What's the Dumbest Thing an American Has Ever Said to You (American Reaction) | Part 4
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- Опубліковано 27 січ 2024
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As an American I am well aware of how ignorant we are of other countries and their culture. Today I am back to once again to cringe at some of the dumbest things Americans have ever said to other people. If you enjoyed the video feel free to leave a comment, like, or subscribe for more!
I was a police officer in London. . London tour buses have flags on the side to indicate the commentary laungages avaliable. A US tourist asked me when the tour bus with English commentary would arrive. I told them they all have English commentary They said none were displaying the US flag to indicate English. I informed them that they all displayed the British flag. But apparently that was no help as they don't speak British
Check out diffrent languages ASMR videos.
All the Americans use the American flag to represent English 😂
Tbf they're correct. It's the incorrect flag.
🏴 not 🇬🇧
@@101steel4Not disagreeing there, but getting THAT would require an even more in-depth geographical knowledge than they... already don't have. 😂
St George's cross?
@@tiffanynelson1879 they displayed the British flag not the English Flag.
Americans who think that just because their great great great grandad's dog was from Ireland that THEY are Irish !!
Lmfao!!!
Maybe he was a setter 😉
Lol! My great great grandad was Scottish too, know what that makes me? English.
@@mskatonic7240
My late Grandad was born and raised in County Mayo, in Ireland in 1894, but moved to Scotland prior to WWI to join the Black Watch - as he wouldn't fight with the English.
My Nan was a Londoner but they had my Mum in Scotland🏴 in 1917 (& she was 6years old when she attended their Wedding!!)
...but _I'm_ English, & Mum was basically English too - and she loved _Suffolk_, where she was raised by her maternal Aunt, until she was 14. Then, when her Mum, (my Nan) brought her back to London to go and get a job - in catering - just to bring more money into the household, she hated living in London - however, I was born and raised here in SE.London. 🏴🇬🇧♥️🖖
Bro, I could show you the conversation. Someone just said that on Twitter to me that their great grandfather was Scottish so they’re basically Scottish…🤣🤷🏻♂️🏴
Asking a question from curiosity is not the problem - it's when you don't accept the answer that's the problem!
they are taught that admitting mistakes is a "weakness" so they never admit they were wrong. It's psychopathic behaviour.
🇵🇹👍🏻
I disagree, some questions do not warrant an answer just because someone is curious, such as transphobes asking someone who's transitioned 'what's in their pants?' or homophobes asking 'who takes it up the butt when they're having sex with their partner?'. Curiosity is not a reason to ask personal questions.
@@papalaz4444244 And the strange thing is that a person who admit mistakes seems stronger in other peoples eyes.
nah
I’m Italian but now live in England. I was once in a restaurant (in England) and the American waitress tried to correct my pronunciation of ‘bruschetta’ (in Italy, a ch is a K) .. she argued with me for about 5 mins telling me that as an English person, I shouldn’t have an opinion on how an American word is pronounced! I had to just laugh at her 😂
I had an American waiter correct me. On front of a load of Americans. They still mock me about it, even though I pronounced it right.
@@deebee192 Peak american.
Had nearly the same experience, but with table neighbors in a Franco Italian restaurant that my friends wanted to go to.
I'm French and the lady next to me "corrected" my way of pronouncing French words even though she was totally unable to pronounce the U or much of the French specific sounds.
She was adamant about her butchering of the French pronunciation, doubling down every time and taking offense...
I had to show her my passport and even then she waa convinced that I was messing with her about the pronunciation.
Maybe she spent an afternoon in a Starbucks full of international tourists on the border of Quebec or something like that, hearing anything BUT true French pronunciation.
Her way of saying French words was even worse than the average monolingual American.
She also kept insisting on saying that we say "sacrebleu" like a comma, which is a common misconception.
No one in France says sacrebleu to swear, except if they want to sound medieval...
It's a swear word related to royalty and which was dropped from the common language since the 18th century around the time of the revolution if I recall correctly.
One thing's for sure, I've only really heard "sacrebleu" in movies with knights, kings, swords and castles...
I'm french, I'll always remember my outraged father by the waiter of an italian restaurant who prononced "Chianti" wrong. It seems this waiter didn't know about de "K" pronouncation either. 😂
That's pure comedy gold!😂
I'm from Denmark, when I studied in the US an American asked me if it was my first time seeing cars? I was dumbfounded!
Another person tried to show me a video from Amsterdam and asked me to translate what was said in Dutch, she then proceeded to accuse me of lying about my nationality when I told her that we don't speak Dutch in Denmark🤷(we speak Danish) and then she yelled at me that Danish is a cake not a language😂
That is too funny 😂 I have seen a few of these videos now and I don’t think that stupidity is the problem, as you can go anywhere in the world and find stupidity. You touched on something that I have noticed and that is the arrogance from Americans when they are corrected. They tend not to be able to be accept it when they are wrong.
Oh dear, well we Dutch aren't quite familiar with Danish either. Would love to learn it though. 😅😊
I'm german, I was asked if we "carpool" in carriages or if everybody just rides their own horse everywhere.
German here and my best (German) friend was asked the car thing as well when she was in the US. Even better. The person asking the question was driving a BMW.
🤣🤣🤣🤣
I live in Tokyo, Japan and overheard an american tourist loudly said "Why must people in here use weird looking alphabets instead of the normal ones?"
Yep, they were definitely not in Kansas anymore.
Im sorry but that is so funnyyyyy😭😭
@@grethi8110 It's absolutely hilarious. I laughed when I heard her saying that 😁😁
Someone hasn't their Kanji. 😂
That is half-funny half-incredibly irritating
The dumbest thing an American has ever said to me:
American: "Hey! Where are you from?
Me: "I'm from Sweden"
American: "That's cool! Have you ever been to Europe?"
Me: 🙄
To be fair, if someone in the US says that they're "from Ireland" they probably have never been there and would struggle to place it on a map.
@@jackwalker4874..... my question is , why does noooooo one in USA know the map? Do they even get it somewhere in their curriculum at school ? I really wonna know
😂😂😂
Good. Nice joke.
😂😂😂😂
I'm a white, stereotypically English guy, twice while visiting the US I was asked where I was from, and after saying England, they asked, oh, what language do they speak in England? I said English, it's in the name, to which one even said, oh right well you speak English really well.
🤣🤣
It's shocking, but many of them actually believe they speak "American"...
Bo oh o waer
@@BDESal my accent is northen actually, but good attempt 👏👏
Do you though? (Just kidding. ;P)
I’m 68, and a Canadian. In school we were taught that Americans were very insular in their thinking.
Sad to hear it hasn’t changed much in the past 55 years. Sigh!
since the 1950s the US has had a program to condition all of it's citizens from birth into thinking they're the greatest nation with endless freedom using media and tv shows to indocrinate them
And as an Scots Irish , born and raised in Glasgow I always thought the Scots were insular but America takes the cake and eats it also
It seems to only get worse. How on earth do they manage that feat DESPITE of INTERNET?
It's a miracle...
@@gedsmart7109At least you know there's a world outside. Not knowing much about is ok, as long as you're aware of it. Not being interested in it is ok as well. 🤷♀️
Unfortunately Americans pair their ignorance with arrogance. Makes it about a hundred times worse ...
Kinda unrelated but your comment made me remember talking to a Scot over the Internet a while ago.
One day I asked him about his clan. He told me everything there is to know for something like the following three hours. Then he asked me about mine ...
I was confused and just replied "You do remember I'm German, right?"
His answer was: "Sure! And I don't know anything about German clans. Really curious to find out more!"
He seemed genuinely excited. I hated having to thwart his enthusiasm with "Uh... We don't have any..."
Took him a couple of minutes to process that piece of information and then he said, genuinely shocked: "OMG! This must be so lonely!"
