So true. When I meet new people here, they are always amazed that I've learned their language. "You know Macedonian?! BRAVO!" (And half the time invite me to coffee as well.) But how many Americans would ever shower praise on a foreigner who *gasp* knew some English!

I often feel sad that English was my first language and I have to try to seek out learning materials for other languages. It would be so much easier to learn English with the constant flow of American media - music, tv shows, movies (all subtitled here in Macedonia).