Hey all..

I am going to Paris tonight. I will stay only for 2 days... 22&23 but I dont speak a word of French. If anyone is there, can you please give a folc a hand?

See ya!

MDL.

Hey Erica

I'm quite a way away from Paris, so I can't help you there. Plus you're already there, I suppose, so you won't see this message until you're back.

But in any case, don't worry. Most people you'll need to speak to can mangle a few words in English. As long as you decipher their words through the thick accent, you should be fine.

Kaethel

Hey Merci bocou!!!

I've enjoyed my 2 days in paris and i shall have pictures from there and from brazil in a couple of days.

Thank you for the tip H !!!

I loved it!

MDL.

Just poking my nose in for a second. When I went to Paris about 8 years ago, people actually warned me that some Parisians might not be that friendly. Au contraire (hehe), I had the best time there, and everyone I ran into was so helpful since I only speak a little French.

JD

Having been with my parents and by myself, my experience with just about anywhere I've been is simple.

In the US, if someone walks up to you and starts speaking a foreign language, the average American would be somewhat off-put. If they say in mostly-understandable English, "I'm sorry, my English isn't very good. Do you speak ______?" most people will do their best to accomodate, whether or not they speak the language in question.

I've made sure, when going to a foreign country, that I know how to say some form of "Excuse me, I don't speak ______ -- do you speak French or English?" in the local tongue. I've also found that by putting French first, I less often get the "stupid American" treatment.

Come to think of it, I'll be in Barcelona this time next week. Anyone care to teach me that sentence in Spanish?

Ok, I'm not sure this would be totally helpful (as I don't exactly speak Spanish - I speak Portuguese), but there is a list of "helpful" phrases in Spanish in the following link
http://www.isla-mujeres.net/basicsptext.htm
that you might want to consider taking with you. The only thing is that I'm not sure if it's understandable how to say the words. Maybe a true Spanish speaking person is able to help you better.

Found a website that gives some audio links to sentences. Maybe you can listen and see how some words are pronounced.
http://www.quiz-buddy.com/Spanish_Phrases_with_Audio.html

Another one:
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Thebes/6177/ws-pronun.html

A cool one:
http://www.fodors.com/language/
Go to the bottom of the page, select "Spanish" and the type of sentences you want to hear (useful expressions, dining out, etc.)

malu

P.S.: I *think* that what you would want to say is
"Perdón, no hablo espanol -- Habla usted francés o inglés?" (Can anybody check this and help with pronunciation?)

i am not a master in spanish...

but i think it would be -

''Perdon, jo no hablo espanol. Usted Habla frances o ingles?

Thank you be 'gracias'

Where is 'donde es el/la'' depending on the gender of the places name.

anything else.. just let us know

MDL

Thanks! If I'm close enough to be understood, that's all that matters. I'm sure someone will update me if I get the words out of order or something.