😂
Really loved that guy.
And pretty much every Scot I met besides him.
I mean: yes, usually kinda "insular" mindset as well, but in a unique and charming and often still curious and open way...
What’s insular?
I’m Japanese and have been told by Americans countless times that Japan was somehow in China. When I was working for an accounting firm in the States, I got a call from one of my colleagues that I had never met before and he said that he wanted to ask me some questions on tax rules in Hong Kong. I replied to him that I would be happy to, only if he would allow me to ask some questions about Russian taxation. He didn’t seem to get the irony.
Such a great response.
Though you could have the knowledge of Hong Kong taxes... Maybe... But if this was the thought of the person who asked you this question, then he would have laughed at your answer and saying "ok I guess you don't know".
I'm not American so I'm not trying to defend this person. I'm french. But how can someone not know that Japan is in no way affiliated to China?
バカバカしいだな
日本は有名な国なので中国の県って思ったらバカしか見えない
So you're from the big country of Asia 😅 We are kind of neighbors - I'm from the county called Europe.
Once I had this dress, and my sister was convinced it looked Chinese, I told her “but this is Morrocan, and this isn’t what traditional Chinese clothes look like, if anything it looks Japanese” (it doesn’t, but it was more Japanese than Chinese for sure) and she said “Japan is inside china” 😂 she knows it isn’t actually inside, but she accidentally said that, I think she meant to say they are the same
Bro I have a American told me that South Korea and Singapore is part of China, and Taiwan is in North America. My mind went bonk after hearing that, in their mind they think China is the whole region like what they called Europe, they think Asia is the entire China wow...
@@joesama3282💀💀💀 Nah why do some of us from America think that? Were literally required to learn world geography freshman year 💀 Sorry if my country said that to you were just slow and a bit dumb or at least most people 😭
My absolute favorite: A friend from Norway was seriously asked whether the Vikings still would make trouble in Scandinavia. His reaction was brilliant: "Yes. It is horrible! They show up by surprise, rape our women, burn down our houses... . Horrible!" He got a lot of empathy for that.😂
My sister (we live very close to Egypt I guess) once asked why a picture of Cairo looks so modern. She was 8 but still
So, while serving in Canada, I managed to visit the USA, while there incidents happened: 1. American "Where are you from, because you of Accent?" I say " Scotland, the UK" He stated "What part of England is that?", 2. delivering a package on duty to the UN, the American Guard asked "Are you from England?" I said "Well the UK or Great Britain" He stated "Well, you speak very well, I didn't know they taught American over there!" 3. Had the honour to be invited to a Ceremony in the USA, had to wear my Service Dress with bulled boots and Medals, a nice lady came up to me and asked about my uniform and the country I serve then she stated "Well, you're in America, shouldn't you be wearing an American Uniform?!" I know not all Americans are dumb, but as a country you are so Isolationist and you have the default view that everything in the world is America.
@@madapro03you're going to teach people something they already know? But it's good that Europe remembers that they were responsible for the introduction of chattel slavery to North America and that were responsibe for the Alantic slave trade.
@@madapro03 you may want to recheck your own grammar and spelling errors.
@jamiemoss3633 Who captured and sold those slaves to slave traders, then??? Their fellow Africans. The first slaves were Slavs, not Africans, thus the name.
@@jamiemoss3633It was England that stopped the slave trade, too.
@@jamiemoss3633Europe is a very broad statement my friend you may not know but it’s not a country 😂😂😂
When someone says something like ' you speak very good English for a Hawaiian ' they should say yes and you speak very good English for an American!
Hawai i is part of the United States and not North America. That's what makes the joke partly funny.
“Better to be thought stupid than to open your mouth and confirm it”
One of my life mottos 😂
It is better to remain silent and appear stupid than open your mouth and confirm it.
It is better to ask and seem stupid than to not ask and remain stupid
Intrusive thoughts
Yep, the "What language do you speak in London?" question is real! I'm a born and bred Londoner, and on a trip to visit family in North Carolina I got talking to an airport employee at Charlotte airport. She asked me where I was from, and when I said London, I could hear cogs turning in her head. Eventually, she looked me straight in the eye and, in a quizzical tone, asked, "Do y'all speak French there?". 🤦♂️
'No...we speak Londonese'...yeah...said that to a American when I was out there...THEY BELIEVED IT !
@@ramadaxlI’m using that one 😭
I’m still stunned why they would ask that at all
surely the reply is 'You're having a giraffe!'
@@nigelmacbug6678 No "you 'aving a bubble" is more old school. 😊😊
It’s not just Americans that are casually insulting. I’m from the UK was on holiday a few years ago in Sevilla, Spain. We were eating in a restaurant and there was a English couple sitting behind us. Eventually another more elderly couple were walking past and started talking to the seated couple. They decided to join them for a drink.
The waiter came to take their order an the elderly man spoke saying WE - WOULD- LIKE - TO- HAVE …… basically loudly and very slowly in English. The waiter replied in English and walked away. As he passed us I could hear the elder gentleman saying well you have to speak to them like that they don’t understand English! Then he goes on to tell the first couple that they have lived in Spain 15 years and enjoyed coming to this restaurant!
So not only had he insulted a waiter he must of known speaks English but hadn’t learnt even enough Spanish to order a drink in 15 years of living there!
I'm Hungarian and I worked in Bristol in 2018 and when I told my landlord that public transport is much better in Budapest compared to Bristol he almost didn't want to believe that. And the reason this topic came up was because I couldn't even go to work via public transport.
Well there’s a common denominator here. What could it be. 😂
Indeed! The Brits can be quite ignorant and mostly arrogant
I know a french guy who is living for some twenty years now in Hungary with his hungarian wife, and he still doesn't speak any Hungarian. His wife can translate, so it's working well and no need to learn the lingo, he says.
My favourite experience was the 60+ year old American who asked me (F28, german) if we are allowed to choose our job in Germany or if we get jobs assigned.... I wasn't sure if I should laugh or cry
That must have been a true facepalm moment for you, I guess? 😂😂😂😂😂😂
Maybe they heard some stories about GDR when they were young?
My Texan friend asked me if I celebrate July 4th in England !!! I nearly pissed myself laughing.
Should have told him yes 🤣
No, I'm actually mourning LOL
It is definitely something to celebrate though just to be sure.
When a Christian asks you if you celebrate Christmas 👁️👄👁️
Oh America, none of this is shocking to the rest of the world, its expected.
Ten out of ten for this comment
0 out of 10. Way to be a stereotypical rude foreigner
@@Jdb74985 Judging from that rude comment, I'm just going to assume that you must be an American.
@@sandrosliske and judging from your comment you must be an a$$hole who thinks the world rises and sets out your a$$
Isn't that true...and you hear them coming a mile away...yack yack yackedy yank top of their voices.
An American once commented that "American English" is better than "British English". Another one apparently Googled "If I travel to Britain will they still respect my right to bear arms"?
And one more...an American girl said on camera that England may have produced "The Beatles" but America can claim credit for "The Rolling Stones".
I think somewhere out there, there is a dictionary, and next to the word "ignorance" there would be a map of the United States.
American English isn't English eg debarking from a bus, the word is disembark; orienting, the word is to orientate ... orienting sounds like something relating to the Far East; there are a number of others but those bug me most.
Americans were surprised that I listened to American and British music as an Iraqi from Spain. Also, when I said my husband is white and they met him. They said “I thought he was white” Apparently if you speak Arabic or Spanish you’re not white. They also would think I’m Muslim, and would ask when I converted after I told them I was Christian even though my family and ancestors have been Assyrian Christians in North Iraq or Mesopotamia before Islam. I was also told that I’m like a black woman with white girl hair. 😂
Those two that thought they could hitchhike across Africa in 2 weeks are MOST DEFINITELY dead now! 😂
Or they receive the necessary medical/psychiatric care in some African country that is close to the starting point of their trip.
