Going to Egypt, Russian tourists do not bother to replenish their colloquial stock with elementary foreign phrases. The Egyptians believe that the Russians are just too lazy to do it. At the same time, our compatriots feel quite confident abroad and think that they do not have to speak a foreign language, but vice versa – the host staff is obliged to speak Russian. This opinion of the Egyptian inhabitants was expressed by a Russian traveler in the Yandex.Zen service blog.
According to him, although the Egyptians respect the Russians, in informal conversations they accuse their guests of laziness. “The thing is that Russians don’t speak English, but none of our tourists is stopped by [buying a tour] to Egypt. Russians feel confident in a foreign country without a language, but you need to ask the staff something, find out, consult. Then Russian tourists begin to mumble, show with gestures, and generally speak Russian with the Egyptians. This just outrages the Egyptians, they don’t understand how you can fly to rest, and at the same time not have an elementary conversational stock and still be indignant about it in Russian ?! – the tourist said.
In addition, the author noted that the Egyptians began to learn Russian precisely for this reason – Russians are too lazy to learn an international language. Many merchants have memorized their assortment in Russian so that they can communicate with Russian tourists.
“This is clearly seen in the most touristic places, where all the Egyptians speak Russian perfectly. We were very surprised when we heard a clumsy but understandable speech in Sharm el-Sheikh,” he added.
The traveler also said that in Egyptian schools, English is the second compulsory language. They also teach French. As a result, elderly local residents can somehow speak both languages.
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