13 May 2012 17:38:I agree with you Luckycat ....
Have to say, its a sad state of affairs if having lived in Spain for thirty years, the English man cant even speak the Spanish language - or even enough to get by!!!There are a number of people we know near our Spanish holiday home who have permanent residency and they are the same.
My Spanish is poor, admittedly, but I always give it a go and generally find the Spanish people patient with my inefficiencies. I would like to think that I would gradually build up my confidence and expand my knowledge of the language if I lived in Spain permanently. In the meantime, Im doing my best to acquire a basic grasp of the language through studying my GCSE level studies book, Spanish / English dictionary and Spanish verbs books. Long way to go though ....
Just a little point about us English ... In the south of Lincolnshire, we have a high number of foreign workers (predominantly Polish) and they make a clear effort to speak our language. Perhaps they know that they just wouldnt get understood in shops, bars etc if they just spoke their home language ??? We English are really lazy when it comes to grasping / learning other languages ..... probably in part due to our schooling, but THATS another matter and not part of this particular thread!
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