don't broadcast SAP in English.

I have always wondered that too. I am actually at a resort in Mexico right now and a lot of the television channels are in English with Spanish subtitles.

About a dozen of the 70-odd cable channels I get are in English, but since my cable company dropped the Discovery Channel in English three months ago (they kept the Spanish language version) I have not turned on my TV set except to watch DVDs. The English language channels have Spanish subtitles, but not vice versa.

tanstaafl.

Telenovelas would be far less fun if you could actually understand what was going on.

Of course, that assumes that they're understandable on any level.

I also did not see anything like the strange shows we see on Univision in the USA.

I think if you actually live in Mexico you just have to be bi-lingual if you wanna watch TV.

Si, es verdad. Estoy aprendiendo español, pero a este tiempo yo tengo solamente un poco de la lengua.

tanstaafl.

I know just about none but I can use google

I tried that, but I can't type fast enough to keep up with the dialog on the TV shows...

tanstaafl.

The french language (well, actually franglais) stations here similarly just give french as the sole choice for subtitles.

Weird.

On this side of the pond, the whole of Europe has a song contest called Eurovision. At one time the announcer addressed each country in their own language, but it's come to be that the whole proceeding is conducted in English. Also most entries are sung in English, because entrants know that they're not going to get a crack at international success (In the US, for instance), except in English.

That is, excepting the French, who both sing and announce in French.

But it does have to be said that, with a mixture of patriotism and protectionism, the French were loyal to their own industries, like cars, 'till the last and are currently fighting the EU, tooth and nail to preserve their successfully run railway system.

If you want a good example of French protectionism, check out the SCART plug or the 817 line television.

All that said, I love visiting France probably more than any other country: Not as much now as in the 50's and 60's, but we're all subject to globalisation, which is what the French are fighting a rearguard action from - good luck to them!

Is it an archetypal tale, or is Quebec the only international airport that conducts air traffic control in French?

I think that you'll find that the Spanish in Spain would say that your subtitles are Hispanic, rather than Spanish. The differences are marked.I would have posted earlier in the thread, but I couldn't get hold of my wife's Spanish tutor.

It would really surprise me if that was the case. English is the international language of air travel, all (commercial) pilots are required to speak English to prevent language barriers causing accidents. That would fall apart if there was a single international airport that was allowed to use another language.

What's written on a Stop sign in France? In Quebec it's "Arret" - in New Brunswick it's both "Stop" and "Arret" - I've never seen anything other than "Stop" written on a stop sign anywhere else before that I recall. Portugal, Italy, Dominican Republic, Cuba, Mexico included.

Mexico uses "Alto".

Puerto Rico uses "Pare".

From my personal experience, CYUL works in both English and French. When the audio feeds are working, you can hear it here.

I'm pretty certain it's STOP in France

Yeah, maybe I was mistaken about Mexico. Or maybe I didn't actually see any writing on the signs where I traveled (South of Cancun from Playa Del Carmen to the XelHa park was the extent of my travels while there )

Seems it's STOP most everywhere.

Yeah, as far as I was aware, "STOP" was an international standard. I fully expected Quebec to do something different, they don't have any english on any of their rode signs, even near the border to Ontario. While Ontario has both English and French for a significant amount of the province. The country is pretty much bilingual except in Quebec, where it's only French. There's no problem getting English TV at least on Satellite though, since the channel selection is very similar throughout the country.

Have you tried traveling west of Ontario? The merchandise packaging might be in both English and French, and the kids might be required to study French in school, but I wouldn't exactly call that "bilingual." Outside of official federal government signs, which require both languages, you won't see any more French out west, than you would see English in Quebec. Probably even less, if that's possible.

The only officially bilingual (English/French) province in Canada is New Brunswick. Outside of there and Quebec, services are provided in French on demand when numbers warrant.

Cheers

STOP is BERHENTI in Malaysia.

The utilities here would never allow a traffic sign on one of their poles.

Nor do they allow garage sale signs either, it's just that they can't fight the flood.

I didn't even realize it was on the utility pole when I took the picture but seems like a good idea to me. I have seen lots of things in my week in Mexico that wouldn't be allowed in the USA.

Now these damn things I can't see any good in. http://www.mexadventure.com/MexicoTravel/Topes.cfm

Boobies.

Nah, that's not a speed bump. Zanzibar has proper speed bumps: you have to go over them at an angle, or the middle of your car grounds on them. They're fierce.

Limited to the deep Gaelteachtaí regions I would think

Statistically, I suppose in excess of 75% of the Irish population could rightfully ignore it, claiming that they hadn't the faintest idea what it meant. I'm surprised, in my frequent visits, not to find Wales having something similar, although the Irish are one jump ahead: A language adopted by the EU.
I was at a major Irish museum in Malahide when a woman asked whether they had a Gaelic guide and the curator said that it was the first time he'd been asked - that was only a couple of years ago.