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Time to tell on yourself (embarassing travel stories)

Time to tell on yourself (embarassing travel stories)

Old Apr 11th, 2003, 06:36 AM
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Time to tell on yourself (embarassing travel stories)

We've had several threads about stupid questions we've been asked, obnoxious actions of OTHER travelers, etc. But how about you? Were there any embarassing moments from when YOU were a travel newbie? Did you wear new white sneakers, a fanny pack, and a NY Yankee hat? Let's hear those stories!!
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Old Apr 11th, 2003, 07:07 AM
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I would never wear a NY Stankees cap. But in Germany last year, we saw many, many German males in the teens to mid-twenties age range with Stankees caps in a variety of colors. Air Jordan type shoes were also ubiquitous. I wonder if those caps are as popular this year?
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Old Apr 11th, 2003, 07:07 AM
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The first time in Paris, we were leaving the hotel, which had been so nice and the staff and been so friendly.
As I was walking out the door, I waved and called to the desk.."Bonjour Bonjour"...it wasn't until I was in the taxi that I realized that I was waving goodbye and saying hello~ Felt like such a dork
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Old Apr 11th, 2003, 07:22 AM
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This is not an embarassment but a near temper tantrum. The only thing that saved me was my inability to curse in German. I went into the ticket office at the train station in Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland. My ticket request was fairly complex because I had a Swiss Card which entitled me to a free second class ride to the Swiss border. However because of the length of the trip I wanted to ride first class from Zuerich to Salzburg. And I wanted to make sure I had a window seat for both of us.
I had my schedule completely worked out, with all departure times and dates.

The ticket agent refused to sell me the tickets. His haughty posture and curt response was as infuriating as it was dismissive. He said "I don't have time. I must sell tickets to Wengen." There was no one behind me in the line!!

I left, walked around for 10 minutes, cooled off, returned, and bought my tickets from another agent. He was very nice; perhaps he saw me standing outside the ticket office talking to railway official whom I knew who had grown up in England but now lived in Lauterbrunnen. Yep, I was complaining.
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Old Apr 11th, 2003, 07:26 AM
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Oh, this is an easy one. I'd been living in Florence for about a year, to attend school. When school ended, I went on a little holiday to France. I was boarding a train in Marseille, and had to pull a HUGE hard-sided suitcase on board with me. (I am kind of short, and was, at the time, also a very thin woman.) I gave the suitcase one last glorious yank to pull the darned thing up onboard with me, but I must have used more force than I actually knew I had. I actually fell over, and the suitcase was on top of me, as I was lying on the floor of the train for a moment!

BC
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Old Apr 11th, 2003, 07:28 AM
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Was in a store in Paris and wanted to know where the handbags were and kept asking "Ou est mon sac" (where is my bag) and I kept pointing to my bag. No wonder they were looking at me like I was nuts. Makes me laugh now though...
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Old Apr 11th, 2003, 07:43 AM
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Lol, Parisians must groan and think "Here come those daft tourist women again" with our fumbling around with bags and their language!
BC, I can just picture you lying there under a big suitcase, :lol! I guess that lesson would be never take a suitcase bigger than you are?
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Old Apr 11th, 2003, 07:46 AM
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In a restaurant in Arles several years ago, the server was reciting the dessert menu. I heard "gateau four et noir" (I figured the name meant it was some kind of dark cake that was baked in an oven); I was embarrassed to discover she had said "gateau foret noir." My daughter, who was with me and was studying in France at the time, thought this was very funny and has never let me live this down!
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Old Apr 11th, 2003, 08:45 AM
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I wear my college cap when it rains, so i wore it quite a bit in England. People stared, so I remarked to my mom - I guess women don't wear baseball caps there and I look strange.
We later figured out that people stared because 'Trojans' is printed across the band.
Fight on!
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Old Apr 11th, 2003, 09:14 AM
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I just deleted a story about a lawsuit, a customer, a flight to London and UK Customs but thought the better of it. No way am I going to embarass myself again.

I will say; we won the lawsuit and the UK Customs Agent and I met again, ~one month after the "incident" at LHR, and had a good laugh.
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Old Apr 11th, 2003, 10:19 AM
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Awww mj, an't you tell us just a little?? You have me so curious now

At least you won the lawsuit!
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Old Apr 11th, 2003, 10:32 AM
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mj, did this involve anything that vibrates?
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Old Apr 11th, 2003, 10:41 AM
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I am almost too embarrassed to write this down, but here goes: our family was having sushi in a Japanese restaurant in Paris, and they brought out little bowls of what appeared to me to be water. I wasn't sure but I decided they were finger bowls, and dipped my fingers in and was wiping them on my napkin when I realized it was Saki!! My kids will never let me forget that one.
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Old Apr 11th, 2003, 11:19 AM
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I was in a small grocery store in Menton, France and was doing my best to speak in French as much as I could. My High School French was quite rusty but I was making things happen.

