Once, in rehearsals for a play, I was asked how I managed to look as if I were crying. The question baffled me, since I only know one way to look as though the tears are real -- and that is to cry. The same holds true for language acquistion -- there are no short cuts. The only way to learn Spanish is to study hard, read a lot, listen to Spanish TV, radio, and music, watch Spaniards (or Latin Americans) speaking, and manage to synthesize as much as possible. Did I mention the study part? It takes years if you are an adult (children learn language more readily than we do -- this Hub is not for them) and have not studied a foreign language before, are not in a country where the language is spoken, and do not enjoy the countless word puzzles inherent in the difficult task of translation. Oh, and there is a lot of study involved, too.

Plus there are some real differences between Iberian Spanish and the many Latin American variations, just as there are differences in the many forms of English that have developed around the world. The pronunciation of c as th before soft vowels (e, i) in Spain, for example, is well known, but were you aware that there are so many vocabulary variations in idiomatic phrases and colloquial expressions that the Collins dictionary has to list them all alphabetically by each entry? When I first came to the States, other students made such fun of my Castellano that I stopped speaking in classes. While I was a fool to get upset, it made me sensitive to just how many obstacles there are: do you take on the pronunciation and expressions of a particular region (Madrid, in my case), or do you try to learn a more insipid but universally acceptable version of the language?

But do not be discouraged; of all the so-called Modern languages, Spanish has got to be the easiest for English speakers to pick up quickly, at least at the elementary and intermediate levels. So if you are interested in gaining a conversational proficiency for travel abroad, you should be able to have a lot of fun, especially if you have access to Spanish TV channels or have interaction with native speakers on a regular basis. Here are some tips to get you started (notice I said "started" -- not finished, or proficient, or magically imbued with the ability to think in another language):

• pick up any textbook that appeals to you (that addresses the language of the region you will be visiting or the area for which you need Spanish proficiency).

• get yourself a couple of notebooks -- one for the many exercises you are going to make yourself write and one to jot down every single word you come across that you don't know and are going to make yourself look up in the dictionary
• a good dictionary is essential. The Collins lists many Latin American variations to common Iberian Spanish words and expressions, and mine has traveled with me to several countries (it even was used as a level base for a jack when I had a flat tire in Japan)
• listening is also essential, so tapes or CD's (again, pay attention to regional difference)
• index cards (yes! you're going to make yourself vocabulary cards! Big fun.)

Those are the basic tools. Next, it helps to observe a regular daily learning routine, even if only for a few minutes as you're brushing your teeth. But you should allow yourself an hour or so as often as possible to study (there's that word again. . . ). Get some music CD's and sing along -- even if you don't know all the words or understand any of it -- just enjoy the musicality of the language. So, another list:

• speak all the textbook exercises aloud as you read or write them. Yes, you will sound silly at first. Who cares?
• listen to as much Spanish as you can -- either the tapes that accompany the textbook or (better) watch some Spanish TV. Again, it doesn't matter if you don't understand everything that's going on. Pay attention, though, to the words you do pick out, and the context in which they are used. If you can, leave the TV on for a while as you get dressed in the morning or while you are cleaning the oven.
• find a study pal, and set up some basic rules: don't correct each other and don't censure each other for using the occasional English word when you can't think of the Spanish one; the idea is to maintain a conversation. Ideally, a native speaker is the best study pal (swap English lessons with her)
• read. Read. READ. If you notice Spanish on food cans or labels, read it. Go to the Spanish foods aisle or section of your local grocery store and look at the words

There's no avoiding it, though: sooner or later you are going to have to learn some of the grammar rules over and over again. While the best way to learn a language is to hear it spoken from the time you are a baby, the next best way (for an adult) is to immerse yourself in the contexts in which the language is used as much as possible. That's where the second notebook comes in, remember? Write down all the words you come across that you don't know yet, and look them up later. And once you learn the basic rules of Spanish spelling, the language is beautifully regular and consistant (not like English at all).

I studied Spanish for four years in high school, five years as an undergraduate (including the year I spent in Madrid and the summer in Valencia), and seven years as a graduate. I can read fluently, but still have problems speaking. I was back in Madrid a few years ago, and was disappointed at how much I had forgotten. My study and reading in the language have been academic and even esoteric; taxi drivers in the Calle Casimiro Escudero talk a little differently than anyone in a play by Calderón de la Barca.

[One last note: don't rely on Babel Fish or any of the other translator programs online. They cannot handle context.]