Witnessing a culture come to life before your eyes and seeing first-hand the practices and traditions you have never encountered before can be life-changing. However, as exciting as the prospect of cultural immersion is, not being able to speak the local Language and knowing gestures and hand signs may lead to misunderstandings and can put you at a disadvantage in certain situations.
Travelling involves a bit of hard work too. Here are some things you need to do to overcome language and cultural barriers:
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Take note of the Basic Phrases and expression. Learn how to say the following in the local tongue: “hello,” “thank you,” “my name is,” “excuse me,” “help me,” “I am lost,” “sorry,” and “how much?” just to name a few. These basic phrases will get you out of sticky situations. If you know or are able to befriend someone who speaks the native language, then you can ask that person to guide or assist you whenever you engage in an activity that requires interacting with locals.
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Research about gestures and signs that may appear offensive or inappropriate to locals. Make sure to check your actions and mannerisms when talking with natives to avoid triggering the wrong sentiments. For example, people from a certain country find the “okay” hand sign as offensive. You might inadvertently and unconsciously do it since it’s a common gesture that does not offend anyone from your side of the world.
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Identify and extract the contact details of the nearest hospitals, police stations and embassies in case of emergency. Bring the list with you wherever you go. You can set your mobile phone to roaming so that if you can’t find a nearby telephone booth or a store with a service telephone then you can use your cellphone to contact
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Always be courteous and never put on airs regardless of where you are. If there’s a language that everyone can understand, it’s the language of the heart. Kindness, even in the aspect of travelling, will take you far. Have a sense of humour and think positive whenever things don’t go as planned.
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