Greek Language Phrase Book?

It might be more helpful for you to learn the Greek alphabet so that you can read signs,

We took the tour last Oct. I kept a copy of the Greek alphabet on my phone, compared to other places I have traveled that was the hardest thing to get used to. I also took a picture of some key words and kept this on my phone. Most people speak English, if they didn't, they spoke some, between that & using my hands, I found it pretty easy to communicate. If you are bringing your phone there are some apps that work well, you can learn some words before you go. Looking things up in a phrase book is very difficult when people are standing in front of you. Our guide, Ioanna, also gave us a list of key words, which I also took a picture of & left on my phone.

Mary

Thanks……

Mary, what apps did you use? Good idea to take pix of the important words!!!

I have carried a Greek phrase book and used it much less than I did French, German, or Italian, even though I usually enjoy the attempt. Agree that you don't need it.

Thanks, Laura…..having not perused the RS Greece book yet, I assume there is some basic language help in there….like his other books. English is pretty common from what I have read. I want the challenge of learning to speak and read some basic Greekian, don't get me wrong. Their alphabet seems as daunting as the Russian alphabet. I got through St Petersburg in good shape without a book.

I need to check out app-world.

Go to www.travlang.com/languages. Click on the Greek flag and get started. Key phrases are pronounced for you and you can easily keep the site on your cell phone or print it off to study on the plane trip over. Listed are around 105 languages. We've used it for years to learn to get by in Italian, French, Turkish, Hungarian, Afrikaans, Swahili, and Zulu. Always start out every conversation in the local language and you will be treated royally, even if you somewhat butcher the language. You might also check out YouTube. We've used both to our great delight.

We did this tour a two years ago. We used the basic phrases in the back on the guide book and that seemed to be as much as we needed. Like all countries, they appreciate any effort you make. We found more people in Greece that spoke English than in Spain, which was a surprise. The biggest challenge for us was that words can be spelled so many different ways; this can make directions hard to follow. Don't let it throw you, just be aware.

Yes, John, the back of Rick's Greece book includes 4 pages of phrases covering polite greetings, numbers, basic questions, and restaurant terms. In the front, there are a few more pages on the alphabet, place names, and food names. Most people will never get around to learning more than those for a two-week trip.