Hi, am going to paris for a 3 day stopover. I was wondering will I need to speak french? I%26#39;m absolutely illiterate in french, though I am willing to learn. I%26#39;m just wondering how much I will need to learn for 3 days??
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If you can say the basics, you%26#39;ll be fine.
Bonjour madame/monsieur = Hello madam/sir
Merci (beaucoup) = Thank you (very much)
Est-ce-que vous parlez anglais? = Do you speak English?
Pouvez vous m%26#39;aider? = Can you help me? (to which they will likely respond in English if they speak it).
Most people have heard the first two often enough to know the pronounciation not too bad, but here%26#39;s for the last 2:
Ess keu voo par-lae ang-lay
Poo-vae voo mm-a-day
If anyone has better phonics - please chime in! It%26#39;s quite hard doing this when you know what it%26#39;s supposed to sound like, but can%26#39;t quite figure out how to translate it phonetically in writing.
Have a great trip!
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If you%26#39;re planning to negotiate any international defense or trade treaties with the government during your stay, then yes. Otherwise, you can get by quite nicely as a tourist on a few basic courtesy and other phrases and a little basic vocabulary (basic food vocabulary helps too).
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I have bought at least a dozen copies of %26quot;Traveler%26#39;s French%26quot; (formerly called %26quot;Just Enough French%26quot; as gifts to friends travelng here. I have yet to find a phrase book that has better pronunciation tips. Good food and menu help too.
ISBN 0-330-26292-0
amazon.com/exec/…002-4636054-8574425
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It seems that the french people seem to appreciate it if you at least make an effort to speak french, at least hello, goodbye, thank you etc, I speak a little bit %26#39;schoolgirl french%26#39; and managed to get most people to understand what i wanted, a lot of people actually speak un peu of english, so the best phrase is parlez vous angalis, s%26#39;il vous plais, if they say non, move on to someone who maybe does, the only problem we found was that if you actually speak a little french, the y then reply to you in french, which is natural i suppose, but if you give them a blank stare and say anglais, they then tell you in english, a lot of people in the cafes etc speak some english, but quite a few people in the big stores didn%26#39;t, so aphrase book would be useful, I also took a card on which i had written the equivilant in euros, up to a 100 british pounds, kept it in my pocket, as it was a lot easier to just look at a card, than try to work out how much things were.Janick
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Generally speaking the French people know how to speak English. But they are not quite willing to say it. It is your choice for you going to a place where French is te mother tongue. But I think just learn the basic is ok to get by: like bonjour/ bonsoir/ merci beaucoup/ au revoir. At least you are trying and they will be please and Maybe they will give you a helping hand.
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I think you can get by without knowing a single word of French. However, the more you know French, the better you appreciate and enjoy your visit to Paris. So it%26#39;s really up to you how much you want to learn.
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Along with what has already been suggested:
(Je suis desole, mais) je ne parle pas francais. (I am sorry, but) I do not speak French.
Je suis desole de vous deranger. Pourriez-vous m%26#39;aider, s%26#39;il vous plait? - I am sorry to bother you. Could you help me, please?
Parlez-vous anglais? - Do you speak English?
L%26#39;addition, s%26#39;il vous plait. - Check, please.
I suppose you could add %26quot;C%26#39;est combien?%26quot; (How much does it cost/How much do I owe you) but if you get an answer in rapid French how much farther ahead are you?
Also, perhaps depending opn your gender, you might need %26quot;Fichez le camp!%26quot; Meaning %26quot;Get lost!%26quot; and %26quot;Laissez-moi tranquille!%26quot; meaning %26quot;Leave me alone!%26quot; But whoever is bothering you probably knows full well that you are not French, so a simple %26quot;Get lost!%26quot; (or whatever...) might be just as effective.
This site will help you with the pronunciation of basic phrases. Just type in the phrase and %26quot;Alain%26quot; will speak it for you. Not perfect, but it%26#39;s not bad either...
www.naturalvoices.att.com/demos/index.html
And this site will help you with menu translation. Print it off and start memorizing!
http://mcraeclan.com/EionF/glossary.htm
Bon voyage!
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I can confidently say that the French people we know are very interested in, and even dedicated to learning English but would never claim to speak it until... they actually speak it fluently. It%26#39;s a French thing. Language fluency is really important and not something to be taken lightly here.
Americans often conclude that French people actually speak English and somehow are using the language barrier to gain some arbitrary advantage over the American tourist. That may be something that happens at the flea market at Montreuil on Sunday morning, haggling over a 5 year old VCR, but not something that could ever be considered %26quot;French%26quot;.
Our French friends are very self-conscious about their english language skills. Even with us, who they%26#39;ve known for years, they apologize for their english constantly and have to be coaxed into letting loose and just GOING FOR IT. American culture allows for a level of informality that doesn%26#39;t exist almost anywhere else in the world. it%26#39;s really rediculous considering our pathetic French language skills.
We (my wife and I) however, just blast ahead with our caveman French and wonder occasionally what destruction has been left in our wake. We don%26#39;t mean to, it%26#39;s just the culture we came from where you just say what you think, even when you don%26#39;t know how. I will testify that this is innocent and not intentionally careless.
Bottom line... Come to Paris and you%26#39;ll have a great time. French people are great. They have a genuine curiosity and interest in America AT LEAST equivalent to American%26#39;s interest in France and will go out of their way to make you feel welcome if you extend the same courtesies that you do in the US when you interact with other people. Learn the basic stuff that people need to interact; please, thank you, I%26#39;m sorry for crushing you foot on the escalator.. well maybe just %26quot;je suis desole%26quot;...
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Thelondoner, we are not arrogant and ignorant, please, but people appreciate an effort. Just ask %26quot;Parlez vous anglais s%26#39;il vous plait?%26quot; and then i am sure you will find several people who speak it. The only thing to avoid is to start adressing directly to anyone in English without having asked if they spoke english, this is rude in France. This is why people who do that won%26#39;t get good response and will mistake this for arrogance. Just learn the basics and you will be fine, noone expects you to be fluent for just three days here ;)
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