Marhaba! Take a moment and enjoy the beautiful change of seasons. Wherever you are in the world, I am most certain that weather conditions look better than what they were a few weeks ago. It could be really humid or too hot, but still try to spend at least some part of your day in the beautiful sun. Speaking of changing seasons; it might be that time of the year when you are mapping your summer travel plans. Well, you might have made reservations already or still wondering what to do. In any case, today I want to provide you with what I think are the 6 essential Arabic phrases for traveling, especially if you are planning to vacation somewhere in the Arab world. In the past, I have discussed why I think you should learn Arabic now and why you should visit the Arab world to boost your learning journey of the beautiful Arabic language. I know that the political and security climate in many places around the Arab world is at the moment uncertain; however, there many places like Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, and any of the Emirates that are relatively safer than neighboring Arab countries.
Image from Flickr
So, if you are convinced to travel to the Arab world for all the reasons I mention and others of course, these are the 6 essential phrases that you can use the moment you land in the airport to check in your hotel room. In the near future, I will provide you all with other essential phrases for making the best out of your trip abroad. For now, let’s begin with the basics. I have also translated the phrases to Arabic and I have transliterated the phrases so that you are able to pronounce them. I have added them in form of dialogue to give you a sense of how the conversation might take place. Please note that there are many dialects in different Arab countries. Nonetheless, these basic phrases will be understood by almost anyone in the Arab world.
So, you’ve landed and now you need to get to your hotel (الفندق). Let’s assume you want to hail a cab/taxi (سيارة أجرة) to get your hotel.
Amin: Greetings, excuse me, where can I get find taxis?
أمين: مرحبا, من فضلك, أين ممكن أن أجد سيارة أجرة؟
Amin: Mar-ha-ba, min fad-lak, ay-na mum-kin an ajid sayya-rat uj-ra.
Airport official: Taxis are located at this side of the airport.
مسؤول المطار: سيارات الاجرة موجودة في هذا الجانب من المطار
Mas-ul al-ma-tar: Sayya-rat al-uj-ra maw-ju-da fi ha-tha al-ja-nib min al-ma-tar.
Amin: Thank you.
أمين: شكراً
Amin: Shuk-ran
Amin: Hello, I need you to take me to my hotel, which is located in Beirut near the American University of Beirut. Thank you.
أمين: مرحبا, من فضلك أريد الوصول الى الفندق الواقع في بيروت قرب الجامعة الاميركية. شكراً
Amin: Mar-ha-ba, min fad-lak u-reed al-wu-sul ila al-fun-duq al-wa-qih fi bay-rut qurb al-ja-mi-a al-ame-ri-ki-ya. Shuk-ran.
Image from Flickr
Once you pay your taxi fare and thank the driver, you get your luggage and you are the hotel.
Amin: Greetings, I have a reservation for a double room under the name Amin.
أمين: مرحبا, لدي حجز لغرفة مزدوجة تحت اسم أمين
Amin: Mar-ha-ba, la-da-ya ha-jiz li-ghur-fa muz-da-wi-ja tah-ta is-im Amin.
Hotel Staff: Yes, I see your reservation Mr. Amin
موظف الفندق: نعم, أرى حجزك أستاذ أمين
Mu-wa-thaf al-fun-duq: na-am, a-ra haj-za-ka us-tath Amin.
Amin: Please, just to confirm, does this room have a shower and bathtub? What about a balcony?
أمين: من فضلك, للتأكيد, هل يوجد دش وحوض للاستحمام في الغرفة؟ ماذا عن شرفة؟
Amin: Min fad-lak, lil-ta-keed, hal yu-jad douch wa hawd lil-is-tih-mam fi al-ghur-fa? Ma-tha an shur-fa?
Hotel Staff: Yes, Mr. Amin. You are right. Your room has a shower, bathtub, and a balcony overlooking the Mediterranean.
موظف الفندق: نعم أستاذ أمين. غرفتك فيها دش, وحوض للاستحمام, وشرفة مطلة على البحر المتوسط
Mu-wa-thaf al-fun-duq: na-am us-tath Amin. Ghur-fa-tu-ka fi-ha douch wa hawd lil-is-tih-mam wa shur-fa mu-til-la ala al-ba-hir al-mu-ta-wa-ssit.
Amin: Thank you.
أمين: شكراً
Amin: Shuk-ran.
Image from Flickr
Before you finalize checking in, you might want to ask the staff about breakfast and other related issues.
Amin: I believe my room includes breakfast for two. Please, could you tell me when does breakfast begin and end every day?
أمين: أعتقد أن غرفتي تشمل وجبة فطور لشخصين. من فضلك, ممكن أن تعلمني متى يبدأ الفطور وينتهي كل يوم؟
Amin: Aa-ta-qid an-na ghur-fa-ti tash-mal waj-bat fu-tur li-shakh-sayn. Min fad-lak, mum-kin an tu-li-ma-ni ma-ta yab-da al-fu-tur wa yan-ta-hi kul yawm?
Hotel Staff: Of course, Mr. Amin. Breakfast is served everyday between 6 AM and 10 AM.
موظف الفندق: طبعاً أستاذ أمين. الفطور يقدم كل يوم من الساعة السادسة صباحاً حتى العاشرة صباحاً
Mu-wa-thaf al-fun-duq: tab-an us-tath Amin. Al-fu-tur yu-qa-ddam kul yawm min al-sa-a al-sa-di-sa sa-ba-han ha-tta al-a-shira sa-ba-han.
Amin: Thank you.
أمين: شكراً
Amin: Shuk-ran
Image from Flickr
Amin: Could you please schedule a wake up call at 7.30 AM tomorrow? My wife and I have a long day of sightseeing.
أمين: من فضلك, ممكن تدوين منبه للنهوض من خلال مكالمة غداً الساعة السابعة والنصف صباحاً؟ أنا وزوجتي لدينا يوم سياحة طويل
Amin: Min fad-lak, mum-kin tad-ween mu-na-bih lil-nu-hud min khi-lal mu-ka-la-ma gha-dan al-sa-a al-sa-bi-a wa al-nu-sif sa-ba-han? Ana wa zaw-ja-ti la-day-na yawm si-ya-hi ta-wil.
Hotel Staff: Of course. I will schedule this wake up call immediately for 7.30 AM tomorrow.
موظف الفندق: طبعاً, سوف أسجل مكالمة للنهوض حالاً للساعة السابعة والنصف غداّ
Mu-wa-thaf al-fun-duq: Tab-an, saw-fa u-sa-jil mu-ka-la-ma lil-nu-hud ha-lan lil-sa-a al-sa-bi-a wa al-nu-sif gha-dan.
Amin: Thank you for all the help.
أمين: شكراً على كل مساعدتك
Amin: Shuk-ran ala kul mu-sa-a-da-tak.
As you can see from these 6 phrases, these cover the basics. These phrases should allow me to check in easily. Take care and stay tuned for related posts in the near future.
For now take care and stay tuned for upcoming posts!
Happy Learning!
Have a nice day!!
نهاركم سعيد
