Instituto Cervantes

I’ve been taking a conversation/​grammar class at Instituto Cervantes for a couple of months now and overall I’ve been very happy with it. The class is actually a bit too difficult for me but they cancelled both the intermediate and advanced conversation classes so I didn’t have much choice. Generally though the grammar exercises have been useful and the reading set for conversation very interesting. It could be slightly better organised in terms of sending us links for the articles and controlling the class more so we don’t go massively off topic or ending up spending the whole class on grammar with no chat, but these are minor issues in what generally has been a good learning experience. The building is quite beautiful and historic and has been nicely remodelled using a lot of glass. The downside to this is that it is quite noisy, which is not ideal for language classes. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend IC if you’d like to learn Spanish though, and one extra bonus is that if you sign up for a class you get a whole year free membership of the library which has loads of DVDs as well as books.

Situated along the swanky Deansgate promenade, The Instituto Cervantes Manchester is a lovely building housing a beautiful selection of modern offices, performance spaces and education venues. Working as both a cultural centre for all things Spanish and a language school, Instituto Cervantes operates at a friendly, if a little relaxed pace, producing a similar atmosphere to that which you may find in a costal Taverna.
As an educational centre they offer Spanish courses from beginner’s level right up to complex fluent discussion. There are also courses in Tango, Flamenco and Salsa as well as other cultural pursuits. There are a wealth of educational resources as well as rooms to hire for study, meetings or performances. There is a lovely space called The Great Hall which boasts beautiful architecture and a great atmosphere for dance, poetry or performance.
If you are a Spaniard looking for a little taste of home or an Englishman looking to spice things up a little, pop into the Cervantes and get a taste of Spain.

I praise Cervantes for its successful launch of KinoFilm’s 11^th European Short film festival. It isn’t a fair review, as it’s primary services is being the biggest world institution dedicated to teaching Spanish and I’m yet to dare try this lingo.
It’s location on Deansgate means I always walk past it with intrigue. It’s a pretty building sitting next to Greek partner Dimitri’s with Don Marco on it’s other neighbouring side, a very European corner indeed come to think about it. Inside I didn’t realise how big it was. Waiting to enter the launch I found out they hold Salsa classes and Argentinian Tango classes if I was ever feeling adventurous enough.
Entering the screening room was grand. The very high roof was impressive, gorgeous. We were seated like it was a neighbourhood watch meeting and at times I did feel like we were in a community hall. But I’d just have to look up to remind myself of the beauty of this building. Overall Cervantes did a good job in showcasing the work for the event and provided me and my friend with some good wine. I’m just sorry I don’t have an urge to learn Spanish…

I was desperate to learn some Spanish last year and this place offers a great range of evening, day and intensive Spanish courses. The courses are cheap because it is a centre for promoting the Spanish culture, but this does not mean that the teaching is cheap. On the contrary this is the best place I have ever learnt languages, and I have tried a few; school, univeristy, night college, internet.
They teach all in Spanish which can be a bit daunting at first, but even as a complete beginner I understood the lessons and it really accelerated my learning. The principle is to learn through emersion as you did as a child, or when you go to a country. I did the intensive daytime course and the class was of 6 people which was nice and relaxed.
They give a discount for students, or returning Cervantes students and they have a good library which you can use as soon as you sign up. They also have lots of socialising events so that you can meet fellow students.