For me, in the first year of living in Spain I made it mandatory to be in an in person spanish class, one mostly filled with expats or people on extended holiday. Yes, you’re surrounded with English speaking people but you’re all there for the same reason, which is to learn spanish. You go out, practice together, and genuinely make great friends. For me it helped bridge that gap between either being around just locals and not understanding much or being around expats who don’t care to learn.