Customer Reviews

Lonely Planet Sri Lanka Phrasebook (Lonely Planet Phrasebook: India)

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1 star:		(1)

 

 

Right before my trip to Sri Lanka I purchased this book. I find the culture and language fascinating, but I was incredibly frustrated by my lack of understanding of Singhalese. Nearly every word in the Singhalese language is at least twice as long as any word in English.

For a person w/ no previous experience w/ Singhalese this book will be too cursory to provide much benefit. I don't recommend taking it w/ you to Sri Lanka unless you have nothing else. On the other hand, it doesn't cost much, and is probably worth its price tag.

When you're in Sri Lanka you might try to take some impromptu language lessons from a friendly stranger. You'll get more from it.

I found this little book to be a good value- there is so little available on the languages of Sri Lanka- There a lots of little cultural tips as well- An audio tape would be a good accessory-

This little book is not very useful for learning such a complex language. There is nothing about the alphabet and the pronunciation guide is confusing.