German and English are related languages and share quite a few common or very similar vocabularies. But there are always a few of those look-alikes out there to trick you! When I went to the Departmental Retreat back in March, everyone drank something called ‘ Helles ’. It sounded rather hellish to me and I asked why they wanted to drink hell! With time and after reading enough rental advertisements, it finally dawned on me that the German word ‘hell’ is an adjective meaning ‘bright, clear’. So a Helles is in fact a clear beer (as opposed to other types of beer that contain some sediments and thus appear opaque). Rental advertisements always like to say that there is a ‘ hell ’ living room – now you know it’s a good thing! Something that’s commonly found in German homes is a ‘ Bad ’. Would you have guessed that the English equivalent is ‘Bath’! The German ‘Bad’ can mean a bath or a bath tub, and is found in the names of many small towns where one can enjoy some public bathing. A famou...