@@marcromain64or have been sold to slavery
That was my guess when the person telling the story had no idea if they ever made it back. Either they are still hitchhiking, or they’re dead.
Or kidnapped into slavery.
None of the above, I think. They're still stuck in H&M
I used to work on a cruise ship one day an American woman asked me does the ship have it's own power? I politely said yes madam but in my head I thought no we have a really long extension cord.
😂😂😂
As an Aussie, I'd have suggested she might like to view the cord if she went to the stern, I wouldn't have been able to resist the temptation.
The fact that you didn't say it out loud is why you managed to keep your Job where I would not have been able too :-)
I'm Dutch and once got into a discussion with an American, during which he insisted that:
a) The Netherlands is not a country, it's just part of Germany,
b) Dutch is not a language, it's just a local dialect of German ("Deutsch" in German)
c) Despite being born and raised in the Netherlands, I clearly didn't know where I lived or what language he spoke.
Even after showing him my Dutch passport (which is also in English), he insisted he knew better. :D
Klopt, en dan slaan ze stijl achterover dat ik als Nederlander in België woon, want dat is toch een provincie van Nederland? 🤦♀️
Ik hoor altijd : Oh Netherlands is the capital of Danmark, right?
Typical arrogant American….
Did you point out to him that English is just as much German as Dutch is?
.... blijft gewoon hilarisch , met deze aparte mensen . Ik zit letterlijk altijd te wachten op de joke als ze beginnen te praten. Want ik weet dat er altijd wat onzin gaat volgen en ik weer dubbel lig .
I think many Americans tend to forget we started as a colony of the British Empire. You know, the Empire that ruled 24 % of the world and spread the English language which was born on the Island nation.
They're not taught that.
They seem to think America was there for centuries before the British turned up.
And the British Stole the Americans language 😂
I love it when white Americans of British decent call English people colonisers.
When they literally are the colonisers, as they are in the US and I am clearly not as my family and I are still in the England, my family did not go anywhere.
This logic is totally lost on them.
@@kristinbeynon2839 That's American logic summed up perfectly
Wait ... the english language is not from America ? 😂😂😂/s
You speak out of context. Americans states that the British stole land from the natives that had been their for thousands of years. Not that they stole the language and land of other white people.
I used to be a Highschool biology teacher, at an international school in the Netherlands.
The school had a exchange program with some schools in the US.
We discontinued this after 6 years, after every single student had to redo the complete year in the Netherlands, because the US schools were so far behind our teaching subjects on a much simpler level, than what we would teach in the Netherlands....
And the US students just couldn't keep up with our lessons...
I can believe that, since American kids "graduate" from school at 18 after exams at the level that kids take at 16 in England, France and Germany. However, American kids are far ahead in sports!
Yey the US is still the best country in terms of education.....
@@KRIAJK your school system has been failing for decades....
@@faithlesshound5621 in the Netherlands is the same. But we have 4 different difficulty levels of Highschool. The 2 most difficult take 6 years and you finish when you're 18. These were also the only students that were allowed to take part in the exchange program.
The only classes the US students could follow, were those of the lowest difficulty (for the below average students)
@@StMargorach It's odd how American schools have slipped so far down in academics. I wonder if it's due to the influence parents and local politicians have, in that they are always asking for stuff to be taken OUT of the school curriculum. A lot of parents don't trust the schools, and teach their children at home to make sure they stay strict fundamentalists and/or flat-earthers.
Another good one…I’m Scottish born Chinese, owned a restaurant. I went to take a food order. I said politely ‘Hi, how are you? Would you like to order some food?’ He goes and points to the menu and asks me ‘do you know how to read this?’ He’s pointing to the menu which is in English 😡…I have no idea why he would assume I can’t read English if I’m speaking English. What a knob. My reply ‘oh sorry asshole…I don’t read English because I’m illiterate!’ Then he leaves. I told him not to bother coming back. Probably not the best move but couldn’t help myself.
I have a few, but the dumbest was at JFK. I was coming back to Portugal and with my UE Portuguese passport in their hands, the customs agent proceeded to ask me if I was from Spain. When I said "no, I'm from Portugal" they asked "oh, that's in South America, right?". I just stared at them in disbelief
I'm Honduran. I was asked if I knew pizza and hamburguers. I was asked if I had ever seen a computer. I was asked why I was white and not black 😮. I was also asked if I liked wearing "normal" clothes. When explaining Honduras is in Central America, I was asked which state was that. Take into consideration this was in the early 2000's.
I was in Paris with the wife a couple of years ago and we were up the Eiffel Tower when some young Americans asked me take some pictures of them, she asked me where i was from,i replied England and she asked me if i spoke English lol..... bloody yanks
Sorry do you not know that you speak "American" 😀😃😄😅🤣
People from England speak English? Wow. Shocking! 🙂
Haaaahahaaaaa Bloody hell! And I thought we had an education problem in Argentina. At least those last generations are complete ignoramus of maths, history and language, but most of them know perfectly what people looks like and speaks in other countries. Although there are complete morons who know nothing at all.
Worse still... they asked you if you spoke English just after having a conversation with you in English.
Guess we can't fix stupid. What the hell do they think we speak in OUR own country. Martian? 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Best answer I've heard to 'Where are you from?' was 'And how exactly were you planning to treat me differently when you got the answer you wanted?'
That's a bit harsh. Accents intrigue me , so I sometimes ask where they are from because I can't recognise the accent. No one has ever been offended by that.
@@juliewoodman2439 That's great, but I really meant when the question gets asked repeatedly by someone who's hoping the answer is a country they can sneer at.
Had the same with my gender. The dude answered me that he needs to know if I'm a woman or a man bc women need to be treated differently. He also insisted that he needs to know and asked me several times after I already said that I wont share any private information with a stranger on the internet. What a creep.
@@naraseth they "need" to be treated differently?? Holy hell, thankfully you didn't engage with him anymore than that.
That's a bit racially confrontational there my friend. If you go into a conversation ready to respond to an argument, it will likely cause one.
Americans may eat home cooked meals, however most of the food in America is so bad it’s illegal in most other countries in the world. It’s very hard to find genuine healthy food in America.
I agree, I had a hard time finding organic healthy food when in the US.
@@yasminedey8612 Don’t you find it almost unbelievable that the food we eat is so toxic and unhealthy, or if it is good, healthy food, it’s so expensive only millionaires can afford it? Food is such a basic human need, I would’ve thought it would be the one thing that we protected. Actually I’m Australian and ours is a little better than yours, but not a great deal.
@@jennifermcdonald5432 indeed, it's a pity one has to protect something that should be common, I therefore was glad to leave back to Europe, where I live - the US was just a holiday 😉
@@yasminedey8612 I must admit I’m glad for that.
@jennifermcdonald5432 A McDonald talking about healthy food…😊
the cynic in me says they dont want americans to think there are other countries, because america is the best, so why would you teach about other places.. its a way of control.
That’s exactly what has happened
I absolutely agree.
If they let the people find out about other countries, a lot might realize the US isn't the best, and then they would demand improvement, or move from there.
Already happening, a lot of the none gun toting full blooded Americans are jumping ship, and the ones that are staying are not having kids, basically the only ones that are staying are the ones that want to take over the world with there guns.
Propaganda which yes is about controlling the narrative. However still no excuse for adults. Nobody except themselves stops them from learning about the World. Closed minds as opposed to free will perpetuate ignorance.
7:15 "Oh, wow, you speak perfect English!"
"Thank you. One of us has to..."
😂😂😂
Americans yell about America is the best, im so proud to be American. However they then turn round and say my great great great grandpa is from Ireland so I'm Irish! Can't be that proud of being American if you insist on claiming other nationalities.
