In French 2 For Travel we added “Where …” questions – if you’re looking for the bathroom, a pharmacy, public transport, a bank/ATM, or a “boulangerie”, etc.
Asking such questions in French – especially if you’ve practiced your pronunciation a bit – may let your conversation partner assume that you understand French quite well.
The result will be an answer and a stream of words that’ll fly right by you.
So asking the person to speak more slowly could be your first reply in such a case: “Pourriez-vous parler plus lentement, s’il vous plaît!”
And it would be good to also know some basic directional words and phrases in French – left, right, straight ahead – as the typical answers may well include them.
The Next 13 French Phrases
Why These Phrases?
In Essential French 1 and 2, we listed greetings and typical “where is…?” questions. Even if you’ve never studied French before, it’ll be useful to learn and practice saying them.
In Essential French 3, there are only two sentences you may want to practice saying: “Could you please speak more slowly?” and “Many thanks for your help.”
The other 11 phrases and sentences will be useful to understand as you receive answers to your “where is…?” question. You still may want to record yourself saying them, so you can confirm, what you thought you understood – and – you’ll also remember them better that way.
Food, Drinks, Restaurants
Finding a recommended restaurant, Café, or bar has been made much easier with GPS-equipped smart phones and mobile devices.
And finding a good restaurant in a French-speaking country has to be part of your travel adventure.
Once you have arrived at the place, you may have to ask for a table and the Menu, place an order and then ask for and pay the check.
Knowing a few key phrases in French will make all this much easier.
You’ll find them among the next 14 Phrases in French 4 For Travel.
If you are used to the 15-20% tips, generally expected in US restaurants, you’ll be pleasantly surprised: In France, as in nearly all West-European countries, tips are included in your check.
But for good service 5-10% tips are always welcome.
In the French-speaking parts of Canada, e.g. Québec, tipping of 10-15% is expected, as tips are typically not included in the check.