Happier Abroad Forum Community

Hey, everyone. How do I go about learning languages in other countries? Are schools common? I remember there being something called "immigrant services" in Canada that would help people out with learning French & doing their paperwork stuff- is there something like that in other countries? I pick things up quick, but sometimes it's hard to find good information on that (explaining what the sounds would be, the workings of the language, real-world useage, etc...).

I'm hoping that the Czech Republic (and Slovakia, I didn't forget!) have this, as well as Spain & Portugal. Actually, I'm hoping that a lot of countries have this- but those seem to be the likely candidates for now. Mainly the Eastern European places, these days- although Portugal seems like it's in good shape. I'm not sure about Spain with this new "Gag Law" & also it seems that southern Spain is getting more of that migrant bullshit than one hears about in the media. Part of why I like the Eastern European places- they aren't putting up with this shit like the other places are.

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There are private places like Berlitz, they are good but expensive. You can usually request whatever language you want and they somehow find someone in the area to tutor you 1 on 1.

See, the thing is that I'm not looking for regimented language-learning (for instance: I remember hearing about a place where they spoke only that language as an immersion thing, but they'd kick you out & not give you a refund if you spoke English- lots of possible conflicts of interest there & learning obstacles). I like the way some languages work, but it's hard to get things explained in detail & there's a problem finding things out about other countries in America. It's kind of like you luck into a good language book or something, but usually don't find much in the way of elaborating on things in general.

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Seems like good advice. How far do you have to go to be able to have an argument in the language? I ask because if the need arises, it would possibly be an important skill to have & I figure once you're at that level you'll be able to handle regular conversation or pick things up on the news easily enough. I was basically wondering if one can get that way from books & hearing things pronounced in songs/tv/etc... ?