verb to say has many variations).
this "dd" is spoken like a voiced "th" and it really can sound like "v".
The good news: if you can hardly hear, if it's "d", "dd" or "v", those you talk to can't either. So if you say something like: vidov o , most people won't be aware of your misspelling and if they are, they will nevertheless understand what you mean.

[lilitiger2]

Brigitte, Diloch!!!

okay, to really beat and kick this very dead horse:

"She said that" is actually pronounced: thidoth o (with the "th" like "the"??) rather than vidov o? I am REALLY going to have to get that wax out of my ears cuz it still sounds like V to me

Thanks so much!! Just did 14 again, to be sure!

[brigitte]

okay, to really beat and kick this very dead horse:

"She said that" is actually pronounced: thidoth o (with the "th" like "the"??) rather than vidov o? I am REALLY going to have to get that wax out of my ears cuz it still sounds like V to me

Well, I'm a bit picky now and say: she said is : "ddudodd hi" but you're right, the first and the last sounds are like "th" like the.

[lilitiger2]

Oh got it! And yes, thidoth HI (not o) (and really, please excuse my horrible spelling, ust trying to very phonetic and very clear.I am NOT up to "sounding things out" yn y Gymraeg!!) and I do know how to spell diolch! I really appreciate this!! Thanks so much for taking the time to help!

[jdanderson]

First of all, you're right, don't worry.
It has to do with gender. If you speak about a book, llyfr, that's masculine, so: I read it is: "dwi'n eu ddarllen o"
the "eu" changes the next word. to enjoy it (a masculine word) eu fwynhau fo.
If you speak about a ffilm (feminine): I watch it: dwi'n eu gwylio hi, to enjoy it (feminine) eu mwynhau hi. No change of the following verb
When people speak naturally, they leave out either the "eu" before or the "fo " or "hi" after the verb. So if you say: "nes i fwynhau fo" or "nes i fwynhau hi" that's also o.k.

Thanks much for the explanation, Brigitte. I know we are supposed to sit back and let our brains figure out the patterns without us thinking too hard, but sometimes something comes along that seems to make no sense, and I find it hard to soldier on without at least verifying that I'm not totally confused about everything!

Jeff

[Devonlass]

I finished the old course 1 a while ago but thought I would see what the new course was like as I have got stuck on course 2. I have done about the first 6 lessons of the new course and wondered why you decided on this new structure. It appears to be very different from the original and I would say more difficult.

[Aran]

I have done about the first 6 lessons of the new course and wondered why you decided on this new structure.

Mainly because of the experience of having people on Bootcamp who'd done the whole of Course 1 but still had significant gaps in their ability to maintain a conversation. Those gaps won't be there for people who've completed the new Course 1.

It appears to be very different from the original and I would say more difficult.

It's certainly very different! Difficulty is a tricky one to measure - the new approach introduces fewer verbs in the first couple of lessons, and has also removed the problems that made the old Lesson 6 such a stumbling block, but it's a step further away from the traditional approach of I + verb, you + verb etc. That's continuing a process which began with the first course, and has been very fruitful so far in terms of getting people speaking more naturally more quickly, but it does make it seem a little less familiar.

Interestingly, most people who have tried to have conversations and encountered difficulties (which is, er, everyone who's tried to have a conversation!) have felt that the new material covered in the new course is really helpful. As always, though, we'll be paying close attention to the feedback we get from people who start with the new course, and measuring the levels of use, so in due course we'll be able to see fairly clearly which of the courses retains a greater level of users...