by Joshua Piven
Kono mizu wa dôshite chairoin desuka/midori iro nandesuka/kuroin desuka?
What kind of meat is this?
¿Qué tipo de carne es ésta?
Quel type de viande est-ce que c’est?
Was für Fleisch ist das?
Kore wa nanno niku desuka?
I am sorry—I did not mean to offend you.
Lo siento—no quise ofenderlo/ofenderla.
Je suis désolé(e)—je ne cherchais pas à vous offenser.
Es tut mir leid—ich wollte Sie nicht beleidigen.
Gomennasai—anata no kibun wo gaisuru tsumori wa arimasen deshita.
Please do not injure me.
Por favor, no me lastime.
Ne me blessez pas, s’il vous plaît.
Verletzen Sie mich bitte nicht.
Watashi wo itai me ni awasenaide kudasai.
Do not make me angry.
No me enoje.
Ne me fachez pas.
Ärgern Sie mich nicht.
Okoraseruna yo.
I do not wish to hurt you.
No le quiero hacer daño.
Je n’ai pas l’intention de vous blesser.
Ich will Ihnen nicht weh tun.
Anata wo itai me ni awasetaku arimasen.
Is it bleeding much?
¿Está sangrando mucho?
Ça saigne beaucoup?
Blutet es stark?
Chi wa takusan dete imasuka?
Please forgive me, and accept this money/camera/watch as a gift.
Disculpe, por favor, y acepte este dinero/esta cámara/este reloj como regalo.
Pardonnez-moi, et veuillez accepter cet argent/cet appareil-photo/cette montre comme cadeau.
Bitte verzeihen Sie mir, und akzeptieren Sie dieses Geld/diese Kamera/diese Uhr als Geschenk.
Kono okane/kamera/tokei wo owabi no shirushi toshite uketotte watashi wo yurushite kudasai.
Where is the nearest embassy/airport/hospital/police station?
¿Dónde está la embajada/aero-puerto/hospital/estación de policía más cercano a?
Où se trouve l’ambassade/l’aeroport/l’hôpital/la gendarmerie le/la plus proche?
Wo ist die nächste Botschaft/der nächste Flughafen/das nächste Krankenhaus/das nächste Polizeiamt?
Ichiban chikai taishikan/kûkô/byôin/kôban wa dokodesuka?
Yes, I have my papers.
Sí, tengo mis documentos.
Oui, j’ai mes papiers.
Ja, ich habe meine Papiere.
Hai, shorui wo motteimasu.
Where are your papers?
¿Dónde están tus documentos?
Où sont vos papiers?
Wo sind Ihre Papiere?
Anata no shorui wa dokodesuka?
I’m not going to tell you.
No se lo voy a decir.
Je ne vous dirai pas.
Ich sage es Ihnen nicht.
Anata niwa oshiemasen.
Do you know a place where I can hide?
¿Sabe usted dónde puedo esconderme?
Vous connaissez un endroit où je peux me cacher?
Wissen Sie, wo ich mich verstecken kann?
Dokoka watashi ga kakure rareru tokoro wo shitte imasuka?
How fast can this car go?
¿A cuánta velocidad puede ir este coche?
À quelle vitesse cette voiture peut-elle rouler?
Wie schnell kann dieses Auto fahren?
Kono kuruma wa doregurai hayaku hashiremasuka?
How quickly can you leave?
¿Se puede ir lo más pronto posible?
En combien de temps pouvez-vous partir au plus vite?
Wie schnell können Sie mich von hier wegbringen?
Doregurai hayaku deraremasuka?
How far is it to the border?
¿A qué distancia está la frontera?
C’est quelle distance à la frontière?
Wie weit ist es bis zur Grenze?
Kokkyô made doregurai desuka?
You will never make me talk.
Usted nunca me hará hablar.
Vous ne me ferez jamais parler.
Sie werden mich nie zum Sprechen bringen.
Zettai watashi wo shaberaseru koto wa dekinai.
