Travel Advice for Language-Impaired Visitors:
While exploring the world may be an incredible experience, encountering linguistic difficulties is an inevitable part of travel. Although it may not always be possible for you to become fluent in every language, there are methods you may employ to ensure that you are understood.
Learn the best ways to communicate with natives when going abroad to enhance the enjoyment of your travels, even if you don’t speak their language.
Make Use of Your Body Language
When attempting to communicate with someone who does not speak your language, body language is a crucial tool. If you can’t understand the menu when you first go into a restaurant, try looking for photographs or a display case so you can indicate the item you want to eat. You can also see what the person at the table next from you is eating, and if it seems delicious, you can order the same thing.
If you would like, you may ask questions by pointing to some simple symbols you have with you and pointing at people when you see them.
One excellent technique to encourage someone to indicate you in the direction of the closest restroom is, for instance, to show them a picture or symbol of a toilet and gesture toward it.
You may convey your message more effectively by using gestures, nods, smiles, and shrugs.
Use of Gestures May Vary Depending on the Region
However, you should be mindful that various people may interpret certain gestures differently. For instance, according to The Huffington Post, nations in Latin America, West Africa, Iraq, Iran, and Afghanistan view the thumbs-up sign—which is widely used to express approval—as impolite and disrespectful.
Maintain Eye Contact
Depending on the context, even broad patterns of body language can convey several messages. For instance, eye contact is seen differently in China than it is in the US.
Direct eye contact is commonly perceived in the United States as an indication of respect and attentiveness towards the one being gazed at. However, the same degree of eye contact is seen as hostile and demanding in China.
Physical Contact
Depending on the country, there are differences in how different people handle physical contact. Certain cultures, such as those in Latin America and the Arab world, place a high importance on interpersonal contact, with physical touch playing a major role in communication.
Certain cultures, such as those of Scandinavia and Japan, are far more “hands-off.” For example, in certain “non-contact” cultures, where individuals would rather bow than shake hands, a simple handshake could be considered inappropriate.
Nearby
Proximity, or the degree to which individuals approach one another in various social contexts, is a term that is connected to physical contact. When it comes to how near you should get to someone when you speak to them or stand next to them on public transit, many nations have distinct unwritten norms.
For instance, it’s common for people to cram together on trains in Japan. It would be uncommon to talk to someone who is really close to them, though. The latter might be seen as an aggressive gesture by the Japanese.
Therefore, attempt to study about nonverbal communication before visiting a nation where you do not speak the language. The way you stand, where you gaze, and the motions and indications you make with your hands may all affect how people see you.
Try to refrain from making erratic motions or gestures wherever you are. They’ll probably not sit well with you and might even paint you as a danger.
Understand Your Ways About
Purchase a GPS or some maps
If you have access to a current, accurate street map or a global positioning system (GPS), you’ll spend less time asking for directions. Generally speaking, the simplified maps you may obtain at a hotel are insufficient. Make sure your GPS gadget can access the mapping data for the countries you intend to visit as you plan your journey.
According to the Europe travel website of Rick Steves, you may usually choose between renting a GPS unit or utilizing a smartphone app when you pay for your rental car. Uncertain about your route after arriving?
Pay Attention to Landmarks
Keep an eye out for landmarks you pass so you’ll know how to go back to your lodgings in case you get lost, even if you have a map and a GPS service with you. There’s always a danger your GPS battery may run out or you’ll misplace the map.
When walking, the landmark strategy is very effective. In an emergency, however, knowing that “I turned left at the purple building” and “I walked towards the tall church” might still be helpful when driving.
Utilize an App for Translation on Street Signs
Modern translation programs may benefit much from street signs because they are displayed so clearly in uniform fonts. A GPS malfunction or misplaced map doesn’t always mean you’ll lose your way if you keep track of the streets you’re going on.
Show Courtesy
Be My Travel Muse says that learning a few simple phrases and words like “please,” “thank you,” and “hello” can help you make friends when traveling. The cooperation you obtain will be worth the time you invest in doing this. By indicating that you’re prepared to put forth some effort to be understood in the native tongue, it shows respect for the nation you’re visiting.
It might be beneficial for you to acquire the words for “I apologize” as well as the regional equivalent of “pardon me” or “excuse me.”
Make an effort to become at least somewhat proficient at pronouncing basic words and phrases correctly. Using an app that reads the words aloud to you will make this task easier. If you are learning your phrases from a phrasebook, this might be challenging. The individuals you’re speaking to will find your knowledge of fundamental pronunciation very helpful, and the locals will value it as well.
Additionally, make sure your speech is clean and slow. When you try to inquire where the closest restroom is, it might be difficult for the locals to hear you because of your accent, and it won’t help if your mouth moves too quickly.
Examine Others
Even if you don’t speak the language, you may still learn a lot just watching other people. If you’re unsure of how to act in different circumstances, take the lead from those who are close to you.
Possess a Thick Skin
Remind yourself not to react angrily to actions that you may not be accustomed with. For instance, Lonely Planet claims that although pushing in a crowded area can be inappropriate in your native nation, it is not regarded impolite in Italy.
