by Robert Kunkle (Garner, NC)We had an instance of communication dissonance our first day in Cagli. Still searching to replace the cloths from our lost luggage, we found ourselves in a woman’s clothing boutique. Donna found a pair of slacks she thought might fit, but given the high price tag, thought it best to first try them on since we were somewhat unsure how to convert from US to European sizes. When she attempted to request to try the slacks on our request was misconstrued and the request was denied. This was puzzling to us since we could see the fitting rooms. We decided not to further argue the point and decided instead to try other stores. Once we exhausted our other options we decided to look up “May I try this on” in the Italian phrase book and return to the store. Our request was immediately met with a “Si” and we understood our original request was misunderstood as a request to return the item should it not fit.
