Ordering breakfast in a foreign language is a humbling rite of passage for any expat. You think you’re ready — until you’re face to face with a waitress, a menu you can’t read, and a deep yearning for coffee and clarity. This is the story of one such morning.
I just went to have coffee and breakfast. After ordering my yogurt and fruit, the waitress comes back to my table with a jar of yogurt (the brand I like!) and starts talking to me in Spanish.
I only understand a little. She was pointing to the expiration date and said “Junio” which is June. It was May, albeit the end of May.
She also said something about casa (house) and llevar (take away). I finally understood that she was saying I could take it home. Yay me! At least I could understand something.
There was more of the “conversation” (it was more of a monologue than a dialogue) that I didn’t quite understand. But it’s always an adventure to see what you just agreed to that you didn’t understand.
Anyway, what came out was a HUGE breakfast. A 500 ml jar of yogurt, and I could take home whatever I didn’t eat. I also thought I was ordering a side (read: ‘small’ like the yogurt bowl) of fruit.
What I got instead was an enormous bowl of cut up fruit! Not a complaint – just a delightful surprise.
Then there was the time I asked the Uber driver why there were Paraguayan flags all over the city. He proceeded to tell me what each color of the flag represents.
I found it interesting that he knew that. But I wanted to know what was going on. Turns out it was Independence Day.
I’ve been thinking about that morning ever since — how I stumbled through the words, misunderstood nearly everything, and still ended up with a generous breakfast, a yogurt jar to take home, and a warm connection with another human being.
Moments like these are my reminders that language isn’t just vocabulary. It’s about showing up unsure, trusting that kindness will fill in the gaps, and being okay with the awkward, human mess of it all. There’s something oddly comforting in that.
This breakfast reminded me how much beauty there is in the unfamiliar. If you’re wondering whether a move abroad could be part of your next chapter, this free guide might help you sort through the questions.