What foreign language would you want to learn?

One of my greatest joys as a mother was to hear my kids utter their first words. I am sure that my parents felt the same way when they heard me speak for the first time. Communicating with words is one of the first lessons we learn. As a child we learn the language spoken at home. But when we grow older we discover that there are so many other languages spoken all over the world. In school I studied Spanish because we were required to take it. I am glad that I learned it because it has come in handy during my travels to Europe. I would love to learn French beyond what was taught in university because as far as I am concerned it is the language of love. Oui?

BARBIE CHAN, makeup artist: I would like to study Mandarin because I studied in a Chinese school and Mandarin was one of the electives I took. Unfortunately, I didn’t take it seriously then. Now I regret it. Given the chance, I would like to study it again. Mandarin is fast becoming the universal language in Asia. Wherever I go, I always find someone who speaks Mandarin.

MICHI CALICA, fashion designer: I’d love to master Japanese. I used to frequent Japan as a child and teenager. Lately I’ve been thinking about taking further studies on fashion design there. After all, the days I spent in Tokyo as a child paved the way for my entry into fashion.

EPY QUIZON, actor: I’d like to learn French because it sounds sexy!

PIERRE CALASANZ, managing editor, Philippine Tatler: I would probably choose to learn French. It is one of the most pleasant languages to listen to. Someone could be saying the nastiest of things, but in French, it sounds nice. Also, some of my favorite books were originally written in that language, so one day I would like to read them in French.

MINETTE TIRONA-CORPUS, marketing mana-ger, Lufthansa: German. It is the most widely spo-ken language in Europe. I work for a German company and I feel that I will never truly be on equal footing with people from Germany if I know nothing of their language. It would be great to be able to converse with my colleagues in their native tongue.

JOPET SISON, lawyer: Latin. It is a language deep with history, rich in meaning and full of expression. Many English words emanate from Latin. Translations to other languages cannot convey the message and thought with the same impact as it has in its original Latin. It is a language so compact and yet so full. "The law may be harsh but that is the law," pales when compared to its original Latin form, "Dura Lex sed Lex."

DIANE CUA, breast surgeon: Latin because it’s the root of almost all languages.

ZENEIDA AMADOR, theater director: I want to learn Chinese because it is a fascinating, challenging lang-uage that will figure a lot in the future.