This T-Shirt For Tourists Speaks Every Language

Despite what the lifestyle bloggers would have you believe, traveling isn't all styled street shots, fancy AirBnBs, and a basic but fluid knowledge of whatever given language you need. For the rest of us mortals, there's a new product that's seriously going to change the way we live and explore forever: t-shirts with universal symbols for tourists, so you can communicate with anybody, anywhere.

This amazing invention comes from Swiss friends George, Steven, and Florian, and was born of the realization that they were fed up with having to use gestures, symbols and scribbles to communicate something to a foreigner. Iconspeak is their creation — the ultimate traveler t-shirt that features universal icons, so you can communicate no matter the situation. There are symbols for a car, fire, tools, clock, camera, wi-fi, and really anything else you can think of, mostly relating to the absolute necessities (and things people often find themselves in need of while on the road).

What's most interesting about this creation is how truly simple it is to communicate to people (even if they don't speak the same language you do). It just goes to show that we may be different on the surface, but there's something universal about how we think and what we respond to, and just in that is a sense of comfort.

If a t-shirt isn't your aesthetic, Iconspeak also carries baseball hats, beanies, bags, long-sleeved shirts and tank tops featuring their icon sheets, so you're not limited to only one option (though we will say it's likely more difficult to point to a picture on your head than on your shirt). If you don't mind your travel Instas being affected by your new sartorial choices (the style just isn't for everyone!) this is a super convenient way to ensure that you'll be able to communicate when you need to find a bathroom, a hotel, a wi-fi connection, some food, a phone, or even a hospital. Alongside the practicality of it is the sheer necessity — imagine how many dire situations would be aided by a clean break in the language barrier. (In other words: if you need to get to a hospital in another country, you probably don't have a lot of time to figure out how to communicate that to a stranger.)

Of course, there are a few disadvantages to the line, namely that if you were looking to learn the language of the countries you visit (or, at least, brush up on your conversational abilities) this would definitely hinder your progress. Be that as it may, it seems like having this on hand would be a pretty good idea regardless (imagine needing a bathroom desperately and not being able to remember the word!). Iconspeak will have your back... literally.

Images: Iconspeak (1)