Lost in Translation

This past weekend I experienced Paris, France for the first time. It was also the first time I experienced a country that spoke an entirely different language. I found myself feeling like an extreme outsider, much more than I’ve experienced in London. When I first arrived, I realized most conversations around me were unintelligible. English phrases were also no longer the default on signs, so I found myself navigating an airport through trial and error. I was with two friends, however none of us knew French fluently. We unfortunately found ourselves in a tricky situation where we couldn’t find the bus we needed to take to our accommodations since Google Maps couldn’t navigate different levels of the airport. When we asked for help, we were mainly met with broken or confusing English. I eventually succumbed to ordering an Uber.

When we traveled throughout Paris this type of situation occurred a few more times. We found ourselves having difficulty asking for help navigating Paris’ underground Metro station, such as which ticket to use. I also found it difficult communicating to shop owners as to what I wanted to order. The silver lining in these situations is that each time I eventually did overcome the language barrier. Hand signals, translating words quickly on my phone, and asking for help whenever possible did usually lead me in the right direction. It also taught me to prepare for my future trips much more thoroughly.

The trip wasn’t entirely stressful, in fact it was one of the most stimulating and worthwhile weekends of my life. Seeing the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, The Louvre (and the Mona Lisa!), Disneyland Paris, and French culture with friends that I’ve only met 6 weeks ago was an amazing experience. I had thought that I had never “felt so American” when first arriving in London, but this phrase better described how I felt in France. I felt so different and like such an outsider, yet I grew to understood that I could still connect with French people and culture. I felt appreciative of what I have in London and back home, being able to communicate with most people around me.

I also appreciated that the experience put me in a state where I needed to be on my toes at all times in order to navigate these exciting, new surroundings. I couldn’t rely on familiarity anymore, which made navigating France feel like a puzzle or video game. I did make many mistakes, but it made my successes feel that much more important. It also, again, reminded me to better prepare for challenges that I’ll face in countries that don’t speak English. By the end of the trip, I was warming up to the standard gestures of “bonjour!” and often trying to improve my “merci”, sometimes feeling embarrassed at my pronunciations. Overall this was a worthwhile trip and I can’t wait to explore more countries in the future!