Naive traveller
I am sure there are people that will laugh at me here.... and with good cause, but in Spain... they mostly only speak Spanish.
One of the most common misconceptions I have heard is that English is spoken everywhere and it's so easy to travel. Well it's not always the case. I travelled to Spain recently and as I have grown up in Australia, I have never truly had the need to learn another language. Australia is just a large island of English speakers floating around in the Southern part of the globe... for anyone who may have missed it.
I am quite in awe of other countries whose inhabitants are often bilingual. I am tri-lingual... in as much as I try to speak what I see written and it is not even close to what it is meant to sound like. Fortunately I had a friend join the same tour as me and he could speak Spanish, French and he simply adapted for Portuguese. It even came in handy in a store in Madrid with Asians... we weren't quite sure where they were from... until all of a sudden he is speaking fluently to them. Apparently Mandarin. Up until he discovered what language he needed, I had been trying to procure a new IPhone cord because I had left mine in Salamanca and they had been pointing to light globes.
So, I am now wondering where I need to explore in the future and what I need to learn before getting there. Italian seems a likely choice. I am told if I can learn one of the languages, the others will come naturally to me.
Comments (44)
Anyway, i believe you don't mind my broken english.
Yes unfortunately a certain arrogance comes with having English as a native tongue. Generally it is expected that people from non-English speaking countries will do the decent thing and learn it, to make our lives as travellers easy
I am very much in awe of people who speak/write fluently in another language. I know it comes easier to some than others but it is still commendable.
If you were going to learn just one other language, I'd recommend Spanish as it will take you around most of the Americas. And Portuguese and Italian is more understandable then too.
The friends I travelled with recently ... we are considering meeting up again in two years to perhaps visit Italy and Greece, which is why I thought Italian might be good to learn. That... and there are a lot of Italian families local to the area I live in. They usually don't speak Italian when they are in mixed company, but I had rather hoped that would give me an opportunity to try and practice on them.
Portugal was stunning... I really loved that country. It's definitely somewhere I would like to return to.
The father of my kids speaks several different languages and dialects, fluently.
I'd very much like to brush up on my Mandarin if given the chance. I was sent to a Malay school instead of a Chinese school and as a result of that, I can't write Mandarin and don't speak it well. Coupled with the fact that in my grandparents' household we speak Cantonese all the time and the neighbours speak other Chinese dialects.
All my girlfriends in my hometown speak Mandarin fluently and when I tried speaking to them in Mandarin, they'd all end up laughing!!
Italian isn't a bad choice. It is lovely in itself, and the other Romance languages would be easier from it
If traveling it could be a smattering of the language is all thats needed. You can buy those speaking translators.
If living in that country well learn the language or you could be starved
Business transactions are now done all over the world so a universal language was needed, why English i do not know but there it is.
'Australia is just a large island of English speakers floating around in the Southern part of the globe'
I'm not sure that you can say that. I lived in Oz for 7 years and sure, English is of course the official language, but it has to be one of the most multicultural nations in the southern hemisphere.
Europeans, Chinese, Vietnamese, Indians, Indonesians, Malaysians, Thais, and many more nationalities all living pretty harmoniously together and sharing many languages. And don't forget the original native Australians, who have many unique lanaguages and dialects.
On the point of travelling in Spain with no Spanish....hmmmm.....well Spain receives millions of tourists every year and is one of the most geared up European countries for tourism. All the other millions manage pretty well with no Spanish, so I'm sure you could too
No necesitas hablar español
Go outside the tourist zones and you'd be hard pressed to be understood.
Well yeah Mol, I know that...I live here...lol
But it's the same in any country isn't it......it's part of the fun of travelling.
I thought you weren't moved yet
Don't get too tied up in the masculine/feminine and grammar in general. All you need to begin with is some basic vocabulary. The rest will follow.
As for Scotland, was it Glasgow? That's a thick accent alright
Same with Belfast in Ireland. Even Irish people often can't understand that accent
Belfast is where my Grandfather lived before immigrating to Australia... I found him quite easy to understand. Cork was also interesting for me
I had to learn what 'langer' meant. And then the overuse of the word 'like'... I kept waiting for them to finish a sentence. And the farewell if you were talking to one of them on the phone.. "Good luck... good luck ...good luck"...they never said it once... I actually mistook it for 'Gluck' and wondered if Gluck meant goodbye.
And I was almost impressed with myself when you used the word 'red' as your sample. I recognised rouge. But then realised that was part of the 'red ball' phrase that was drummed into us.
-mimi
Do you speak hakka? Do you know what "gueizai" or "guaizai" or "gwelzai" is by any chance? Can't find it on Google.
I am not sure if I learn the language locally that I will be taught the curse words for awhile.
Alcohol poisoning is part of most of our teenage years. I thought I was just helping the economy by doing my bit.
Portugal is a stunning country... it's a wee bit different there from Spain. Defining that difference is difficult though. It's certainly somewhere I would return to.
Xhosa?? Seriously?!? Wow, don't choose an easy language! That's an incredible travel experience. I have never been to South Africa.
I´m spaniard, you are right, in Spain, we mostly speak "español", and there are few options for english speakers...quite opposite if you visit any Latin American country for example, its common to find easily english speakers in México, Venezuela, Argentina, Colombia....no to mention Puerto Rico.