I approached the deli and I was the only male in a group of about 10 ladies. When it was my turn I pointed to some cheese and asked for 100 grams.

Everyone burst into laughter. Finally one kind lady explained to me that I had just asked for 100 kilos or more than 200 lbs.

Now that's a lot of fromage!
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Old Apr 11th, 2003, 11:28 AM
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Message: An embarassing, yet funny moment came In 2001. I was driving with my wife and another couple from Cinque Terre to Florence. Just outside of Florence was a toll booth, so we stopped at the gate. We looked and looked and could not figure out what to do or where to put the money. Meanwhile cars are gathering behind us. A voice (in Italian, of course) booms out of the toll machine. I am sure he was telling us what to do. Unfortunately, because of our limited expertise in the Italian language, none of us could figure what he was saying. As the cars piled up behind us, and as I frantically push every button there was on the toll machine, an even more stern voice and sounding very exasperated(in Italian, of course) once again came on and explained (to no avail) what we should do. Once again, we could not understand. Finally after a few more minutes and about 30 more cars, a ticket magically appears and the gate opens. As I reach to grab it, a voice (this time in perfect English) says, in a tone I will never forget, "Take the ticket and go away!" We laughed continually for about ten minutes, and that line was used throughout our trip. It is a line that lives in infamy, and still makes us all laugh just as loudly today.
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Old Apr 11th, 2003, 11:38 AM
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Last Spring, my wife and I were in Paris. We went to a corner bakery to pick up breakfast. No one there spoke English. (My wife and I both speak a little French from college and some CDs to brush up before we went.)
We took a while to order lots of breads and pasteries, etc - the whole time getting by fine with our broken French. When we turned to leave I remember that we didn't have a knife for the butter and jams. So, I turned back to ask for one and said in French, "Oh, I need a cake for the jam" - the word for cake is gateau and the word for knife is couteau. I couldn't figure out why they just stared at me. Finally it dawned on me that I was using the wrong word, but paniced and forgot everything else I ever learned in French. Eventually through gestures they caught on.
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Old Apr 11th, 2003, 12:18 PM
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Maitaitom, lots of laughs over your story; could just picture it! Reminded me of when my husband got stuck in a turnstile at Gare du Nord in early morning rush hour(tried to put luggage thru ahead of him or something, and it did get thru, but he didn't. Last time for RER with luggage!) People were piled up "forever" behind him; I was already on the other side. We had no more metro tix, so I, hauling all my luggage, had to go find someone to unlock the thing so he could get thru. (Contrary to what we might think, the "metro people" were actually very helpful about it.)
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Old Apr 11th, 2003, 12:25 PM
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OK this is pretty bad. I had been going to school in Rome and one night my friends and I decided we really just wanted a burger after all the pasta and vino we had consumed for the previous month. So anyways, we're in McDonald's just about to chow down when I look up and comment - "Wow, check out that guy over there. He's the first fat Italian I've seen in Italy."

Lessons learned - A). No self respecting Italian would ever be caught eating in McDonald's. It was fat American.
B). Never forget if you are going to say something rude make sure to use your indoor voice.
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Old Apr 11th, 2003, 12:51 PM
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Strolling down the blvd de Capucines in Paris in front of the Le Grand Intercontinental. Opppps, I caught my foot on the sidewalk, I am falling, no I am not, I am falling, catch yourself, I am falling, make it look graceful, I am falling, no I am not, yes I am, yes I am, yes I am, hold the camera. SPLAT! SLIDE! SPLAT!I am on the sidewalk. I look up there is a lady with a little french dog, she looks frightened. I look up and say. I am fine (as If I am an actor staging a scene). I pick myself up, gather, walk. Ouch. I turn the corner i look down, TEAR! SHREAD! My pants are torn, my legs is scraped and bloody. I look up, I see the opera. How beautiful. I need photos, the boo boo will wait. I take photos. How beautiful. I see Galleries Lafayette. I want to shop, but my pants are torn, but there is s sale! I am bleeding. I want to shop. Hmmmmm.... I best go home and get the street dirt out of the wound. I buy a big bandage, a huge bandage is needed for this one. So is so antibacterial. Gross. I clean, I cover and make it better. Then i go to ta nice big souvenir shop and buy a big "PARIS" patch. When I return home I cover the hole in the pants with the patch forever remembering my fall in Paris.
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Old Apr 11th, 2003, 12:57 PM
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maitaimom...love that story!
richardab...very memorable, love it!
i'll post when i dig up an embarassing/funny story of mine. (i know i have them)
 

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