Let me put the question first, because this may be a long post:

Do any of you study Esperanto, but don't go to congresses or local meetings?

I've been studying Esperanto for two months now, and I feel I have learned a lot. I like studying the language, listening to it on the Internet and in podcasts, and even browsing through the Vikipedio for fun. (I'm dreaming about contributing to it one day; some of the sports articles could use help. ) Plus it is a confidence builder that motivates me to continue my Japanese language studies (which is a higher priority).

However, it seems to me (and I could be wrong) that the people who make Esperanto a constant part of their lives are the ones that regularly go to the Esperanto congresses, or at least local clubs. I would like to get together on occasion with some Esperanto speakers and chat, but for practical reasons I can't.

For starters, I have a tight daily schedule and would not be able to go to weekly meetings. The occasional annual or bi-annual get-together... maybe, but only if they are free and/or inexpensive. I have a wife who, despite wondering why I would do such a thing, doesn't mind if I study Esperanto (as long as I keep up my Japanese studies!). But the idea of me going to a meeting full of strangers is crazy to her. If, say, my best friends became Esperantists, then that's a different story. And an International Congress? Good luck trying to get her to allow me to spend a lot of our money going to Hanoi or even Tokyo (which is certainly not cheap to visit from Osaka).

What's more, while I love the language itself, and I certainly agree that an international language would be beneficial, I'm not sure if I can commit to, or am even interested in, putting a lot of effort into the Esperanta Movado, the way many of you do.

So then, how do I use the Esperanto I learn? For Tujmesaĝilo and pen pals? For Internet and podcasts and Vikipedio? That's fine with me; I enjoy those activities. I'm just wondering if that is okay, or odd.

I study Esperanto and don't get out a lot. The last meeting of any kind I can remember attending that had to do with Esperanto was a get-together featuring superfan and well-known Esperantist Forrest J. Ackerman at the World Science Fiction Convention in Atlanta in about 1986.

Before that it was a meeting of the London Esperanto Society in December 1977.

OK, I wasn't active in Esperanto between 1981 and about a few weeks ago, but I don't drive and don't travel much so I don't go to meetings of most kinds, much less Esperanto get-togethers.

If you don't have time or simply aren't interested in meeting other esperantists, that seems fine to me, but the "going to meet a group of strangers is crazy" argument seems rather sad to me.

That's my wife's statement, not mine.

But the idea of me going to a meeting full of strangers is crazy to her

Perhaps she meant the idea of going to a meeting full of 'stranguloj' is crazy to her. She had heard what the Esperantists are like.

This whole business of learning Esperanto without opportunies to speak it with other Esperantists is something that has been raised in the forums more than once. Usually, by people from the US. It isn't really a problem in Europe - distances are small, freedom of crossborder travel, many more meets going on, and so many of them of international.

The number of official languages in the EU is I think 22, shortly to become 23. The whole Esperanto thing somehow makes more sense to a European.

People sometimes recommend using Skype to practise, but I can see how chatting with a total stranger on a one to one basis can be intimidating.

What one really wants is an audio or audio/visual conference type chat room where you can eavesdrop on conversations and join in to the extent that you feel confident, without any pressure to say anything at all if you don't want to.

But going to Congresses is undoubtedly the best way to improve your spoken command of the language.

I think many Esperantists don't attend a congress, however, because they feel a need to practise. Rather the congresses are an excuse to go and see another country, have a skiing/camping/rambling/sight-seeing/seaside/study or whatever holiday, and they go knowing that they will meet people who are happy to chat to them and provide some company because they are fellow Esperantists.

People nowadays don't go out of an evening much to common interest clubs, preferring home entertainment. So there are far fewer Esperanto clubs than there used to be. But some still operate and not just in the larger cities.

Some bars or cafés in Europe operate the Café Polyglotte system and some of those have a table for Esperanto speakers. That seems to me to be the way to go to fill the void produced by the eksmodiĝo of the traditional club.

kujichagulia:
Do any of you study Esperanto, but don't go to congresses or local meetings?

Yes.

sudanglo:Perhaps she meant the idea of going to a meeting full of 'stranguloj' is crazy to her. She had heard what the Esperantists are like.

You made me laugh out loud, sudanglo. Bonege!

Thank you all for the comments! I'm glad that going to a congress or a local club is not a de facto requirement for Esperantists (although, if circumstances permit, I hope to go to a meeting one day).

kujichagulia:I'm glad that going to a congress or a local club is not a de facto requirement for Esperantists

As far as I know the only de facto requirement to be an Esperantist is that you know some Esperanto and have an interest in the language, and there might be some wiggle room in that definition.

sudanglo:

But the idea of me going to a meeting full of strangers is crazy to her

Perhaps she meant the idea of going to a meeting full of 'stranguloj' is crazy to her. She had heard what the Esperantists are like.

mdr mdr mdr

Regarding the rest of your post, thank you for the perspective from the European point of view. Over here it's quite different. Fewer speakers and more space between them.

You mention a group chat application as a way to get conversational practice. I think that would be a great idea. I used to be a so-so typist until I fell in with a bunch of trivia players online, and within a few weeks my typing speed shot up by about 30 WPM. Some kind of word game, might have a similar application in learning Esperanto. The game of course would be just an excuse for people to get together and a conversation starter, although it should be something that doesn't give an edge to those with better conversation skills.

Even small-group (5-6 people) chat areas could be useful. Topics could be all over the place - "Ĉu vi vidis La Malsatoludoj -n? Via opinio?" or "Kiel la eŭrokrizo tuŝas vin?" I wonder hard it would be to implement something like this . . .

Esperanto has been part of my daily life for nearly six years. I have never attended a congress or meeting.