Look up “[destination] cultural quirks” or “common [destination] cultural practices” on Google before your trip. For example, you should learn rather quickly that Bermudians say “Good morning” and “Good afternoon” rather than “Hello,” or that the Dutch are usually precisely on time for their appointments.
Above all, project a respectful demeanor. Keep in mind that you are entering someone else’s house, therefore you should be prepared to adapt to the surroundings.
Study the foreign language to the best of your ability
There’s never been a greater reason to pick up a language than for foreign travel. Whether you’re a total novice or close to fluency, you’ll be astonished at how much the locals will enjoy and react to your attempts to communicate with them in their language!
Make the Correct Resource Investments
While you’re still at home, look for materials for language study in your neighborhood bookshop. Investing in a real dictionary and phrasebook may be quite beneficial, at the very least. If these books aren’t available where you live, you might be able to obtain them online from somewhere like Amazon.
Though you might be asking yourself why you would need a physical copy in this digital era, the truth is that computers and cell phones often run out of power when we least expect them to.
You may also take your own notes using a printed copy, which is quite helpful if you’re attempting to learn anything new. The added weight is justified by them.
Acquire Some Simple Phrases
If you’re a total novice, attempt to pick up a few words before you travel. You may even study for your arrival by bringing that phrase book on the airline. It’s important that you learn how to say hello, identify yourself, and ask simple questions like “Can you speak slower?” and “Where is the bathroom?”
To ensure that you don’t run into any problems once you get there, you should understand how to explain any dietary limitations you may have. Master the expressions “please” and “thank you.” You’ll position yourself for success once you get there if you can learn a few easy words.
Make Friends with Locals
The people you meet in the area will be your most important resource. You’ll undoubtedly encounter language exchange in daily interactions, whether you’re placing an order at a restaurant or striking up a conversation with a stranger. You can choose to hold these conversations in a professional or casual setting; ideally, a mix of the two will occur. While more formal discussions can aid in the acquisition of grammar, informal exchanges are useful for picking up slang and street jargon.
For some, arranging language conversations online is more comfortable. You may use destination-specific Facebook groups and websites like Couchsurfing.com. Look through these websites to see if there are any language exchange groups that you may join that have already been formed. If not, send out a message of your own and see who responds!
Since English is such a crucial business language (not to mention a language that’s needed for travel), it’s likely that you won’t have any problem finding people who are interested in improving it.
Naturally, you may always pay to enroll in a formal language school like Rosetta Stone or Fluenz, but you should also recognize the benefits of studying with a native speaker.
Recognize your learning style and try out different methods. It will be simple for you to determine which combination would be most beneficial.
Purchase a Book
It’s time for you to start reading more in the local tongue now that your language abilities are undoubtedly becoming better. You can purchase a complete novel if you’re feeling very secure. It will be simpler for you to get started if you start with anything from the children’s department. At first, you could feel foolish, but be honest with yourself about your level of fluency. Somewhere has to be your starting point!
Visit the theater
The wonderful thing about picking up a new language is that it’s usually a lot of fun. Watching movies might be a great method to sharpen your talents.
Go to the movies without thinking twice. Even if you don’t understand everything, you’ll be inadvertently learning a lot about the pronunciation of foreign words and expanding your vocabulary just by following the tale with the graphics.
A movie with subtitles is something you can watch at home or at a hotel. You are exposed to new terms in their context when watching a movie with subtitles, and this may greatly aid in the assimilation of such words into your own vocabulary.
Avoid watching with English subtitles if at all possible, since you will probably merely read the conversation instead of paying close attention to the original version.
Overcoming Linguistic Barriers at Airports
Even for those who are fluent in the native tongue, airports may be particularly perplexing locations. If not, they may be genuinely intimidating. Fortunately, the majority of large airports worldwide have provisions for handling an international clientele. Posted signs are often bilingual, and announcements are typically given in several languages, nearly always including English.
Individuals who want further support are always welcome to select from any of the following options:
Locate a Help Desk
There are information desks at every airport that are meant to help passengers as they move about the premises. The individuals that work at these workstations are often fluent in English.
Make Use of a Translation App
Airports are great locations to employ translation applications with picture translation features because of their obvious signs. Any of the apps that are listed in the section above ought to function.
Pay attention to your name
It is standard procedure for airport staff to broadcast the names of any delayed or unarrived passengers in English (and other languages, depending on the nation you’re in) if you do happen to be late for your flight. Pay attention to your name if you arrive late. If you hear it, you’ll know you have to move quickly.
Ask Someone Else to Help You
Ask one of your fellow people for assistance if everything else fails. Make a clear and loud “Does anyone speak English?” inquiry. Clearly, whomever answers does and ought to be able to assist you.
Last Words
It’s not always a hassle to travel without understanding the language of the nation you’re visiting. Actually, it may be a startlingly thrilling experience. You’ll be astonished at how much fun you can have overseas if you utilize body language, pay attention to your surroundings, be kind to people, and study as much of the local language as you can.