IN THE HOTEL ROOM

NARRATOR:
Harry only wanted to spend a few days holiday with his girlfriend Julia, but since he was struck by lightning, he's been stuck in a time warp. Every morning he wakes up in his hotel room and it's April the 31st once more. Harry has been in the bathroom for over an hour. He hasn't done anything to himself, has he? Harry? Harry? Everything okay? How are you? Wie geht es dir?

HARRY:
Gut! Es geht mir gut. Perhaps I'm a bit tense. Oh well. It's not surprising when you've been through an accident in which the taxi you were riding in was written off.

NARRATOR:
You're being remarkably relaxed about your fate, I must say.

HARRY:
First: Frühstück!

IN THE BREAKFAST ROOM

HARRY:
Entschuldigung? Hallo! Hallo?

WAITRESS:
Guten Morgen! Was möchten Sie?

HARRY:
Drei Brötchen und ein Ei … and coffee!

WAITRESS:
Sie trinken einen Kaffee?

HARRY:
Ja, ja, einen Kaffee bitte! 

WAITRESS:
Gern! Und vielleicht Orangensaft?

HARRY:
Orange juice?

WAITRESS:
Trinken Sie einen Orangensaft?

HARRY:
Why not? Ja, ich trinke einen Orangensaft!

WAITRESS:
Okay, Sie möchten drei Brötchen und ein Ei. Sie trinken einen Kaffee und einen Orangensaft.

HARRY:
Ja!

WAITRESS:
Kommt sofort!

HARRY:
Why is she repeating everything?

NARRATOR:
So that you can learn the accusative. That is one of the four German cases!

HARRY:
I'm all ears – at least until breakfast arrives. You've got two minutes at the most!

NARRATOR:
Ich trinke einen Kaffee. trinken – to drink – and other certain verbs need the accusative case.

HARRY:
So what?

NARRATOR:
The article changes, Harry: ein Kaffee but: Ich trinke einen Kaffee.

HARRY:
Ich trinke einen Orangensaft.

NARRATOR:
And the good news: accusative goes only with masculine nouns – those with the article der: der Kaffee, ein Kaffee, ich trinke einen Kaffee.

HARRY:
Enough of all that! There's my breakfast!

WAITRESS:
So, hier ist das Frühstück. Der Kaffee, der Orangensaft, drei Brötchen und das Ei. Bitte schön!

HARRY:
Danke, danke! Oh! Delicious! Lecker, lecker! But you know, I really do need a map of this tourist paradise. A map?

NARRATOR:
A map of the town is Stadtplan, der Stadtplan, masculine. It's best if you learn the article at the same time. Why do you need a map anyway?

HARRY:
To get out of here! Entschuldigung! Der Stadtplan?

WAITRESS:
Ach, Sie brauchen einen Stadtplan?

HARRY:
brauchen … need? Ja, ich brauche einen Stadtplan.

WAITRESS:
Kommt sofort!

IN FRONT OF THE HOTEL

HARRY:
A substantial breakfast! A sunny day! One should always leave when things are going well. Hallo! Taxi!

NARRATOR:
Are you mad? You know precisely that he's going to drive you into that tree.

HARRY:
Not this time!

TAXI DRIVER: (DIALECT)
Hallo, guten Morgen!

HARRY:
Oh, yes. Guten Morgen!

TAXI DRIVER: (DIALECT)
Wohin möchten Sie?

HARRY:
Zum Bahnhof bitte!

TAXI DRIVER:
Okay, zum Bahnhof!

IN THE TAXI

HARRY:
I just have to find a different way to the station. A safe way! Okay, we don't want to go there … and that's where the taxi crashed … okay, okay, first straight on!

TAXI DRIVER:
Bitte? Was?

NARRATOR:
Straight on is geradeaus. You can manage that. Left is links. And right is rechts.

HARRY:
Okay, geradeaus bitte.

TAXI DRIVER:
Alles klar! Geradeaus! Und hier links!

HARRY:
Nein, nein, nein! Stop, not to the left! Nicht links!

TAXI DRIVER:
Ach, rechts?

HARRY:
Ja, ja, rechts!

TAXI DRIVER:
Aber der Bahnhof ist links. Bahnhof ist links.

HARRY:
Nein! Is he stupid or what?

NARRATOR:
He only means well.

TAXI DRIVER: (DIALECT)
Aber das ist ein Umweg. Das ist ein Umweg! Gell?

NARRATOR:
A detour!

HARRY:
I'd rather have a detour than an accident. Thank you! Bitte rechts!

TAXI DRIVER: (DIALECT)
Bitte, wie Sie wollen!

NARRATOR:
You've made it. You've just left the town. What can stop you now?

HARRY:
Tranquillity, my dear, is the key to strength. Oh no, what's up? Up ahead? Achtung!

IN THE FOREST

TAXI DRIVER: (DIALECT)
Oh nein! Was ist das? Was ist das?

HARRY:
An animal. A black and white animal with flippers! Flippers?

NARRATOR:
Poor creature. It's dead.

HARRY:
The poor creature is a penguin!

NARRATOR:
In Germany there are deer, hare and hedgehogs, but no penguins. Apart from in the zoo of course. By the way, penguin in German is der Pinguin.

HARRY:
Oh shut up!

TAXI DRIVER: (DIALECT)
Das Auto ist kaputt. Der Pinguin ist tot. Mist! Heute ist nicht mein Tag.

HARRY:
Wie bitte?

TAXI DRIVER: (DIALECT)
Das Auto ist kaputt. Der Pinguin ist tot. Heute ist nicht mein Tag.

HARRY:
Wie bitte?