There’s a half-unpacked suitcase lying on the floor of my room, my sleep schedule is still a little messed up, and I occasionally say something in French and assume that everyone in the room will be able to understand me. The reason? I just spent half of November in France as an exchange student. Now, two weeks may not sound like a long time, but it seems like a lifetime when you’re thrust completely out of your environment. Different food, different showers, different etiquette in just about everything-these are some of the things I had to adjust to while staying with my host family. The funny thing? I’d actually already been to France before in the same exchange program. Yet this time I felt a lot closer to my host and was able to depend on her to help me through all the culture shock. The reason? We both made an effort to communicate and get to know each other. My host two years ago was a very sweet girl, but we never really got close because we both spoke limited amounts of each other’s language. I made an effort to communicate with her in French, but I think she felt too insecure to try and speak English to me. However, my host this time, Mathilde, was very enthusiastic about learning more English and expanding her horizons. Because of this, I was more eager to talk with her (in both French and English) and we became friends. Some of my other friends on the trip, however, weren’t quite as lucky. Although everyone had an amazing time, some students found that they had too much trouble communicating with their host students to really get to know them. But here’s some news that I think is important to keep in mind when traveling to a non-English speaking country: there WILL be a language barrier, and you’ll have to work very hard to have a conversation that would take absolutely no effort in your everyday English-speaking life. Here are some tips that I hope will help if you ever find yourself in a foreign country, struggling to communicate.

1. You WILL make mistakes…but keep trying!
On both trips to France AND while hosting a French student in my home last year, I made some pretty bad language errors. Improper grammar, wrong verbs, words that I thought were the same in French as in Enlgish but which most certainly were not…you name it, I said it. For example, Mathilde’s family asked me what liquor Americans drink the most. I named rum as one response, and her entire family just looked at me. As it turns out, I had pronounced the word wrong and had just told them that Americans drink a lot of the common cold…whoops. Another funny story about my inability to remember vocabulary includes a time at the breakfast table when I was hosting my French student last year and tried to ask her if she wanted jam with her toast. She gave me a weird look and shook her head. Later, I remembered that “preservatifs” does not mean “jam” or “preservatives,” but “condoms.” So yeah, messing up happens, and is a little embarrassing, but is very much worth all the great (and CORRECT) conversations you’ll have by really trying to speak the language.
2. Don’t be afraid to ask for help!
If you’re in a restaurant and have no idea what to order, it’s totally acceptable to explain to the waiter that you are American and need an English menu, or a description of the food options. Same things goes for service needed in hotels, and questions about showers and other appliances that are different from American ones. I’ve actually noticed that foreign people tend to get a kick out of the novelty of an American trying to make an effort to understand their culture!
3. Bring a dictionary.
I can pretty much guarantee that there will be at least one situation where you have absolutely no idea how to translate what you want to say in English into a foreign language. The trick? Bring a dictionary. You can buy an in-depth edition that includes translations from English to the foreign language and from the foreign language to English, or a simple pocket dictionary with everyday words and phrases. Even if you speak the language very well, it can get hard to translate when you’re trying to talk about a malfunctioning hot-water heater (one situation for which I found a dictionary to be very helpful.)
4. Careful about being impolite in your own language- you never know who speaks English!
Okay, I have to admit that my friends and I had some fun saying things in public that shouldn’t be said in public, simply because no on could understand us. It’s pretty amusing to be able to talk about someone who’s standing right next to you and know that they can’t understand you because they’re foreign. But yeah, that’s not incredibly nice, and you need to be careful because that person who just bumped into you on the street may very well understand English. American music is very popular in many foreign countries, especially in Europe, and English is a widely spoken language. So before you swear or comment on the incompetence of the person stanging next to you, keep in mind that they could understand you.

Of course, these are all just tips. Every foreign experience is different, and it’s important to figure out what works best for you to make your voyage as positive as possible. Just remember to keep trying and do it all with a smile on your face- an international trip is definitely something to smile about.