Nobody knows where anything is...

[swamprat69er]

It is really surprising how many Americans don't know much about their next door neighbour. I am not talking about Mexico here.

[mapuc]

This story is from the end of the 80'ies. Our Swedish king and the Queen was on a official visit to USA. One of the Swedish reporter toke a tour in a little town outside Washington(if I do remember it correctly)

He came to one of these famous road restaurant and there he asked people if they knew something about Sweden. It was this guy who tried to make everyone else quiet 'cause he surely knew a lot of Sweden and where this country could be found on the map.

Sweden was...one of the small island north of Japan, according to this person. I guess many Swedish people got a good laugh when they heard and saw this on the news.

Markus

[Oberon]

Originally Posted by Betonov

Bosnia and Herzegovina is the one without a number and 5 is Montenegro

And what's Latvia here is actually a part of Russia.

I checked a map after posting this and noticed the mix-up, but I must admit I was quite surprised and pleased that I got most of the Balkans right, even if the only reason I managed to remember where Slovenia is was because of your comment on my Vicky II AAR the other week...

In regards to that bit of Russia, that is a very confused piece of geographical border arranging, but I have heard it mentioned before, I just never knew exactly where it was, I thought it was more towards Belarus, I know that some of the 'Make the Bear Angry again' (TM) future history writers like to use that bit as a flashpoint for Russian actions in the Baltics.
At least I put Lithuania in the right place, I would have been rather ashamed if I hadn't...although I nearly put it in Belarus until I remembered the existence of Belarus.

[Betonov]

The map is outdated, Kosovo broke of from Serbia, located somewhere between Serbia and Albania without coastline

[Herr-Berbunch]

Originally Posted by Betonov

The map is outdated, Kosovo broke of from Serbia, located somewhere between Serbia and Albania without coastline

And Macedonia.

And Serbia still doesn't recognise Kosovo as 'independent', although my knowledge of the area is waning so things could have changed, and lets face it you're more likely to know than me. (How's that for either racism or stereotyping? Just because you're closer and more Balkanised than I. )

[Ducimus]

Thanks for the laugh, it was fun to look at geographical knowledge on both sides of the pond. We both suck!

Originally Posted by swamprat69er

It is really surprising how many Americans don't know much about their next door neighbour. I am not talking about Mexico here.

I think your right. I'd hazard the assumption that most of us know very little about Canada except it's the land of snow, french accents, red maple leaf's, and "Eh?"

I do remember when i was in Jr High, I had a geography teacher that for some reason, was burning it into our brains what was beyond our northern border, to such a degree we were reciting the names of different provinces in a little chant. Looking back,I think she was a Canadian ex patriot who moved to the US for one reason or another because, no other teacher i encountered ever took that much interest in Canada. Not in Jr high, high school, nor in college. It really is the country our education system glosses over aside from historical references that intersect our own history.

[TarJak]

Originally Posted by Neal Stevens

Lol, # 2 is awesome.

So, at the next Subsim Convention we will have a geography faceoff contest, between the Americans and the Europeans... we'll settle this for once and all.

The Great Subsim Geography Quiz!

Fight!

[Herr-Berbunch]

Originally Posted by TarJak

The Great Subsim Geography Quiz!

Fight!

Good job it's between Europeans and Americans, you Aussies only know the cells on either side of yours.

[Betonov]

Serbia will never recognize Kosovo. And why should they.
But they have only themselves to blame. Albanians moved to Kosovo in waves and slowly became a majority and the Serbs reacted with violence and nationalism and made the Albanians the victims.

If it weren't for Milosevich and Tudjman, Yugoslavia would slowly fall apart peacefully into a loose confederacy, not unlike the EU. And slowly joined the EU piece by piece.


You think you know the Balkans ?? You merely served in the Balkans.
I was born in it, molded by it. I didn't see the rest of the world until I was already a man.

[TarJak]

I don't even know my own let alone my neighbours.

[Peter Cremer]

I saw a short piece on TV recently about a survey somebody did. They said they were shocked to find out that 70% of Americans under the age of 40 did not know that the Earth revolves around the Sun. About the same number could not find their own state on a map. Also, when asked which countries border the U.S., the number one answer was China. Morons!!

[Herr-Berbunch]

Originally Posted by Betonov

You think you know the Balkans ?? You merely served in the Balkans.
I was born in it, molded by it. I didn't see the rest of the world until I was already a man.

Nah, what I know is barely a scratch on the surface of graphene. All I can remember is that it's been a battleground on and off for hundreds of years and not likely to cease being so in the future.

My point was why should we assume you are any more enlightened to Kosovo just because you're in the Balkans? You're about 500 miles (rough guess?) away, and that's like me knowing all about the French, or the Belgians . . . which I don't, other than their stereotypes.

[Betonov]

Because I work in a company that employes Bosnians, Serbs, Macedonians, Albanians and Montenegrans. Plus a few Bulgarians and Romanians.

Info from all sides comes to me

[Herr-Berbunch]

All fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth columnists, just waiting for the day.

[swamprat69er]

Originally Posted by Ducimus

Thanks for the laugh, it was fun to look at geographical knowledge on both sides of the pond. We both suck!




I think your right. I'd hazard the assumption that most of us know very little about Canada except it's the land of snow, french accents, red maple leaf's, and "Eh?"

I do remember when i was in Jr High, I had a geography teacher that for some reason, was burning it into our brains what was beyond our northern border, to such a degree we were reciting the names of different provinces in a little chant. Looking back,I think she was a Canadian ex patriot who moved to the US for one reason or another because, no other teacher i encountered ever took that much interest in Canada. Not in Jr high, high school, nor in college. It really is the country our education system glosses over aside from historical references that intersect our own history.

Back in the day, Canadian teachers didn't make as much as US teachers and that may have been the reason she moved. My 89 year old cousin just retired (2010) from teaching University in New York. She holds a doctorate in English.

In 1985 when I trrucked down south, I was in a truck stop in GA. The waitress found out I was a Canadian and asked me how we got around in the snow so easily. I told her that most mornings I would have to kick the penguins off my doorstep to get to my truck.