Yes, I did learn some Czech while living in Prague and, after 4 years, became somehow proficient in the language, considered one of the most difficult in the world. However, I had good and bad encounters when I didn't speak any Czech, as well as successful and unsuccessful meetings when I could utter and understand some of it. I never made the connection, because we didn't need to talk much, and "sign and cock" language took me where I wanted to be
BTW, Luke Volta is not Czech, but Slovak. The two languages are quite close, but we spoke English.