Scary Foreign Languages and Travel

Adventure is a State of Mind

The Fear of Foreign Languages

The idea of trying to communicate with someone in a language different than your own is one of the most terrifying aspects of traveling abroad for many individuals. I think this is especially true for Americans who tend to be monolingual. (A survey by YouGov in 2013 determined that 75 percent of Americans have no second language education and speak only their mother tongue.) While learning a foreign language is a helpful tool and can enrich your travels by making it significantly easier to interact with the citizens of other countries, the lack of language fluency does not have to be a barrier to traveling internationally.

Many of you reading this are assuming that my next statement is going to be an explanation that much of the world speaks English and many major metropolitan cities in the world post many signs in English as well as in their official language. While all of that is true, that is not the point I want to make. I think that there are ways to be respectful of others’ languages, even if you are not fluent. In doing so, you open the door to others attempting to communicate with you. Communication is not just verbal, and there is a great deal that can be communicated between two individuals using facial expressions, pointing, and other gestures if they are both motivated to do so.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

So how to show respect for the native tongue of others? In a word, attitude. Expecting others to not only speak your language but to speak it perfectly will not get you very far in your adventure(ish) travels. Many countries are very proud of their native language, and rightfully so. Even if you are not fluent in another language, making an attempt to speak the local language rather than assuming that they can speak your language will go a long way toward showing respect, and sometimes will be the very reason that multilingual speakers will switch to your mother tongue to graciously ease the conversation along.

For example, once in the Azores, we went into a small shop to buy picnic supplies. When I initially asked the shopkeeper (in Portuguese) whether she spoke English, she shook her head “no.” After a short while, with gestures, we managed to communicate that we needed a way to open the wine we bought. When she opened the wine and I responded with “obrigada” (thank you), she smiled and then asked in English if there was anything else we needed, where we were from, and how long we were staying on the island.

Our Cafe Experience

We once had an experience that crystalized this understanding for me. My husband, Greg, my parents, and I were visiting Paris and were sitting at an outdoor cafe table waiting for our dinner to be served. My parents and husband did not speak any French other than the two or three “magic words” I had insisted they memorize and use (more on this later). They all had at my insistence, however, greeted our waiter with “bonjour!” when we arrived and “merci” when he brought us our menus. From that moment on, the waiter had talked with me in French as I attempted to improve my French skills but had consistently addressed my parents and Greg in quite fluent English.

After being at the restaurant long enough to have several opportunities to interact with our waiter as he switched fluidly and fluently between French and English, an American couple sat at the table next to us, told the waiter “hello” and asked, in English, for menus and Cokes with ice. The waiter stared at them and, in French, repeatedly stated that he did not understand and did not speak English. The Americans repeated (a little louder) what they wanted in English, and the waiter continued to insist in French that he could not understand them. After this brief exchange, the Americans left in frustration, and the waiter immediately turned to my parents and asked them, in English, how they were enjoying their meal.

The Lesson

Some of you will read about this experience and label the waiter as a rude Frenchman, but my takeaway is completely different — I view the Americans as the rude ones in this story because why should someone, in their own country, be expected to speak any languages other than their own? Instead I am grateful for the kindness the waiter demonstrated in talking in English to my parents and to Greg. I am also convinced that what unlocked his kindness was the fact that my family had signaled their respect of him and his culture by making an attempt, as rudimentary as it was, to speak his language from the beginning.

The Magic Words

What are the “magic words?” (I said I’d get back to this.) These are the words or phrases that I make sure that I and my traveling companions have memorized in the native language of wherever we are traveling, even if we do not know or understand anything else in that language. These are:

• Hello
• Goodbye
• Please
• Thank you
• Where is ________?
• Where is the bathroom?
• How much does it cost?

