Now, that’s where my real language journey began. At the age of 16, I started my job training as a foreign language correspondent and began learning Spanish. After that, I spent a year in Ecuador, where I did a voluntary service at a school and lived in a fishing village.

Even though I officially held that fancy job title that apparently made me a Spanish language expert, my ego crumbled pretty quickly when I arrived at my host family and didn’t understand a single word of what they were saying.

(Past Annika could have used a little research about Spanish accents before throwing herself into a world where people would swallow half of their sentences, so if you want to be more prepared than I was, check out my Guide to Latin American Accents.)

Anyway, I got used to the accent pretty quickly and learned Spanish as I lived, worked and travelled in Ecuador. Instead of textbook vocabulary lists, I learned words like “hamaca” (hammock), “marea alta y baja” (ebb and flow) or “ola” (wave).

What’s more, not only do I remember every single word I learned in Ecuador, but also every single situation I learned that specific word in.

For example:

• Saltar (to jump): This word will forever be attached to that one time I nearly broke my neck when doing swing jumping from a bridge.
• Picar (to sting): The countless mosquito bites during the rain season. I literally smell the repellent when thinking about it.
• Tender (to hang up): Reminds me of Sunday afternoons in the backyard, doing my laundry by hand, hanging it up to dry – and the feeling of how simple life can be at times.