Some Spanish and French from school. It is of little value in speaking to the people that I come in contact with because they do not speak formally any more than I speak formal English. We manage to muddle along with plenty of gestures, confused looks, and laughter.
Sure. Taco, Enchilada, Por Favor, Salsa........ I even speak some Japanese: Toyota, Mitsubishi, Yamaha..... Some German...Nein und Ja. Sauerbraten, Volkswagen.
I learned some Spanish from working for companies in So California that had Mexican workers, but I did say "some", which isn't very much. OTOH, I have high school classmates that had to take Spanish as a pre-requisite for college.
I remember asking my teacher why after 2 yrs of language I cant understand others that speak it? She said that's what we have to teach my reply was well that makes a lot of sense don't it, I cant even speak to the janitor! Much less anyone on the street.
Tex, even if you heard a Mexican speaking PERFECT ENGLISH, you could still tell he was a Mexican by his ACCENT! Similarly, If you spoke perfect Spanish, a Mexican might not understand you because you may not be stressing the correct ACCENTS in the correct places! I've heard many Gringos speaking Spanish, thinking their speech would be perfectly understood by a Latino, but I cringe when I hear them speak unaccented Spanish words, which would sound meaningless to a Latino. Hal