Let’s say you are in Italy in a delightful little gelateria ordering some gelato. You would begin your request by saying per favore (please), and once you got your hands on the gelato you would say grazie (thank you). The employee would happily throw you a prego to say “you’re welcome.”
Or perhaps you are in France ordering some croissants at a boulangerie. Here, you would again begin your request with a s’il vous plaît (please). With the buttery croissant in your hand, you would probably tell the worker merci or merci beaucoup (thank you, and thank you very much). Following that of course is de rien (you’re welcome). Rien means “nothing,” so in essence you are saying “no problem” or “no need to thank.”
Now put yourself in Germany. You are ordering some delicious bratwursts from a bratwurststand (yes, they are really called this), and you would begin by telling the vendor bitte (please). On receiving a mustard-laced bratwurst, you would tell him danke (thank you), and he would reply back gern geschehen (you’re welcome). This latter phrase takes a bit of practice in the pronunciation department!
I’m sure you have noticed that many of these phrases were already familiar to you. What other phrases have you found useful while traveling?