Key Phrases

When I’m traveling to a new country, there are a few key phrases that I try always to learn. By far the most important is being able to say “I don’t speak (insert name of language). Do you speak English?” By the way, I am not a linguaphobe. I speak French and Spanish and now a bit of German but there are some countries where even those languages won’t get me very far.

Basic Needs

The next most important thing is to make sure that I won’t starve or die of thirst. Although it’s useful to be able to ask for water, there are some places where you may not want to drink the water. I have found that Coca-Cola and Pepsi are universally recognized. When it comes to food the most important phrase for me is “I don’t eat meat”. Although I meet with incredulity in some countries, knowing that phrase (as well as “does this contain meat?”) is very helpful.

Your basic needs are not limited to food and drink, of course, so it’s helpful to be able to ask the way to the bathroom. Believe it or not, not everywhere has helpful little pictorial icons, so to avoid the embarrassment that would ensue if you misread a sign, this is one to add to your list.

Polite Phrases

It is also helpful to learn some basic verbs to help you to string together the phrases you do know. The verbs to be, to have and to go can really help you, combined with whichever nouns you have managed to learn. I also agree with Gadling that knowing how to say hello and goodbye, yes and no and please and thank you will be appreciated.

Extra Lessons

While it is unrealistic to expect to pick up enough of a foreign language to able to converse while on your trip, there are a few resources that will help you get beyond the basics. These include:

• Fodor’s Language For Travelers, which includes more than 150 keywords and phrases in several languages
• The BBC’s quick fix language learning section where you can download essential phrases in 36 languages to your MP3 player
• The Omniglot site which has commonly used phrases in more than 80 languages

These will help you start your own list of essential foreign language phrases.

(Photo: Adam UXB Smith)