Getting to grips with Learning and Speaking the Spanish language ...

You don't have to be fluent with Spanish to successfully make the transition to successful living in Spain. You don't have to know the difference between "hablar Espanol" and "habla Espanol" or how to say a single word. But you could find that having at least a bit of the language at your disposal can be well worth the time it takes to get there.

Consider what will happen if you want some additional electrical outlets installed in your house, you have a plumbing leak or you have a problem with your phone lines. In any of these case and in hundreds of other situations, you may need to converse with someone who has only Spanish at his or her disposal. If you know something of the language, you'll at least be able to convey the nature of your problem.

Consider the social issues. You'll be living among people who consider you the foreigner - and that's justified. You've seen something in this country that made you want to live there, and learning the language could give you a much better insight into the culture and make you more accepted in the community. Even if you have to rely more on gestures, badly spoken Spanish and a lot of laughs, it's probably worth the effort.

Of course, you don't have to speak a word of Spanish to get along in the country. Many people don't. For one thing, it's usually more difficult to master a new language (or a new anything else, for that matter) when you're older. Learning more than a few rudimentary phrases of the language may simply be more than you can deal with. You'll find some natives who speak fluent English and you can always hire interpreters. But if you're

depending on someone else to convey your needs and wishes, there's the potential of not getting the desired results. Besides, learning enough of the language to get by without a translator can save you some serious money - most translators aren't free!

If you've decided you're going to learn the language, pay attention to dialects spoken in your area. Just as is true in many countries, there are several dialects spoken across the country. Learning one will give you a head start, but learning the one specific to your area is best.