How many times have we heard someone say, “This is America. Speak English, please,” when talking to an individual using a different language? As I prepared for my eight-day trip to Germany and France, I checked off all of the essentials packed for the colder November days. There was only one thing I realized I’d forgotten: the languages.

In French, I can count to 10. I can also ask people if they speak French. I’m sure that’s a valuable skill to boast of when you’re gallivanting through Paris.

I know how to say three things in German: “Beer,” “Help,” and “Do you have a pencil?” (That’s right — I’m screwed if the person only has a pen).

I’ll be getting off the plane at 8:05 a.m. (thinking it’s 2 a.m. because of the time difference), so I can’t imagine any of those phrases will be much “hilfe.” Even if I can correctly ask a question, I won’t understand the answer. Even if I can get my hands on a pencil and accurately draw a picture of what I need, I couldn’t really expect a stranger to draw me a map in response.

It’s more likely I’m going to get a taste of “This is (INSERT COUNTRY). Speak (LANGUAGE), please.”

And so it dawned on me that even though I’m OK with missing Thanksgiving — which is arguably one of the top three most “American” holidays — I have the attitude of a stereotypical, arrogant American tourist. I assumed I would be able to find someone with enough English-speaking skills to get me to where I needed to go, but that mindset has been the target of so much criticism from foreign countries.

A little more than two years ago, ABC reported President Barack Obama saying, “In America, there’s a failure to appreciate Europe’s leading role in the world … there have been times America’s shown arrogance, been dismissive — even derisive.”

Every single one of my friends who has studied abroad in Europe appreciates the multitude of cultures they were exposed to on their trips. Though this will be my first trip to Europe, I expect to feel the same way, despite the short period of time I’ll be spending there.

So as I begin to panic about the immense language barrier I’ll soon smack into headfirst, I wonder if we should be required to learn at least the very basics of a country’s language before we travel there, regardless of how long we plan to stay.

For me, the “language thing” came as an afterthought. I simply got too wrapped up in my narrow, English-speaking world and concentrated on booking flights and hostels, watching the movie Taken, making sure my BlackBerry would work overseas and squealing with my best friend about all the fun we were going to have.

Yet in the three months I had to prepare for this trip, not once did I pick up a book or use online sources to study the languages I will be surrounded by. So instead, I will now represent our country by tiredly stumbling off a seven-hour flight into a foreign place without a clue what the people around me are talking about — without a clue how to verbally communicate with them.

I clearly won’t be able to hold a full conversation in German or French by the time I get there, because two weeks isn’t enough time to pull off anything impressive regarding language learning. But I plan on trying to at least scrounge together a few more key phrases in an effort to show a little more respect to the countries I’m visiting and their citizens. Maybe I’ll at least figure out how to request a variety of writing instruments. Hey, it’s a start.

Emily Kleiman is a junior communication major. She can be reached at kleiman@umdbk.com.