Aperilingua: A little apéritif to help you learn languages

We in Italy love apéritifs! Apéritifs are a great way to get chatting with others while having a bite to eat and a nice drink. They offer a moment of real community that all of us in Italy love. We're always looking forward to meeting up with our friends on the weekend, having a chat, drinking some cocktails and getting to know new people.

But what would happen if everybody going for an apéritif spoke a different language? Simple, it would be an Aperilingua!

And that's exactly what happens in the heart of Napoli, just a stone's throw away from the famous Piazza Dante in the centre of town. Here, one of the most beloved and well-attended events in the city's historic centre takes place every other Thursday at the Volver Café. It's a brilliant bar/gameshouse that has every board game you could ever wish for, and also, from time to time, holds events like this.

The Aperilingua in Napoli is organised by the Tecla Association, which works to promote intercultural understanding and exchange through things like afternoon classes, film screenings in their original language, and events just like Aperilingua.

At the Aperilingua, you won't just find Italians, but people from all over the world. The aim of it all is to show people that cultural and language barriers are anything but obstacles in integration and interaction between different cultures, and in fact help to enrich the experience.

During the Aperilingua, there are also specially organised workshops that aim to help you deepen your understanding of other cultures. For example, there are workshops in many different types of dance from all over the world, like bellydancing, waltz, burlesque and sirtaki, as well as opportunities to have a go at karate… All these group activities, as well as being great fun, give you the chance to make loads of friends.

From my experience, I think taking part in events like this is a really good way to learn and perfect your language skills, but above all, a great way to challenge yourself and push yourself out of your comfort zone. Talking with native speakers and people you've just met can really help you to build up your self-confidence and self-esteem.

You'll be amazed by how many great people you can meet at an event like this. I myself have even beared witness to romance across the tables of Aperilingua, between people from totally different cultural backgrounds.

The main activity at Aperilingua is speaking: you've got to talk and to make sure you do so people will ask you about yourself and your many passions. But don't worry, to break the ice, the event starts off with some nice word games (like Guess Who, Who Am I?, memory games, Chinese Whispers). Basically, they're all games which will get you talking and interacting in another language.

At every table, you'll find a native-speaker tutor who directs the activities and will help you with the language you're speaking. As well as playing some games, if ever you've got a burning desire to learn more about a language, the tutor at your table can also give you some one-to-one mini-lessons.

The bar is really lovely and has loads of tables, each of which give you the chance to speak a different language.

The language for each table is indicated with a little flag. The languages available include: English, French, Portuguese, Japanese, Spanish, German, Russian and Arabic. Entry to the Aperilingua costs 5 euros and includes a free drink. For 6 euros, you can also tuck into the buffet and take part in the workshops. The event starts at 8:30pm and runs until midnight.

I've been a regular at Aperilingua since 2016, and it's thanks to events like this that my languages have improved, I've met people from all over the world and have expanded my circle of friends. But above all, I've been able to practise English and Portuguese thanks to the wonderful tutors that work for the association that organises the event. From time to time, I've even had a go at some mini-lessons in Russian, Spanish and even Japanese!

So, whether you're a tourist in town or an Erasmus student, don't miss the chance to come to an Aperilingua at least once - you really won't regret it!

Bye, adeus, au revoir, auf Wiedersehen, ciao!

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