08 Feb Spanish language blunders: ‘Searching the supermarket’

The water is already in my mouth when I walk into the supermarket. I love avocados and everyone tells me that avocados in Latin America are 5 times bigger and 10 times tastier. So at my first lunch in Costa Rica, I had to eat an avocado and take a picture for the folks back home.

The supermarket is different from what I am used to so when I walk past the vegetables I don’t immediately see the giant avocados I am looking for. Maybe they are here somewhere else? I walk a few laps and finally decide to ask a girl who is restocking the shelves with a bored face. I just finished a Spanish course so I’m glad I can finally put my new skills into practice. ‘Estoy buscando….’ For a moment I falter. What was the Spanish word for avocados again?
‘Abogados?’ I try
The girl looks at me questioningly. ‘Que? Un abogado?”
“Si!”
She keeps looking at me questioningly. ‘Un abogado? Pero porque?”
Um, is she asking me why I want an avocado?
“Eh…porque tengo hambre?” I reply.
She raises her eyebrow and points to the stuff in the supermarket. Shit, this is not going well. I do understand that I can eat something else, but I was looking forward to an avocado.
‘Pero quiero un abogado,’ I repeat sternly.
She sighs, puts the stuff back in the cart and walks away without a word.
Is she going to get my avocado now?
A few minutes later she returns with an older man wearing different clothes than the rest of the staff. Clearly the manager. A very handsome manager by the way… Oops.
I take a deep breath. ´Estoy buscando abogados.´
´Why? Do you have a complain about our supermarket?” he asks in English. Apparently he hears that my Spanish is not of the best quality.
‘I am just looking for something but maybe you don’t have it.’
‘So what do you need?’
‘I just told your colleague!’
‘You told her you need a lawyer…’
Oh. Shit. I bang my hand against my head and suddenly a light comes on.
Avocado is aguacate in Spanish. Not abogado.
The manager now also understands what’s going on and starts laughing. ‘Aguacates, no?” he smiles and grinning I nod. ‘It’s not really the season but I do have one at home. If you come back in one hour you can eat one at my place. And don’t worry. If you don’t like it, you can always call a lawyer!’

I grin even wider. Ha, did my mistake produce some fun after all.