Willkommen To The Melting Pot

I was at a scenic overlook in Hawaii with my family and noticed a group of foreign tourists attempting to take a selfie, but there were so many of them that they had trouble fitting everyone in the frame. I walked over and mimed taking a picture with a questioning look on my face, indicating that I was willing to take the picture for them. They agreed in a flurry of what I was pretty sure was German. I know a very, very little bit — so tiny it barely counts. I framed the shot and used my incredibly limited German to let them know I was ready to take the picture.

Me: “Eins, zwei, drei!”

(One, two, three!)

I took a few pictures and handed the smartphone back. The group thanked me.

Tourists: “Danke!”

This was followed by lots of rapid German.

Me: “Uh… um, no sprechen.”

They responded in confused German.

I began counting off on my fingers.

Me: “Eins, zwei, drei, vier, funf, danke shoen, bitte, ja, nein… sprechen… kaese spaetzle…”

(One, two, three, four, five, thank you, please, yes, no… speak… a type of German noodle dish.)

They all laughed at my incredibly tenuous grasp of their language. Then, they took pictures of my group in exchange, and we all went our merry ways.