Did you say Brrr or Purrrr?

When spelling things in another language, it can be easy to confuse your p's and b's. But sometimes it can be easy when speaking in your native tongue as well.

Today Aunt Jan and I were walking around Piazza Navona, looking for the perfect place to have a truly Roman dinner. I saw a "menu turistico" that offered bruschetta, an entree, and a drink for 15 euros. The same menu also listed a special of the day that was a Roman pork called pruschetta, or something of the like, for the exact same price. (I don't know exactly how to spell it; I didn't actually see it. That was all Aunt Jan.)

I heard Aunt Jan say, "Ohhh, great deal. I want bruschetta; let's get this." Surprised by her enthusiasm for a mere appetizer, I followed suit. I do love a good bruschetta, so why not? We sat down, and we both ordered bruschetta, salad, and wine. At least that what's I thought. 

We both enjoyed our initial bruschetta. When the salads came out, Aunt Jan commented, "Wow, these are huge." I personally thought they were on the smaller side. Slightly confused, I started munching on my lettuce. Halfway through Aunt Jan put down her fork and stopped eating. I was surprised she filled up so quickly, but I continued to devour the rest of my salad. When the waiter asked if she liked the salad, she responded, "Of course! It was just too much food."

I was feeling a little bit like a glutton as we sat around for the next twenty minutes chatting and soaking up the atmosphere. How was she so full, when I could honestly go for a dessert or two still? When I asked if I should ask for a dessert menu, Aunt Jan responded, "I don't know, we still haven't gotten our meal yet."

Turns out she was waiting for a pork course, which wasn't actually coming. She thought she ordered "pruschetta," salad, and wine, while I was convinced we both ordered bruschetta. Confusion all around -- between us, the waiter, everyone. 

Ooooops. We decided to resolve the situation by ordered a chocolate molten cake and vowing to spell all plates we order in future Italian meal endeavors. Tomorrow my goal is to find us some seriously good "pruchetta" to make up for the loss tonight. 

I guess this explains why my mom always explains on the phone that our last name is D-like-dog, o, l, b-like-boy, o, w.