My thoughts are: Spain is very proud of its language, I´ve learned a little bit of Italian, French, Hebrew and Portuguesse, also have a degree (I don´t think deserve) in English and ....Spanish is different, hard language, rich as few and belongs to a readers country which makes people more reluctant to open for other options. We also have other languages here, Gallego, Catalán, Vasco....so most people is already bilingual since they were born (my case) ....
When it comes about spanish, non spanish speakers think its the same thing speak to a Colombian than a Argentinian ...no, not at all, I can speak with a Mexican without giving any clue to a Spaniard from Spain ...it also happens with english speakers but as a foreigner can say its completely different, since Spanish a extense.
Not now but for so many years I was a naive traveller (love it) too...have so funnny stories (a day in London asking for a doctor because I had a terrrible toothache and they didn´t understand me until my ex said: dentist!!!!!!!) its all about how much you want to make yourself clear and other side catch you...my opinion. I travelled with so confidence (and innocence) and made it
I´m very into english now, of course there is a recurrent (?) "leitmotiv" ...I´ll make it. Languages are so difficult for me, I learn by ear but struggle with grammar because my spanish references and level (I´m a academic writer myself) ....but I´m very persistent.
On the other hand, a suggestion, if you are single .....Italy
You sound like you have done quite a bit of travelling yourself. There are always more places than time or money.
Having said that, I'm writing this in glorious Spanish sunshine, so i can't complain
I loved that the Spanish are proud of their language. It took me a few days to adjust and watching a friend moo like a cow, make wings like a chicken as he tried working through a menu to see what the food was.... well that was amusing. As much as I like exploring... I admit this is entirely my downfall... I have listened to people tell me that English is spoken everywhere and it's not true. Europe is an incredible experience for me. Spain was in particular. They are very true to themselves.
Your English is very good...whereas my Spanish... the only word I was certain about was "Gracias". And even then I got caught when I crossed to Portugal where it changed to "obrigado". Just as I managed to remember that... I crossed the border back into Spain. I won't even mention how my lack of French held up in Morocco.
I think it's brilliant that you are brave enough to attempt anything when you are travelling... and doctor...dentist...so close.
Molly if I had known you were in Spain... I could have stayed longer to have a drink. Well that's if I could make myself understood by a waiter.
I think my travelling is fairly limited. I have seen a little bit, but there are so many places still to be seen. .
Chris!!! That's brilliant! I understand broken English!
As a matter of fact my mom is Hakka and so we're her parents. When my mom and late grandma got together, they spoke in Hakka.
Gweizhai means 'white devil' or white guy. That's what I called my Arty, "Gweilo"
So I see a vendor with a wooden cart, and people buying food from him. So I figured it must be nice and I'll get some. It was noodles with bean sprouts and a few things with heaps of chilli. I saw somebody else give him 8, so I gave him 8, smiled and nodded. he asked a few questions, I figured asking did I want sauce or something, so I smiled and nodded again. He whisked it up in a jiffy, and it was ready.
Then he said "ha". I looked at Mum and she looked at me "ha?", maybe the guy wants more money so I offered. He shook his head and waved his hands, and said slowly and carefully "HA". We had no idea what he was talking about, and didnt want to rip him off or anything. I tried saying "ha" a few times, to no effect. By now a few Chinese folks had gathered to watch, and he turned to them and said "ha", they all nodded as though it was a reasonable thing to say and said "ha" back to him. We were in a complete gridlock, and had to wait it out while he said various things in Chinese to explain what "ha" meant, by this stage I found myself noddiing to try and calm the situation, but it only made the guy talk faster, at least it would be over sooner.
The food was nice and we got many laughs, looking back on the HA incident.
What made you choose a holiday there? The closest I have been to there is Hong Kong and I admit I liked what I saw there. But again, it's the safety of English speakers. Hong Kong has many of them. I only had to point and pay a few times there.
I never found out what it meant, I suspect it was about the two of us only getting only one bowl of food, but as I did offer more money you'd think he'd have taken it and made a second bowl up. I think I'll send her an email, just saying "ha" and see what happens.
I ordered safely in Madrid ... thinking fish and chips... how could that be any different. It was though... they served it on what looked like tomato salsa and it came in small battered pieces. I was so intrigued I took a photo of it. ( See, I am turning into the youth of today... photographing things to remember them) As for the meal... it was brilliant.. the chips looked like wedges and they only served a few.
Hope you had a great trip.
In fairness, in a lot of countries you'll get around with English (apart from anywhere where French is spoken)
I grew up in the area where the 3 countries of Germany, Netherlands and Belgium come together. The Dutch are brilliant with languages, apart from English most of them seem to be talking German. I found it strange then to go to the French speaking part of Belgium to find out some really only speak French.
I had Spanish and French in school, none came easy to me or made the other Roman languages easier to learn.
Speaking different languages is a gift, if you start learning it, I hope you'll enjoy it.
AND thank you for bragging ... seriously !
K!!! How nice to see you!!
The trip was incredible. I spent ten days in Scotland at 16C, so the weather matched what I had been experiencing at home... to flying to Spain where at 19:45 it was 39C. The first thing I did on arriving at the hotel and getting my key was to change my clothing. It was quite warm. I went for a walk about 2030 and it was still very warm... it was pleasant though because the sun wasn't shining on me at that time. I met a lot of interesting and new people and reacquainted with a few.
And I know you are conversant in more than one language. I am the one who is behind here... languages at school weren't taken seriously in my days. It was a subject to endure, not enjoy.