h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

whatever county Amsterdam is in

Yes the 'Dam has that effect on a lot of people

Hmm some interesting points raised.

In essesnce It is true that we Europeans do have an advantage over people in the US and Australia. We can travel a few miles or a few hundred and visit several distinct and long established cultures wuite easily and cheaply. For some southern Europeans even other continents arent far away.

I reject the idea that distance is all there is to being well travelled that is not all that's necessary for a journey. you can go on a trip without moving but enough about Amsterdam.

We can all experience ancient cultures without going anywhere and North Americans and Australians heve the opportunity to do so without much travelling if they only had more respect for their "indigenous communities" only a few survive in Europe and other developed countries and modern economic and environmental pressures are pushing them to the wall in other parts of the world too.

Im sure that Californian would feel that Massachusets was different to her home state. This I dont think really equates with travelling a shorter distance to a place where a different different environment has been shaping the language, cuisine, architecture, history in short the culture of the people there for thousands of years.

Would we as Ueropeans travell as far as Boston to Hawaii to sample anopther culture? Looking at the way Majorcca's Magaluff has been turned into Blackpool-in-the-Med I'd have to say a lot of us wouldnt.

English, been to -

Ismir
Prague
Scotland
Wales
Brittany
Majorcca
Ghent
Antwerp
Amsterdam (so they tell me)
Brussels
Is the Isle of Wight abroad

Re: post 16.

Australia is also the size of Europe, and it's a lot further from most places than either Europe or the US. We have no land borders with other countries, so foreign travel always involves the expense of air travel (unless one fancies sailing across the Tasman to New Zealand, or across Torres Strait to Papua New Guinea). Despite this, most Australians have passports, and use them - even to go to Europe, which takes at least 24 hours of flying time. (How long does a trans-Atlantic flight take?)

So, the question of why Americans don't generally go far from home may not be answered by the 'distance and expense' response in all cases. Certainly, those are factors that discourage travel, but in this case I think it might have more to do with a reluctance to leave the comfort zone and enter unfamiliar territory.

Ivan.

Australia simply doesn't have as many travel options as the US. You're a populated coastline and a desert. Not exactly a wide range of experiences, that. For the trouble of a flight from Sydney to Perth, you could just as easily go to Hawaii and get a much different experience.

I thiink anywhere where people have an accent is a cool different culture...
cheers
ford

Australia really is different. There's very little to see, once you've been in the desert, seen an Emu and heard the bush dogs howl. The USA has hot springs in Wyoming, Swamps in Florida, glaciers in Alaska, (OK, maybe that shouldnt count?) caves in Kentucky, (not to mentions horses and bluegrass music,) crawfish in Alabama, (dont laugh, it serious stuff, so they tell me,) Colorado has the best rapids in the WEstern Hemisphere, possibly the world. We have the Grand Canyon in Arizona, and shoot, I hardly know half of it. (just the things I KNOW I'm missing.) There's serious history in Massechussets and Pennsylvania, (not to mention Amish,) and one day I plan to hike the Appalachian trail.

A goal oriented person might want to finish seeing all that before checking out something farterh away.

I still plan on hitting Europe one day. If I work hard, get a full scholarship to a cheap college, and dont get married any time soon, I might just make it.

You see where the difficulty lies?

And yeah, there is a serious culture difference between New York and any of the middle states. You'd be surprised. Just like having a McDonalds in Gemany doesnt make it *just* like the USA, having the same stores doesnt make Jackson Hole, Wyoming at all like New York. (Does Jackson Hole have a McDonalds??!!)

Just to add my small bit in quickly..

English

Been to Malaysia, France, Germany, Singapore.

Speak
English fluenty, Some German, Some Malay

Americans really don't need any help in making people dislike them. In the last 2 pages:

>> whatever county Amsterdam is in << (sic)

>> Australia really is different. There's very little to see, once you've been in the desert, seen an Emu and heard the bush dogs howl <<

Way to show your knowledge of other countries, man. NOT.

RF

Right. And he is America, after all.

Way to show your knowledge of people, man. NOT.

Hey hey he's got a point!

America is a very insulated country. That doesn't necessarily mean they dont know anything of other countries or haven't been other places but as a country on whole America IS insular.

Here is a travelling background from a Swede:

Norway, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Hungary, Italy, Greece, France, Portugal, Russia, England, Japan, Mexico, USA (New York and Michigan). I omit the countries I was too young when I visited to have any trustable memories of.

I know English (fairly well), German (enough to ask the way to the hotel) and Japanese (enough to chat about the weather). Also a few phrases in Spanish and French.

well i was little when i went to amsterdam and im to lazy to get out a map!.... the american way... if you dont know something then you dont care cuz your to lazy- David Hayes 2003
cheers
ford

No, Mugwump, *they* are American. And both showing the characteristic that LeoAlpha is trying to disprove in his thesis. You know, if I was going to display that level of ignorance, this thread wouldn't be the place to pick. Kinda reinforces what he's trying to disprove, dontcha know?

RF

Do you know where Sonora is?

um... Kat, could you explain that one please? It sounds like it makes sense, but needs a bit of expounding upon.
Thankx

Actually, I always thought Australia would be a cool place to visit. When I read the post before my *ignorant insulated one* which I beleive was posted by a Brit, I thought, "Gee, its a great place to visit, but for its size its pretty much the same stuff. So While it is a VERY cool place, (note, emus, bush dogs, Kangaroos, good surfing and Boxing Day) someone who lives there would very likely be driven to distant wanderings if they wanted to see new and different things.

Why, do you have some knowledge of Aussieland that disproves this statement?

Psst Reddy Sonora is in Texas.

What I mean is that in terms of trade, views, etc etc America is very insulated. There's the American way...and that's the way no questions allowed to be asked.

However of course I can't say this for certain as I haven't lived in American for a long term to be able to know this.

Erm

Or Sonora is in Mexico, or California.....

Well, Mugwump, there may be *a* Sonora in Texas. There's also one in California. And Uruguay. And Mexico. And probably several others.

Still not sure what the point of your question was, though.

RF

Well, at least you can use Google. If I'd picked a neighbor like Baja California or Chihuahua, it would have been too obvious.

I was talking about the state of Sonora in Mexico. Now, even though I've never been there, I know where Sonora is, and a little about it. And I should... it's in my geographical back yard.

I wouldn't expect a Brit to be familiar enough with Mexico to know the various states, however.

Amsterdam is in Britain's backyard. But it's a world away from America. By assuming that everyone should know what country it's in, you're basically being egocentric, saying that anyone who doesn't know all about your particular area is an insular slob.

Do you know what state Kansas City is in?

Okay so I wasn't just being stupid when I kept thinking of different places.