September 10, 2005

Tenjewberrymuds

The following is a telephone exchange between a hotel guest and room-service at a hotel in Asia, which was recorded and published in the Far East Economic Review. (You will understand what 'tenjewberrymuds' means by the end of the conversation.)

Room Service (RS): "Morrin. Roon sirbees."

Guest (G): "Sorry, I thought I dialed room-service."

RS: "Rye..Roon sirbees..morrin! Jewish to oddor sunteen??"

G: "Uh..yes..I'd like some bacon and eggs."

RS: "Ow July den?"

G: "What??"

RS: "Ow July den?...pryed, boyud, poochd?"

G: "Oh, the eggs! How do I like them? Sorry, scrambled please."

RS: "Ow July dee baykem? Crease?"

G: "Crisp will be fine."

RS: "Hokay. An Sahn toes?"

G: "What?"

RS: "An toes. July Sahn toes?"

G: "I don't think so."

RS: "No? Judo wan sahn toes??"

G: "I feel really bad about this, but I don't know what 'judo wan sahn toes means."

RS: "Toes! toes!...Why jew don juan toes? Ow bow Anglish moppin we bodder?"

G: "English muffin!! I've got it! You were saying 'Toast.' Fine. Yes, an English muffin will be fine."

RS: "We bodder?"

G: "No...just put the bodder on the side."

RS: "Wad?"

G: "I mean butter...just put it on the side."

RS: "Copy?"

G: "Excuse me?"

RS: "Copy...tea...meel?"

G: "Yes. Coffee, please, and that's all."

RS: "One Minnie. Scramah egg, crease baykem, Anglish moppin we bodder on sigh and copy....rye??"

G: "Whatever you say."

RS: "Tenjewberrymuds."

G: "You're very welcome."

Posted by George Moneo at September 10, 2005 07:53 PM

Comments

I lived in Singapore for years. Takes a little while but once you get the local style down, you don't a notice a thing and you become a full-fledged FILTH (Failed-In-London-Try-Hongkong).

That accent sounds Malay or Tagalog to me. I suppose it could be Bahasa, but you'd need a few rolling r's.

Posted by: A.M. Mora y Leon at September 10, 2005 08:50 PM

I could completely feel your confusion and frustration. That is so funny--very good accent transcription.

Posted by: dramaturge at September 10, 2005 10:05 PM

Actually that works with a Puerto Rican accent too. My dad used to recite this in broad PR with hilarious results.

Posted by: Helena Handbasket at September 12, 2005 09:20 AM

Reminds me of the time (and explains why she won't try the Anglo-Saxon tongue) my sister and I were trying to show our mother how to pronounce "mushroom," and it came out as "moosh-roh!," leading to gales of laughter as in my mind, all I could picture was some outrageous, large-headed cheap Japanese 50's-sci-fi flick monster flailing around..."Moosh-roh! Monstah of Da Dip! In Riving Teknicola!"

For a good laugh, try engrish.com

Posted by: Alberto Quiroga at September 13, 2005 07:31 AM


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