If you plan on traveling to a foreign country, it’s best to know how to speak the locals’ native tongue. Learning the basics of a language before going on a vacation is essential not only to help you immerse in the country’s culture, but also to help you get past sticky situations in a place where English may not be the first language.
Case in point: you’re in Italy and would want to seek help for directions going to Venice’s St.Mark’s Basilica. Or while on a holiday in Peru, you suddenly needed to buy medicine for your migraine. You approach a resident and ask, but he doesn’t understand you because he hardly speaks English. Do you end up doing myriad hand gestures until he comprehends what you are saying or give up asking entirely?
(With serpentine roads and an abundance of bridges that goes to who knows where, it is best to arm yourself with a map and basic Italian when walking around Venice.)