I always find that odd too. I get why one probably doesn't feel comfortable to be an American, but those aren't (most) of the people that claim other nationalities.
Also, on top of that, these people sometimes come here, proudly claim that they're [insert country we're currently in] and then are absolutely SHOCKED when no one applaudes, no one cares and no one agrees.
Like, dudes, you're US Americans and that's it.
I never really understood this weird obsession with heritage and ancestry Americas tend to have. 😅
I'm German. I identify as German and nothing else. I have French and Polish ancestors in my lineage 3-4 generations ago. The idea to say that I'm French or Polish would never ever cross my mind. I have zero connections to either France or Poland. Why would I claim to be anything other than German?
they are not talking about nationality. They are talking about their ethnicity.
@@ericajones2089 But they aren't even ethnically Irish, as they long lost any cultural identity of the place they claim. A while ago someone told me they were German some unknown ancestor had a German surname. I asked them if they have family in Germany, speak the language, have any German culture or visited the country even once. No, they didn't. They are neither legally nor ethnically German.
Do you not understand DNA & ethnicity?
I think a point that you may be missing is that it’s not just about a lack of knowledge in regards to the official languages of other countries, it’s about how condescending it is to say to someone “oh you speak really good English”, if you don’t know for certain that the person in question speaks English as a second, third, fourth etc language it’s showing that you believe yourself to have the upper hand, if you think yourself in the position to congratulate a stranger about something that they may have been doing the majority of their life.
Especially seeing that English isn't even the official language of America.
And the English they do use is only a dialect, far removed for actual English.
@@101steel4 English isn’t even the official language of England, as just like in the US it’s the language that has been used for official documents for a prolonged period of time and as such, it has never been felt that it needed to be classified as such officially…it is just the de facto language in both countries.
@@lynnejamieson2063Well said.
Being this level of ignorant in the 21st century is already shocking in itself, but what makes it so much worse is that too many Americans combine it with arrogance.
😬
It is not just about Education sadly. It is often about attitude and closed minds. Many think the US is all that is important. If it was just about education as one woman pointed out there is Google.
Today compared to when I grew up there is little excuse as adults not to educate ourselves about that big world outside the US. A touch of a button and you have access to so much information. Although I had a foundation at school most of my education came from talking to people, visiting countries, learning from books and the internet. When I was young I would mainly visit libraries to get info.
The problem is many of the most ignorant I have come across do not want to learn as the US and their version of things is all they need to know. Yes rather than really trying to learn from someone they double down.
Now saying this I know many intelligent Americans who are not like this. I do not refer to intelligence as education. An intelligent person could be a bus driver a dustman a cleaner or a Professor. Intelligent people have curiosity and want to learn more outside their current knowledge. They are also open to learning from those from other countries. They listen. Unfortunately the worst ignorance in the US which we often come across on the Internet comes from an attitude that the US is all that matters in this big world. That their opinion should be the opinion. It is very insular and very closed minded. It is not solely lack of education. Until this attitude changes we will carry on seeing this ignorance.
Saying this I do not tar all Americans with the same brush. It is a case though of the ignorant standing out and they are the ones we remember. Hence the stereotypes of Americans.
I am from the UK and I know and also have met many Americans who are just like me. They are openminded curious people who do not have this attitude. So apart from a few language differences not much difference once you get to know them.
Many Americans think they invented the English language lol. Then they've the audacity to ask an Englishman what language he's speaking because they can't understand because of the accent.
Hint to all those Americans out there: The clue to the correct answers for both of these is in the name.
Haha, not from personal experience but a Spanish, you know, the kind from Spain, was asked once why he was speaking Spanish if he isn't from Mexico...
I'll admit I told an American that drop bears exist. In all fairness his stupid question about us riding kangaroos and were the saddles the same as horse riding was ridiculous, he deserved the drop bear comment.
Those drop bears are dangerous, you were just doing a public service getting the word out there 😂
That's what I thought too!
Could you please tell us a little more about the drop bears?
I understand that they are fictional but they still sound really entertaining :-)
Australian urban myth lol. Based closely on a koala, just a lot nastier
@@catherineprice4766 I think it is my all time favourite statistic that Koala's kill more people than sharks.
Every time I go overseas, people at the airport are so helpful to all us foreigners trying to navigate customs and immigration. I know I've landed back in the US when I start hearing people getting yelled at (by airport employees no less) for not being citizens as they go through immigration🤦♀️. I love my country, but why does basic human decency seem like such a challenge for us?! 😢
Indeed. A friend went to the U.S. And had her carry case thrown at her and was ordered: open it in a very aggressive tone. She said: say please! The guy was not happy...
@@arianbyw3819 They treat citizens that way also. It has nothing to do with origin and everything to do with the jackass who can't be polite.
Because you are so arrogant….
@@michellewall6748
Or stupid. Some TSA/customs people are quite competent, but many are not.
I am from Germany and was in US in the mid 80s. When a person asked me where I was from and I told her, she was „oh really? Is the civil war there over yet?“ I had no clue what she meant, so after some questioning I found out she meant the terror attack by the RAF at the Frankfurt Airport in 1985
😂😂😂😂😂
I was in Florida during the wedding of William and Kate.... I'm from the UK, and there must have been at least 10 Americans asked me if I was going to the Royal wedding, and how often do I see the queen?!? 🤯
The same happened to my nephew when he was there. Realising that he was English. He was asked if he'd met William and Catherine, he told them that he had. They then asked him if he'd met the Queen he said yes and told them that he has had tea with her and Prince Philip at Buckingham Palace and been out for drinks with William and Catherine. Meanwhile while he's telling those Americans this and them hanging on his every word, his friends who he is with are in fits of laughter.
I’ve heard similar questions. I always ask when they’re going to the White House for coffee with the President.
And they look at you like you’re daft, and don’t see the irony.
@@SelinaBarton-ij5iz 😂😂
@@JarlGrimmToys yep! It's mind blowingly hilarious 😂
That's not entirely an American thing. Not quite the same but similar: I'm from Wales and been asked a few times by English people who have a Welsh friend whether I know that particular person. In a country of over 3 million... Chances are slim!
I was married long ago to an American guy who moved to Australia at 12 and said he hadn’t realised how ignorant the US school system was until he moved to Oz. Back then when he turned 26, the US govt told him he had to go back to the US and live there for 2 years to keep his passport. He actually said “no thanks” and gave away his American citizenship. I believe you can have dual citizenship now.
Okay, the dumbest thing I've ever heard an American say (in Denmark) :
We are at a reenactment viking market, and he asks if this is where the vikings live. We are quite confused at first, but what he means is whether it is a reservat for Vikings. We explain that it is not, that everyone here is a volunteer and that all Vikings are dead. He gets very angry and scolds us for exterminating the Vikings, adding, "At least we gave reservats to the Indians," before storming off.
It's been many years, but it still makes me laugh.😂
The nigerian guy could have said: in contrast to the USA we have English as our official language.
Sshhh, don't tell the Americans, they don't have an official language. Some of them might get offended.
I’m glad we don’t have an official language in the US, because we have so many people who speak other languages. Unfortunately it doesn’t stop certain people from being ‘offended’ when they hear people speaking those other languages, but at least I can point out that English isn’t a legal requirement to being American.
Not all Americans are entitled, racist, or just plain ignorant…but the ones who are can be very, very loud.
@@WildJJasmine You don't think other countries have many people who speak other languages?
@@lala-ct9ir I didn’t say anything about other countries, and I wasn’t trying to make a comparison to any other country. Just saying, as an American, I love the fact that we do not have an official language. If I heard someone giving anyone a hard time for speaking another language, I would gladly educate them on that fact, and probably tell them to ‘get a life’ while I’m at it.
