First Post!

Hey guys,

I decided to write this first post in English as it's my hope to attract new Esperanto speakers as well seasoned speakers of the language.  Over the next few weeks I'm going to get feelers for who wants to meet up and when.

If you'd like to be a part of this meetup group, let us know by filling out this form.  Let us know about your availability, where you like to meet up and a little bit about your Esperanto experiences.

Can't wait to hear from you guys!

Comments

[J. Pablo Fernández]

Hello,

Since you mention "write this first post in English" I'd like to tell you about my experience with Esperantists groups in several countries.

If you want to maintain an active useful and interesting Esperanto group in San Francisco or anywhere else you'll have to maintain a bi-lingual group. I've seen groups that speak Esperanto and only Esperanto. As a newbie I find them very unfriendly. I go there, sit and listen, try to understand, never speak. Eventually I get tired and leave. And I can see those groups almost never grow.

Then I see other groups, that use the local language all the time. Those tend to have a lot more movement, but are ultimately useless.

You need to be very strong-willed and flexible in handling the meetings. In a meeting you may have all Esperanto-speakers, then everybody speaks Esperanto and that's it. You may have no-Esperanto-speakers, then you teach Esperanto in the local language and that's it. But most likely, you'll have a mix.

I think an ideal would group would have a weekly or so meeting to practice the language but the moment a new guy shows up this is not an Esperanto meeting anymore: it's an introductory lesson. I see two ways to go about it. You and someone else may take the new guy apart from the group and give an introductory lesson. Once that is finished both of you join the main group.

What happens the second day. Well, you and other Esperantists will keep up with breaking the group and teaching those that can't understand a conversation yet until they can join the main group without a problem. Look how a martial art class is done. If you show up the teacher will put you apart and teach you the basics: etiquette, how not to hurt you, how not to hurt other people, basic movements, etc. It requires a lot of authority to do it, but someone has to do it.

An alternative could be this: in every meeting, the first half an hour is conducted in the local language and an aspect is shown: a word, a particle, then build words, build sentences, everything explained in the local language. Those experienced may learn a bit, those new may learn a lot, all would be engaged.

I hope these ideas are useful and best of luck with your Esperanto group.