What all of them

Apparently there are other incorrectly spelt posts on this thread seems you only like to mention mine though. Maybe I thought it was something spilling over from somewhere else that made you just pick on me. Sorry if that is not 'lite enough' for you.

andy57742 wrote:

Hi all
I have just been reading different hotel reviews from this site and others and it always blows my mind how arrogant how the British can be.
how often have you read in a review where people complain that some staff in a hotel cannot speak English or make themselves understood, do these fools not understand that they are in another country where English is not their first language.
How many times have you heard people complain that the foods not as good as at home?
i know these seem like petty moans but imagine how the Turkish men and women must feel when they hear us Brits constantly moaning about this and that, it is just so infuriating to read and hear these moans, I just wish that before these people that book their holidays abroad that they do what travelers have been doing for years buy a small phrasebook and make a little effort to even learn the basics such as good morning, good evening , thank you and please even these four small and easily learned phrases can make a world of difference to the recipient, you may even find that the service received improves when they notice you making an effort to be polite to them.

moan over

andy & caz

Just to refresh peoples memories of the original post which has developed into a discussion about speaking foreign languages. For what it is worth, my knowledge of the Turkish language, which is very difficult, is self taught off the internet and reading from books. Using my skills on a daily basis, I do get help from the local people with new phrases and pronunciation but my downfall is that because of my age and my medical condition(Parkinsons Disease), what I learn does not get absorbed easily but I DO, make the effort !! We bought in an area dominated by Turkish people, with the idea of integrating with them, which we have.

Les

In regards to using grammar, etc, I can't stand long rambling sentences with no full stops as I find them hard to read. Back to the subject in hand, I'm not good at languages, but I make an effort to be polite abroad, ie I can say common courtesies etc?

I can see how us Brits get a bad name abroad though.

Cruisecontroller - you've made a big effort to integrate yourselves into your local community, and made some good friends.

Cruisecontroller wrote:

andy57742 wrote:

Hi all
I have just been reading different hotel reviews from this site and others and it always blows my mind how arrogant how the British can be.
how often have you read in a review where people complain that some staff in a hotel cannot speak English or make themselves understood, do these fools not understand that they are in another country where English is not their first language.
How many times have you heard people complain that the foods not as good as at home?
i know these seem like petty moans but imagine how the Turkish men and women must feel when they hear us Brits constantly moaning about this and that, it is just so infuriating to read and hear these moans, I just wish that before these people that book their holidays abroad that they do what travelers have been doing for years buy a small phrasebook and make a little effort to even learn the basics such as good morning, good evening , thank you and please even these four small and easily learned phrases can make a world of difference to the recipient, you may even find that the service received improves when they notice you making an effort to be polite to them.

moan over

andy & caz

Just to refresh peoples memories of the original post which has developed into a discussion about speaking foreign languages. For what it is worth, my knowledge of the Turkish language, which is very difficult, is self taught off the internet and reading from books. Using my skills on a daily basis, I do get help from the local people with new phrases and pronunciation but my downfall is that because of my age and my medical condition(Parkinsons Disease), what I learn does not get absorbed easily but I DO, make the effort !! We bought in an area dominated by Turkish people, with the idea of integrating with them, which we have.

Les

Really you have done all you can do to integrate and learn as much as is practical for you to do so, which is all that anyone can expect of a person. Also Turkish sounds like a really difficult language to learn, living in an area with locals must help as you need to be able to converse with them to make a life for yourself.

I think that the first thing that holds English speakers back from learning a language is that many think that their own language is much more important than everyone else’s. So they don’t feel the need to learn.

Well, it's not that I think my English is more important, the fact remains that modern English language is considered as the first global lingua franca, and it is the dominant language in communications, science, business, aviation, entertainment, radio and diplomacy.

There is nothing wrong with English speaker’s intelligence; they have the same ability to learn as all other people, some seem very impressed with foreigners who can speak more than one language well, many would like to learn and I believe that given the right tuition they would learn just as well as anyone else.

How patronising, no there isn't anything wrong with English speaker's intelligence, but there is something wrong with the education system in the UK and to my knowledge there has been for over 50 years regarding the teaching of a second language, so given the opportunity we would know how to study a language.

There are exceptions, but it is well known that native English speakers are very bad at foreign languages. I believe that the United Kingdom and Ireland are bottom of the European league for languages.

Well maybe you should look closer at home before commenting on the English speakers because neither the present or the previous Prime Minister's of Spain cannot speak English, and only 28% of Spanish 16 year olds speak good English, well below the European average of 42%.

Sanji

Helen, it is fair to say that we have more Turkish friends than we do Ex-Pats. Doe, I do try to make myself understood but if that can't be done, then I know a few people who will help me in my plight !!

Les

Doe,
'lite enough' spilling over from somewhere? only you know what you are talking about.. I have nothing or nowhere to spill anything over from.

