When I made my first dialect survey I was still a freshman and our task was to make a dialect map. Because our professor wanted to make it more challenging we were not allowed to use pictures.
My word was chicken. My description skills were not the best so I quickly decided to just mimick the chicken's movements and sounds.
I asked the first people I met in the Souk and was intrigued because every person I asked told me another word. When I decided to ask even more people around the marketplace I heard even more different words.
Can you believe it? I was talking to all these people and doing the chicken dance! I can't believe I did something so ridiculous!
Only after I decided to take a break I realized that all those people were just making up words when I overheard them making fun of me!
I learned my lesson: a chicken is a chicken no matter where you go. Oh, and I also don't mimick things anymore!
Story and profile by me.