These Two Words

Staying in a foreign country for a few weeks, it's often necessary to learn some of the local language just to get around. Luckily, being a native speaker of English, I can manage to make myself understood to most people who understand basic English, but beyond that, it's a nice thing to try and learn at least a few words in the local language. Thus far I've learned only very minimal Portuguese, and I've found that with just two words it's possible to "dialogue" with someone.

The hotel we're staying in has apartment style units which we're using, and I've been using the utility sink on the balcony to wash some of my clothes by hand; mostly socks, underwear, undershirts, running shorts and the like. The problem was that there was nowhere to string a laundry line on the balcony so the clothes could dry. Given the 100°F/40°C weather, it wouldn't take long for the clothes to dry, but there's just nothing to attach a line to. The only other option would be to put stuff on hangers and hook them on the air conditioner unit, but the obvious drawback to this is, using the a/c, the unit would drip water all over your clothes--rendering that option useless.

So I was very happy to come home one day and find that the cleaning staff had put a clothes drying rack out on my balcony. The cleaning girl must have seen my clothes on hangers hooked on the shower rod (where there is a window for a slight breeze) and decided to help me out. So when she came to clean my room today I pointed to the drying rack and used one of the most important words to know in a local language: thank you, which in Portuguese is "obrigado"*. She said something back which I had to guess was the equivalent to you're welcome. Then, since she was done cleaning the room, the only thing left to say was "Ciao". Not the most sophisticated of conversations, but it got the point across.

*For women, it would be said "obrigada". For more on how to express your gratitude in Portuguese, see HERE.