Oh, boy, the mistakes we make learning another language!
You're right, self-deprecating humor is the best medicine for any *faux pas*.
Here I have run into several posts that have been google-translated and soem passages can be really hilarious. I usually make the suggestion, but some people do not even bother to read comments or just ignore them.

There is an old joke in spanish of this guy from a rural town who makes a lot of money and decides he wants to go to America, enjoy the good life, at least for a while. He knows nothing about linguistic differences, he asumes money can also buy that.

So, he packs 7 suitcases and decides to go to *niu yor* (New York ).
When he gets to the airport, he wisely followed the river of people to the bagage claim section where he finds out there is one suitcase missing.

So, he stops someone who looks like an airport clerk or something and bluntly tells him:
*Discurpa, mi hermano, me falta una maleta* ('cuse me, brother. there is one suitcase missing)
**Clerk**: What's the matter? (/mara/)
*No, no eran unas maras; eran unas maletas*. (No, they were not *maras*, they were suitcase)<sub>mara being a container made of wood</sub>
**Clerk**: What do you say? <sub>(say, sounds like *seis*= six)</sub>
*No, no eran 6; eran 7 maletas.* (no, there weren't 6, there were 7 suitcases)
**Clerk**: I don't understand! <sub>understand sounds like ...*donde están*= where they are</sub>
*Ah, ¿tú no sabes dónde están? ¿quién carajo sabe, pues?* (you don't know where they are, who the hell knows, then?)
...