Short Funny Travel Stories from My Vacations

A little knowledge of Spanish would have helped us understand the local people better and converse with them, I realized this after a couple of incidents where we had food. Here are two short travel stories from my vacation in Spain.

Short travel story from Segovia – Traveling with kids require more planning for food than about places to see, I am sure you will agree. On day one of the trip itself I would stock myself with jam and cheese among other necessities for travel. I would buy bread along the way that would be sufficient to munch during the long drives.

In Segovia, I set out to buy bread from a very small store (which was the house of the store owner) near the hotel we halted. Try as much as I would the store owner just couldn’t understand the word ‘bread’.

I almost gave up, when it struck him to use the Google Translate in his desk top. I typed in the word BREAD – and lo… instantly he squealed ‘Pan pan’ nodding his head vigorously. I was a little worried, as Pan in my language meant Betel Leaf, wonder what he would come out with. He got me the bread! Whew! All thanks to Google Translate! We exchanged wide smiles.

Food options are plenty in Granada. The streets are lined with tavernas (small restaurants) with seating arrangements both inside and outside. Curiosity and hunger, both factors made us grab a table at one of the tavernas.

It was slightly awkward initially but then a waiter walked up and made us feel comfortable. He seemed too happy and came with a long list of dish, their specialties. Their sea food looked tempting at least in the pic they had in their menu card. Rice comes complimentary with sea food dishes we were told. Finally after a few minutes of conversation in broken English and hand signs the order was placed successfully, at least that is what I thought then.

Short Travel Stories

Taberna Divisa Blanca Granada Spain

Lunch in Taberna Divisa Blanca

Soon after the waiter left with our orders plates with toasts, chicken slices and olives arrived. We were surprised that the plates arrived even though we didn’t order it. It was just our third day in Spain and first time at a Spain’s taverna. We assumed it to be some kind of complimentary dish, and hogged it up completely – 4 hungry stomachs you see. Only when the bill came later we realized nothing comes complimentary in Spain. We shelled out good 4 euros for them. (You can refuse these we learned.)

Menu Card of Taberna Divisa Blanca

The main dish arrived accompanied by rice and some gravy dish. So much of fish and different varieties of them; I have not seen this kind of fish presentation even in Goa! Prawns, squids, sardines, basa fish all crisp and crunchy, but wait something was missing.

Short Travel Stories

Fried fish Taberna Divisa Blanca

Bread platter Taberna Divisa Blanca

SALT! They use less salt. Indians are used to little spiciness too. So mustering some courage I asked for ‘salt and pepper’. I was worried if this too would require some explaining and actions. The waiter seemed to understand in one go and came back soon with a plate of salt and pepper!

I was shocked!

The plate had fried wedges of salted potato and fried chillies! I was like: “Hello! What is this?”
Guess how much I paid for that plate of ‘salt and pepper’? Full 5 euros!!! The costliest salt and pepper I ever had in my whole life! For the rest of my trip in Spain I never dared to ask for it.

I am sure my Indian friends reading this can relate well to this Spain experience. Do you remember any of your travel stories? If yes, narrate an interesting funny travel experience of yours in the comment box.

Short Travel Stories

Salt and Pepper Taberna Divisa Blanca – Short Travel Stories

Conclusion

I am sure my Indian friends reading this can relate well to this Spain experience. Do you remember any of your travel stories? If yes, narrate an interesting funny travel experience of yours in the comment box.

Pin this for later

Did you like these short funny travel stories? Please save and share the post with your travel loving friends.

Short Funny Travel Stories

(Updated post. First written on 5th July, 2015.)

What to See in Granada Cathedral Spain
Las Ramblas Walk Barcelona - Self Guided Tour

22 Responses to “Short Funny Travel Stories from My Vacations

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.