Welcome to the Blog of a Freelance Interpreter and Translator
by Tatiana Kaplun
When work and pleasure (a.k.a. a fabulous learning and networking opportunity) coincide, and Brussels happens to you, it can, truly, feel like a dream come true, on so many levels. And it makes it all the harder to leave once it is all over, the dream comes to its end, and it is time to… Continue reading When Work and Pleasure Coincide, and Brussels Happens to You
Students often ask me about who the speakers we get to interpret throughout our professional careers are more likely to quote. If you know a simple and direct answer to this question, you definitely know more than I do. True, there are some 'usual suspects' for every language and culture. Shakespeare, Churchill, Gandhi & MLK would probably make… Continue reading Surviving Interpreting Quotes
The image above is the perfect of illustration of what has become a regular commute, and one that never fails to disappoint, even though more often than not it looks just as sleepy as you feel. These days meeting colleagues in person - and getting to spend almost an entire day with them without the… Continue reading When Your Morning Commute Looks as Sleepy as You Feel
What the French call la Rentrée is a curious little thing. The start of the new year for some, a token of new beginnings for others, and an excuse to complain about it all for most. This year perhaps even more so, and for good reason too, for a change. The holidays - if you… Continue reading The True Meaning of the French Rentrée
This was my first AIIC General Assembly, and I know some were worried I would come back disappointed, given the somewhat reduced format, and the complicated nature of some of the topics up for discussion. And yet... I don't think I could ever go with that. I was indeed disappointed to go back, but only… Continue reading It’s not all about Chocolate
Some commutes are better than others. And I think I am going to take it as a good sign that my last assignment of the season took me outside of Strasbourg... Especially as The Economist keeps insisting that "this era of unpredictability is not going away soon", and nothing that's been in the news lately… Continue reading Not all Commutes Are Created Equal
You live for days when you get speakers that actually care, seem to have a decent understanding how interpreting works, and are ready to jump in and reign in their over zealous and more unruly colleagues: "The problem, you see, is that while I and the rest of us are just here to listen, our… Continue reading Clients and Sunsets to Remember
If you haven't seen it yet, Tony Rosado's latest post on the influence of the pandemic on our profession is just out on his blog. And even though I cannot fully subscribe to what he says about agencies - there are different agencies, after all, just as there are different clients, and I am lucky… Continue reading How COVID-19 is Affecting the Interpreting Profession
I definitely like taking my time, which is why it has taken me this long – almost a week actually, as I’ve just realized – to sum up my impressions from last Friday’s #AIIC talk on Automated Speech Translation, aptly title “2020: A Speech Odyssey”. But give me tea, time, and a good soundtrack, and I will… Continue reading 2020: A Speech Odyssey. A Brief Recap of a Fascinating Friday Evening
Vincent van Gogh was a Dutch painter, whom some only know for going crazy (some say) and cutting off his ear. Others know him for painting bright flowers, a large number of self-portraits, and landscapes of Provence, as he got to spend quite some time in the south of France, although a large share of it… Continue reading The Pros and Cons of Dummy-boothing, or does your Brain need tricking?
Welcome to the Blog of a Freelance Interpreter and Translator 