• Home
  • ZorkFest
    • ZorkFest 2018 Thank You
    • ZorkFest Social Wall
    • ZorkFest Info
    • ZorkFest Schedule 2018 Las Vegas
    • Podcasters After Dark
  • ZorkCast
  • SHOP
    • ZorkFest – Register Today!
    • TravelZork Store
    • My Cart
    • My Account
    • TravelZork Store Terms & Conditions
  • DEALS
    • Travel Deals
    • FoundersCard | Limited Promotion | Founders Card
    • USA | Miles+Points Credit Card Offers
  • Vegas & Casino
    • Hotel Reviews (Casino)
    • Casino Trip Reports & Narratives
    • Casino Loyalty, Casino Gaming and Gambling
    • Casino News
    • Strip Resort/Parking Fees
    • Non-Strip Resort/Parking Fees
  • Airlines
    • KLM
    • Delta
    • Air France
    • American Airlines
    • Southwest Airlines
  • Hotels
    • Hotel Reviews (non-casino)
    • Hotel Reviews (casino)
  • Tourism
  • Dining
  • About
    • Team
      • Meet The TravelZork Team
      • Join Our Team – Be a TravelZork
    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy
  • CART
  • Home
  • ZorkFest
    • ZorkFest 2018 Thank You
    • ZorkFest Social Wall
    • ZorkFest Info
    • ZorkFest Schedule 2018 Las Vegas
    • Podcasters After Dark
  • ZorkCast
  • SHOP
    • ZorkFest – Register Today!
    • TravelZork Store
    • My Cart
    • My Account
    • TravelZork Store Terms & Conditions
  • DEALS
    • Travel Deals
    • FoundersCard | Limited Promotion | Founders Card
    • USA | Miles+Points Credit Card Offers
  • Vegas & Casino
    • Hotel Reviews (Casino)
    • Casino Trip Reports & Narratives
    • Casino Loyalty, Casino Gaming and Gambling
    • Casino News
    • Strip Resort/Parking Fees
    • Non-Strip Resort/Parking Fees
  • Airlines
    • KLM
    • Delta
    • Air France
    • American Airlines
    • Southwest Airlines
  • Hotels
    • Hotel Reviews (non-casino)
    • Hotel Reviews (casino)
  • Tourism
  • Dining
  • About
    • Team
      • Meet The TravelZork Team
      • Join Our Team – Be a TravelZork
    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy
  • CART
Previous Next

Be Prepared | Communications – Part 5

Posted by: The Efficient Traveler , October 6, 2016

Be Prepared Communication Foreign Language

Previous articles in this series covered the following topics in the “General Information about X” (where “X” is the country/ies I will be visiting) document I prepare for every trip outside the U.S.

  • Part 1: obtaining foreign currency, currency-related scams, etc.,
  • Part 2: choosing, using and protecting the “plastic” you carry with you,
  • Part 3: tipping etiquette in your destinations and
  • Part 4: cultural sensitivity and staying on the right side of the law.

In the 5th and final article in this series, I will address communication in the country/ies you will be visiting.

Verbal

In our increasingly digital age, communication is becoming both easier and trickier than ever. If you are “connected,” apps on your smartphone provide two-way translation so you can understand directional signs, read menus, etc.. Call me “old school” (and you’d probably be right!), but I prefer to master a limited number of key phrases in the language of the country/ies I will be visiting. I prepare a vocabulary sheet before my trip and commit the keywords and phrases on it to memory so I don’t have to enter pieces of speech I am likely to use repeatedly into my cell phone in a shop or restaurant where (if I need it) I may or may not have access to the Internet. Experience has taught me that locals (who are usually more conversant in English than I will ever be in their native tongue) truly appreciate the simplest effort to use their language. We communicate far more than “Hello” when we greet a local in their own language; doing so conveys respect and being respected is universally appreciated and usually reciprocated.

After I have developed my trip itinerary, these are the steps I follow to develop a “key vocabulary/pronunciation” section for my “General Information about X” document:

  1. I identify the situations I expect to encounter in which I will be most likely to want or need to initiate a conversation or respond to a local. Will I be using public transport? Will I be shopping? Will I be dining out?
  2. Next, I make my way to the Treksplorer blog and identify the English words and phrases I expect I will need to use, given my plans, from the list found there.
  3. Then I group these words and phrases by function (e.g., obtaining directions) or settings (e.g., dining out),
  4. Finally, I go to Google Translate, enter the English word/phrase I want to translate, copy the resulting translation and paste it into my document.

Here’s an example of a very simple list of words and phrases I’ve used for a short visit to France:

Key Vocabulary/Pronunciation for France

French vowels often have accents which usually affect pronunciation; e.g., the letter e without an accent is often pronounced like the a in alone, as in le (the). However, with the addition of an accent aigu, é, it is pronounced like the ay in day, as in thé (tea). The letter e can also have an accent grave, è, and is then pronounced like the e in met, as in père (father). Nasal vowels are also important in French. In French, when the letter n or m follows a nasal vowel, it is not fully pronounced. For example, the French word bon (good) sounds like the English b plus the nasal o in song. The letter n is not pronounced. Although final consonants often aren’t pronounced in French, they sometimes are when the following word begins with a vowel or silent h; e.g,, the word nous (we) is pronounced noo.

