Mexican roots and Ukrainian connections

From German school to Eastern Europe

Anuar’s multilingual journey began long before Ukrainian entered his life. Growing up in Mexico, he attended a German school that planted the seeds for his future language adventures. “Since I was eleven, I’ve been fascinated by different cultures,” Anuar recalls, describing childhood travels through Germany with his German teacher. These early experiences sparked something deeper – a desire to study abroad that would eventually lead him to Germany for his physics degree.

The path to Ukrainian started with genuine human connections. “I have very good friends from Ukraine,” Anuar explains. His university friendships with Ukrainian classmates in Darmstadt opened a window into a culture he knew little about. After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, these relationships took on new meaning. “It was solidarity, in a way,” he says of his initial motivation to learn the language.

Discovering unexpected beauty

What surprised Anuar most was Ukrainian’s musicality. “I think there’s a prejudice that Slavic languages don’t sound nice, but Ukrainian is very melodic,” he observes. This discovery contradicted his expectations and deepened his interest in mastering the language.

“The songs are very beautiful. They sing a lot, and they sing very, very beautifully,” he says, his appreciation evident as he describes Ukrainian musical traditions.

With his scientific background, Anuar quickly recognised patterns that made learning more efficient. A breakthrough came when he realised how Ukrainian verbs function. “When you know that adding certain prefixes transforms imperfective verbs to perfective ones, suddenly the language becomes much simpler than it first appears,” he explains. Unlike German, where grammatical gender often follows no clear pattern, Ukrainian revealed itself to be more systematic, with word endings reliably indicating gender.

Overcoming language hurdles

Despite his enthusiasm, Anuar’s self-directed attempts at learning Ukrainian faltered. “I bought a book for beginners in a bookstore, but I never found the right time to learn,” he admits. Between his demanding physics studies and everyday responsibilities, his solo efforts stalled after completing just a quarter of the book.

The structure of regular lessons made all the difference. “I needed a teacher who could help me,” Anuar says. Finding an online Ukrainian school provided the accountability and guidance he needed, turning sporadic efforts into consistent progress.

His teachers have become important figures in his life. “Alex has become a good friend. I see him every week, we chat with the group, and he’s already part of my life,” Anuar says of his instructor of two years. The personal connection transforms language learning from academic exercise to meaningful exchange.

Between theories and vocabularies

Anuar’s intellectual life extends far beyond language study. His passion for theoretical physics leads to animated discussions about parallel universes and antimatter imbalances. “I have a small theory,” he says with characteristic modesty before launching into complex concepts about matter distribution across multiple universes.

In his spare time, he balances these heady topics with Nintendo Switch games (“I love Mario, all Mario games, Kirby too, Pokémon”) and literature. He’s currently reading George Orwell’s 1984, finding eerie parallels between the dystopian classic and contemporary events.

Connection through language

The true joy of language learning comes in those moments of genuine connection. Though pandemic restrictions and the ongoing war have prevented Anuar from visiting Ukraine, he has found opportunities to use his Ukrainian skills during trips to Poland. In one memorable encounter at a Ukrainian restaurant, he attempted to order in Ukrainian only to be answered in Russian – an experience his Ukrainian friends later explained was typical in many regions.

Later that same day, at a train station, he overheard Ukrainian speakers and struck up a conversation. “It went very well,” he recalls with a smile. “She said my Ukrainian was nice, and she was happy to meet me.”

These interactions represent what language means to Anuar – a bridge between worlds. When with his Ukrainian friends in a comfortable setting, he loves switching to Ukrainian. “They really like that I’m trying,” he says. “Sometimes we just speak German because that’s what we’re used to every day, but I do speak Ukrainian with them. And it’s okay – not perfect, but not bad either.”

For Anuar, each language lesson is another step toward understanding not just words, but the people and cultures they represent. His journey from Mexico to mastering Ukrainian shows how curiosity, structured learning, and genuine human connections can transform a distant language into a meaningful part of one’s life.