GESTURES TO AVOID
THE UPSIDE-DOWN GLASS ON BAR
In the United States and other countries, turning your glass upside-down might indicate that you do not want anything to drink. In some pubs in Australia, however, finishing your drink, turning the glass upside-down, and placing it squarely on the bar may signal that you believe you can win a fight with anyone present.
EYE CONTACT
In Pakistan, staring is common. Do not be offended if someone stares at you.
In Zimbabwe, do not maintain continued direct eye contact. It is considered rude, particularly in rural areas.
In New York City, do not make eye contact with anyone on a subway, train, or bus. Read a book or newspaper, or maintain an unfocused, nonresponsive visage to avoid incident.
THE FIG GESTURE
The fig gesture is formed by making the hand into a fist and protruding the thumb upward between the forefinger and middle finger. In most Latin American countries it is considered phallic and very rude. In Brazil, the fig gesture means “good luck.” In parts of the United States, it means “I’ve got your nose,” part of a children’s game in which one person pretends to have captured the other person’s nose.
THE “OK” SIGN
Touching the thumb and index finger to suggest a circle, with the other fingers on the hand fanned out, indicates that everything is okay in the United States.
In Brazil, Germany, and Russia, however, it indicates a very private orifice and is an insult.
In Japan, the sign indicates that you want change. Use this gesture if you want a cashier in a store to give your change in coins.
In France, it is an insult. It denotes the number zero or the concept of something being worthless. When placed over the nose, it means “drunk.”
ABOUT THE EXPERTS
FOREWORD
Source: David Concannon, a fellow of The Explorers Club and chairman of its legal Committee, has traveled extensively on four continents, usually with great success. He recently made three deep submersibles dives to the R.M.S. Titanic, at a depth of 12,500 feet, including the first dive of the century on July 29, 2000.
CHAPTER 1: GETTING THERE
How to Control a Runaway Camel
Source: Philip Gee, safari operator, runs Explore the Outback, a safari group that leads nature tours of Australia on camelback (www.austcamel.com.au/explore.htm).
How to Stop a Runaway Passenger Train
Source: Tom Armstrong has more than 25 years of railway experience. He has been a locomotive engineer since 1977, and served as accident prevention coordinator for the Canadian Pacific Railway. He lives in Saskatoon.
How to Stop a Car with No Brakes
Source: Vinny Minchillo, demolition derby driver, has written for a variety of automobile magazines, including AutoWeek, SportsCar, and Turbo. When not smashing cars, he is the creative director of an advertising agency in Dallas.
How to Stop a Runaway Horse
Sources: John and Kristy Milchick, horse trainers, own and manage Hideaway Stables, a horse farm in Kentucky, where they breed, train, and sell foundation American Quarter Horses. They also publish articles on horse care and training on their website, www.hideawayhorses.com.
How to Crash-Land a Plane on Water
Sources: Arthur Marx, a flight instructor, has been a pilot for 20 years and owns Flywright Aviation, a flight training and corporate flying service on Martha’s Vineyard. He is ATP certified and has single- and multi-engine and instrument instruction ratings; Tom Claytor, bush pilot, is currently attempting a solo flight around the world to seven continents (read about it at www.claytor.com). He is a fellow of The Explorers Club, a subject of the National Geographic Special Flight Over Africa, and a recipient of the 1993 Rolex Award for Enterprise.
How to Survive an Airplane Crash
Source: William D. Waldock, professor of Aeronautical Science at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and associate director of the Center for Aerospace Safety Education at ERAU-Prescott, Arizona, has completed more than 75 field investigations and over 200 accident analyses. He manages the Robertson Aviation Safety Center and has been flying actively in general aviation for more than 20 years.
CHAPTER 2: PEOPLE SKILLS
How to Survive a Riot
Source: The Chief Consultant of Real World Rescue (who must remain anonymous) has more than 20 years of special operations and counter-terrorism experience. Real World Rescue is a small, high-risk travel security company based in San Diego that trains elite U.S. Government Special Operations personnel and Federal law enforcement agents on international terrorism and Third World survival. The company is on the Web at www.realworldrescue.com.
