That’s a hard thing to say. I traveled in countries I couldn’t speak the language of before smart phones existed and it was a struggle of paper maps and relying on hospitality workers, guides, and locals who I could speak with as well as phrase dictionaries. It was a struggle and you’d have to be very careful about going off the beaten path.

With a phone I can just walk in a direction I choose, ask locals questions in the local language, and feel confident that if I got myself in a shitty situation I’d be able to sort it out.