Don’t let the language barrier ruin your trip!

Vanessa, one of our friends at learning holiday company GoLearnTo, shares some valuable basics on coping with the language barrier on a ski holiday.

I was a latecomer to ski holidays and I was 25 before I hit the slopes. My first trip to Soll in Austria saw me on skis but all that snow ploughing didn’t really do it for me so the next year, I switched to snowboarding. Despite the bruises and hours spent sitting in wet snow, I was hooked. 

My first boarding experience was in Whistler, Canada where they speak the same language so it was easy to make myself understood shouting, “sorry, I’m still learning” as I careered down the slopes not having mastered the ability to turn or slow down without catching my edge.

A year passed and I headed to France where on my first day finding my boarding legs, I found myself needing to shout ‘sorry I’m still learning’ as I careered across the slope at high speed picking up a small child on the way, I’m not quite sure how it happened, I was trying to avoid a nasty accident and the only way to get him out of the way was to pick him up at high speed.  Picture this, a small French child in tears, two angry parents and an out of control beginner snowboarder crying ‘sorry I’m still learning’. If that’s not enough to encourage you to learn French to explain why I took off with their child and to beg forgiveness I don’t know what is.  

So with a weekend in the Sierra Nevada mountains planned and a week in Zell Am See, I thought it best to learn Spanish and learn German so I could make myself understood lest another ‘French accident’ occurred.

So here’s my guide to saying that all important phrase ‘Sorry I’m still learning’ in French, Spanish and German (I’ve added Italian as although now, after a lot of lessons I‘m much more in control I’m off there next month and you never know!)

French: Pardon, j’apprends/je suis debutant(e)

Italian: Mi scusi, sto ancora imparando!

German: Entschuldigung, ich lerne noch!

Spanish: Lo siento, aun estoy aprendiendo!

And in case you were worried, the small French child was unharmed and forgave me, the parents on the other hand…

Learning to parle Français on a singles holiday in France…

Kirsty, one of our friends over at holiday company GoLearnTo.com, tells us about heading out to France to pick up French… we’ll have her on skis next!Working for learning holidays company GoLearnTo.com, it was always a bit embarrassing to admit I couldn’t speak a second language, especially as we sell so many amazing language courses. I love France, the food, the wine, the cities, countryside and the mountains so decided to put aside my very own version of Franglais and take some time out to learn French on a French course in France.

The real test of learning a new language... the market!

I’d never been away on my own before so was very excited if a little nervous embarking not only on my first singles holiday but also on my first language course.  I decided to learn French in Nice as for me, it has it all; a great beach, the Cours Saleya food market so I could indulge my passion for French food and close enough to the slopes for a weekend skiing in between my French lessons – what more could a girl want on her first solos holiday?

On my first day, the teachers scared the pants off me, they only spoke to me in French, I mean, I was in France yes and here to learn French but qu’est ce que c’est?  On the plus side, my classmates were a fun group and we together we managed to get through it.  That afternoon, we all went out for lunch and as the wine flowed, somehow what and how we’d been taught earlier all seemed to make sense. 

During the week, my confidence in the language soared and I couldn’t wait to get out of class and practice my new found Français.  And, as promised I managed to convince a few of my classmates to join me to head to the slopes for a weekend of skiing as we practiced our French on unsuspecting lift operators, barmen and waiters.

All in all, my first singles holiday and French course was a huge success and something I will definitely do again. Go, see for yourself, travelling solo and learning French gives a holiday in France a certain je ne sais quoi.