Back in Norway three weeks ago, Kattina was asking me to teach her Norwegian. At the same time, I was trying to school her in the finer points of Norwegian cuisine.
Take the hot dog, for example. Norwegians have taken hot dogs to a much higher standard than we have in America. To be specific, Norwegians have created hot dogs that are actually safe to consume.
You can order your hot dog (“pølse”) one of two ways in Norway –- in a bun (“i brød”) or wrapped in a “lompe” –- Norway’s potato-based answer to the tortilla. Americans often refer to the lompe as “lefse.” A lompe is one of several varieties of lefse.
On the early part of our train/bus journey to Bergen, we were seized with the munchies. We made our way to the dining car.
“How do I ask for a hot dog in lefse?” Kattina asked me.
“En pølse i lompe,” I translated.
”En pølse i rompe?” she tried to repeat.
At that point, I fell out of my chair in an intense giggling fit. “Ummm... not rompe,” I said. “Lompe.”
“Why are you laughing?” she asked.
“Rompe means your butt.”
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