I witness this interaction as I’m in line to order from a fast food restaurant at a local theme park. A customer pushes his way to the counter, bypassing the line.

Customer: “Excuse me, I just need a side tray.”

Worker: “A side tray?”

Customer: “Yeah, I need a side tray. Can I get one?”

The worker offers him a large plastic tray, the type you’d put a whole order on. 

Customer: “No! I need a side tray. A siiiiide traaaaaaay.”

The worker offers him a disposable plate with a questioning look on her face.

Customer: “A. Side. Tray. I need a side tray.”

Worker: “I’m not sure what that is, sir.”

The worker looks around her workspace and offers him a clam-shell takeout box.

Customer: “No, I need a side tray! Jeez, how many different words do I need to use to get you to understand what I want?!”

He grabbed the takeout box and stormed off, still muttering to his friend about the “side tray.” By the confusion on the faces of all of the other customers in line, I’m guessing he should have used more than just two words to describe this mysterious thing he wanted!

I work for a photography company that sells souvenir photos at a small amusement park. We offer a digital download option.

Guest: “I don’t understand this digital download thing I bought yesterday.”

Me: “Oh, I’m sorry. They should have explained it at the time of purchase.”

Guest: “They kept saying I could print as many as I want. I just don’t understand how I’m supposed to do that.”

Me: “Well, if you still have your receipt, you’ll find our website and your ID code at the bottom. You just go to the website, type in your code, and download it to your computer from there.”

Guest: “Oh, it’s a download?”

Me: “Yes, sir. The digital download is a download.”

Guest: “Oh, they didn’t tell me.”

I am from England, and a friend and I have travelled to Florida for the first time. We’ve been to several theme parks at this point, I think about five days into our holiday. We are at a theme park with various countries set around a lake.

We’re in the queue to meet one of my all-time favourite characters, this one based in the “Germany” pavilion. We’re talking to pass the time, and naturally, people queuing with us hear our accents.

Lady: “Oh, we love your accent; where are you from?”

Me: “England.”

We start talking about England. I am about to explain that we come from an area about ninety minutes or so from London when I get asked this gem.

Lady: “How far away is Rome?”

I blinked at first, slightly confused, as we’d been talking about England. It turned out this person was serious and assumed Rome was somehow in England, and they were shocked when I said you needed to fly there as it was another country.

I politely told the lady to take the time to look at a map of Europe as a whole. I didn’t have time to show them myself. I’m not sure they ever did. I do often wonder why some people seem so unaware of the world outside the USA; I’ve read stories on here, but I still find it baffling.

I work as a caricature artist at a theme park, and though we get the occasional rejection, this one always confuses me. I have just drawn the basic outline of a girl’s face.

Mother: “It doesn’t look like her.”

Me: “I… but… what?”

I’m at a large animal-themed amusement park. I’m near a structure of wooden poles and suspended ropes with monkeys living on it when I happen to overhear a small boy talking to his mother, who’s totally absorbed in her phone.

Boy: *Pointing at monkeys* “Mommy, look! N*****s!”

Mom: “Huh? What was that?”

Boy: “N*****s!”

Mom: *Glances up* “Oh. That’s nice, sweetie.” 

She immediately resumed playing on her phone.

I was far too shocked to even speak up.