Actually the store clerk was italian (or at least from Ticino, swizerland’s “italian” province):
La commessa era italiana, non sapeva bene la lingua
(My translation would be “The clerk was italian, and didn’t know the language that well”)
and as stated multiple times above, in Swizerland they speak multiple languages:
- Swiss German
- Italian
- French
- Rumantsch (one of the few still spoken Rhaeto-Romance languages)
Most people in Switzerland speak at least two of those languages (often also three), and nearly all of them speak English too.
BTW, I’m always stunned by how many people believe that the clerk did this to “spite Oprah” because she’s black: no one considers that the clerk probably didn’t recognize Oprah, as she’s not that known around here. Probably the clerk just saw an arrogant customer like many others.
(I personally live a few km from the swiss border, and my native language is ladin, which too is a Rhaeto-Romance language)
