When you first learn the German language, or when you move to Germany or Austria or Switzerland, certain expressions will cause you to pause.

One well-intentioned phrase is sure to make you giggle.

When you are about to embark on a journey, your friendly Austrian or German or Swiss neighbor will wish you “bon voyage”, or “have a nice trip” in their own special way…

The phrase is “Gute fahrt!”

Every time I hear that, this is what pops into my mind:

“Gute fahrt” simply translates as “good drive”, but it still evokes a snigger from me!

It get’s even worse when you drive on the autobahn - the famed German freeway system. When you want to exit the road, you look for an “Ausfahrt”. Of course “aus” means “out”, and the double-meaning, cross-lingual puns start forming in your head.

While we’re in Potty Humor Mode, I’ll share another one with you. This port-a-potty was spotted near a construction site on the mean streets of Munich:

Never fear, the “A” word actually means “Ace” in German. And “Miet” is related to renting. So this is “Triple AAA Port-a-potty Rentals” in English!