In response to Mr Zammit’s letter (TMID, 18 October), I quite agree that foreigners living in Malta ought to learn to speak Maltese.

I have a second home in Malta, and as I work full time in the United Kingdom, I am limited to visiting Malta up to six times per year. When I purchased my property last year I asked the estate agent where I could learn to speak Maltese. I received a bemused response in which I was told the Maltese language would not be that easy to learn.

I’d still love to learn to speak Maltese and my question to Mr Zammit is where can I do this on the island? A good starting point for a person like myself would be a short introductory cause (perhaps lasting up to a week) which could be held in one of the many island establishments teaching English.

As I don’t know of any introductory Maltese language courses, I have made a start by learning how to pronounce Maltese place names and food correctly – especially those tricky words containing “Qs”, “Xs” and “Gs” and I’ve bought a “learn Maltese” CD.

My concluding comment to Mr Zammit is that not all English people have closed their minds to the prospect of learning the Maltese language.

Lorraine Kershaw

Sliema