dear sister

I haven't been personally affected by this; but I do know several of my friends who have not landed a job because they were not bilingual. I live about 20 miles from the Mexican border; so most people understand Spanish too. But most importantly; retail stores and other business receive most of their customers from rich Mexican nationals who come to shop and vacation in the USA. With that being said, most employers will even forgive applicants who don't understand English but will not hire someone who does not know Spanish. :nerd:

In my experience having a lover that spoke a foreign language was the best motivator for me. I had considered and even taken a couple of foreign courses before; but not until I had a Romanian boyfriend was I more earnestly motivated to learn. It was odd when I heard him speak on the phone with his native language and I didn't understand at all what he was saying. On the other hand, when I spoke with my mother on the phone in Spanish, he would often tell me he understood bits and pieces; he claimed Romanian and Spanish were somewhat related and understood a couple of words. And I guess, I felt motivated to learn, I didn't want to be left out of jokes when he hanged out with his friends and one could only hope to meet his parents one day. :love:

I'm American and speak English and Spanish. I had a Romanian boyfriend--but that didn't last too long. Anyways, there were times where he used some really offensive slang words; and when I would let him know that he was being rude; he would reply by stating that it wasn't his intention. He literally thought slang words are the correct way of doing things. We also had a couple of odd conversations regarding culture. He would find some things American did odd, and extreme and I would feel the same way about his culture. I remember starring a a photograph of a woman kissing on the lips a 12 year old boy. It was just shocking to me but said it was common over there. I do think that people could overcome these barriers but boy it's a radical experience! :pirate: