Thursday, May 22, 2008

kennen wir uns nicht von irgendwoher?

bean has this lonely planet german phrasebook that is so funny. i think someone should write a play based on the scenarios in it. here's one example, in the "safe travel/dentist" section:

i have a...

broken tooth
cavity
toothache

i need...

a filling
an anaesthetic

i've lost a filling.

my dentures are broken.

my gums hurt.

i don't want it extracted.

ouch!


maybe it's just me, but i think this is hilarious. especially the part where the patient looks up the german word for "ouch" in the phrasebook.

there is an extremely x-rated section in the chapter on "social/romance," and amidst the other phrases is this one, my absolute favorite in the whole book:

bevor wir uns naher kennen lernen, muss ich etwas klarstellen. ich bin buchhalter.

which means, "before this goes any further, i must be upfront. i'm an accountant."



scenes from our increasingly deutsch haus:





















(der kuhlschrank)























(der kessel)























(die espressomachine)

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I laughed out loud at the idea of "ouch" being in the phrasebook! Aren't some things kind of universal? I hope Z has no trouble with her gums or dentures during her year away!

Liz Woodbury said...

well, if she does, she'll have the vocabulary to handle it. including saying, "auf!!"

Anonymous said...

I remember being in Poland and trying to get a pharmacist to recommend cold medication that was safe for use during pregnancy. This wasn't covered in my handy Berlitz guide! I think I just mumbled something about having a "very, very SMALL child" and pointing to my abdomen.

And, well ... my son doesn't have two heads or anything, so it must've worked out.