How to Survive a Hostage Situation
Source: The Chief Consultant of Real World Rescue.
How to Pass a Bribe
Source: Jack Viorel, teacher, has lived and worked throughout Central and South America. He currently lives in Northern California.
How to Foil a Scam Artist
Source: Steve Gillick, executive director of the Canadian Institute of Travel Counselors-Ontario, is the author of Defining Travel Common Sense and Son of Scam, two travel booklets available from www.citcontario.com.
How to Foil a UFO Abduction
Source: The Society for the Preservation of Alien Contact Evidence and Geographic Exploration (SPACEAGE), a grassroots organization dedicated to preserving the nation’s extraterrestrial points of interest. The society is the author of UFO USA: A Traveler’s Guide to UFO Sightings, Abduction Sites, Crop Circles, and Other Unexplained Phenomena.
How to Survive a Mugging
Source: George Arrington, self-defense instructor, has taught classes in self-defense for more than 25 years. He holds a 4th-degree Black Belt and formal teaching license in Danzan-Ryu Jujutsu and has also studied Karate, Aikido, T’ai-chi Ch’uan, Pa Kua, and Hsing-I.
How to Tail a Thief
Sources: Robert Cabral, self-defense instructor, is the founder of The International Academy of Martial Arts in West Los Angeles. He has served as a police defensive tactics trainer and worked for 10 years as a bodyguard in Hollywood. He holds Senior Masters credentials in karate under The Okinawan Karate Federation; Brad Binder, Ph.D., is vice president of W.R. Associates, Inc., a security firm based in Wisconsin. He has served as a private investigator and protective escort and provides security consultations for individuals and corporations.
How to Lose Someone Who Is Following You
Sources: Robert Cabral; Brad Binder.
CHAPTER 3: GETTING AROUND
How to Jump from Rooftop to Rooftop
Source: Christopher Caso, stuntman, has produced and performed high-fall stunts for numerous movies, including Batman and Robin, The Lost World, and The Crow: City of Angels.
How to Jump from a Moving Train
Source: Christopher Caso.
How to Escape from a Car Hanging over the Edge of a Cliff
Source: Christopher Caso.
How to Escape When Tied Up
Sources: Tom Flanagan (“The Amazing Flanagan”), magician and escape artist; The Book of Survival by Anthony Greenburg.
How to Ram a Barricade
Source: Vinny Minchillo.
How to Escape from the Trunk of a Car
Source: Janette E. Fennell, founder of Trunk Releases Urgently Needed Coalition (TRUNC), a nonprofit whose mission is to make sure children and adults trapped in trunks can safely escape. Interior trunk-release regulations based on her work go into effect in 2001.
How to Survive a Fall onto Subway Tracks
Source: Joseph Brennan, author of The Guide to Abandoned Subway Stations (Disused or Unused Underground Railway Stations of the New York Area), at www.columbia.edu/~brennan. He works in the Academic Technologies Group of Academic Information Systems at Columbia University.
How to Survive in a Plummeting Elevator
Sources: Jay Preston, CSP, PE, is a general safety engineering consultant and a forensic safety engineering specialist. He is a former president of the Los Angeles chapter of the American Society of Safety Engineers; Larry Holt is senior consultant at Elcon Elevator Controls and Consulting in Prospect, Connecticut.
CHAPTER 4: OUT AND ABOUT
How to Survive When Lost in the Jungle
Source: Jeff Randall and Mike Perrin, survival experts, run Randall’s Adventure and Training (www.jungletraining.com), a service which guides extreme expeditions and facilitates training in the jungles of Central America and the Amazon. They have both completed the Peruvian military’s jungle survival school for downed pilots in the Amazon.
How to Find Your Way without a Compass
Sources: Jeff Randall and Mike Perrin; The U.S. Army Survival Manual.
