Saturday, June 4, 2011

Greek Time!

So, it's official!  I leave for Greece!  Best part??


I"M GOING TO GREECE!!!!


.....okay, yes, there's more, but really, when you're going to Greece, do you need any more? I mean, hello....it's GREECE!


But, my friend and I will be visiting the ruins, the famous-person-frequented island of Santorini, and then even enjoy Mykonos, Crete, and Athens!


No I LOVE traveling Europe, having lived in Spain twice and visited countless cities and countries, but I always had a helping hand: my Spanish.  I always knew I could default to Spanish if I needed, or I could pass as Spanish if I needed to not pass as English for the time being.  Most of the languages I encountered:  French, Italian, and even a little German, I could make out enough to know where I was supposed to go or what I was supposed to do, for the most part.  This time, though, I have no idea how to read or speak any Greek.  It's a Hellenic language, not a Romance one, so it's basis, lettering, and understandability is completely different.


Ergo, I made myself a cheat sheet!  I have a few key phrases written down and learned just in case I need them!

(spelled phonetically, not in Greek)  Bolded and Italic parts are the parts that are stressed.
Hello:  ya-sas, yia-sas
Yes:  neh
No:  Oh-ke
Please: pa-rah-kah-low
Thank You:  ef-kah-ree-stow
Toilet:  toy-let-ah
Water: neh-row
Food: fah-gee-tow
Do you speak English? - mee-las ahn-glee-kah


Oh boy!  We'll see how I do!  Maybe I'll just go around saying "¿Español?"  

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