I have been thinking about getting a sword for a long time. My thing is that I want to get one that has something to do with my family's heritage. I would love to get a replica Confederate sword, or going further back, some sort of Scottish blade. The only problem is that the only replica Confederate swords I see are geared toward reenactors, and are more form than function.
I took a fencing class a couple of months ago, and it was a workout. I would suggest that you practice with whatever sword you have. It's not as easy as it looks on TV, and rarely are your opponents going to be an unarmed watermelon.