how hard is it to learn? i speak a little spanish but it doesn't seem as similar as i'd hoped. it would be handy for some business. also how different is it spoken in Brazil compared with Portugal?

obrigado

Native here.

Spanish and portuguese are actually very similar languages. Some different words but the gramar is pretty much the same. However, they do sound very different. Portuguese has quite a weird pronounciation, that makes words sound quite different from what you would expect. A Portuguese will understand pretty much everything a Spanish says. They don't understand a single word of what we say!

Brazilian pronounciation is again easier to understand and learn than european Portuguese, however we both understand each other perfectly well.

Drop me a line if you want further tips, because 6 years with an English partner trying to learn portuguese have given me a good idea of what it takes!

I am currently living in Brazil and I am using the Michel Thomas course which I used to learn Spanish. It does help having a Brazilian girlfriend of course. There are quite a few differences in pronunciation between Portugal and Brazil Portuguese, the Michel Thomas method teaches Portugal but it is probably the best system around, especially for the price.

The hard pronunciation bits are the nasal sounds, but you get used to it. Also, the vowel sounds are kind of inbetween ours, but nothing really hard – its more a memory thing. It is harder to learn than Spanish as it is less regular and the sounds of letters change depending on position, but not so bad,

I find the pronunciation is easier when you are pissed.

Falo como soltaque Brasileiro 😉 – a bit rusty though . Speaking 'regular' Portuguese in Brazil is not a problem, and you should be able to understand most of the regional accents without too much trouble. Loads of similarities with Spanish although I agree it's the pronunciation that gets you.
Wish I was living there now!

I've used Michel Thomas for french and spanish, will hunt down the portuguese. also used this guys approach for short trips…..

talvez uma namorada brasileira é a melhor solução

verdade……… 🙂 Not that I would know from persnal experience of course.

verdade……… 🙂 Not that I would know from personal experience of course.