MetaChat - Funny culture clashes.

MetaChat is an informal place for MeFites to touch base and post, discuss and chatter about topics that may not belong on MetaFilter. Questions? Check the FAQ. Please note: This is important.

30 May 2008

Funny culture clashes. Please tell your stories inside. Oh okay, I'll start.→[More:]

So, me and the Danish SO were a fairly new item. We were comfortable speaking English as I had the states in my past and he had the UK. One night he had entered the bedroom and snuggled into bed before me as I was still getting makeup off or something, shutting off all the lights on the way through the house.

I feel my way into the bedroom, have lots of trouble getting undressed in the dark, but manage to land most of my clothes on something that seemed like a chair and then stood there in the pitch black for as second trying to figure out where the bed might be, annoyed that I still couldn't see a dang thing. So I decide to call out...

-"... Marco...?"

and he bolts up in bed and yells: "WHO!?"

I'm sure only Americans will get this

post by: dabitch at: 18:39 | 9 comments

HA!!!

...Polo!

posted by scody 30 May | 19:03

*points and does the 'invasons of the body snatchers' scream* Ameeeerrriicannn!

posted by dabitch 30 May | 19:30

oh, how funny! That's probably a tough one to explain, too.

"No, really, honey, it's customary to yell out just the first name of a Venetian explorer when you can't see where you need to go. Then the other person calls out his last name, so you can follow the voice. Usually you're in a pool, though."

posted by Stewriffic 30 May | 20:30

I asked my Haitian friend if he'd ever seen goatse and he was like "sure, I've seen goats before". So I showed him goatse and we had a laugh and a freezeframe.

posted by Hellbient 30 May | 21:13

Hee! Imagine his alarm. I love it.

Not culture clash, but just my funny language story... when we first came to Greece and visited my husband's parent's country house, I told V.'s dad that I loved the beautiful testicles (instead of poppies).

I'm still not much better

posted by taz 31 May | 00:08

My friend Debbie in middle school asked her male British exchange student if he wanted her to wash his pants, since they looked dirty. He was all, WTF, since to Brits pants is underwear.

posted by ThePinkSuperhero 31 May | 00:16

Hmmm...my German-American (mostly raised in Osnabrück) friend is also Marco and told me he had quite a bit of "Marco Polo" at school.

I never did this, but in Spanish class we were told to be SURE not to confuse años (years) with anos (anus).

posted by brujita 31 May | 00:30

Yeah, my Spanish prof put it this way: "If you say 'Tengo veinte-cinco años', you're 25 years old. If you say 'Tengo veinte-cinco anos', you're biologically special."

posted by elizard 31 May | 02:14

I was shopping with an American friend in Guildford a few years ago. She needed jeans, but didn't know her English size. "It's probably around a 16, because I have the most enormous fanny."

When the saleswoman and I were eventually able to speak after collapsing into hysterical laughter over the counter (the kind where you can barely breathe), it was pointed out to her that in the UK 'fanny' is another word for 'vagina'.

posted by essexjan 31 May | 03:53

← Mecha Poll: Worst British accent done by US actor? || Ah, Jesus, I just saw goatse. →

HOME || REGISTER || LOGIN