Europe (Lonely Planet Phrasebook)
£51.75
Excellent Reference but Watch Out on Pronunciation - This is a great little guide, comprehensive but just the right size to fit in your luggage. It is good that less well known languages like Catalan and Welsh are included because in my experience making the effort to speak even a little of these will ensure an even warmer welcome. There s even a small section how to read political grafitti in the Basque Country!However, I would add a small caveat about the guidelines on pronunciation included. I cannot comment on the other languages included but as someone who speaks a little French and Spanish, I found the pronunciation guides misleading. To someone with no knowledge this could lead to misunderstandings.Otherwise, this book is highly recommended.
Good variety of languages - I have to commend the Lonely Planet for attempting to cover such a large variety of languages. As most people will know, having even a few words of the local language makes you feel far more welcomed. This is all the more true for so-called minority languages . As a first language Welsh speaker, I very much appreciate when any visitors try to learn a few words of my language. Yes, I may speak English fluently, but it makes a big difference when someone shows that they know that your language and culture exists.The same is true for any country - learn some of the lingo and you ll get closer to the people and get more enjoyment from your holiday.They only criticism I have is that the book doesn t concentrate enough on the basics. Some of the more complex stuff (which may not be that useful while on holiday) could have been left out to make room for the basics.
It great to see minority languages give some acknowledgement - All to often minority languages are deemed irrelevant, even useless. I am more than delighted to see space given to some of Europe s more exotic vernaculars such as Irish and Basque to name just a few. My only criticism is that more space could be given to them. Locals do not expect travellers to be able to converse in the local tongue. Any attempt to do so would be met first with surprise and then with great appreciation. It may be an idea to produce a phrasebook for a particular minority language such as Catalan. Anyway, it is a start and lets hope it s the way of the future.
Weird choice of languages - This book has a weird choice of languages ... its 14 languages include Irish, Scot s Gaelic, Welsh, Basque, and Catalan: something most travellers are unable to use as in these places locals invariably can speak fluent English or Spanish. Instead the space should have been used for extra phrases in the other languages, or more European languages.