Caching in foreign countries

[+NYPaddleCacher]

 

(btw: I wrote this post in English, would have preferred to write it in Dutch but for some reason we learn a lot of languages and hardly anybody learns Dutch, guess we are too accommodating in helping tourists [] ).

 

Snipped everything but I pretty much agree with all of it.

 

The first time I visited the Netherlands I read in more than one place that I shouldn't bother trying to learn any Dutch because anyone I would meet there would welcome the opportunity to practice English.

[+Oxford Stone]

Paste from Wiki but I know my company's research agrees:

The use of English online has increased by around 281% over the past ten years, however this is far less than Spanish (743%), Chinese (1,277%), Russian (1,826%) or Arabic (showing a growth of 2,501% over the same period).[2] The foreign language internet is rapidly expanding, with English being used by only 27% of users worldwide.

Re Google translate / freetranslation etc: simple literal phrases like "The box is in the hole near the bridge" are handled perfectly, but metaphors, slang, or phrasal verbs with the verb a long way from the preposition, confuse the hell out of it!

Back on subject - spend an evening prepping caches before you go, and maybe note down key words you pick up by looking at descriptions and hints in local language and English - cache / box / under / behind / in / on / opposite / magnetic / hole / tree / fence / post / gate... you'll probably learn how to say Muggle in multiple languages before you're done. And as a cacher you have a curious mind. So pointing some of that curiosity at a foreign language is no bad thing is it?

[Zerpersande]

Hints are also used VERY different from what you are used too..

Dont always expect the hint to tell you anything at all about where to look for the cache,

At least in Japan most caches have English descriptions, maybe English only. Hints, well, very direct as a general rule. "Red, magnetic" translates to mailbox. Substitute 'green' and it's a phone booth.Bottom corner of fence, combined with a spoiler pic close up of the 50cm section of fece means.....? Bottom right of fan outside restaurant, well, look at the compressor of the AC unit as you approach. These are rated 1.5D. But not all the caches are that easy. Coords are iffy in the city so pics help out with the general location. The biggest downside is that you will really attract the attention of muggles. Locate, walk away. Come and grab, walk away. Time your return and replace. That will minimize the chances of getting the cache muggled after you leave.

Edited February 13, 2013 by Zerpersande

[+Oxford Stone]

http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?wp=GC3T6MT The coordinates are written in words in... esperanto??? Brilliant! This cache will only be found by people with curious minds who accept that not everyone speaks English.

[+Andromeda321]

http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?wp=GC3T6MT The coordinates are written in words in... esperanto??? Brilliant! This cache will only be found by people with curious minds who accept that not everyone speaks English.

 

Interesting I guess, but Wikipedia says there are at the very highest estimate 1-2 million Esperanto speakers in the world. If you were really going for the "not everyone speaks English" crowd you'd post it in either Mandarin or Spanish, both of which have more speakers.

[+NYPaddleCacher]

http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?wp=GC3T6MT The coordinates are written in words in... esperanto??? Brilliant! This cache will only be found by people with curious minds who accept that not everyone speaks English.

 

Interesting I guess, but Wikipedia says there are at the very highest estimate 1-2 million Esperanto speakers in the world. If you were really going for the "not everyone speaks English" crowd you'd post it in either Mandarin or Spanish, both of which have more speakers.

 

Well, except for one sentence in English, the rest of the listing is written in French (which Google translate detected), though not too surprisingly, since the cache is *in* France.

[+Oxford Stone]

True it's an unusual choice of language - Flemish would have been closer to the mark, but as the blurb says they wanted to reflect ALL the native languages passing through and took Esperanto as a representative of that. They've got my curiosity, I've solved stored and hope to find next week.

I know I'm being a bit snobbish about people who only speak English - as I mentioned with a chemistry-based quiz, I'm sure there are scientists and mathematicians who will think I'm an ignoramus for taking one look at their puzzles and giving up! Takes all sorts - which is part of the charm of GCing.