Hitchhiking and language learning

Many people hitchhike. It's nothing too special. And the main reasons for doing it are quite obvious I guess: It is exciting. You meet new and very different people. You don't pollute the planet. You don't have to spend money. You have someone to talk to while doing distances. Or you just enjoy the general randomness that accompanies #hitchhiking . All of these aspects are really great. But one big benefit is often neglected or highly underestimated: The option to learn and practice a foreign language.