It seems like the same old story of overnight successes which inspire people and produce envy among the rest of us. Is their memory superior? Is their brain's language region so badly different to ours?
"In human like in animal world behaving via similar behavioural code and rules (i.e. same language) lowers the defenses and barriers and lets people and animals open to others that use those. So, for example, when getting in touch with French colleagues or French people in general, speaking English does not create the same open and direct atmosphere that speaking their mother tongue, French, creates." ~ Matteo Lazzeretti (ESCP Europe Business School, MIM Program)
Thanks also for making it clear that there are no language gurus out there. Neither you nor I have, or are ever going to conquer the world of languages as such.
However, what we are doing is to conquer the world of connections.
Conquer is the wrong word - connect!
We want new stories in our lives, new inspirations, coming from and shared with new and newly discovered old friends. Our desire is so great that we can't do otherwise but learn their language and connect with them.
We become active because we want new exciting things to happen in our lives!
Here again goes Matteo, on learning a language seemingly without a clear goal:
"I think it's a personal feature of me as a being, I really love even only to hear foreign languages, I love to learn them because I think it's the real link with the culture and mind of the people who speak them.
It's not a cliché if Germans are disciplined and order driven, and their language is disciplined and ordered, too, both in the sound and structure. The simple word "Kartoffel" (="potato") sounds like a sort of military order, and the structure (i.e. the cases) is similar to latin and ancient/modern greek - both really ordered languages."
Someone has already pictured this before: http://www.dudelol.com/img/how-germans-see-germans-talking.jpeg
Note, Matteo, though, that once you've mastered German and are actually communicating and using it, you no longer notice that Kartoffel sounds strange. Kartoffel becomes just Kartoffel. No thoughts or strings attached.
Your separate language brain is formed then.
Welcome to a new life without stereotypes or borders.