Very hungry (Norwegian)
To shelter from a cold winters day on a Sunday in a small Norwegian town I and my partner had little option but to go to a fast food restaurant. Imagining that the Norwegian for 2 - to - is pronounced 'toh', so I ordered 'toh' hamburgers, fries and drinks. The cashier looked at me, behind me, scanned the restaurant and repeated 'toh'? Yes, 'toh'. She shouted out the order and the staff got busy. One hamburger appeared, then two, three, four, five ... I looked around to see if anyone else had ordered and started to panic. How much will it cost? Astronomical! I repeated 'toh', holding up two fingers. She said 'toh' and held up ten + two fingers. 'Toh' was understood to be tolv so I had ordered 12 of everything! I don't think I was very popular but they were good enough only to charge me for two in the end! The correct pronunciation of Norwegian to is more like 'too'.
Sent by: David
Comments
The word for 12 in Norwegian is tolv (with silent v)(pronounce: as in "tall". David must have mispronounced to.
Wow! I love that story, it sounds like something out of a comedy. :) I was in Norway last month, and spent a month's budget in a week, so I can imagine twelve hamburgers must be pretty expensive. :)
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