It has a nice bouquet, with notes of cod

By Dolores (Loie) Maminski
This item appears on page 25 of the February 2021 issue.

This month’s winner is DOLORES (LOIE) MAMINSKI of Westminster, Maryland:

Years ago, on a trip to Italy with friends and their young son, we chose a small restaurant in Naples for supper.

Our friend had noticed in another restaurant diners being served a carafe of white wine with a peach inside, and she wanted to order it for our meal. She inquired in her newly acquired version of Italian if we could have a carafe of wine with a peach.

The server looked mildly puzzled but soon returned holding in one hand a carafe of white wine and in the other hand a fish by the tail. He had a small smile on his face.

We guessed he was accustomed to tourists practicing the local language without realizing the Italian words for peach (pesca) and fish (pesce) sound quite similar, but, being a professional, he wanted to make sure a fish in wine was not our choice.

Or maybe he was just having some fun with Americans!


Tell us about something humorous that happened to you while traveling outside the United States. There are no restrictions on length. ITN staff will choose each month’s winner, who will receive a free one-year subscription to ITN. Include your full mailing address. Entries not chosen cannot be acknowledged.