How to Climb out of a Well
Source: Andrew P. Jenkins, Ph.D., WEMT, professor of Community Health and Physical Education at Central Washington University, is trained in exercise physiology, wilderness emergency medicine, and mountain rescue; John Wehbring, mountaineering instructor and a member of the San Diego Mountain Rescue Team, is a former chairman of the Mountain Rescue Association (California region). He has taught the Sierra Club’s Basic Mountaineering course; Jon Lloyd, an adventure consultant with VLM Adventure Consultants in the United Kingdom, provides adventure sport activities for individuals, youth groups, independent and state schools, company groups and special needs groups (www.vlmadventureconsultants.co.uk).
How to Navigate a Minefield
Source: The Chief Consultant of Real World Rescue.
How to Survive a Riptide
Sources: The National Weather Service in Miami, FL; Dr. Robert Budman, M.D. (“The Surf Doctor”), an American Board of Family Practice certified physician and Surfer magazine’s medical advisor; the California Surf Life-Saving Association.
How to Survive When You Fall through Ice
Source: Tim Smalley, Boating and Water Safety Education Coordinator for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
How to Survive in Frigid Water
Source: Tim Smalley.
How to Survive a Trip over a Waterfall
Sources: Jon Turk, author of Cold Oceans: Adventures in Kayak, Rowboat, and Dogsled, www.coldoceans.com. He has traveled the Northwest Passage by sea kayak and conquered Baffin Island and the Canadian Arctic by dogsled. He made the successful trip around Cape Horn in a sea kayak a day after his 51st birthday; Christopher Macarak, kayak instructor, owns Paddle TraX Kayak Shop in Crested Butte, Colorado.
How to Survive a Volcanic Eruption
Sources: Scott Rowland, Ph.D., volcanologist and the editor and publisher of the Hawaii Center for Volcanology Newsletter; the U.S. Geological Society.
CHAPTER 5: FOOD AND SHELTER
How to Survive a High-Rise Hotel Fire
Source: David L. Ziegler, president of Ziegler & Associates, a security consulting firm concentrating on fire and arson investigation (www.ziegler-inv.com). Formerly an agent with the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms specializing in fire, arson, and explosion cases, he is a certified fire investigator and a member of the International Association of Arson Investigators (IAAI); John Linstrom, executive director of the Fire & Emergency Television Network, which provides training, information, and education for 240,000 emergency personnel via satellite, videotape, and the Internet. He has degrees in Fire Protection Administration and Fire Science, and is certified as a Master Firefighter, Master Inspector, Fire Instructor, Fire Investigator, Fire Officer, and Emergency Medical Technician.
How to Find Water on a Deserted Island
Sources: Jean-Philippe Soule, leader of the Central American Sea Kayak Expedition and former member of the elite French Mountain Commando Unit; Benjamin Pressley, founder of Windsong Primatives, staff editor at Back-woo
dsman magazine, the Southeastern U.S. field editor for Wilderness Way magazine, and webmaster of www.perigree.net/~benjamin/index.htm; The U.S. Army Survival Manual.
How to Purify Water
Source: Andrew P. Jenkins.
How to Build a Shelter in the Snow
Source: John Lindner, director of the Wilderness Survival School for the Colorado Mountain Club, is also director of training for the Snow Operations Training Center, an organization that teaches mountain survival skills to utility companies, search and rescue teams, and government agencies.
How to Survive a Tsunami
Source: Eddie Bernard, Ph.D., is director of the Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, leader of the U.S. team in the 1993 Sea of Japan tsunami damage survey, and director of the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center; the National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program; the NOAA Tsunami Research Program; the International Tsunami Information Center.
How to Survive a Sandstorm
Source: Thomas E. Gill, adjunct professor in the Department of Geosciences, and a research associate at the Wind Engineering Research Center of Texas Tech University, and Jeffrey A. Lee, associate professor in the Department of Economics and Geography at Texas Tech. Gill and Lee are members of the Texas Wind Erosion Research PersonS (TWERPS), an informal research group of scientists and engineers from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Texas Tech who study blowing sand and dust storms; the Office of Meteorology, National Weather Service; the U.S. Army Medical Research & Material Command.