Hola, Honey!

While walking around Mexico City one evening with a Mexican friend, I was surprised to learn that saying “hola” while greeting people could have some hidden meanings beyond just “hello.”  My friend recommended that I instead say “buenas noches” or “buenos dias” because the locals might otherwise assume that I’m trying to insinuate that I’m interested in dating them by just saying “hola.”

Do you have a funny language story with an underlying meaning?