[d3k]

The parent comment is really a good advice. I really think that doing an activity in a group helps: when you get too shy you can comfortably hide in the group, when you want to talk you will have people with similar interests that will be keen to listen.

Now I am in my 30s, but when I was 24 I left my home country in Europe to work for an year and a half in the US, then moved again to another foreign country (UK). Work was great, but it was really difficult to meet new people, not to mention girls. My English wasn't good and I didn't know anybody apart from my colleagues. So I learned it the hard way: I enjoy photography and I got into a local flickr group. Doing photo walks allowed me to get in touch with different people with the same passion as me, without having to think too much as the way I used to speak. The "walks" allowed me also to walk by with one person at the time, avoiding the awkward moments when you are supposed to talk in a table where all the other people can talk easier than you. I also met a good bro who I still see quite often! And when bored, I could ask him if he wanted to go to the cinema, to have a beer or to see an art exhibition. Few years later we even got into talking to some girls in bars. That didn't go too far most of the time, but it helped the self esteem and I could feel better when talking to random people. I also started rowing (but you could try another team sport). It was a beginners' team, and even if I left it in the end I really think it boosted my confidence to hear the other guys support.

Also, I really think you can improve your English by watching TV and films. And learning to drive/having a car might inspire you to join interesting activities (my experience says that the US can be a difficult country to live in without a car).