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This is a practical short book on how to speak Welsh very quickly and very easily, by just learning to speak the core 35 words that you will need when you go there on holiday, or even on business for that matter.

Of course, whether you are British, from Europe, or from even further overseas, you may think that you won't need Welsh, because everyone there speaks English. That's correct, but there are two aspects that you can consider. First, that it's only going to take you a few hours, and speaking these few words fluently will add immensely to your fun on holiday, and will please everyone you meet. Secondly, when you have learned your 35 words, you will at least be able to pronounce all of those impossible-to-pronounce Welsh place names and road signs. Our book contains the phonetic pronunciation of every single word used in it, so you will never be embarrassed wondering if you are speaking correctly. It, also contains a section on how to pronounce Welsh words generally. I mean, otherwise, how would you pronounce 'Ysbyty'? or 'Llanelly'? or 'gorsaf'? Without our book - no chance! But with our book - easy.

It's a fact that in any of the main cities or towns, you are better off simply speaking English. Even then, you will have great trouble pronouncing the Welsh place names, or reading Welsh road signs.

But when you get out of the towns, into the beautiful Welsh countryside, and you go into a small village shop, cafe or pub, then - if you have bought this book, and you have learned the 35 words and you can pronounce them really well because the book has shown you exactly how to say them, then you will certainly be able to handle any relevant conversation that you will need - in good, clear, understandable Welsh.

If you buy our book, you will be able to order yourself a coffee in the morning and asked for the bill and pay it - in Welsh! You will be able to order your lunch and a glass of wine, and later, you will have no trouble finding a taxi and telling the driver which hotel to go to. You can have a perfect day. And, honestly, you will have no idea of the thrill that it will give you to speak a foreign language and to have people understand you.

And, although not strictly part of our promised '35 words', our book contains another 35 words which will broaden your vocabulary. Words you don't strictly need, but which it is useful to have. And you will find yourself loving Wales, and visiting it again and again. And, of course, you'll be able to speak just the same whether you are visiting Cardiff, on the south coast, a market town in Central Wales, or simply loafing about in a pub garden in Conway on the north coast.

ISBN 978-1-910537-23-7 Printed Version, paperback.

ISBN 978-1-910537-32-9 Electronic Version.

But it's not just holidays. Just look at what one of our business friends emailed to us the other day about her visit to Costa Rica. I had told her that she need not learn any Latin American local dialect, and that the standard Castilian Spanish of our book would be fine.

Dear Peter and Helena,

Just to let you know that I’ve been to Costa Rica at last and tested the book.

I memorised the 35 words at the airport (I must admit to some previous Spanish lessons when I was 16) and then felt all set. I was even using it on the plane – mainly ‘disculpe’ as I tried to navigate the aisle in the aircraft. It was an excellent confidence builder and really helped me to communicate. I showed my colleagues who then thought it would be great fun to give me a test and I passed! I gave the spare copy to my operations director who, like me, had a vague schoolgirl recollection of some Spanish words and no time to refresh it with evening classes. She really liked the idea of being able to do the preparation at the airport.

I also like the A5 format. It is just the right size. A smaller book would probably have got tucked into a corner somewhere and been lost.

I think this is a clever system and look forward to testing the Italian and French versions when I get the chance.

Thanks for sending the books to me. I will pass the word around. Good luck with future sales. Do you have any in other languages yet? I can see an immediate use for Polish.

Best wishes

Isn't that amazing? She learned it at the airport, and she was using it on the plane before her feet had even hit the ground at her destination!

And here is another one (unaltered) from a couple who bought our book to take on their honeymoon to Rome:

Hi Peter and Helena,

We both found your book easy to read and understand, and the phonetic way of how to pronounce the words was invaluable. What I personally found so good was that it was such an effective way of successfully being able to speak Italian! After only spending an evening glancing through the book, I could construct a sentence that made sense and sounded OK (I think)! Before getting your book, we'd ordered a 'Learn how to speak Italian' course off the internet, which still remains unused to this day. It looks too complicated and involved to be bothered with - especially after a day at work. What was great about your book is that it was an effective, successful 'quick fix', which was absolutely perfect for today's busy working lifestyle!

