Immerse yourself in Spanish

Want to see something really impressive?
How about a twenty year old, who speaks 11 languages?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-17107435
I have heard it said that, once you have learnt to speak a second language, subsequent languages become easier, but I think I'll stick with Spanish. There's still a lot to learn.

On the subject of multi-lingual people, I was fortunate enough, recently, to be on a course run by a really nice guy, by the name of Ronald. Ronald's family comes from Malaysia, and some of them still live there, but his parents moved to Holland, when he was quite young, so he also learned to speak Dutch. Like all kids, growing up in Holland, he learned to speak English, and now he is married to a Madrileña (a lady from Madrid), so he speaks Spanish, too. He also speaks some German, Italian, and a little Arabic. 

Now, if all this is making you feel a little inadequate, let me tell you a little secret that Ronald shared with me. At home, he generally speaks Dutch or English, and his Spanish only tends to come out when he's talking to his wife's family (or when someone like me imposes themselves on him , for a little practice). What he admitted is that it actually takes a little while for his brain to adjust from one language to another so, if he hasn't spoken Spanish for a while, it takes a little time to get back up to speed and, once he's in a Spanish-speaking environment, it's easier to maintain the flow, than if he's constantly switching between Spanish and other languages.

Hasn't it happened to you? Someone finds out you speak Spanish and, out of the blue, throws a phrase or question at you (often with an atrocious english accent) and expects a fluent reply.
You're brain just isn't 'tuned in' to Spanish, and you freeze, making everyone wonder if you really speak Spanish at all.

It's the same in class. When I have a presentation to do for Homework, I used to prepare notes in English, then try to translate, on the fly, into Spanish. It just didn't work. Now I make my notes in Spanish, so I don't have to try think in English and talk in Spanish.
Believe it or not, it's true, after learning Spanish for a while, you DO begin to think in Spanish. Sometimes you will listen to a phrase in Spanish, and understand it perfectly but, if someone put you on the spot, and asked you to translate it into English, you'd struggle, because you're not THINKING English at that moment.

This, I think is the main reason why immersion courses work, because Students are surrounded by Spanish all day, and their brain can filter out extraneous English influences.
I, personally, can't afford to take two weeks to travel to Spain, or South America, and live in a school or learning environment (although I'd love to try), but at least I can spend a whole hour at a time, in class speaking and hearing ONLY Spanish, which really works for me.

If you'd like to try the immersion method, my profesora, Ximena, has openings for new Students, and can be contacted via the following links

http://www.facebook.com/ximenamodotti.carami
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/eunice-ruiz/4a/452/798 (Ximena is Eunice Ruiz outside of SL)
http://ximenamodotticarami.blogspot.co.uk/
Perhaps I'll see you class :)