 

English French English French
Greetings
Hello/good morning Bonjour! Good evening (after 6) Bonsoir!
yes oui no non
How are you? Comment allez-vous? Very good/Fine (Tres) bien
I’m sorry/Excuse me Excusez-moi Good-bye Au revoir
Directions
Where is/are… Où est/sont…? the Metro (subway) le métro
the exit la sortie the restroom les toilettes
Right droit left gauche
Numbers
1 un 6 six (sees) 11 onze 100 cent (sohn)
2 deux 7 sept 12 douze (dooz) 200 deux cent
3 trois 8 huit (wheat) 13 treiz (trays) 300 trois cent
4 quatre (cart) 9 neuf 20 vingt (vehn) 400 quatre cents
5 cinq 10 dix 50 cinquante 500 cinq-cents
Dining out
Please s’il vous plaît breakfast Petit-déjeuner (dayzhornay)
(to call waiter) Monsieur/Madame the menu le menu
appetizers les hors-d’œuvre/entrées main course le plat principal
dessert le dessert the check l’addition
bread le pain (pah) butter le beurre (brr)
white wine vin blanc red wine vin rouge
cup of coffee (with milk) un café (au lait) a table for four Une table pour quatre personnes
We have a reservation for four Nous avons un reservation… (“un” is almost silent)
I like my steak rare/raw J’aime mon steak saignant …medium/…well done a point (pwa)/bien cuit (kwi)
Basic Phrases
Thank you/thank you very much Merci (beaucoup)
I don’t understand Je ne comprends pas (zhun compruhn pah)
I don’t speak French Je ne parle pas Francais
Do you speak English? Parlez vou Anglais (ahnglay)?
Is the tip included? Est-ce que le service est compris? (Es kuh…eh compree_
How much is it? Combien ça coûte ? (kom-bjanne sar coot?)
I’m looking for… Je cherche (zheu share-sh)
Days of the Week
Friday Vendredi (vahn-druh-dee) Saturday Samedi (sahm-dee)
Sunday Dimanche (dee-mahnsh) Monday Lunedi (loon-dee)
Tuesday Mardi (mahr-dee)

“Lost in translation”

True story…. We were in a café on the Champs-Elysses when my wife needed to use the restroom. Summoning up her best pronunciation, she caught the attention of a server and asked, “Ou sont les toilettes (oo sahnt leh twa-lets)?” The server, probably with a twinkle in his eye, gave her directions in perfect French. Of course, she didn’t understand a word he said! As it turns out, the server appreciated her effort and was just having a bit of fun with her. He then pointed her in the right direction and we all had a good laugh! The point is that one doesn’t need to be fluent or even conversant in order to build good will with those whose country and culture you have chosen to visit – and shouldn’t that be a desirable outcome of travel?

Apps

It’s hard to beat Google Translate in my book (free on both Android and iOS platforms) since it now allows you to point your camera at text printed in dozens of languages and obtain an instant translation – extremely useful for “reading” menus, instructions, signs, etc. It also can be used offline to translate more than 50 languages. If you’re visiting China, Japan or Korea, the waygo app provides the same functionality and is also available for free from both the App Store and Google Play.

Telephone

Let’s start off by acknowledging that there is no single best answer to the often-asked question, “What is the best cell phone service to use when traveling?” The carrier that provides the best service where one lives may not be the carrier that provides the “best” (whatever “best” means to you – cheapest, fastest, etc.) service in the country/ies to which your travels take you. Nor am I any kind of authority on the advantages and disadvantages of the four (4) major U.S. carriers, emerging technologies (like Project Fi), or swapping out sim cards. But I do know how to find good, current information and am eager to share it with my readers. Nomadic Matt swears by T-Mobile (see Why T-Mobile is the Best Phone Carrier for U.S. Travelers) while Tiffany from the “One Mile at a Time” blog swears by Google’s Project Fi (see The Best Cell Phone Plan for International Travel). Android Central posted a great article, International data overseas: How AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, Verizon and Project Fi compare in July, 2016; see also Global roaming: which carrier is best? Rebtel allows users to make free or inexpensive calls from most anywhere to both mobile devices and landlines without needing a WiFi connection. My personal favorite solution, however, is to stick to the Internet as much as possible and use Skype. Like I said, call me “old school” and you wouldn’t be far from the truth.

Written

E-mail

As ubiquitous as Wi-Fi hotspots are (and we can only expect them to become ever more common), a little advance preparation can spare painful headaches. Case in point…. I’m writing this article (or, more truthfully, trying to) on a cruise ship in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. I signed up for the full voyage Internet package (touted to be “the fastest Internet at sea”) ahead of time at a daily rate that, while not exorbitant, is roughly the equivalent of the cost of four (4) days at home. I called Guest Services for my password soon after we boarded and — voila! — I was connected and had no problem accessing my e-mail. I was a happy camper…for a while! Fast forward two (2) days. I could still log in to my e-mail account (our lifeline to our families back home), I could “see” new e-mails in my Inbox but, frustratingly, I could no longer “click” on them to read the message. What was going on here?

