Episodes

  • Hi listeners, I hope you are all really well.

    Sorry that I took a while to record the next episode.

    Today I'll be speaking again with my friend Adam (also known as Ahmed) from Gaza about the reasons behind him choosing to study international social work.

    Very important to this conversation is the fact that Adam is blind and, as a result, has had to face a lot of significant challenges.

    However, he is using his lived experience as a disabled man to help others; through studying international social work.

    If you want to know more about his story you can check out his GoFundMe page linked at the bottom. Adam is raising money to pay his tuition fees and living expenses as he completes his studies in the Netherlands. The world needs more dedicated and compassionate social workers like Adam so if you are interested please check out his fundraiser.

    I suppose it's also important to say that in this episode there is a lot we don't discuss, including details of what Adam's family in Gaza are facing right now. We weren't consciously avoiding the topic, more that there sometimes aren't sufficient words to describe something.

    Big thank you to Adam for making the time to speak to me even in these terrible moments and still finding ways to laugh in spite of it all.

    You can follow my account on insta for updates @learnlevantinewithlivi

    Here is the vocabulary:

    ماشي الحال - It is so so

    لقب - Nickname

    بالتحديد - Specifically

    كفيف - Blind

    لاللي ما بيعرفوا - For those who do not know

    فقدت بصري - I lost my sight

    زي ما انتِ شايفة - As you can see

    دمار - Destruction

    ذوي احتياجات خاصة - People with special needs

    اتصاوبوا - They got injured

    عناصر منتجة في المجتمع

    Productive members of society

    تأهيل- Rehabilitation

    أسأل مجرب ولا تسأل طبيب

    Ask someone who has firsthand experience with a disease rather than a doctor.

    تخمين - Guessing

    سؤال عشوائي - Random question

    برج العقرب - Scorpio (Zodiac sign)

    شو بعرفك! - You never know!

    عقبات - Obstacles

    التنهد - A sigh

    امكانية الوصول - Accessibility

    مش أحسن شي من ناحية

    It's not the best (usually when you are talking about something which is no better than the bare minimum)

    القوة العضلية - Physical strength

    رسوم الدراسة - Tuition fees

    مصاريف - Expenses

    أصرف على نفسي - To spend on myself

    يساريين - Leftists

    مهاجرين - Immigrants

    ودودين - Friendly

    البنية التحتية - Infrastructure

    صدمة ثقافية - Culture shock

    حرفيا - Literally

    على أرض الواقع - In reality

    حضنتها - I embraced her

    مزدحم - Crowded

    مقارنة ب - In comparison with

    مع احترامي الشديد - With all due respect

    https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-ahmed-studeren-en-zijn-droom-waar-te-maken?utm_campaign=p_cf+share-flow-1&utm_content=undefined&utm_medium=chat&utm_source=whatsapp&utm_term=undefined

  • *Vocab below

    Hi everyone, I hope you're all really well.

    Today I'm going to be talking to Adam about a really important topic; psychology and mental health.

    We actually recorded this episode last year (apologies for the delay in publishing) just before Adam made a very long and difficult journey from Gaza to the Netherlands in order to start his studies at Han University.

    I'm mentioning this a) because Adam is a remarkable person b) he is currently running a GoFundMe to support his studies in International Social Work.

    Adam has been blind all of his adult life, but this has never stopped his determination, especially for helping others with disability. He is studying International Social Work in order to be able to develop a career in this field in order to have a positive impact.

    As he is in some financial difficulties at the moment he is fundraising to support his tuition fees and living expenses for the next few years.

    If you would like to read more about Adam (whose real name is Ahmed....Adam is a nickname) and check out a personal video from him, then you can check this link here https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-ahmed-studeren-en-zijn-droom-waar-te-maken?utm_campaign=p_cf+share-flow-1&utm_content=undefined&utm_medium=chat&utm_source=whatsapp&utm_term=undefined

    Many thanks and enjoy the episode!

    Vocabulary:

    حواجز - Barriers

    بشكل سلس Fluently/ smoothly

    فأر التجارب = Guinea pig / lab rat

    Logic / Logical - منطق / منطقي

    جرحتني - it hurt me / it scarred me

    بضلني ساكت- I remain silent / I keep silent

    طبيب نفسي - psychiatrist

    صدقًا- honestly

    نابع عن = Stems from

    إحاطة = understanding grasping of something

    أنماط = patterns/stereotypes

    كتمت مشاعري = I suppressed my feelings

    التنمر = Bullying

    فخورة = Proud

    شكرا على المدح = Thanks for the compliment

    ما بيتناقض مع =Does not contradict with

    بحنان= Compassionately-tenderly

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  • Hello and welcome to all the listeners. I disappeared for a while because I was overloaded with work and travel and didn't have enough time to make new episodes for you. And, to be totally honest, I was being a bit lazy....but i've shaken off the laziness and here I am, back to share a new episode with you which is a conversation with my brilliant friend Melissa.

