Speaking

Last night, I woke up in the middle of the night with the thought I can't possibly go to another country, one where they don't speak English, and expect that it'll be OK. 

And then I thought I've spent 2 1/2 years studying French.  I can make myself understood.  Not grammatically, not fluently, not gracefully, but I can do it.

And, French is certainly the language there, but the major transport media -- Air France and the TGV -- use English, too.  Perhaps not as often, but for the big stuff, yes.  This isn't going to be like going to Africa with Livingston. 

And, I'm going to meet people who DO speak English - one of them speaks it quite well, and the other - well, he can get by.  So if I ABSOLUTELY need to say something in English, there's a decent chance of being understood.  And there's always the dictionary.

Still nervous, but yeah, I think this might actually come off. 

Although I think I made my wife nervous when I mentioned that if this does work, I'll be more secure about speaking French on the next trip.