Re: Sometimes you really *can't* get by in English

On Fri, 29 Feb 2008 11:39:29 GMT, HVS
<usenet@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

I found this really quite giggle-inducing; guess I'm basically mean-
hearted, or something:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/bristol/7270401.stm

OK, let's look at this:

A man who planned to walk from Bristol to India without any
money has quit, after getting as far as Calais, France.

Obviously he had to go to France by boat. After that it should
be land all the way to India.
....
He now plans to walk around the coast of Britain instead,
learning French as he goes, so he can try again next year.
....
But in one of his last entries, he wrote: "...not only did
no one not speak the language,

Perhaps he should get a better grip on his own language.
....
"...they had also seen us as just a bunch of freeloading
backpackers, which is the complete opposite of what the
pilgrimage is really about."

Obviously he was not a freeloading backpacker: he was not using
a backpack, but it's difficult to argue against "freeloading".

Does the man not realise that he might need languages other then
French for most of his trek to India?

"That really scared us and given that we now were pretty
much out of food, hadn't slept in days and were really cold,
we had to reassess the whole situation."

There are many people in the world in a similar condition
through no fault of their own.

--
Peter Duncanson, UK
(in alt.usage.english)
.

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