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How to Make Out What’s Being Said…
… when your understanding of a particular language is limited.
When it comes to certain languages, I’m in no man’s land. Well…literally.
While I am far from being fluent in languages like Greek or Polish, it is also a fact that my understanding is not limited to a few words. It is a little more than that, to be honest.
For anyone who is decently confident about their ability when it comes to a particular language, there is an eagerness to showcase these skills at the slightest opportunity available. Attempting to impress others is a basic human tendency. Am I right, or am I right?
Having said that, I do not restrict myself to a mere showcase. I go a little further and continue with my efforts to communicate in that language. I find stringing together a few words and forming short sentences, no matter how disjointed, to be the easier part. However, there are occasions when I am not able to understand what the other person is saying.
Learning a language involves avoiding rigidity and being flexible in your approach.
Things get from bad to worse if my attempts to speak the local language are construed as fluency. One thing I realized after years of travel is that…