I once had an American ask where I was from, and when I said England. They said no where are your parents from, I said England. They said no where are your ancestors from. I said well I can trace my ancestors back till records began in England which is about 400 words.
Anyway it turned out the confusion was that they had seen me speaking to a group of people from Kurdistan. And thought my ancestors must have been Kurds for me to understand them.
Irony is the Kurds were speaking very good English, just with an accent. I had also picked up a couple of Kurdish words.
I guess the American couldn’t understand their accents, and couldn’t imagine any other English speaker could. Or maybe they thought they were speaking Kurdish. I don’t know.
Americans seem to be unable to understand any accent that isn't US. I find it weird, given that there are so many regional accents in the USA. I have had lots of issues with Americans being unable to understand me, but I've been told by experts that my spoken English is almost accent-less, so I should be understandable , even to Americans. On a plane once, I sat next to a lady who was hearing impaired. She asked the American stewardess for water when asked whether she would like a drink. The poor passenger was getting quite frustrated, as the stewardess kept saying "what?". In the end, I leaned over and, in the best American accent I could muster, loudly said "She wants wadderr"! The stewardess finally understood
@@suemoore984There is no such thing as speech without an accent.
I think that the “Where are you from?” question is interesting coming from Americans, I’ve sometimes batted it back at them and they tell me that they are half German, half Irish, half Italian,,,, they are never American! When you have such a young country, you are always looking for heritage!
And still they don't know anything about the country they say they're from...
@@annicaesplund6613 Or the one they were born in 😂
@@annicaesplund6613I remember when Joe Biden landed in Northern Ireland (UK) and said "It's great to be in Ireland" 😂
@@101steel4Well, he wasn't wrong. It is Ireland. It's right there in the name. Yes, NI belongs to UK but it's also a part of the Island of Ireland. He didn't say ,,it's good to be in the Republic of Ireland", so it's not wrong to call N.Ireland Ireland. They're both Irelands
When adsked where they are from Americans, in my experience, answer with their state. After this happened a few times I started doing it deliberately and never had anyone answer USA or America. Always answered with their state. Maybe to them the USA is like 50 countries.
One thing I always found strange was (when I worked in London), often American tourists would ask me for directions to various places and sometimes we'd get into small-talk style conversation......on more than one occasion, because I was walking down a street in London, I'd be asked if I knew their third cousin removed (or whoever) who lived in Bristol, Glasgow, Belfast or wherever.
Nice one😂
Did you know the Beatles? I worked with a millwright from Liverpool and I couldn't resist asking...blew me away when he said" yeah but I was just another young kid" but I lived down the street in "The Dingle" (very poor neighborhood) from Ringo...you never know. Misinterpreting the intent of the question is a mistake people make often.Insecurity or defensiveness.
I lived in Boston for many years. When I mentioned my mom is from Roscommon,Ireland, and that I've often visited the area, I would get the same do you know my cousin, aunt etc.
@@BrianPeloso-ln4ry Yeah, that's SO not the same thing.
Considering how small England is, it's a good question.
In a live video chat An American told me to go back to Scotland where I belong. even though I was still in Scotland. and have never in my life left Scotland. But less than a month ago. An American asked me to say these words in a texted conversation. He said, say purple burglar alarm. In a texted conversation. 🤷🏻♂️🏴🤣
😂😂😂
🤣🤣🤣🏴
😅😅😅😅
It's a bit funny, I got a D in Chemistry in 11th grade in Sweden, so when I went for a year of High School in the US I took Chemistry to better my grade, IIRC I got a B+ or maybe an A, in USA, but when I came back to Sweden for my final year of High School, I got an F
Do u work at ikea?
@@BDESal Eh, no, never did and never will
That's more on the way of teaching, how you receive the information, how long you stay on a subject. Not the fact that there's some huge difference between difficulty in Sweden compared to US.
American sciences test scores are typically higher than those of Sweden for a reason.
@@KRIAJKnot really. Most of the highschool students or those with a masters degree from an average European country will have to dumb themselves down when talking to a student from the US.
Yeah, it's called standardised testing and it's useless.
Fear not Tyler, your English is passable, considering you don't come from England ! 😅
*Britain.
*UK and ROI@@redceltnet
😅
I flew from germany to korea once and met an american there at University and he asked me what transportation I used to get to korea. ...the wild thing is, when I said by car , he believed me...;))))
Would be a nice drive though, provided you've got the time.
Maybe he didn't want to be rude. That would have worked if you had a lot of time and a free pass through the DPRK. Lol
Two young men dressed in kilts on a Norwegian ferry are faced by an American woman. She tried to communicate with a made up sign language, flailing arms and hands. One of them says “what are you trying to say?” Oh you speak English!” Yes, we are Scottish”. I know but I didn’t know you spoke English.
In the summer I talked to American tourists who crossed the England/Scottish border bringing Skis, Boots and Snow Boards. They remarked that they were going on a Ski vacation because it snowed all the time in Scotland and was very cold. Oh Boy!
Was it early into summer. Because it's not unheard of for there to still be snow in some parts. Though not much.
There are purpose built ski slopes in Scotland. If they went in winter they may have been ok maybe
I lived near Fort William for 14 years, every summer you would have tourists turning up with ski's, there is no snow to ski on in summer, fools.
@@suzannehaigh4281 🤣
I had so many I could write a book on it having managed a 17th century house. On currency - someone asked me how many dollars the entry would be, which I quickly converted in my head. She then tried to pay me in dollars, I tried to explain that she needed to use British money here, she just couldn't get it! I've also had people try get on the wrong bus, not getting the number and destinations are on them, they thought they could hop on any and it automatically take them where they needed to go!
I had an American woman ask me the price of an item in a shop.
When I said 10 pounds, she looked confused and replied "you mean 10 dollars?"
They probably didn't live anywhere with public transport.
I live in one of those quaint little medieval small towns in Germany. Yes, the tourist destination kind.
Americans seem to believe that it's some kind of Disneyland theme park and just exists for their entertainment and that every local is there to entertain them...
"It looks just like in the movies!"
☠️
They're thinking of Harry Potter's "Knight Bus" which WILL take you wherever you want to go.
They're similar in value. That's not a big brain thing on your part.
1977 My Dad was working in California with his company and the whole family came with him. I went to highschool that year and I was frequently asked "Do Germans know fridges". I assumed that they must have listened to the stories of WW2 told by grandpa.
I was flabbergasted that the students didn't have any geography classes. No wonder they do not have an idea about the world. Even history classes were pure American history whereas the history classes I have had in school in Germany, the relationships to other countries always were a topic.
The real shocker was when I worked with a large American computer firm. We were in a meeting with a big banking company and this client arranged this meeting at their location with some managment from America. This lady, a manager, said she was quite surprised that in downtown Frankfurt there were high-rises and thousands of cars, she was missing ox-drawn carts (or horse-drawn). She, as a representative of a computer firm, sitting in a meeting with the banking client and a few of other folks from the German branch of that computer firm, was expecting ox-drawn carts? If we still had those carts how come that the banking client had many, many computers? And, while everybody else was cringing, I was asking her how she managed come here, by sail-boat?
That was not funny at all. The client must have thought their problems are not taken seriously.
About 15 years ago I was in a chat online and when an American noticed I was from Germany, he asked me if we had freezers.
I asked him where he thought half the computer chips in his PC came from and if we're communicating via smoke signal right now.
There she was, in the land of Volkswagen, Daimler, Mercedes and BMW, et al. 😆😆😆
It is really odd that the school system you were in had no geography classes. Maybe they were taught in earlier or later grades.
@@realretta It was the school in California that had me scratching my head
@@isabellabihy8631
Oh. California. Anything can happen there. Lol.
