Phrasebooks

Phrases or sections you'd like added:

I've noticed that the languages of the Baltic States are not included in the Eastern Europe Phrasebook. I'm having difficulty in finding a phrasebook in Lithuanian as I need one for my upcoming trip there (my Litho skills are not proficient). The Baltics may not be a popular destination but they are members of the EU and shouldn't be ignored. Please add a section of the languages or better yet, publish a Baltic phrasebook. Aciu! (Thank you.)

Lisa Canada 04/29/2008

I needed a contact case as mine broke, but could not seem to communicate this to anyone or find one anywhere, either in the Farmacia or grocery shops!

April Graham in Keller, TX USA 03/24/2008

Pronunciation guide should be clear about stressed syllables, as it's usually the most significant factor in intelligibility, and the most often neglected. There should be some kind of representation of what linguists call suprasegmental phonemes--prosodic elements, phrasing--and a guide to sounding out written French. A very simple rule--that all final consonants except those in CaReFuL are either omitted or linked to succeeding words beginning with vowels--is a very fundamental feature of the language and should be included. Many DVDs have French dubbed and included in the caption list, and they should probably be recommended as a pretrip resource. One phoneme, "ay" with lip rounding, was omitted. A local told me American tourists have most difficulty with the French phonemes featuring lip-rounding.

Charles Heckel in Riverside, CA USA 12/07/2007

I just got back from a trip to France and got stuck in the rail strikes, which are apparently more common than I realized. I was very confused because everyone told me I couldn't leave the town by bus or train because of a 'greve'... took me forever to figure out that meant 'strike'.

Mike in Boston, MA USA 10/30/2007

It would be cool to have a little tear-out for the common questions which lists possible answers. I realized quickly that I could get down the correct pronunciations for a question - but sometimes I'd forget to look up the possible answers and wouldn't know what they actually responded! :)

Robin W. in Richland, WA USA 04/21/2007

You might want to include the Italian word "Pronto" to the guide book. This is a word that the Italians use when answering the phone. I heard it quite often when calling in Italy.

Ryan in Lyons, IL USA 01/08/2007

Dictionary: earrings = orrechini, olive = oliva, omelette = frittata, scarf = foulard (or sciarpa), tie = cravatta, vinegar = aceto

Perhaps a little guidance on the VAT refunds in the shopping section. My refund was denied because I got the wrong approval stamps. Sports: to go hiking = fare una lunga camminata Swimming and Hiking: … the ferry = il traghetto Hotel Help: hair dryer = asciugacapelli

Sandi Tedford in Atlanta, GA USA 01/06/2007

In the “Drinking – Water, Milk, and Juice” section, it would be quite helpful to include the wording for how to ask for cranberry juice. Most women know when they are getting a urinary tract infection, and that if they drink cranberry juice it can be warded off without medication. However, when I looked in that section of your book (although I saw every other imaginable juice listed there) it was not listed. It was quite problematic for me when I did not see cranberry juice in the juice area of the local markets in Italy, and I did not know how to ask for it. Fortunately, I found it in a market in France after only a couple of days of discomfort.

Dara Spears in Del Mar, CA USA 12/05/2006

As a kindly looking older woman who made sure to dress and behave conservatively and maintain a poker face, I found that I was asked for directions by French people at least once a day during my three weeks in Nantes. I got very good at saying, "Je suis desolee, mais je suis une etrangere." Maybe others would also find these sentences helful.

Sheila McElwaine in Springfield, MA USA 11/09/2006

In the phrase books for French and Italian, it would be helpful to include in 'basics/yin & yang' and dictionary section the words: ODD/EVEN. We went to a concert in Lyon and the only instructions on the walls for finding seats was: < pair - impair>. Thanks.

James Rankin in Tigard (Portland), OR USA 10/22/2006

More phrases concerning road signs---we had difficulty negotiating some of the roads in Tuscany because of poor signage and the book was no help.

gayle wehrli in st louis, mo USA 10/21/2006

In the German phrasebook there is a definite need for the word for train, 'zug'. We wnet to the train station and I suddenly pulled a complete blank on the word train when asking if this particular train went to Fussen. Couldn't find the word anywhre in the guidebook and finally had to resort to patting the side of the train as I asked. The driver and I had a laugh over it when he finally got what I was asking and I wrote it in my guidebook. Of coure I'll never forget that little word again.

SherryB in Lynnwood, WA USA 07/21/2006

I/We are not ready to order yet

(useful when we are fumbling through our menu readers trying to translate menu and the wait person would like to take our order)

Steve Shapiro in Eugene, OR USA 07/06/2006

You need to add how to ask for a hairdryer. They often have them but not in the room.

Darlene in San Antonio, TX USA 06/24/2006

I recommend your Europe Phrasebook to everyone that goes to Europe, it is absolutley fantastic! Beyond the helpful phrases, I particularly found the multi language format in the back of the book to be a great way to quickly learn more words in more languages through comparison! Thank you so much for your great work!

Seth Anderson in Grand Junction, CO USA 04/25/2006

One word that my husband and I would have found useful to have in our Italian phrasebook was "plumber". We eventually found the word by flipping through an old phonebook until we saw a picture of a plumber. While there are several emergencies that require a plumber, my husband and I needed one because he dropped his wedding ring down the bathtub drain while in a rented apartment in Venice...we'd only been married 8 days! Everything turned out okay, but we really wished we'd had plumbing-emergency language included in the phrasebook.

Karla in New York, NY USA 03/09/2006

In the section on rental cars:

"Does this rate include taxes and insurance?"

"Can we drop the car off in [Rome]?"

"What is the drop off charge?"

"Should we fill the gas tank before the car is returned?"

"That dent was already in the car when we took it."

Also, I've found that people you chat with are interested in your experiences with their country:

"Have you ever been to [Turkey] before?"

"What do you think about [Switzerland]?"

"Have you ever visited America?"

"Do you think [France] is better than America?"

JER in Seattle , WA USA 02/13/2006