Numero Uno o Numero Dos?
Leo and I took the van to have some work done.
One of the “perks” of being a leader on the Mexico trip is that sometimes you just “have to” run errands and get things done - while others are working.
So you get the team going and you grab the van and head to the “Mechanico.”
This time there just happened to be an awesome place to get some shrimp tostadas.
It was looking very “tropical” with a thatched roof and stools pulled up around tall round tables.
We ordered up our tostadas and bought some “Ice-cold Cokes.”
We were reminiscing about past trips, haps and mishaps, the time we ran out of gas, the time we had the flat tire,
all the times we got stuck in the mud, the one time when we didn’t get stuck in the mud . . .
We were feeling pretty fortunate, even a bit privileged, sitting at our stools, satisfied with our meal, sipping our sodas.
It was about time to go back to the mechanic’s shop and check up on the van. Just one last thing -
“Donde esta El Bano?”
For those of you who haven’t spent much time south of the border, this has got to be one of the most useful phrases in the Spanish language, a must for the serious tourist.
Loosely translated it means, “I gotta use the potty!”
And even if your comprehension isn’t so good, the combination of facial expression, pointing and gesturing, along with other context clues will be enough to unravel the mystery:
Do they have a bathroom? Is it in working order? How far away is it? Which way do I go? and, if you’re lucky, Should I bring my own T.P.?
Leo and I, being experienced travelers, have used this phrase often, with quite favorable results.
We’re so proud of our skills we even offer to help the new kids out by asking this all-important question and interpreting the response.
The one thing we didn’t expect that day at the Tostada stand was for our question to be met with a question.
The restaurant proprietor smiled real big, and holding up his fingers inquired,
“Numero uno o numero dos?”
I was confused. We had already ordered. We had already eaten. Was he offering us a combination plate? The daily special? Take-out?
It finally dawned on me what he was asking, though I still had no idea why he wanted to know.
Never mind the “Bring-your-own-toilet-paper?” question.
He could sidestep that once he narrowed down just how we wanted to use the facility.
But Leo, being just ahead of me on the uptake, was already answering,
“Numero uno! Solamente numero uno.”
(Leo’s spanish is just short of excellent.)
With a pleased smile and some light laughter our host was now leading us around a corner and pointing down an alley to a chain-link fence about ten yards away.
Having once been boys, we knew what to do.
As we stood side by side peeing through the fence, we laughed as we came up with various speculations about what would have happened if we needed “Numero Dos.”
“Down the street, second door on your right.”
“Excuse us, we’re here to use the Bano.”
“We gotta go ‘numero dos’”
“Yeah, we brought our own paper.”
It doesn’t take much to get me and Leo laughing, and we had soon worked out a scenario where we got the wrong door looking for the bathroom, and walked in on some unsuspecting family.
LOL ROTFL Almost busted a gut on that one. Just another day in the "Adventures in Mexico" notebook.
Leo and I took the van to have some work done.
One of the “perks” of being a leader on the Mexico trip is that sometimes you just “have to” run errands and get things done - while others are working.
So you get the team going and you grab the van and head to the “Mechanico.”
This time there just happened to be an awesome place to get some shrimp tostadas.
It was looking very “tropical” with a thatched roof and stools pulled up around tall round tables.
We ordered up our tostadas and bought some “Ice-cold Cokes.”
We were reminiscing about past trips, haps and mishaps, the time we ran out of gas, the time we had the flat tire,
all the times we got stuck in the mud, the one time when we didn’t get stuck in the mud . . .
We were feeling pretty fortunate, even a bit privileged, sitting at our stools, satisfied with our meal, sipping our sodas.
It was about time to go back to the mechanic’s shop and check up on the van. Just one last thing -
“Donde esta El Bano?”
For those of you who haven’t spent much time south of the border, this has got to be one of the most useful phrases in the Spanish language, a must for the serious tourist.
Loosely translated it means, “I gotta use the potty!”
And even if your comprehension isn’t so good, the combination of facial expression, pointing and gesturing, along with other context clues will be enough to unravel the mystery:
Do they have a bathroom? Is it in working order? How far away is it? Which way do I go? and, if you’re lucky, Should I bring my own T.P.?
Leo and I, being experienced travelers, have used this phrase often, with quite favorable results.
We’re so proud of our skills we even offer to help the new kids out by asking this all-important question and interpreting the response.
The one thing we didn’t expect that day at the Tostada stand was for our question to be met with a question.
The restaurant proprietor smiled real big, and holding up his fingers inquired,
“Numero uno o numero dos?”
I was confused. We had already ordered. We had already eaten. Was he offering us a combination plate? The daily special? Take-out?
It finally dawned on me what he was asking, though I still had no idea why he wanted to know.
Never mind the “Bring-your-own-toilet-paper?” question.
He could sidestep that once he narrowed down just how we wanted to use the facility.
But Leo, being just ahead of me on the uptake, was already answering,
“Numero uno! Solamente numero uno.”
(Leo’s spanish is just short of excellent.)
With a pleased smile and some light laughter our host was now leading us around a corner and pointing down an alley to a chain-link fence about ten yards away.
Having once been boys, we knew what to do.
As we stood side by side peeing through the fence, we laughed as we came up with various speculations about what would have happened if we needed “Numero Dos.”
“Down the street, second door on your right.”
“Excuse us, we’re here to use the Bano.”
“We gotta go ‘numero dos’”
“Yeah, we brought our own paper.”
It doesn’t take much to get me and Leo laughing, and we had soon worked out a scenario where we got the wrong door looking for the bathroom, and walked in on some unsuspecting family.
LOL ROTFL Almost busted a gut on that one. Just another day in the "Adventures in Mexico" notebook.
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