My grandmother taught me calligraphy. It's a dying art, but oh so wonderful. I hardly ever write cursive nowadays, unless I send birthday cards or write a message for special occasions. My favourite big letters were always the B and the K. You can do so much with them.
As far as reading cursive goes, that depends on the quality of the manuscript and the period from which it comes. I can read modern calligraphy - 20th century and onwards, but 19th century and earlier is very difficult, unless the handwriting is legible.