    We'll be hearing a conversation between Melissa and I where we will discuss her work in the world of theatre, Armenian culture, her experiences growing up as Armenian in Lebanon and how she combines multiple languages and cultures together in her life. 

    I hope you will find the conversation as interesting and useful as I did. 

    Below are the vocab that will help you when listening to the podcast (lots today as an apology for not making an episode for so long!)

    بعتذر مسبقا  - I apologise in advance

    مهندسة معمارية - architect

    هندسة معمارية - Architecture

    تصميم المسرح - Theatre design

    شغف - Passion

    كبير الشغف في - My passion grew

    فراغ في /بداخلي - an emptiness inside me

    نوبه - attack/panic

    بالوقت الحالي  - now / in the present moment

    إبادة جماعية - Genocide

    انتماء - Belonging

    لبنانية قبل بكفاية / انا لبنانية بشكل كافي - I am Lebanese enough

    متمسكة - Attached/connected

    مواطنة من العالم - Citizen of the world

    ملحوظ - Impressive/distinctive

    بفتكر/ بفكر - I think

    الشتات - The diaspora

    يستعيروا - They borrow

    نزوح/ نازحة،نازح - Exodus / Displaced

    اجدادنا - Grandparents / Our Grandparents منخبر بعض قصص - We tell each other stories

    أكتسبت - I gained / I acquired

    افسر حالي - I explain myself

    مماثل - Similar / Comparable

    برهن - Prove (to prove something)

    بسلط الضو على شي - To shine a light on something / To highlight something

  • Hello and welcome to all the listeners and a Happy Christmas!

    I hope you are all well and in good health.

    I'm finally ready to make new episodes and this week i'll be talking to my friend Adam from Gaza about our experiences in learning languages. 

    Adam is also an Arabic teacher and I advise you to have a go studying with him because he really knows and understands the nuances within Arabic and English and he's super patient with his students. I also benefitted a lot from my conversations with him because he has a Gazan accent (which I am not used to) and I like to be flexible with understanding different accents in the region. 

    He's got some spots available for new students if you'd like to try studying Arabic through conversation with him. 

    If you'd like more information, send us an email at [email protected]

    I'd also like to say a big thank you to Muhammad, who teaches Arabic on italki. He's from Syria, living in Germany and from time to time I take lessons with him - when I feel like brushing up on my Arabic. He helped me out preparing for this episode and getting my brain in gear after neglecting my Arabic for a few weeks. He's such a great teacher and super encouraging to his students, so check him out! Here is the link to his page on italki: https://www.italki.com/teacher/2678645

    Here is the new vocab for this week. Enjoy!

    أنا عال العال - Couldn’t be better 

    فضولي - curious

    دءوب - diligent, perseverant

    بشكل رسمي - formally

    بستحي - I am ashamed

    بخجل - I am shy

    مقالة - Article

    ميزة - characteristic or quality, or feature

    حاجز ذهني - mental block

    أفكار مسبقة سيئة - negative preconceptions

    اتجاهلت - I ignored, I neglected

    استمرارية - continuation

    احنا في الهوى سوى - we are in the wind together - you and be both, we are both in the same shit, used quite humorously.

    حاجة / حاجات - a thing, things

    بتناسبني - it suits me / it fits me 

    قدوة - an example or a model

  • Hello everyone and welcome to Episode Nine and Happy Christmas!

    I've just started an instagram page where I will post podcast episodes and more content including videos, vocab and tips on language learning and differences between accents - check it out here @learnlevantinewithlivi https://www.instagram.com/learnlevantinewithlivi/?hl=en

    I hope you are all well even though the world is rather...upside down. 

    Thanks to all of you who sent suggestions and thoughts about the podcast via email. I’d encourage you to send more as I love hearing your feedback. Please feel free to get in touch at [email protected]

    Also, Ramzi still has some spaces available for conversational Arabic classes for intermediate students. His classes are ideally suited to those who can understand around 70% of the conversations in the podcast. For more information please get in touch at the same email address [email protected]

    Today we are going to return to the topic of 'home'. We recorded this episode whilst we were back in our 'home' countries. Listen out for the sounds of the Old City of Jerusalem in the background whilst Ramzi is talking. 

    Here are some of the new words we will be hearing in today's episode:

    بمستوى مجازي - On a metaphorical level

    البيوت كلها فوق بعضها - The houses are all on top of each other

    المهجر - In the diaspora / Abroad

    الخروج من رحم امهاتنا - Getting out of our mothers’ womb

    نوع من الغربه - A kind of strangeness

    حقيبتي وطني ،و وطني حقيبتي - My backpack is my homeland and my homeland is my backpack.

