[Sca-cooks] globetrotting

[Rosine]

> . . . even though my French is not what it had been,
> after not speaking it for almost 30 years.

   And there, I think we have an explanation of why most folks in the US
don't speak other languages - no chance to practise. I studied Spanish for
four years, German for 6, and Latin for not long enough, but when nothing
and no one in your area speaks anything but American-English, well - you
lose the skill. It takes dedicated practise to maintain any level of
fluency. Except in dreams, I swear! ( I once dreamt that I was travelling to
the Yuccatan peninsula to help with an archeological dig. During my dream, I
was speaking Spanish and aware that the castilian I was using was not what
the natives were using... and when I woke up, I could only remember random
snatches. I still can't say more than "hello" and "I speak only English"
right now, but I have hope that the dream means that somewhere in my brain
I've retained a vocabulary that would return if I were immersed in the
language.)

Rosine