Afternoon lay, humid and heavy, on the harbour. Dogs slept in the quayside shadows, and even the air seemed to pant moistly.
I wanted to escape and, suddenly, buying a boat seemed like a good idea. I dialled the number on the “For Sale” sign.
“Oui?”
“Je voudrais.” I began fluently, “um … vendre”. No, that was sell, not buy. Already, events had taken the wrong path.
Cutting the line, I collapsed into the wobbly metal chair.
“Café, s’il vous plait,” I instructed the waiter, one of the few fluent phrases I commanded.
.
Friday fictioneers is a weekly challenge set by Rochelle Wisoff Fields to write a 100-word story in response to a photo prompt. You can find other stories here
Neil MacDonald Author 
Rire.
Next time you’re passing, Neil, you can treat me to un café!
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Avec plaisir
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Buy or Sell?
Correct word needed for the deal to be made!
Truly moody gentleman with loads of cash. Can decide whether to buy boat or not within a few seconds 🙂
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Unable to buy boat because though he has cash, he lacks vocabulary
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Dear Neil,
Oh that pesky language barrier. I raise my coffee cup to you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Salut
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Ha ha – that so reminds me of the early days when we bought a house in France. I started every conversation with: désolé mais je parle très peu français (I’m sorry, but I speak very little French. 🙂
Susan A Eames at
Travel, Fiction and Photos
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There is no country I’ve been to where I haven’t learned the words for “coffee” and “beer”. But “I’d like to buy your boat” has never come up
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I agree we tend to try our best in foreign languages and learn all the necessary phrases. But, outside that immediate range we go into a bubbly bleep. I revert to asking if they speak English. The Germans say – yes. The French laugh and say Non, and then we get along fine.
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The French only say “non” when there’s no prospect of you giving them money
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Ah! The international oil for communication.
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Ah language… hard enough in English without another layer.
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Tower of Babel
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To have a command of imperatives, c’est si bon!
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Mais oui
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Freedom is the recognition of necessity
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“Panting moistly”–perfectly creates the picture of miserable heat and humidity. Great little story 🙂
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Thanks so much, Linda
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Neil, I totally sympathize with this hapless soul.
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He should have paid more attetion in class
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I wanted to do something with translation issues, but the story didn’t come. You did it très bien.
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Merci beaucoup
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Nice one, Neil! Fluent and tres amusant. Enjoy the coffee!
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Just a bit of fun
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Sounds like he’s feeling a little déconcerté (discombobulated.) Hope he feels better soon.
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He’s a philosophical sort. He’ll be fine
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Probably a good idea to settle for a coffee instead of a boat…
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He’s easily distracted
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On a day like that I’d have gone for une tasse du vin!
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Now that would be a useful word for him to have remembered
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That may be one of his better decisions. I can speak from experience when I say a boat is a hole in the water into which you pour most of your money.
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Especially since he thinks the French for boat is oiseau
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The one phrase I remember from living in France was similar to yours – bière s’il vous plaît!
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That’s an essential phrase in any country I’ve ever visited
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Oh dear, negotiating in another language seems dangerous. I think I’d prefer the cafe too
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He made the pragmatic choice
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it’s understandable. i get to the same language predicament sometimes. 🙂
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Thanks
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Use of another language is more of a challenge on the phone because you can’t do the supporting gestures. Sadly, it seems his limitations are only just dawning on him. Lovely descriptions of a sultry energy-sapping afternoon.
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Thanks so much jilly
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His dream is punctured so quickly, oh dear !
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But he adapts weĺl
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I got a chuckle out of this one for sure! This is me after one semester and a half studying here in France, now locked away in my flat. But, I can order a café. Gotta learn the important phrases first!
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Priorities are important
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Ah the challenges of a different language. Years ago my mother once asked the cook to get a kilo of meat and he returned with a kilo of salt. Turned out ‘meath’ meant salt in his language.
Tres magnifique un flash, oh alright, nice one Neil.
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Thanks so much
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