Not all those who wander are lost, but some are. When we nomads need to translate ourselves out of trouble and misdirection, there’s always Google translate and a sheepishly apologetic smile.
And now, there’s the IconSpeak t-shirt with 40 universal icons on display so you can surpass language barriers wherever you are. The shirt was designed by by three Swiss travellers who came up with the idea while drinking in Vietnam (as all good ideas come by).
George, Steven and Florian explain their clever invention:
“Many times we were confronted with a language barrier that was only to be overcome by drawing signs, symbols or icons on a piece of paper, map, or into the dirt. We thought it would be great to have an essential set of icons with you, permanently, so that you could just point on whatever you need – and people would understand. Soon the notepad was pulled out again and we started listing more or less essential icons that would have been of great help during not just ours, but basically anyone’s trip.”
Which is the icon for “Yes, please. I’d like to buy this.”