I hope you did have some fun here as a teen. Parts of California are breathtakingly beautiful. I spent a lot of time there when I was younger.
A few years ago (pre retirement), I was standing near a rail ticket kiosk at the Central Station in Newcastle Upon Tyne England, where two middle aged American ladies were in a heated discussion while trying to buy tickets to Eeedinburg. The man in the kiosk responded by asking if they meant Edinburgh, and as many times the man tried to clarify their request the angrier the got and doubled down by continually pronouncing Edinburgh as Eeee-din-burg. 😅😂😂😂😅
They always think they're right 😅
I used to work in information services for the rail network, mainly dealing with London and the south east, I was once asked by an American lady who had a day to kill in London, can you recommend somewhere interesting to visit.
Another common one was direct trains, they always wanted direct trains everywhere, even to the Republic of Ireland from London.
@@pauldurkee4764 Well, there's already one railway tunnel to England, might as well dig another one from the other direction.
To be fair, it’s difficult. In Bangladesh everyone pronounces it Eedin - berg and totally don’t understand when I try to correct them.
If you guys would pronounce your cities properly, the rest of us would stand a chance of getting them right.🤣🤣🤣
I'm from Czechia and equivalent of american's "Karen" is "American".
December 2021 my American brother-in-law was telling a neighbour that he was going to Ireland for Christmas. The neighbour advised him not to go as the police (An Garda Siochana) were shooting people for not wearing masks. (It was just around the time a lot of restrictions were being lifted after the pandemic) Br-in-law said no that's not true as my wife is from Ireland and all her family are there, that 's not happening. Neighbour kept insisting that he would not get out alive and advised him not to go. Fast forward to mid January 2022 Br-in-law was again talking to neighbour and said "look I'm alive 😃😄" . Neighbour said you are so lucky to get back to the US. The neighbour totally believed that people being shot and no way could he be convinced otherwise. The irony of the situation is that Irish police do not carry guns on duty other than specialized units like the Armed Support Units for high risk operations.
I'm presuming he knew we were on lockdown but in Americans heads they go straight to being shot for leaving home, rather than just being fined.
Americans are very insulting, and they are also extremely credulous. The more ridiculous the idea, the more likely they are to believe it. They seem to think that the rest of the world is backward and ignorant
my own experience with the Garda. A long time ago I visited Ireland for the 1st time. one morning found me at the Wicklow bus station waiting for the bus to Dublin. Someone saw my guitar case, and asked if I could play them a song. Back home I was used to hop it if I saw a cop, and right next to me there in Wicklow was the Garda. I looked up at him and asked him "Would that be allright" to which he answered "If I know the chorus, I will join in" and we sang "whiskey in the jar".
This reminds me of the whole Australia thing.
Americans were convinced that Australians were being kept in camps of some kind when in actual fact it was just a hotel for a couple days for quarantene.
@@bradleybrown8428Australian here. A hole in the ground would have been just as effective as our government did not think that an airborne virus and a building wide air recirculating system would be a bad combination. Though I heard that the tea was nice.
I am British and live in the Philippines, I eat, drink or slurp mango everyday during the season. We slush them, slice them, freeze them, juice them or ice cream them!
Also we eat bananas almost every day during their season. And they have taste, yes real taste. Not chalk.
Was once asked. Why did the queen build a windsor castle at the end of Heathrow Airport runway lol.
One of my favourites.😊 My other one .An American lady walked into Westminster Abbey,and in a loud voice said, "It's only a church". Yuck!
LMFAO - No way! Oh my god, i can't even... *crying for laughter* 😂😂😂 greetings from Germany ^^
Okay! That one is really funny!
I met an American while travelling in the states. She asked me where did I come from I told her I lived in wales, UK. She asked where did you learn English since I spoke it so well !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
An American asked me where in Ireland Wales was!
@@arianbyw3819next time ask them what part of Canada or Mexico depending on their accent they are from.
Marrakesh to Cape Town? You'd have to cross about 20 countries and probably need a visa for every single one of them! It's also about 8,000 miles!😂😂😂
That would be a trip!!!
And that goes straight over Tyler's head.
Should be educational for them.
Technically, he's not incorrect, there are places that could be dangerous, like Congo.
But he didn't get the point about distance.
Straight line distance, from North West of Washington state to tip of Florida: 4500 km.
Distance from Marrakesh to tip of South Africa: 8000 km.
Both measures are in straight line. The road from Marrakesh to Cape Town by road, is 11.531,6 km, according to Google Maps.
@@akyhne
I think Nigeria or something to SA would actually be somewhat realistic, if you got a lot of visas, money and big balls. But crossing the Sahara?!?
I'm a brit and I've worked with few Americans here in the UK and when I've asked them about Americans lack of knowledge about the rest of the world, they have all said to me about the education system being very limited and they recon that it's down to being able to say that they are the greatest country in the world and because of the lack of teaching about other countries, the majority of Americans have nothing to compare it to, so they know any different. An example would be that most western countries have free healthcare but they said that prior to coming to the UK, that this idea is sold as 'socialism' in the US but ironically they also said that they paid more in health insurance in the US then they now pay in 'National Insurance contributions' (which basically pays for the NHS) here in the UK. As a footnote the idea for the NHS was taken from a scheme created by a private company, 'The Great Western Railway' where every employee paid a percentage of their salary into a fund that then paid for any medical needs of the employees and their families. So, so much for being a socialist idea.
In Germany, the basic social security system was introduced by Bismarck, under an Emperor, when Germany was still a Monarchy. But I have to admit, the idea had been promoted by the Social Democrats.
I got told my English was very good ( coming from Scotland) . The lady was very nice otherwise and I didn't want to embarrass her so I told I took it at school for 12 years.
😅😅😅😅😅😅 Good one.
American tourist in Edinburgh visiting Edinburgh Castle “Why did they build the Castle in the middle of the city?” Duh!!!
🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️
Omg 🤦♀️🤦♀️
Am gay and this American told me, every gay person don't have loving parents.
Me: but am gay and my parents and family love me.
Her: No, you don't have a loving family. They don't like you.
Unfortunately that's not an American thing but rather a homophobic problem world wide.
My sister had an american pen friend in school 70's) .. the girls mother sent my sisters letter back with spelling corrections and wrote to my mother that my sister should learn to spell .
The stupid rude woman had changed English spelling into American ..
My mother sent her an English dictonairy...and told her to learn some manners 😂😂😂😂😂
I was working in a bookshop in Chester some years ago, 15 minutes from the border with Wales. A small group of Americans came up to ask me where the guidebooks to Wales were and where they could go to go and see the Welsh people living in caves. Man alive...!
Racist ignorance deserves a reply that will leave the recipient in no doubt of who the fool is.
Except none of them were actually racist, they were racial
I remember an american they went to London they said they wanted try British food but they went straight to Five Guys and Starbucks
German here
Americans have asked me, if: (my answers are behind the question)
- we have fridges. ( oc not, we keep our foods in a hole in a ground)
- we have nice cars like BMW or Audis (WTF???)
- Hitler is still alive and ruling. (no, we moved him to assisted living facilities)
- we have sth like the highway. (as if they weren't invented here)
Oh, and to the question "where are you from"... You are OLNY of the country you have the citizenship to. Unpopular opinion: you are only African American if you have passports to the US and your native country in Africa.)
Nobody's native COUNTRY is Africa. Its a CONTINENT with 54 (according the the UN) countries in it. Same as Europe is a CONTINENT with 44 countries in it. As a German, you should know that. Your country is in Europe. I'm fairly sure you wouldn't be happy if someone said "You're not German, you're European because Germany is part of the country of Europe"
I get your point, and I agree, but you dropped the ball there a bit.
