26 different ways to order a beer
"You can't be a real country unless you have a beer and an airline. It helps if you have some kind of a football team, or some nuclear weapons, but at the very least you need a beer." - Frank Zappa
Drinking beer is an integral part of travelling. The combination of a local beer and scenery increase the enjoyment of both immeasurably. I sometimes remember a place by the beer rather than by the name (especially hard to pronounce town names in New Zealand - here’s looking at you Waikikamukau).
Other travelling phoenomena I’ve encountered include ‘best beer in the world syndrome’ whereby the experience of the holiday is attached to the experience of the beer itself. This ultimately results in a short period of utter delight when you realise Morrisons stocks your favourite Turkish lager.
Unfortunately the average traveller Joe may fall foul of that greatest of barriers - language. Pointing, raising your eyebrows and speaking louder than normal is sometimes not the best way to enamour yourself with foreign bar staff. Luckily I now have a pint glass that lists ‘A beer, please’ in 26 languages. Created by design studio Niion, the glass makes for a pretty nifty gift. Who knew broadening your horizons could be so refreshing? Una cerveza, por favor my good man.
I've included some of the 26 different languages below to get you started. I am aware that the post is titled '26 different ways to order a beer' and that there are only 10 languages below. But if you wear a hat and order a beer using the same languages, then I count that as 'different' enough. For the last 6, why not choose your favourites from the list and hop whilst ordering. There 26 ways.
1 | Afrikaans | 'n Bier, asseblief | A beer ah-suh-bleef |
2 | Chinese | 请给我一杯啤酒 | Ching gay woh ee bay pee joh |
3 | Danish | Jeg vil gerne have en øl | Yay vil geh-neh heh en url |
4 | Finnish | Olut mulle, kiitos | O-loot moolek kee-tos |
5 | German | Ein Bier, bitte | Ine beer, bitt-uh |
6 | Japanese | ビ一ルを一本下さい | Bee-ru ip-pon ku-da-sai |
7 | Korean | 맥주 한잔 주세요 | Mayk-joo hahn-jahn joo-se-yoh |
8 | Latvian | Vienu alu, lū-dzu | Vyeh-noo ah-loo, loo dzoo |
9 | Norwegian | En øl, takk | Ehn url tahk |
10 | Spanish (Spain) | Una cerveza, por favor | Oo-na thair-veh-tha, por fa-vor |