I am most discombobulated!!

[Ally]

I've been on the coast in a bar and got talking to British people (who live on the coast) who seem to think we've been stupid moving inland, mixing with the Spanish and learning the language!

No..they're the stupid ones as the language is beautiful and being amongst the Spanish people is what living here was all about for us.

[tonicha]

Have to agree there Ally. When we first moved here, a lot of local people thought we were on the camp site and therefore spongers, as some of them are. It didn't take long, but we are now accepted by most people in the village.

When we move - we hope to move, anyway - then it will take a while again. but we will not, ever, ever, behave as if we're doing the local people a favour by using their coffee, shop or restaurant. It makes me so mad when I hear the way some toursits - not just English, I must add - speak to the people in the shops, restaurants.

I made it my mission, when we moved over here, to say Bom Dia to everyone as I walked down to the village and I still do

[Kaz]

[Aggers]

------- the language is beautiful and being amongst the Spanish people is what living here was all about for us.

Yes, I don't know any Spanish, but it certainly sounds a lovely language.

I did start leaning German many years ago, but I thought it was a stupid language,
more suitable for a comic opera.

[Workingman]

Language is the thing that frees and binds us!

I can get along in French, and hold a reasonably good conversation in German/Nederlands, and because of those things I can make temporary friends from all over Europe.

I love it when I stand in a queue and pick up what others are saying.

[Kaz]

My French was reasonably good many years ago, these days I seem to understand a lot more than I can speak - funny how it happens that way

My German is very basic, no more than a few words or sentences. I would have liked to be able to converse more with my cousin's hubby when they visited, although I did get a round of applause at breakfast one morning for pronunciation Perhaps I should study it again

[JoM]

I did French to O Level and the only time I've used it since then was when Tom was stuck with his homework. I also did two years of German which I hated. During our O Level years we had one lesson a week where we did 12 week courses of various subjects and conversational Spanish was one of them. I loved it!! And it's the only language that I've ever properly and confidently used. We had quite a number of holidays in the Canaries before having children and I managed to get by well in restaurants and shops.