I'm 18 currently learning Python for a hobby. One of the many guides I read online says the programmer will have to be versatile in more than a language in the long run, so it doesn't matter which language you start off with. With that said, Perl is an excellent 1st-try language. Apparently Perl's great for writing small, simple scripts and just getting the job done. Python, on the other hand, is geared for more complex programs. Whatever the case, they're both great languages. Some people argue that python is more readable and generally easier to learn. Really though, just by reading Llama, I'm sure you'll find that Perl is just as readable and easy to get into.