Habla Espanol?

I think he's talking about the phone menus here, Brother Lamb. In the states, when you call customer service, you usually have to choose between English and Spanish to hear the options. Press one for English, two for Spanish, etc. English is still the primary language here, so it's a pet peeve of a lot of Americans.

love,
sopranette

 

I never really had a problem with phone menus. after all, many people who arrive in the US are still learning English. It is good that a company wants to be accessible to them. I Sure would like if I had the option to use English here at times.

Its one thing to learn another language and use it occasionally like most bilingual americans do, its another thing to live in a culture where you have to use it to survive. We take for granted being able to walk into a store and not have to think to talk to the salesperson. But in another culture you actually have to exercise your mind.

So I think it is good that places in the US try to cater to foreigners. I used to think differently, but after I moved I my perspective changed.

Also until the US actually has an official language, there is no place to demand everyone to learn English (though its in their best interest to do so).

 

Thanks for explaining, Sopranette! I think English-speakers everywhere tend to think that everyone else should learn their language. I think of many of the English people who go to non-English-speaking countries for their holidays (vacations), and imagine that they can make themselves understood simply by speaking English more loudly! :laugh:

 

I'm talking about when I call a company and so on and they ask me to press one for English.

 

My report cards say I learned English - but not very well.

In seventh grade - I took one semester of Spanish - know only enough to say no to the question in this poll!

Nineth through twelveth grades - I crammed in four years of French - got credit for only three of them - had to take year three a second time - because I did extremely poorly on the Regents Exam after year three. Did pass the test after taking year three a second time.

Extremely glad God did not call me into foreign missions - where I would have had to learn a language other than English.

Both daughters did well in language - in fact - daughter number two (by four minutes) majored in Spanish in college - and minored in French.

Son was as good as his dad in language class!

 

I found it a lot harder to learn a language in school than to have to speak it in everyday conversation.

love,

Sopranette

 

I assume you mean in H.S. or college? That would make sense since when you are in conversation you are forced to use the language.

Really one never does stop learning a language. Its an ongoing life long process. I have been here about 10 months now and still struggle to understand people. It just takes time.

IMO, I think every american ought to learn at least a second language. The advantages are numerous and the discipline it builds is good.

 

English, Spanish, Italian fluency - have taught Spanish
French - can still read it to some extent and speak a little (looks like I forgot to check the box for this one)
German - I can ask where the nearest bookstore store is. (and for this one too, for what it would be worth (lol)
and I know a few words, phrases in sign language

 

I'm still struggling with this English thing.

In college, as a music/voice major, I had to learn to pronounce Italian, French, German, and Latin, but I had no Idea what I was singing. That made putting the right emotion in the song a little difficult.

 

English
Welsh
tiny bit of French
and I can read some Latin ??:laugh: ?? though what good that is I don`t know. In the grammar school system when I was at school it was a compulsary subject for the first three years .

 

English, three years of high school Spanish, and a little Japanese. I lived in Japan for a year, and took language lessons. I've forgotten most of it, tho.