The 12th century Trebbio Castle stands just across the valley from where we live. We decided one night to try out their new restaurant for dinner. It’s a beautiful setting just below the wine tasting room, where moody stone vaults wander around underground, tempting you to look around each corner and behind any open door. The atmosphere was wonderful and the food delicious, but Em’s language skills left a little to be desired. Let me explain.

It was late November and there was a definite chill in the air, so we naturally wore coats and jackets to the Castle. After dinner, we walked back out into the reception area to retrieve our wraps. A nice young man and woman had hung them somewhere in the mysterious stone room behind the counter. They brought out everything except Em’s blue vest. Realizing they forgot one, the young man went back to retrieve it, only to return again without the vest. Em decided that a description was in order, to help him locate the missing vest. He said, “il mio cappotto è senza gambi.” Whoops! Laughter broke out immediately among the staff and those of us waiting to see what would happen next. Unfortunately, despite his best intentions, what he said was, “my coat is the one without legs.” What he meant to say was, “senza maniche,” which would be without sleeves. Oh well—Legs, arms, sleeves. What’s the difference? Though Em grimaced with his unfortunate word choice, it provided a wonderful humorous diversion for everyone else. We joked with him about it all the way home in the car, and still bring it up to this day whenever we want to have some fun at Em’s expense and need a little predictable chuckle.