I know many people are quite nervous about the language difference when studying abroad. Even though I have taken both French and Italian, I was also still nervous about going to those countries. However, much to my suprise, pretty much everyone spoke English to some extent. That being said, many do appreciate and will be much kinder if you attempt to speak their language. It is honestly not hard to do so and my friends and I caught on fast to each one. I would highly recommend brushing up on the language of your host country prior to departure. It will make it much easier to navigate and interact with the people you meet. It also just makes you feel so proud and accomplished when you have that first conversation in a different language. I found it very easy to improve my language skills just by speaking it out loud. Most locals will help you with pronunciation and translation. Overall, the language barrier is not as scary as it seems and knowing a few words here and there goes a long way. 

Market in France (I got to use some French here because most of the vendors did not know English.)