If you come home and all your photos are of statues, hotel lobbies or city-scapes and you don’t have any people shots, you’ve really missed out on the whole experience of travel. Whether it’s local business owners, friendly students or fellow travelers, nothing is more rewarding than making that human connection while traveling. For me that’s making conversation with people on the trains, at places I stay, or in local shops. And sometimes you can meet fellow travelers and locals alike online at sites such as Virtual Tourist . Most of the people here love to get to know their guests, talk about their lives and get your impressions of their country.

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Farmhouse hosts in Lake Bled

It’s helpful to know a little background history, find out who some of their heros are and learn what’s going on in their country. Reading history books or authors from their home country, watching foreign films or checking on current European news will give you a little background and a better starting point for conversation. Supporting locally owned business such as family-run restaurants and farmhouses or local artists will not only get you great value for your money, but you’ll have the chance to socialize and get a glimpse into the lives of these people.

As difficult as it seems, learning a few phrases and questions in their language really helps. A little “thank you”, “sorry, I don’t understand Slovenian” or “cheers” goes a long way. I still might be stuck waiting at a restaurant in Ljubljana if it wasn’t for “racun, prosim”, or check please!

handy Slovenian phrases:

Hello - zdravo
Thanks - hvala
Good day - dober dan
Do you speak English? - ali govorite anglesko?
Cheers - nasdrovje
Bon Appetite - dober tek
Two beers, please - dve pivi, prosim
Sorry - oprostite
I don’t understand - ne razumem