How did people ever communicate before Google Translate? Michelle had bought a phrasebook and was accompanied by a polyglot friend but even then the rapid pace of spoken French quickly defeated her, as did a leaden tongue completely unsuited to the nuances of Gallic pronunciation. That wouldn’t have been as much of a liability in modern Paris, but in out in the provinces, the real France that Michelle was desperate to experience?

With the euro high and the dollar low, to say nothing of a budget crimped by student loan payments, every eurocent counted. Michelle had no luck haggling for the cheese, wine, and jewelry she was trying to buy at market with the resources she had. But that was before she pulled out her iPad in despair and found an unsecured high-speed internet network.

Reportedly, people in the market still talk about the American who cut through the market, haggling like a demon in stilted French with a robotic voice.

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