There might be various reasons why you would want to learn a foreign language. However, there could also be a variety of reasons why you still did not get on with it. You might don't have enough money to invest in face-to-face classes, private tutors, study abroad experiences, or don't have enough time and prefer to study between commitments instead. Regardless of why you didn't start studying yet, I hope I will be able to help you get on it now. It's never too late.

Italian culture, literature, art, and food are known and appreciated all over the world. You will always be able to find the opportunity to show off your Italian knowledge, whether it's during a museum visit, ordering food at an Italian restaurant, or when you start dating an Italian person. 

Unfortunately, there is no easy answer to how long it will take you to be fluent in Italian. It depends on many factors: how many hours you are willing to study, the level you are trying to reach, how often you will practice, how you will practice, and the reason you are studying it in the first place.

Before you even start investing time in learning, come up with a plan. Choose when you want to study, and how much you want to invest (either daily or weekly), and finally gather all the resources available to you. Identify the learning method that is most suitable for you. f you don't enjoy reading, it goes without saying that reading in a foreign language is not going to be a pleasent journey for you. Try listening to music or podcasts instead. Watching TV in Italian. You can definitely start with English subtitles and eventually switch them to Italian. Last but not least, you should practice your speaking, either with other language learners or, if possible, with natives. 

Netflix has a decent amount of Italian content that you might be able to watch from your home country. If that's not the case, try using a VPN. 

Here's a list of Italian series and movies available on Netflix: Cinema Paradiso (Best Foreign Language Film, Academy Awards, 1989); Life is Beautiful (Best Foreign Language Film, Academy Awards 1999); Under the Riccione Sun (Netflix Original); SKAM Italia (originated from Norway, every country has now a different version of it); The Life Ahead (Netflix Original); Summertime (Netflix Original); Suburra (Netflix Original); Baby (Netflix Original); Everything Calls for Salvation (Netflix Original). The more you watch and rate on Netflix, and higher the chances you have to be suggested other shows you might like.

I don't necessarily like all of these artists but hopefully, you will find some whose music you enjoy: Ligabue, Maneskin, Ultimo, Ariete, Coez, Marco Mengoni, Jovanotti, Cesare Cremonini, Negramaro, Fedez, and more. If you start listening to these on Spotify, it's possible that the platform suggests you similar artists that you might find interesting.

If you are looking for something to listen to while cooking, drawing, commuting, etc, podcasts might be right for you. I haven't actually listened to any of these but I heard good things about them: Coffee Break Italian, Café Design, 5 Minute Italian, Italiano Automatico, ...

If you would like to practice your reading, I'd suggest you start with books you've already read in your native language. That way, you will be able to visualize the story and it won't be too hard to follow. Additionally, make sure you always have a dictionary close by. Underline the words you don't understand and translate them. Some of the most famous Italian books you can read are the following: The Adventures of Pinocchio; The Late Mattia Pascal; One, No One, and One Hundred Thousand; The Name of The Rose, but these  - depending on your level - can be tougher reads.

These are just some of the many resources you can use to learn Italian. I haven't watched or read all of the things I listed above, so don't take my suggestions as personal recommendations. If you are learning Italian, have you watched some of these Italian movies and TV shows? Are there more you recommend? Any more books that can be good for beginners/intermediates? Respond in the comment section so that I can add them to the article. 😊