These are basic phrases that travel guidebooks will sometimes include, usually in an index, but you can also do an internet search for the phrases — for example, search “how to say hello in Italian” — or use a language translation program, such as Google Translate. There may be some additional basic phrases that are specific to your needs. I once traveled with a cousin who is allergic to onions, so I memorized how to say “Are there any onions in it?” in both French and Spanish so I could ask when we were ordering in restaurants.

If culture is a house, then language was the key to the front door; to all the rooms inside.

Khaled Hosseini

In Case of Emergency

The magic words, and any other words and phrases you choose to memorize, and a lot of gesturing and pointing can get you through the majority of communication situations you will find yourself in, but there might be a few situations in which precision and a larger vocabulary could prevent a disaster from developing. I’m picturing a medical emergency or wanting to take a train to Caen, not Cannes, in France….which was an issue for us once. Buying the train ticket, not the medical emergency. In this case, finding someone who is multilingual to communicate with or to translate can be a lifesaver. Literally in the case of a medical emergency.

If no one is around and if you have access to cell service or wifi, a translation app on your phone, such as Google Translate, can also help. Remember, though, that translation apps and websites are not completely foolproof and can create some interesting mis-translations at times.

An Opportunity to Learn

For those of you who are planning a trip well in advance, I would strongly recommend trying to learn as much of the official language of the country you are visiting as possible. There are free classes and tutorials all over the internet as well as paid versions with more features and support. And if you are working on learning a language, getting to immerse yourself in a language and actually use what you know while traveling will supercharge your language learning!

Benefits of Language Learning

Learning a new language has many benefits in addition improving your interactions with others who speak that language. Being able to communicate in the local language lets you engage more intimately with the culture even as you learn new words for foods, objects, and activities. You’ll also be able to move about a country more confidently and independently if you are able to read signs or ask for assistance when needed.

You may also learn more about yourself and develop new aspects of yourself as you learn a new language. There is interesting research that indicates that our personalities may shift when we speak in different languages. As you learn a language and practice it with others, it’s possible that you may find that you feel more outgoing or more humorous in a different language. You may tap into personality traits that you did not even realize you possessed!

And language learning is healthy. To add to the many ways that travel benefits our brains, learning a new language also promotes a healthy brain — research suggests that being bilingual delays the onset of cognitive decline and dementia in older adults. If you’re like me, I’m interested in doing anything that will help my brain and memory to stay healthy for as long as possible.

Overcoming the Fear

We began this discussion with the recognition of how scary it can be to consider communicating in a different language from your own. That may be where many of us start, but it doesn’t have to stop us from learning a new language. Even a few words is better than no words. And a few sentences is better than just a few words. This is not the time to try to be perfect. Instead, remind yourself that even a tiny bit of growth in this area can be beneficial.

And the best advice I can give — don’t be afraid to look foolish. This is hard for me, as it is for most individuals. But honestly, the only way to learn to speak a language is to try to speak it, and in the beginning, no one does it well. It is through those attempts, as foolish as they are, that we practice and improve.

Making an attempt to use a new language is also an opportunity for native speakers to correct our mistakes. As painful and embarrassing as that may be, remember that they are trying to help us improve our ability to speak their language. And even that is an opportunity to have a genuine interaction with someone from another culture. Believe me, laughter is frequently involved, and just having the experience of interacting with others while trying to speak even a word or two of a language will strengthen your memory of those words and pronunciations. As Gabriel Wyner, the author of Fluent Forever explains, every time you have an actual interaction with a word, including hearing it and/or seeing something that you can associate with it, you create more connections in your brain with that word which strengthens the memory of it.

Conclusion

Many of us have dreams of traveling to places where we do not know the language. This can be scary, but it doesn’t have to prevent us from taking that trip. Even a few words can unlock benefits, including more positive interactions with those we encounter on our journey. There are personal benefits as well, including increased confidence and possible improved brain health.

What language is spoken where you want your next adventure to take you? Do you speak any of that language? If so, how can you improve your language skills before taking your trip? If it’s a completely new language to you, what resources can you use to learn at least the “magic words” in that language?