“With languages, you are at home anywhere.” – Edmund De Waal.
These words by Edmund De Waal are true to the core. Learning a foreign language can truly alter your life: it can boost your self-esteem, help you advance in your career, and much more. Despite this, most people only pursue it if relocation or other life circumstances necessitate it. This is a pity because learning to speak another language has several advantages. Simply learning a second language may enrich your life in ways you can’t even conceive.
Mastering a foreign language can work for your benefit when you engage with someone who speaks that language when you travel to some country. Let’s face the fact that not everyone knows English perfectly, and it is not everyone’s first language, even though it might be the most widely spoken language in the whole world. Don’t let a lack of understanding of the local language prevent you from exploring a country. You might just have to get used to being more expressive with your hands or using features on your phone to assist you when necessary.
When you travel to some country whose native language is unknown to you, you must attempt to at least learn the basic phrases, instead of just relying on English. Learning a new language may seem like a big challenge, but when you converse with people in their native language, it is easier for you to connect with them. Moreover, if you devote enough time to foreign language studies, you will better grasp the local culture. It will further show them how much you respect their language and their culture by putting in all that effort.
For instance, you are planning to go to France to have the time of your life. Now, before leaving on your vacation, if you practice basic terms such as “Bonjour. S’il vous plaît… (Hello, please…)”, “Oui/Non (Yes/No)”, “Parlez-vous anglais? (Do you speak English?)”, “Où est-ce que je peux trouver un plan de la ville? (Where can I find a city map?)”, “Combien ça coûte? (How much does it cost?)”, etc., you are more likely to earn a grin from the person you are trying to connect with if you use local pleasantries and you exhibit your interest in the local culture.
“As well as learning vocabulary and grammar, you’re also unconsciously learning a whole new way of seeing the world. There is an inextricable link between language, culture, and cognition.” – Professor Panos Athanasopoulus, Lancaster University
Learning a new language has benefits other than connecting with native people and showing respect to their culture, such as improved mental function. It can cause the hippocampus and other parts of the cerebral cortex to develop. These regions of the brain are linked to memory, cognition, and behavior. As you become older, this can contribute to better memory and sharper reasoning. Linguistic Relativity is a hypothesis that the way you think and experience, your environment can also change. For example, there are more names in Japanese for distinct colors of blue than there are in English. If you wanted to study Japanese, you would begin to differentiate colors in this manner as well.
Language and travel, particularly foreign travel, are inextricably linked.
Work is Worship 