So, if you are teetering on the edge, please buy this book, for your own sake. It will make a huge difference to your visit, and ultimately, it may make a huge difference to your life. Who knows?

And, like them, please email us and tell us if you also liked our book: editor@russetpublishing.com Thanks 🙂

Don’t forget to learn the 35 words thoroughly before your holiday if you possibly can. On the other hand, perhaps it will wile away the time on the train as you travel to Wales, or under a sun umbrella on the hot sea front at Caernarfon in the summer, where you can then order your glass of water or lemonade fluently.

Wherever you read it, we are sure that when you have studied it, it will make all the difference to your visit. And remember that a language book will mean more to you and will help you to remember vocabulary if you write notes in it and add your own words and phrases!

Best wishes from Peter and Helena Roberts.

And you'll want to know what's in the book overall, so here is the Contents Directory:

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

Chapter 1

LEARN THE 35 WORDS

Chapter 2

I WANT SOMETHING

Chapter 3

I WANT TO FIND SOMETHING

Chapter 4

I WANT TO BUY SOMETHING

Chapter 5

I WANTED TO SPEAK WELSH

SOME OF THE 35 KEY WORDS

20 one (1) un

pronounced: een (actually, French une)

21 or neu

pronounced: nuh-yee

22 please os gwelwch yn dda

pronounced: oss-gwel-ookh un thaa

23 small bychan

pronounced: bukh-an

24 station gorsaf

pronounced: gorr-sav

police station: gorsaf heddlu train station: gorsaf tren, bus station: gorsaf bws

25 thank you diolch

pronounced: dee-olkh

26 that one hwna

pronounced: hoo-na

27 the y

pronounced: uh before a consonant

pronounced: ur before a vowel

e.g. uh gorsav, ur ath-lan-va

the station the exit

28 this (this one) hwn

pronounced: hoon (as in English ‘foot’)

29 ticket tocyn

pronounced: tok-in

AND HERE ARE SOME PHRASES FROM THE BOOK

To help with your pronunciation, the following is an extract from the book

ch is pronounced as in the Scottish word loch, which we have written as kh in phonetic parts.

ll is pronounced ‘thl’ as in no English word but attempt ‘thl’. i.e. ‘Llanelly’ is pronounced ‘Thlanethly’and ‘allan’ is pronounced ‘athlan’.

u is pronounced ‘ee’ is in the English word ‘tee’ and that is as near as most English speakers will get.

And the following are various extracts from the different chapters, just to give you a flavour.

There is also coffee (coffi), pronounced ko-fee.

If you want black coffee, the Welsh say ‘coffe black’ … coffi du. (pronounced dee)

and for white coffee, they say ‘coffee white’ …

coffi gwyn. (pronounced goo-in) oo as in ‘foot’.

Rydw i eisiau un coffi du. (een ko-fee dee)

I want one black coffee.

with sugar gyda siwgr (pronounced guh-da shugar)

with milk gyda llaeth (guh-da thly-th) th as in ‘think’.

without caffeine heb caffein (heb ka-feen) coffi heb ka-feen

And to top it off and make it sound even more polite, we add the words for ‘please’ - os gwelwch yn dda.

Rydw i eisiau un coffi du, os gwelwch yn dda.

I want one black coffee, please.

lle mae’r gwesty? Where is the hotel?

(goo-est-ee or gwesty)

Lle mae tacsi? Where is a taxi?

Oys na tacsi gerllaw?

is there a taxi nearby?

Oys na fferyllfa gerllaw?

Oys na fer-uh-thl-va ger-thla-oo?

is there a pharmacy nearby?

Lle mae’r toiledau? (toy-led-eye) Where are the toilets?

Lle mae’r toiled? Where is the toilet?

Lle mae’r toiledau, os gwelwch yn dda?

Where are the toilets, please?

Anyone who speaks fluent Welsh will tell you that the above sentences are basic. But they will work! That’s the main thing.

You have the option of standing in the town square speaking English like tourists do, or you can say something in Welsh that is not grammatically perfect, but gets you what you want, pleases the local Welsh people, and makes your holiday fun. It’s your choice!