It's uncanny, even incredulous, but when I was stationed in the military in W. Germany at the time, we'd take tours to various cities, countries, and the folks in Germany and France didn't mind a bit if you butchered their language. The bottom line was at least you were trying, and they were patient as all get out, in order for you to get the pronunciation down.
Maybe it's part of the old "ugly American" syndrome that they had gotten familiar with; just remember this much:
You are the foreigner, and are in their country, respect their customs and their language, and they'll bend over backwards to accomodate you.