re: What is the point of learning Spanish as a second language

Learning a new language to fluency is very hard and time consuming and not worth the effort, IMO, unless you have very good reasons (usually related to a job) for doing it.

I've been to both Spain and Mexico and didn't have any problems getting around as an English speaker. I will say that American travelers are lucky that English is such a widely spoken language.

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To each his own. I would rather go to Italy and speak Italian than drive to Houston and speak Spanish.

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From your posts so far, I’m not entirely convinced you could find Italy on a map.

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hey’re coming to the US, the vast majority of people in this nation speak fricking English. They should learn our language. Not the other way around.

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I love this board, wax poetic about the loss of the cajun french culture and language that our mothers, fathers, grandfathers and grandmothers stopped being taught in the 50's ( my mother was threatened with a spanking from a cow rope in school for speaking french in Pointe Coupee in the 50's- she was one of 3 of the youngest of 10 kids not to learn and speak french) -and then turn around and want to do it to someone else.

Yes, they should learn English as it the cultural and business intellectual currency of America- but you baws screaming about immigrants and speak English only are trumping crazy and shortsighted.

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Old French is different than modern day French.

Old English is different that modern day English.

They speak old Spanish in Mexico.

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If you know Spanish, you could converse with any of the millions of Spanish speakers in the United States, any of the countries in South America and Central America, some Caribbean countries, and a European country like Spain.

Also, if you know Spanish, you'd be able to get by in Portuguese speaking countries like Portugal, and Italian speaking countries like Italy, Sicily, Vatican City, Southern Switzerland, etc.

Sitting in Puerto Rico right now wishing I could speak. (Especially to the two ladies at the table next to me).

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To each his own. I would rather go to Italy and speak Italian than drive to Houston and speak Spanish.

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You're going to go through the painstaking process of learning a foreign language, to use it once every handful of years when you go to Italy on vacation.

ETA: 0% chance you actually make a positive step, but check back in and let us know how your attempt to learn Italian goes.

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Sitting in Puerto Rico right now wishing I could speak. (Especially to the two ladies at the table next to me).

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money(first,) then sexing, are the international languages



also, PR and Mex is the most criticized dialects/accents of all the Espanol speakers I've ever talked to about it