@@airbubble. But I did mention it correctly in my exact last 5 words: "your native country in Africa". I just couldn't type them all into my comment. Cameroon, Ivery Coast, Cape Verde and all others are counties, are they not?
@@SaSiDu you edited it after reading my response, did you not? 🤣
which is why your comment is no longer grammatically correct and the word edited has appeared next to it
because it originally said "your native country IS Africa"
As a Brit living in England, I was shocked many years ago when an American woman was being interviewed in the US. She said she was planning a holiday in England and wanted to know what language we spoke over here. But that was not the worst of it, she seemed to think that Britain was about the size of the Isle of Wight, a small island off the South Coast of England.
Italian here. I once had to explain to some Americans met at a conference in Newport Beach that no, we Italians don't all live in farms in the country if we are not from Rome, Florence, Venice or MIlan. They aren't the only cities in Italy. We have other cities, towns, villages. To this day I am not sure I was able to convince them...
Hi,a friend of mine who was in Disney years ago for a year to promote Scotland within the Uk,various Americans would say that the USA invented the things being promoted and also ask how we get to places from Scotland plus ask if we had running water/still live in clans etc.
I used to work with a guy who was clearly from West Africa(his name is clearly not English, very dark skin, and he uses a bag emblazoned with the Niger flag).
We had some American's from another company visit because we'd be doing some work for them. When it came to discussing when they'd come back for another visit he told them he would be off on holiday that week, he was visiting his family back home.
They couldn't figure out how he could possibly get home and back to work in a week; after all Africa doesn't have airports, trains, or roads.
@@scragar😂 Did they think he had to swim back?
I mean, gee, even if you don't know shit about anything, (which often isn't even the individual's fault but the school system's) there's still something like common sense?
Or at least... There SHOULD be.
But for too many Americans that has apparently been replaced by blind pride. You know... MURICAAAAA!!!
I was waiting for a flight from Madrid to Paris and next to me were sitting 2 american ladies. A a moment one of them saw my passport with Romania written on it,so she said ,,ohh,i would never guessed you are from Romania,you are wearing modern clothes'' I thot...oh,boy,this will be fun.... The other one replied ,,of course,he can't pass the airport check with an armor and helmet''' After some talk i realised the were mistaken Romania with the ancient Rome they saw in movies,saying they want to visit to see some gladiator fights. I have indicated them to go to Sighisoara ,a medieval fortified city in Transylvania,were at the time it was a 2 weeks medieval festival with people wearing medieval armors and ,,sparring'' swords on streets,i guess they were delighted to see,because they wouldn't realise it's medieval not roman, also thinking the people are wearing armors and shields in their normal life. They would have a lot to discuss back in America ,ha ha ha
What language do they speak in London? Well it's become a very international city. So as an Englishman, I can confidently say that in London, every language is spoken. If you're still not sure, London is the Capitol City of England, ergo the official language is English. If you still don't get it, there's no hope for you!
I think there are almost 300 languages in London
Westminster is the capital city of Britain. London is a county and a city further along the river.
@@neuralwarp The City of Westminster was absorbed by the City of London long ago. Westminster is just where leadership happens to be based. Kensington is where the Royals live, and Chelsea is where the new money is. All still London, the nation's Capitol. If you wish to talk about the county extension of Greater London, well that's a whole different kettle of fish and a big slice of Surrey. Westminster was the Capitol after Henry VIII's time when what is now London was a collection of villages and hamlets around Westminster, which only became known as a city after the completion of the Abbey. It was only the Capitol for a decade or two, before London became a city in it's own right, absorbing Westminster, Chelsea, Hammersmith, Millwall, Wimbledon, Vauxhall, etc, and was expanded to Greater London in the early 2000's. London has been the Capitol for a few centuries now.
In Amsterdam the Netherlands some 160 languages are spoken
Crazy to think there's an "official" language even though it's so diverse. That's why the US doesn't have an "official" language.
Back in 1996 or 97 i worked at a hotel in Santorini Greece and while having a conversation with an American (USA) guest on the terrace he asked..... -So... when was the first time you had Dimocrasy here ???.....
afrer staring him and realized he was serius i said - 2500 years ago.
Tyler's own greatest hits: "We don't have cities by the water in America." "We don't really have mountains in America." "We don't have ferries in America." Etc.
You can disprove all three at the same time by going to Seattle...
@@jerry2357 Right!!! If you went further N you could say Vancouver??
I’ve found that’s a common way of thinking in America.
If it’s not their direct experience, it’s doesn’t exist/ matter.
@@tamibenz6626is Vancouver in The United States of America now?
Hope not.@@gavinBsussex
I'm from the US & the education system sucks, which contributes a good deal to the ignorance. Many also don't realize how far behind we are in education, healthcare & many other categories. Patriotism is arrogant. It's embarrassing.
Back in the 70s, i was having a conversation with a American lady and her husband. After a while, he asked what Country i was from. I told them Australia. She asked what language we spoke in Australia. 😢😢😢
There was me thinking you spoke Australian - who know 😇😀🤣😂😆
Should have told him you speak "Strine".
That's easy,we all know in Europe that you speak Melbournish, Perthish and Canberran,😄
My grade 12 history class was about American history...from Columbus to Carter...many Americans seem to think they won both world wars...Canada was fighting for years in both wars before America got involved... I'm grateful yoo'all helped...ALOT.
They never won a war on their own.
the USA enteerd WWI when things were basically over yet claim it was them who won it. It's like entering in the last 2 minutes of a Basketball game, scoring only a 3 pointer at the last second to boost the score from 95 - 73 to 98 -73 and claiming you carried the match.
@@MrJerichoPumpkin Germany wasn't done by a long shot when The US put forces in the front lines of WW1..America ensured victory...the forces freed up by Russia's capitulation in addition to the newly acquired resources make America's contribution incalculable.
You state Canada was in the war before America but Canada is half of America.
@@KRIAJK You're American, aren't you? You dont have to answer. We can tell.
I’m Scottish and have been to Rhode Island, New York, Florida and other places in America. Everywhere we went we were asked stupid questions.
Which part of London is Scotland in?
Do you live in Edin burrow?
😁😁
@@101steel4 🤣🤣🤣 yes I live very near Edinburgh.
The americans that are booking these travel arrangenents worry me. Does nobody look up anything before leaving home. Currency, language, continent. Miles between places.
I cant be the only person who googles some details of where im going. Im from the uk but i know that hawaii and alaska are states. I like to think i would notice if i was leaving the country or not 😂. Its concerning.
I've come to the conclusion that they not only have no knowledge of the world, but they don't bother to do any research because they are 'Amurican'... the only civilised country in the world, and the most important country in existence
Your English worries me.
@@suemoore984 Lol, but they can be ignorant if they stay in their country, not if they want to travel anywhere else. It simply looks like they have no genuine interest when leaving the US, it is like they travel for the pics and only... many of those americans view cities like Paris or Rome as a studio where they take a few pics and then leave. They can be there for 2 weeks and somehow manage to not learn ONE SINGLE word in the local language. It is pure lack of interest, but they still want to travel...
It's not that they don't look it up, it's that they expect the rest of the world will cater to their whims because they are American. So they don't think they HAVE to look it up.
Apparently it's quite common for Americans to arrive in Austria thinking they are in Australia. How is this even possible?
To be fair, racism does stem from ignorance and especially the unwillingness to learn
I live in the U.K. & was born here so I have a U.K. accent. I talking with with a group of friends at uni, an American student was doing a year at our uni & was in the class we were waiting outside - so we were acquainted but not really friends. They weren't even actually in the group just stood next to us. I'd said something to one of my friends & this American turns to me & interrupts saying "What?! Are you even speaking English?!"
We all froze for a second & then stared at them. They didn't look embarrassed or anything. I just said a slow "yes, I am." They just huffed "well it's not like any English I've ever heard" & walked further away from us. All of us were rendered speechless.
