I don’t get it. I’ve never been on vacation, and people say that makes me “culturally stunted”, but then I look into visiting places, and see nothing but locals complaining about tourists doing the most horrific shit.
It would check out that imperial cultures think that pissing off locals is a culturally enriching activity, but I’m a better person than that.
I mean you could also just be a good tourist. Learn the language, understand the culture, be respectful. It really isn’t hard. Some of the most ignorant people I know are the ones who refuse to travel outside of their own bubble.
Yeah it’s surprising how well a few basic words go over while traveling. I try to learn greetings, excuse me and sorry, thank you, and maybe even “Do you speak English?” (although that’s probably the least useful one for obvious reasons).
If I’m feeling really motivated (which almost never happens) I’ll throw in numbers and a few basic verbs. Less useful these days with smartphones, but managing to get out something like “I want go [place]?” at least got people who could point you in a direction.
Yeah it really shows you put in the effort. Throwing your phone in someone’s face with a translation app open isn’t the most enjoyable experience but obviously needs to happen when the language barrier becomes too much.
I don’t get it. I’ve never been on vacation, and people say that makes me “culturally stunted”, but then I look into visiting places, and see nothing but locals complaining about tourists doing the most horrific shit.
It would check out that imperial cultures think that pissing off locals is a culturally enriching activity, but I’m a better person than that.
You’re good at congratulating yourself too.
I mean you could also just be a good tourist. Learn the language, understand the culture, be respectful. It really isn’t hard. Some of the most ignorant people I know are the ones who refuse to travel outside of their own bubble.
I’m gonna be real here, most of that’s great, but I ain’t learning Japanese to visit Japan, I’m just going to use a translator app and apologize
Sure, I definitely think key words and phrases is great. More than that is going above and beyond. People will appreciate the effort.
Yeah it’s surprising how well a few basic words go over while traveling. I try to learn greetings, excuse me and sorry, thank you, and maybe even “Do you speak English?” (although that’s probably the least useful one for obvious reasons).
If I’m feeling really motivated (which almost never happens) I’ll throw in numbers and a few basic verbs. Less useful these days with smartphones, but managing to get out something like “I want go [place]?” at least got people who could point you in a direction.
Yeah it really shows you put in the effort. Throwing your phone in someone’s face with a translation app open isn’t the most enjoyable experience but obviously needs to happen when the language barrier becomes too much.