Apparently, my e-mail client, to protect my security, disables certain functionality when I attempt to log in more than so many miles from my “normal” location. Yikes; I didn’t anticipate this! Fortunately, the workaround in this situation was cumbersome but it allowed me to do everything I planned. All I had to do is perform any of the denied functions from the ship’s Internet cafe. I uploaded documents to Google Drive so I could write and edit to my heart’s content — I just couldn’t do so from the privacy and convenience of my stateroom.

Moral of the story? Check with your ISP long before departure so you can make alternate plans if necessary which might include:

  • designating your travel laptop as a “trusted device” (Outlook, Hotmail),
  • obtaining (a) verification code(s) from your ISP,
  • forwarding e-mail from your primary client to another while you’re away from home,
  • using a VPN,
  • develop back-up plans (e.g., printing out key documents ahead of time, using cloud storage, etc., etc.)

Text Messages

WhatsApp, Viber and Hangouts are probably the three most popular messaging apps. Which one you use is probably more a matter of personal preference than functionality. Just make sure you have downloaded and updated the app(s) well before departure and ensured that those with whom you plan to communicate using your app(s) of choice have also installed and know how to use the app(s).

Summary

Well, there you have it. Travel, especially international travel, involves uncertainty. And uncertainty, while exhilarating, can also be stressful. I prefer to minimize stress in order to maximize enjoyment. My “General Information for X” (where “X” is the country/ies I will be visiting) is far from perfect and is a work in progress (as the unexpected e-mail challenges encountered on my current trip described above demonstrate). I (and your fellow readers) would appreciate you sharing preparation tips for your adventures. Happy travels!

TRAVEL DEALS

Click==> Top Flight Deals Updated Daily

IHG Members save up to 25% during Cyber Sale

Nike NFL Fan Shop, Shop Nike.com

GoPro – Hero7 Black : US + INTL – H7 Black + $30 OFF. Offer Valid 11/24 – 12/26.

Best Credit Card Travel Deals Vegas Deals
Some Great Credit Card Deals for December 2019

Advertisement - Privacy and Cookie Policy Disclosure

Tags: be prepared, budget, budget traveling, communication, communications, foreign language, going abroad, language, phone carrier, prepared, prepared traveler, Tourism, translation, translations, travel, travel guide, Travel Hack, Travel Hacking, travel hacks, Travel Tips, traveltheworld, TravelZork

The Efficient Traveler

About the author

I organize things; it's what I do! I enjoy the natural adrenaline high of travel as much as the next person but I also try to limit the likelihood that the surprises I experience along the way will be unpleasant ones. To this end, I spend more hours than most preparing for each trip. Fortunately for me, I enjoy the anticipation of travel as much as the experience of it. A primary objective of my blog contributions will be to share with my readers the "systems" and approaches I have developed over the years that have allowed my bride of 34 years and me to cross off a majority of our bucket list items. I've been a minister, nonprofit agency executive, professor and consultant. My "job" in retirement is planning our next trip.

Popular
Recent
Comments
  • KLM Upgrade

    KLM Upgrade Bidding “Upgrade Yourself”

    April 11, 2015
    Living the Mlife: An Introduction

    Living the Mlife: An Introduction – MGM M life Rewards Loyalty Program

    February 11, 2019
    FoundersCard Benefits

    FoundersCard Caesars Benefit | Caesars Total Rewards Diamond Status

    April 29, 2016
  • Circa Las Vegas

    Halfway To Circa Las Vegas | On Time and On Budget

    December 10, 2019
    Vegas News 8 December 2019 | Rio and Circus Circus Redux, Rodeo, and Residency Rumors

    Vegas News | Rio and Circus Circus Redux, Rodeo, a ...

    December 8, 2019
    Atlantic City December Christmas

    Atlantic City December 2019 | Celebrating the seas ...

    December 6, 2019
  • […] January we previewed plans for Circa Las ...

    December 10, 2019

    […] January we previewed plans for Circa Las ...

    December 10, 2019

    […] guest won the $2.3 million progressive j ...

    December 8, 2019

Tag Cloud

atlantic city atlantic city casinos atlantic city events atlantic city promotions Atlantic City shows borgata borgata atlantic city borgata hotel Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa Caesars Caesars Entertainment Caesars Palace casino CASINO GAMING Casino Hotel casino loyalty Casino news Casinos Cosmopolitan DOAC downtown las vegas downtown vegas DTLV Entertainment Fremont Street Fremont Street Vegas Gambling gaming Golden Nugget Las Vegas lasvegas Las Vegas News Las Vegas Strip mgm MGM Resorts MGM Resorts International The Vegas total rewards travel TravelZork vegas Vegas News Vegas Strip Vegas Strip Casino Wynn

Archives

  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • LinkedIn
Copyright © 2014 - 2019 TravelZork
Designed and Developed by fdMobile
Hosted by Powder Cloud Corporation
  • Home
  • Team
  • Contact
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. Accept Privacy Policy


Privacy & Cookies Policy

Necessary Always Enabled