My go-to phrase the past week, anytime I enter a shop or encounter a person on the street, has been:
"μιλάτε αγγλικά;"
which is pronounced: me-LA-te ahg-li-KA?
*note that in Greek the question mark is written as a semi-colon. strange, yes.
Can you guess what this means? Say it a couple times out loud. Go on, take a guess.
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No peeking, now.
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Keep scrolling down for the answer.
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Really, just try your best guess.
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Did you guess "Do you speak English?" If so, you are correct!
Yes, that is probably my most utilized phrase these days. Most shopkeepers do speak at least some English, enough to get along. (The other day, a woman in an art store did respond by asking me if I spoke Spanish, since she did not know English. Good news is, I was able to buy a pair of scissors in Spanish.)
Problem is, I feel a little bit embarrassed every time I have to say this phrase. It doesn't really seem fair that I should expect people here to know my language (ok, ok, I know it is kind of an 'international' language). It makes me determined to improve my Greek!
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