One of the biggest problems I have with German, even now, is with the umlaut changing the sound of the letter. Ö, for example, changes "oo" to "oooue". Not mastering the umlaut can have dangerous consequences : for example the words "schwul" and "schwül". One is muggy weather, and the other is a gay man. Miss that umlaut and you're asking for a punch in the teeth. Another thing is the german "R", which is more of a gurgle at the back of the throat than the english "R", which is pronounced with the tongue against the teeth. We had a whole lesson of practicing that one and trying to keep a straight face at the same time.. Ten grown adults all going "gggghrh! ggggghrh!!" is not conducive to retaining a straight face. Steve