Travel to Non-English Speaking Countries: How Do You Get By?

I have travelled a lot across my native Europe and in North America too. I have not faced insurmountable difficulties with the English language barrier in Europe. I actually prefer to visit countries that do not readily speak English because it forces me to try and get by in another language. This was particularly true in Croatia. I went there to work in 1999. Even though I worked during the day with fellow Brits, the rest of the day was spent immersing myself in the delightful culture and that involved learning the language too. It was not easy! I took a crash course in Serbo-Croat before my departure and I continued to learn during my time in Croatia. I had only been in the country a day when I offended a local man from the town of Kraljevica, where I was staying. He greeted me, with the usual "dobra dahn", but I did not realize it meant "good day" until afterwards! I scrutinized the man carefully trying to work out what he had said to me. Had he asked for directions? Did he need help? It was as he walked away looking very offended that I knew I should have just repeated the greeting! I wish I had not remained silent. I was not used to strangers greeting me in the street. It is a dying trend. After that, I made every effort to learn as many greetings and phrases as possible. By the time I left Croatia I felt more comfortable with the language, having succeeded in contorting my tongue into various new shapes and squeezing out some new sounds.

I have repeated my Croatian experience in Germany, Holland, Belgium, Italy, the Czech Republic and France, where I feel much more fluent and at ease. I have visited France eight times and since my first school visit at the age of eleven I have made every effort to leave English at home, except when speaking to other native speakers, and just speak French. Our school trip to France was meant to help us become more fluent in the language and to get by more easily in restaurants and cafes. I can still remember my classmates' laziness as they asked me to order their drinks and food for them. They were not interested in why we were there at all. Unfortunately, many such people carry over this apathy and disregard for other languages and cultures into adulthood and refuse to try and integrate at least a little while they are away from home. Their country, customs, language and food are the "best". They wish everything to be conducted in flawless English and for every request to be understood and catered for. Waiters or hotel staff who do not know exactly what they mean may then be subjected to the humiliation of having tourists raise their voices and repeat what they had just said in slow, monosyllabic English, as if this is meant to make them better understood! This is quite a narrow minded and childish act that tourists would do well to drop. No one deserves to be spoken down to. The waiters or hotel staff are not stupid and do not deserve to be treated in such a demeaning fashion. I have seen it happen and it is embarrassing. It just shows up the person perpetuating the abuse. It is not funny or in any way clever.

Why should anyone have to put up with the abuse of hotel guests or customers in a restaurant? It is easy to overcome this mindset if you take a step back and thoroughly prepare for your trip before you even leave home. Think of all the immigrants you have come across in your own country who make every effort to learn English so that they can get by with their day to day lives. Perhaps you know some personally. Think of all the hours they have spent and the great effort they have gone to in order to make themselves understood. It is easy to take things for granted. Did you have trouble applying for a state benefit or service? When you had to register your vehicle in a particular state I am sure you did not think of the person who may have gone before you in line who struggled to fill in the same form and then tried to explain what he was doing in broken English to the desk clerk. Now, this is obviously not the same as spending two weeks in Costa Rica, but the principals are still the same. He made the effort and so should you.

If you want to get the most out of your trip, you will need to try to learn some basic phrases before you leave. I am not suggesting spending a lot of money on a 10 week course in the language. You can just visit your local library and check out a book about the country you will be visiting. Learn about the local culture so that you do not inadvertently offend anyone and practice the phrases. If you cannot memorize them, write important phrases down on flash cards and carry them around with you when you travel, so that you can easily refer to them. This is what I did on my last trip to Italy. The air conditioning unit had broken in my hotel room and I spent some time trying to work out how to tell them. Finally, I had practiced the phrase and proudly told them the problem, or so I thought! I received a few blank stares and some laughter. It turns out that instead of saying the air conditioning unit was broken I had said that it had run away! I was able to laugh with the hotel staff at my mistake and that helped to impress the correct phrase into my mind more. You will likely find that too. If you visit twenty different countries it will not be possible to learn each language. But the basics will get you a long way. You will notice a difference in the way you are treated too. I can recall looks of surprise from hotel staff as my husband and I conversed with them in their language. They were very appreciative of our efforts. Many locals say they do not speak English and are just as stubborn with difficult tourists. But if you make an effort to seek their language though, this will open more doors to you. You will be viewed in a much better light. Imagine how locals must feel, pretty tourist weary in many popular destinations, I'm sure. Many people from other countries base their opinions on what Americans or the British are like simply by the way they behave when they visit their country. I asked someone once what he thought of the UK. He said he thought the streets were paved in gold and that the people were all hooligans, no doubt referring to the football (soccer) fans who had vandalized so many countries they had visited in order to watch the matches. Be pleasant, accepting and do not go on about how wonderful your own country is compared to your host country. As a guest you should respect another country's way of doing things. Who knows? You may come across a more efficient way of doing something. So do not immediately assume your way of doing something is right and theirs is wrong. Make life easier for yourself and for the locals and they will no doubt welcome you to their country with open arms.