Back to the original OP I do try and learn a few words and phrases to use on my holidays but having travelled to over 40 countries during my adult life where something like 25 different languages were spoken, I'm afraid that I only learn the very basics. But politeness even when just using the odd word will translate internationally and I hope that I have never been thought of as one of the 'typical Brits abroad' as mentioned in other posts on this topic. To be honest I can say I've rarely ran into one of these stereotypes, though I have met some eccentrics on my travels.

Judith- not having a good day today?

Back to the topic- I think an easy way to understand a language is to watch tv, where the actors are speaking one language, and the translation is written on the screen. This is usually where the programmes or films are in English though. Children love music and will listen to the latest pop songs, which are often in English. So, without even thinking about it, children are exposed to another language and will pick up a lot.

I've had a great day Fiona. Some reason why I shouldn't ?

do posts randomly disappear here? I made a post earlier about languages being taught in european schools from an early age, which was why most foreigners we meet have a very good grasp of English anyway...yet in this country foreign languages are not taught in the vast majority of areas until secondary school..and even then with limited access...and some other stuff..and it was here earlier becuase I saw it..directly below Espanol's post about learning languages....did it get deleted for some reason? It wasn't argumentative, nor was it controversial and was on topic, in keeping with the thread. Can someone enlighten me please? Has one of the mods removed it???

Val.
There has been reported a problem when two posters post a reply at the same time, sometimes one doesn't appear.
Maybe that's what happened?

Sanji

Thanks Sanji..you know I am not technically gifted..but I do know I saw it here earlier today.
My post was actually similar to yours in thought but not quite as detailed or as eloquent.

I hope they fix the glitch.

On another note..I remember my lad being obsessed by Tots TV with Tilly, Tom and Tiny when he was a toddler. The little Tilly doll spoke French and there was a reported increase of toddlers repeating French back due to picking it up from that TV programme. The younger a child leanrs a language the better. One of my biggest regrets is that I did not persevere with learning a language fluently. I have found itmuch harder to learn as an adult..but I don't do too bad.

Sorry Val, I didn't read your post correctly, if it was showing on the board and now it isn't, I have no idea maybe a mod can enlighten you.

Sanji

Justval wrote:

Thanks Sanji..you know I am not technically gifted..but I do know I saw it here earlier today.
My post was actually similar to yours in thought but not quite as detailed or as eloquent.

I hope they fix the glitch..

Val I've checked the mod logs and nothing has been deleted from this thread.

Do you use post preview as maybe you previewed but didn't hit submit?

or as eloquent.

Me eloquent.?
I couldn't give a poo what people eat abroad, because it's their choice, their money and their holiday, and it has absolutely nothing to do with me, or anyone else for that matter if they want to eat sausages, chips and beans or they want a Sunday roast, because I'm not paying for it.

Both myself and Dave like Spanish food, although we both draw the line on eating criadillas, but last week after 10 days of eating Spanish food, one evening he did fancy sausages, chips and beans, and we did have a Sunday roast, although at 8 pm when the temperature had dropped and it was more comfortable.

Ex-pats? well you shouldn't tar everyone with the same brush, but I would say that the tar would stick to 95% of them - I avoid them like the plaque - If they're not whinging about the Spanish, they are still whinging about the UK and I wouldn't call some of them ex-pats, because there's nothing patriotic about them, they whinge about the immigrants in the UK, but that's exactly what they are in Spain.

Sanji

Just googled criadillas

I'll give them a miss when I go to the new Spanish restaurant that's just opened nearby.

It's seems there are many opinions agreeing on the fact that foreign languages are not taught until secondary school , and that it appears it is much easier to learn from an earlier age , which is what other countries do .
Helen pointed out that in her school the children can learn English and Welsh at the same time and be proficient in both languages and have the confidence to switch from one to the other , and it seems by learning this at an early age makes it easier . I find that the simple basic things I learnt at primary school are embedded in my brain , they are things that you use every day and have been used constantly , perhaps at a young age our brains are more sponge like absorbing everything directed at it .
I doubt there will be a big change in our education system to improve learning a foreign language , so perhaps it will be down to parents to decide if they want their children to learn a language as an out of school activity like learning a musical instrument or playing sport or dancing , I just think that learning another language would be a low priority , we generally don't think that it's so important , other countries take the attitude that it's vital to be able to speak English .
I'm surprised that the prime minster of Spain doesn't speak English , for goodness sake how is he going to communicate with Mr Cameron , because I bet Dave can't speak to him in spanish ! Perhaps he gets Cleggs wife to do translation or does he talk to him in Latin??

Cruisecontroller wrote:

Totally agree with your post Andy, it's the,"Brits abroad syndrome," whereby they leave any brains they had, in the departure lounge of the airport they've flown from

. A high percentage of Brits only go abroad to sit and drink all day, what a waste of money. They would be better served going and buying the 24 packs from the supermarket and sit in their lounges for a fortnight rather than pay X amount of £s to do the same thing abroad.

Les

Just re read your first post Les, and my wife says that the brains have usually gone missing BEFORE they even get to the departure lounge

On the second point , they do that for the other 50 weeks of the year , they just want a change of scenery or to see some SUN !!!!!!