Customer Reviews

Lonely Planet Eastern Europe Phrasebook (Lonely Planet Phrasebook: India)

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is NOT the phrase book that you want to buy for your trip. The best thing that can be said about it is that it is compact and fits into a pocket or small bag easily. The layout of the book is its biggest problem. The people at Lonely Planet need to go back and try to use it themselves. The sections on food are incredibly limited and gives only a few of the dishes that appears on most menus. Take my advice -- save your money and carry a book that has a little more substance even if it doesn't fit in your front pocket.

The Phrasebook is very comprehensive and easy to use. For anyone traveling to Eastern Europe it is a must. It includes common phrases and small talk with pronunciations and how it is written. I would recommend this book and other books from Lonely Planet Languge kits.

If you're going to a major city in Eastern Europe, say Prague or Budapest, don't bother with this book. Almost everyone there speaks English anyway so to the extent that you need to learn phrases like "thank you", "please", etc. just to be polite, you can use the language index from a regular old guidebook like Fodors. Even if you do go out into the country, you won't be able to use much more that what's in the guidebooks anyway. After all, a few key phrases and lots of pointing and smiling will get you farther than being able to say "You should visit us in Scotland sometime when you're in the area". And you'll never ever ever understand anything that's said back to you based on a book like this. The motto "Don't just sit there, say something" is meaningless. Sure I can phonetically babble all the mumbo jumbo I want, but that doesn't mean that I can actually communicate something with someone in Eastern Europe in their language. And we couldn't find how to ask for the check in a restaurant anywhere in this book, which is one of those useful phrases when you head to places like this.

We purchased the phrasebook for a trip to Translyvania, an area where both Romanian and Hungarian are spoken. While not perfect, it was a great help in deciphering menus. Just be ready to take your time to find what you need. You will find a few English speakers in small towns, but don't count on finding them in every situation.