    سور - Wall

    معقد - Complicated

    اشي بهبل - Something foolish/trivial

    الاشياء الملموسة - Tangible things

    الحواس - The senses

    هوية - Identity

    مسلوب - Stolen

    تكوين المكان - Spatial configuration

    مغتربين - Expatriates

  • Hello everyone and welcome to Episode Nine! I hope you are all doing great and are ready for another episode. Thanks to all of you who sent suggestions and thoughts about the podcast via email. I’d encourage you to send more as I love hearing your feedback. Please feel free to get in touch at [email protected]

    Also, Ramzi still has some spaces available for conversational Arabic classes for intermediate students. His classes are ideally suited to those who can understand around 70% of the conversations in the podcast. For more information please get in touch at the same email address [email protected]

    I've just started an instagram page where I will post podcast episodes and more content including videos, vocab and tips on language learning and differences between accents - check it out here @learnlevantinewithlivi https://www.instagram.com/learnlevantinewithlivi/?hl=en

    Here are some of the new words we will be hearing in today's episode:

    مهاجر - Migrant

    نقلت - I left / I moved

    اضطراري - Forced

    إمكانية الرجوع - The possibility of returning

    متوفر - Available

    بحكم - By virtue

    ينتزع - To snatch

    تبديل - Changing / Replacing

    حروب - Wars

    الانتماء - Belonging

    مستأجر - Rented

    معروض - Offered / Shown

    جرعة من الحنين - A small dose of nostalgia

    بأعزز - I reinforce / strengthen

  • Hello everyone and welcome to Episode Eight!

    Apologies for my absence, but now i'm back AND I have some news which is that i've set up an email address through which you can pass on your comments and feedback about the podcast as well as make suggestions for topics you would benefit from hearing about. 

    Please feel free to get in touch at [email protected]

    In other good news, i'm happy to tell you that Ramzi has some spaces available for conversational Arabic classes for intermediate students. His classes are ideally suited to those who can understand around 70% of the conversations in the podcast. For more information please get in touch at the same email address [email protected]

    I can highly recommend him as a teacher.

    Here are some of the new words we will be hearing in today's episode:

    عبارات - Sayings

    أمثال - Examples

    تعبير - Expression

    وفرة - Abundance

    بتستحضر - You evoke

    وقح - Rude

    اللغة المحكية - The spoken language

    مبالغين - Exaggerators / People who exaggerate 

    مشابهة - Similar

    فاصلة - Comma

    بذكرو - They mention

    الديك - The cockerel

    معطيات - Data

    برمي - I throw

    تجنب - Avoiding / Avoid

    بذيء - Indecent

    سلفاً - In advance

  • Hello everyone and welcome to Episode Seven!

    Apologies that we disappeared for a month. But now we are back with a new episode where Ramzi and I will ask each other questions about travel and transport.  

    Getting to grips with how you structure questions in Arabic is something I certainly struggle with so there will be an element of translation in this episode (English-Arabic & Arabic-English) to help give some examples in the different question structures the two languages have.

    Here are some of the new words we will be hearing in today's episode:

    سياح - Tourists
    موقع - Website
    السائق - The driver
    احسنلك - Better for you
    موحدد - Specific / specified
    بمر - I pass
    الدولة - The state
    بطلت - I quit / I stopped
    الوقت المناسب - The appropriate / right time
    اولوية - Priority
    المشاة - The pedestrians
    من خلال عيون السكان - Through the eyes of the inhabitants

  • Hello everyone and welcome to Episode Six.

    Today we are going to try a slightly different format where Ramzi and I will ask each other 5 questions. 

    Getting to grips with how you structure questions in Arabic is something I certainly struggle with so there will be an element of translation in this episode (English-Arabic & Arabic-English) to help give some examples in the different question structures the two languages have. 

    It's also a chance for us to express our personal opinions about a range of subjects. Feeling like you can truly express yourself in another language is quite a journey and takes time and patience - so I hope this episode helps you. 

    Here are some of the new words we will be hearing in today's episode:

    I switch on - بشغل

    Global crisis - أزمة عالمية

    From my humble experience (lit) / in my humble opinion - تجربتي المتواضعة

    Subject to change - قابلة للتغير

    From different angles - من أكثر من زاوية

    I comprehend it - أستوعبها

    Thirties - الثلاثينات

    Twenties - العشرينات

    Clarification - توضيح

    It lost a lot - خسر كثير

    It has no relationship / irrelevant - ما اله / الها علاقة

    I suffer - بأعاني

    To pass - بيمروء

    Catastrophe/Disaster/Calamity - مصيبة

  • Hi everyone and welcome to episode five - as always, thanks so much for listening. 

