[kenberman]

there's about as much casual conversation at an ACF poker table as there is at an American poker table - not that much. plus, the vocab/phrases used are pretty limited.

anyway, 2 months isn't enough. I'd say that if you were paying to take a daily class, then you could become very good in 6 months. in 2 months, you'll learn some phrases, but still have trouble understanding native speakers.

as for Hindu, it will take much longer, since it bears no resemblence to any language you have previously studied. you'll have to start w/ a new alphabet. I'm not sure how much longer, but at least a couple more months.

the trouble with immersion is that if you start with zero knowledge of French, listening to French people speak to each other will just be complete gibberish. you need to start w/ some level of understanding.

OT: you'll be bored silly playing at the ACF 3-5 times a week.