On Jul 2, 2010, at 8:37 AM, Marc A. Pelletier wrote:
On 02/07/2010 11:09 AM, phoebe ayers wrote:
Hi guys,
I am not on the official logistics team so I cannot tell you exactly where
to go when you arrive. But I can give you a little bit of general gdansk
travel information:
Thanks, Phoebe, that's appreciated. It's the first time I travel to a
location where I do not speak any of the local languages so basic
expectations are useful to have (how much to expect paying for a cab
amongst them).
How likely is it that people involved in trourism (cabbies, hotel staff,
restaurants) speak basic English or French? I'm generally fairly good
at improvising enough of a pidgin to get by if I have a fair expectation
that I have at least some vocabulary in common.
-- Coren / Marc
Marc,
I visited Gdansk briefly in April before the Chapters Conference and found
it an easy city to navigate. For most everyone once you are in the city
center walking will be your primary mode of transportation. For some of the
dorms it might be a slightly longer walk (25 min or so) but the small and
beautiful nature of Gdansk makes the walk feel much shorter.
While visiting Gdansk I met with 9 hotels and went into several
restaurants. English is not as fluent in Gdansk as it would be in urban and
western European cities, but I had no major problems communicating or
getting the appropriate message across. Hotel staff were mostly fluent in
english and always willing to help. In restaurants I found a lower
percentage of English speakers, likely around 50%, higher in the more
tourist traveled areas and lower in more local restaurants. The same was
true for taxis so it might be useful to write down the address for the
driver in advance of getting in a cab. An additional suggestion for anyone
who might need to go to a pharmacy is to speak with a staff person in your
hotel before going into the pharmacy, have them write down the polish words
for your symptoms or the medication you desire, over the counter drugs are
sold through the pharmacist so you will need to clearly communicate your
ailments.
I look forward to seeing everyone next week, safe travels.
Regards,
James T. Owen
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James Owen
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