American tourist and TV presenter Samantha Brown, who has been traveling the world for more than 20 years, told why you should not say the familiar phrase: “Do you speak English?” during a tour of countries, as well as those that should be learned for your safety.
Let’s clarify that we are talking about countries where English is not the native language of the inhabitants, although it is recognized as an international language. In one of the traveler’s recent videos posted on her Instagram account, she told her subscribers the following: “One phrase that you should avoid when traveling abroad is, surprisingly, ‘Do you speak English?'” I always asked this question and just watched the face of the person I addressed it to contort. When you greet someone (with this phrase), it can be perceived as either a challenge or an insult. Either way, you are essentially, just cut off from any pleasant conversation you were hoping for. Instead, say, “I don’t speak your language, but maybe you speak mine (English)?”. “No Hablo Español? Inglés?”, “No Français, Anglais ?”, — an American tourist offered such phrases for those traveling in Spain and France.
She also talked about four phrases that travelers should learn when traveling abroad. “When traveling the world, here are the three most important phrases you need to know: ‘hello’, ‘please’ and ‘thank you.’ Those words will tell someone that I’m a foreigner, and then they’ll probably even be able to identify my accent. Secondly, it will be a signal that I am a good person. And thirdly, I make an effort for pleasant communication. In this case, I guarantee that people will try their best to help you,” added the tourist, who often shares her tips and recommendations for vacationers
The traveler also clarified that it took her years to understand one simple fact – the people of the countries she visited before never expected a woman to say a complete and grammatically correct sentence in their language. According to her, the main thing is to be polite: “But what you have to know is that you just have to be polite.”
Commentators praised the TV presenter for her advice. One of them reported that “this is the best recommendation” he had heard about travel. Another shared his own experience: “I’ve learned the hard way how rude I’ve been while traveling and I wish someone had brought it to my attention sooner!”