Language

The most beautiful thing about Paris, and every country I visit, is the language.  Even though I cannot understand the other languages for the most part, I love to hear people speaking.  I enjoy hearing the way that people speak, the inflection, the rhythm of their sentences; most of all, I love trying to imagine what they are saying.  When I began my trip, I used to wish that everyone could speak the same language because I thought that would make my life so much easier but as time pressed on, my previously rigid thoughts on language began to soften.  I started wishing that, instead, I could speak every language.  People helped me to understand that without different languages, there would be some sort of loss of culture.  We have so many different communities and ways of life throughout the world, but a large part of human diversity is attributed to our ability to communicate with each other.  So I encourage everyone, before you travel, try to learn a little bit of the language of the country you are traveling to.  Practice the accents, learn the greetings, train yourself to ask common questions because the local people will most likely praise you for trying to fold yourself into their world.  As travelers, you have to learn how to adapt to the places you are in.  It is wrong, and almost inappropriate, to go to another place and expect them to speak to you in English just because it is more universal.  Part of the beauty of these foreign places is the fact that they are exotic and wonderful and different from your own world.  It is important to preserve these differences to help them retain their unique qualities.