While Brian and I were really feeling the burn of our hike, we crossed paths with two Austrian Gentlemen in their 60s (or older), equipped with walking sticks and looking like they were out for a morning stroll. We smiled and nodded at each other as we crossed, just a little ways before the Austrian-German border. A few feet after we crossed, one of them turned around and started speaking to us in German, to which I responded, “Isch sprecken kein deustch.” Then, he repeated what sounded like “yappa? yappa?” several times. With translation, we think the conversation might have gone like this:
Man 1 (in German): Where are you from?
Amy: I don’t speak any German…
Man 1 (in German): Japan? Japan? Are you from Japan?
Amy (has no idea what “yappa” means): Huh? Uh…
Man 2 (in English): Where you come from?
Amy: Oh!! Pinwagen! (Pinwagen is the Austrian town where our Hotel is in)
Man 1 and 2: ??? Huh?
Amy: Pinwagen!
Man 2: Hahahhaha! (bends over his walking stick in laughter)
Man 1: Korea?
Amy: OH! America!!
Man 1 and 2: Ahhhh America!
Amy and Brian: Haha, yeah!
Amy (in slow English with various hand gestures): Do you come here everyday?
Man 1 (in German and with hand gestures and breathing motions): Yes, the air is so nice up here!
Amy (also with similar hand gestures and breathing motions): Yes! It is! Very nice! (thumbs up)
Man 1 and 2 (wave good bye and go along their way).
We realized after they left that it must have been really funny when Amy responded “Pinwagen” considering how they were asking us where we came from and neither of us spoke German.
