1.  What's your story ?  How do you get into all the languages ?

My late father was competent in Malay, Indonesian, English and Japanese. He was virtually self-taught with English and had quite a collection of books in English. At still an early age I read all the books transforming me into an avid and compulsive reader. And that did not stop with English.

2.  Which languages do you wish you could spend more time practising?

All of them.

3.  What are some of the languages you'll like to learn in the future ?

Dutch, Japanese and Mandarin.

4.  So let 's be honest, which language has the most charm to you ?

English.

5.  What's the greatest pleasure you get frm speaking so many languages ?

In the words of Nelson Mandela, "If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart."

6.  Some people say the world is really just going to have a few languages in a 100 years, do you think this really true ?

The minor tribal languages are already on the decline. The major languages will gain more dominance. As for the relatively major languages, there is still hope provided there is the will. This is best illustrated with the revival of Hebrew and the official recognition of Amazigh / Tamazight in Algeria and Morocco.

7.  What is your message to the young ( and not so young ) people out there who are interested in studying multiple languages ?

There is no short cut. Like any other skill, language acquisition is only possible through motivation, dedication and sheer hard work.