    Today you will hear a conversation between Ramzi and I about the virtual world and what we feel are the positives and negatives of being 'online'.

    We've got a whole bunch of new vocabulary today, 19 words in total! 

    We fall into the trap - منوقع في الفخ
    Based on / built upon - مبنية
    You (m) distinguish - بتميز بين
    Radically / in a radical way - بشكل جذري
    Screen / screens - شاشة / شاشات
    Duplication - الازدواجية
    All the possible ways - كل الطرق الممكنة
    Doubt - شك
    Influencers - المؤثرين
    Loneliness/ alone - وحدة
    In isolation - في العزلة
    Fraud / scam - احتيال
    Approach - مقاربة
    Human validity - صلاحيات الإنسان
    Addicted - مدمن/ مدمنة
    A sign of this / Proof of this - دليل على هيك
    Moderation - اعتدال
    It was useful to us - فادتنا
    Permanent - دائم

  • Welcome to Episode Four! Thanks so much for listening.

    Today Ramzi and I will be talking about the memory and memories, in general. 

    Here are 15 of the new words you will be hearing in the podcast.

    The Memory - الذاكرة
    Memory/Memories - ذكرة/ ذكريات
    To swear - اسب
    Naughty - مشاغب
    Out loud (in a loud voice) - صوت عالي
    Flexible - مرن
    Emotions - عواطف
    Linked / related - مرتبط / مرتبطة
    Pandemic - وباء
    Ambiences - أجواء
    Selective / انتقائية
    In return بمقابل
    Evoke - استحضار
    Your strength - قوتك
    Attack - هجوم

  • Welcome to Episode Three! Thanks so much for listening. 

    Today I will be talking to Ramzi about our experiences of and opinions on dreams and dreaming. 

    Here are 15 of the new words you will be hearing in the podcast. 

    I grew up - نميت

    Recurring dreams - أحلام متكررة

    The main role - الدور الرئيسي

    I improvise - برتجل

    Psychology - علم النفس

    Obsession - هوس

    Failure - فشل

    Metaphorical - مجازي

    Literal - حرفي

    Behaviour - سلوك

    Negative - سلبي

    Positive - ايجابي

    Just - مجرد

    Mental training / mental exercises - تمرين ذهني

    It’s not coming to my mind - مش خاطر في بالي

  • Welcome to Episode Two!

    Today Ramzi and I will be talking about our interest in creating radio shows and the roots this has in our respective childhoods. 

    Here are 13 of the new words you will be hearing in the podcast:

    Curious / curiosity of - فضول

    Interested - مهتم / مهتمين

    Impression - انطباع

    Development - تطوير

    Imagination - خيال

    Imaginary friends - أصدقا متخيلين

    Information - معلومات

    You get closer - تقري على

    Nap / siesta - قيلولة

    Peace agreement - اتفاقية السلام

    Bombing - قصف

    Abbreviated - مختصر

    Radio / broadcast - إذاعة

  • Welcome to the first episode!

    Today Ramzi and I will be talking about life under the coronavirus lockdown, the best way to learn a new language and the common mistakes that myself and other language learners tend to make when speaking Arabic.

    Here are 10 of the new words you will be hearing in the podcast:

    Quarantine/Lockdown - حجر
    Forced - مطر
    Days of the invasion (intifada) - أيام الاجتياح
    Curfew - منع التجول
    Basic materials/necessities - المواد الاساسية
    Value - قيمة
    Communication - تواصل
    Devices / device - الأجهزة / الجهاز
    Repeated - متكرر
    They confuse - بيخربتوا

  • Welcome to an introduction to Learn Levantine with Livi.

    *Below is an English translation of the text you will be hearing in Arabic)

    This is a podcast for intermediate students of Levantine Arabic.

    In each podcast you will hear a conversation between me and a native speaker. At the beginning of each podcast I will introduce some new vocabulary that you will hear in the conversation.

    My Arabic is not perfect at all, so I really hope that I can help you by offering you the chance to learn from my mistakes.

    In each episode, the native speaker will correct me and my pronunciation whenever I make a mistake and, whenever I get stuck I will ask them for help too.

    I have been really lucky to have had amazing teachers but the biggest thing that helped me improve my speaking was when I stopped caring about making mistakes and just started talking. Fortunately, I have lots of patient friends who are native speakers, so I try to speak with them as much as possible in Arabic and I stopped caring about making mistakes. Instead, I just talk and talk and I see the mistakes as chances to learn.

    I hope you enjoy the podcast and don’t forget - try and practice talking as much as you can and don’t be scared to slip up! I do it all the time, and it's always the case that we learn from our mistakes.