If it is true that travel broadens the mind and raises the spirits, it is also true that it can drastically shrink your shrewdness and lower your ability to communicate.
I was reminded of that while spending an academic weekend in Warsaw. At Luton airport, having a coffee in the departure lounge, I felt confident that I would easily find my way around. After all, I was equipped with a Rough Guide and an extensive Polish vocabulary consisting of yes (tak), no (nie), thank you (dziękować) and the name of my gracious host (Wojtek). Warsaw would be my oyster.
As I tucked in for the night in a child-sized cot set up in a room I was to share with two of my colleagues for the next three days, I was reminder of how small an oyster could be. Did that dampen my spirits? Absolutely not! Between museum visits and talks about art all delivered in infinite variations of accented English, I inflicted my knowledge of the local language on whoever was at hand.
When a kind academic refilled my beer at dinner and I responded with a resonant “dziękować”, I found myself trapped in an even tighter corner than my sleeping quarters: the kind man enthusiastically responded in long tirades of perfect Polish which made no more sense to me than any other series of soft and hard sounds. I resorted to the one viable option I could think of: smile and nod in the hope that nobody would notice my utter bafflement. When my subterfuge seemed to work and the deluge of sounds kept coming, I shed my pride and resorted to the ultimate option. Still smiling, I called out: “Wojtek!”
If I couldn’t hold up my own in a conversation without sounding like an opinionated yet polite three year old child, at least I had a friend who could translate.
2 comments:
On jest często niebezpieczny około szczerzyć zęby przy pewien przenoszący własność thanksggiving przyjechał około zgłaszać reklamację twój szkło zbiornik. Wcale prawdopodobieństwo , on zgadzam się : mi w gotowość - ty pewien kantor , JA potrzeba wobec zadzwonić mój matka pod kątem jego wyrażać równie Mam spotykać jej samica około mój życie.
or....
He (it) is report dangerous arrive at some reclamation your glass header (tank) often near tooth (cog) transmitting (reschedule) ownership near szczerzyć thanksggiving. Credibility beguile absolutely, I agree to readiness me you some exchange office (exchange office) -, it beguile my in accordance with under its (his) corner of requirement life dial up (call) my mother express plane < equal > meet (face each other) she (its; her; it) female near.
Moja głowa jest złapana w pułapkę w poręczy. Proszę nie niepokoi!
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