Puzzled in Barcelona
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At the Barcelona airport, near the parking structure where I was waiting for a Plana bus to Tarragona yesterday (two hours on the flight; two hours waiting for a bus: sigh), is a large and prominent box of what is obviously important equipment of some kind; and it is clearly labeled as being exclusively for the use of bombers.
For a moment I was surprised at this remarkably thoughtful convenience for terrorists who had not brought their own equipment. I stared at the Catalan lettering: ÚS EXCLUSIU BOMBERS. No doubt about it. But then I realized that the world would make a lot more sense if I assumed that the Catalan bombers was cognate with (i.e., had the same late Latin ancestor word as) the French pompiers, and meant "firemen". It made more sense to have a box of equipment (or hose access or whatever it was) for firemen, adjacent as it was to a parking structure replete with several tens of thousands of liters of refined petroleum products. Basic historical phonology to the rescue; momentary puzzlement over.
(Bob Ladd reports arriving in Barcelona once during (unknown to him) a big firemen's convention. There was a huge banner up apparently welcoming bombers: "BENVINGUDA BOMBERS". He went through exactly the same stages as I did: puzzlement followed by etymological epiphany.)
[Comments only in Catalan, please, and open only to bombers.]