Presidio welcomes 3,500 visitors to DLIFLC annual language day event

PRESIDIO OF MONTEREY, Calif. - An estimated 3,500 visitors joined with faculty, staff and students of the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center to celebrate Language Day on May 14.

The annual event has become a DLIFLC tradition -- a day set aside to provide a glimpse of the cultures represented by DLIFLCAca,!a,,cs 1,800 instructors who train Department of Defense personnel in foreign languages and cultures.

Language Day visitors were entertained by international music and dance performances by DLIFLC students who rehearsed for weeks under the tutelage of their instructors. Many students dressed for the occasion by wearing indigenous costume. Visitors were also invited into classrooms for teaching demonstrations. Displays and contests added to the entertainment, while food vendors served up a luncheon of international cuisine.

By far, the largest segment of visitors was high-school and middle-school students who were brought by bus. They came from California communities from as far north as Fremont and as far south as Bakersfield.

The Presidio of Monterey has long been the home of DLIFLC. Almost all of its 3,000 students are military service members. Basic instruction in 24 languages is offered in courses that range in length from 25 to 63 weeks.