Ways to talk to locals when travelling
University course discussion for Foreign Languages.
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Ways to talk to locals when travellingI'm going on holiday to a French speaking country and pretty much just want to have the opportunity to practice my French as much as I possibly can in the short time I'm there (just a week). Besides things like making small talk with shop assistants and asking pointless questions about products, I can't think of any way of being able to actively practice my French whilst there :/
Would going to somewhere like a youth hostel be a good idea? Could I just stroll in and get chatting to random backpackers? That would be weird though.. Anybody have any ideas? -
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Re: Ways to talk to locals when travellinghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_courage
Go get 'em tiger.Dutch courage or liquid courage refers to courage gained from intoxication by alcohol. -
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Re: Ways to talk to locals when travellinglol.(Original post by Vintage <3)
Speak in French would be a start.
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Re: Ways to talk to locals when travellingWhen I went to Spain, I found that asking for help/directions was really useful. You will find that sometimes they will respond in quite a colloquial way, so there will be words that you won't understand first time, but after that you get used to hearing them
Make sure you know a few informal phrases as well as formal; try some colloquial expressions too
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Re: Ways to talk to locals when travellingYou've probably already got accommodation sorted, but staying with a host family is a very good way of getting exposed to the language. I've only ever done it where the whole thing was arranged through a language school, but there are bound to be ways you can sort it out for yourself too.
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Re: Ways to talk to locals when travellingHands down the best post I've ever seen on TSR.(Original post by jerseymackem)
You could always try taking some of them hostage and hope for Stockholm Syndrome to kick in...
Make sure you know a few informal phrases as well as formal; try some colloquial expressions too 