A friend who lived in America was driving through a desert area when a server at a truck stop asked him where he was from. When he replied " Australia " she inquired whether he had come by boat ,air or if he'd driven all that way.
Oh yeah, he made good use of that land bridge some 40,000 years ago and has been stuck driving in circles ever since.
@sandrosliske 😂😂😂😂😂
Many years ago (late 90/early 00) I was on vacation at the southern end of Sweden where they had excavated a viking settlement and then built a "copy". And in the summer they had "actors" dressed as vikings doing woodwork looking after the animals and so on. We where told that some years before our visit an american couple had been there and apparently they thought that the actors where real vikings and that the place was a vikingreservation like the indianreservations in the US.
I stayed with a family in Atlanta on an exchange trip (im from Manchester UK) about 20 years ago... one of the first things they asked me was do we have ice cream in the UK 😂
At least that implies they assumed you have fridges and freezers! That's... uh... something... 🤣
Try being a German who gets asked fun things like "do you have cars" and "why haven't you killed Hitler yet"
In a semi serious note…I think that Americans struggle a bit with the depth of history that most other countries have . So any knowledge they have of another countries history they assume it is still how it is …..I’m a very frequent visitor to the states and have many interesting conversations
For Sale:
The Encyclopaedia of British Heritage: 15 DVD set
The Encyclopaedia of American Heritage: 1 Floppy Disk
An American visitor couldn't believe that the house I lived in was 400 years old,and that was the new part. The original building was Norman...
So, I'm a Canadian, living in Toronto. It's high summer, 40 C with the humidity, and I see an older couple that's standing around Toronto's Union Station, looking lost. Now, Toronto's Union Station is incredibly confusing, and that's before you add in the construction that is happening to expand the rail networks, etc. If you're not local, well, good luck not getting lost. (Even if you're local, you'll probably still get lost every time they change the construction detours, but, I digress!)
Anyway, I figure they're lost, so I go up to them, say hi, and ask them where they're trying to get to. Turns out, they were visiting from one of the southern US states, and yes, they were lost and trying to find the way to their hotel. They seemed friendly enough, and I knew where they wanted to go, so, we got to talking.
Then, they ask me where the snow was. Because 'this is Canada, why isn't there snow?'
I don't know how much I gaped at them, because my brain just stopped cold. I thought I was being pranked, because I remember thinking 'Good Lord, Americans can't be that stupid, right?'
Sir, Ma'am, this is Southern Ontario. Yes, we have snow, but, only in Winter? This is July? It's often 30 C and with the humidity it can get above 40 C?
Nope. They were serious. They seriously thought that all of Canada was some mystical land of snow and ice, even in the summer.
That reminds me of one time here in South Australia when I was waiting at a bus stop and an American couple were complaining loudly that it was too cold and that they were wanting to visit Australia to visit sunny beaches. It was August (so Winter). Trying to explain to them that the seasons in the southern hemisphere are opposite to seasons in the northern hemisphere was beyond hopeless.
As a Canadian I did always found it weird that Alaska was not a part of Canada growing up
that is because it originally belonged to Russia and they did not want to sell it to the British at least that is the story I heard don't know if it is true
Not just Canadians, but the whole world. At least when I first learned the world map, I wondered about the same thing. Alaska is just too far off from the rest of the USA. Might as well be it’s own country or part of Canada. Malaysian here.
When I was in Florida as a teenager, this girl I was talking to asked me if we "wear wooden shoes in Scotland?" Now, maybe she was mistaking me for being from Holland, but the way she reacted when i told her implied she didn't know what Holland was. This despite her best friend having a second name that starts with a "Van" (a very very common prefix in the Netherlands lol!)
Holland hasn't been part of the Netherlands for 700yrs. Sounds like you're the idiot.
😂😂😂😂😂. I know, my surname is van Platerink
@@jlessien3826 the thing about this is, the girl’s friend’s second name was Van something as well lol!
@@KRIAJK "Holland hasn't been part of the Netherlands for 700yrs."
Now you've got me interested. Please explain. Are you saying that Holland isn't part of the Netherlands because it is _two_ parts of the Netherlands?
Ive got one for you so during the summer we get cruise ships in and sometimes its american tourists that come in was in the museums where one of the tourist shouted " i cant understand this audio tour guide i need one that speaks in english " mate your in Scotland we speak effing English
To be fair, often us English can't understand Scottish people.
Depends on which part of Scotland your at West Coast not really clear east some parts can kinda understand get really far north can understand it more than most of England 😅
Also the audio guide was English
I find Scottish accent not too easy to understand but I also find out that they are extremely nice and helpful
'We dont travel much outside of the USA' .. imagine that, who could have guessed 😁
Right. we don't very often. Expense and time restraints are two of the big reasons. It takes a lifetime just to see our own country with its variations in culture, language and landscape. I have lived in 14 states and have visited all but three of the others and have barely scratched the surface.
I also lived in Europe for three years and have no desire to go back. While I had some pleasant interactions, most were decidedly unpleasant. I learned the language where I lived (I was there as part of a scientific team) even though nearly everyone spoke English. My coworkers made fun of my attempts to speak their tongue even though I never ridiculed them for their broken English. On the streets of London I was assaulted with taunts of Yankee go home. In Paris I had to be hidden in the kitchen of a cafe after being threatened with death. When trying to buy tickets to anything I would be rudely pushed out of line by large men. Finding a smile or a friendly word from anyone I met was absolutely impossible. One thing I learned is we in the USA are arrogant and ignorant, traits our ancestors should have left behind in their mother countries.
lol, its not that bad. I worked with a girl who asked to American contractors is the US has a king and queen. One of our guys said they used to have the same one as us but they had a tea party to get rid of them, to which she replied 'Im not stupid'!
Why do Canadians have different colored $$, I said we ran out of green ink!! 1 time I was in Texas I’m from Alberta, the guy asked where I was from so I just said Alberta; oh that must be Northern Alabama?? Yep it’s northern, yep 👍
At least he wasn't... entirely off...
I once had one trying to explain to me, a German, that Germany is "one of those adorable States on the East Coast"... 😬
@@asaris_ lmao!! I did 1 semester in Germany 💕💕🙏🏻. Way back in 89
@@asaris_ He must have been mistaken for Georgia?? 🤷♀️
When I meet someone with a name I am not familiar with I ask two things. First I ask how to say the name properly. Then I will ask where the name comes from. Most people are open to letting me know. Someone I talked to was from Moldova. They were suprised I had heard of Moldova and even more suprised that I knew it was in Eastern Europe. I find it interesting to know where people come from. As a RN I care for people from all over the world. It helps open communication knowing even a little bit about other countries.
In a tour group during a Caribbean cruise, a tourist in front of me complimented our Jamaican tour guide on her English, & asked where she'd learned it. English is the national language in Jamaica.
Hitchhiking across Africa presumes there's a nation called Africa! Anyone suggesting this should be cautioned: "Unlike hitchhiking across the US, you're going to be stopped & questioned by Customs agents every time you reach a border, so you need to have your passport readily at hand. You'll also going to have to hope you meet English speakers. Coz there's absolutely no way you're going to learn all the languages, customs & laws you're going to need to know!"
"What are you talking about? I'm just crossing *Africa,* not a bunch of freaking countries!"
"You do know that Africa is chopped up into independent countries, don't you, bro? What you're proposing be like you're going to tour South America expecting US dollars & American English, & being confused why everyone speaks Spanish!"
(P.s., I know that not every country there speaks Spanish...)
I'm wondering if that American couple in Marrakech were confusing "Cape Town" with Casablanca, which is the main gateway into Morocco for flights from the US. 🤔
Most Americans, even well educated ones, have some extremely wrong ideas about the rest of the world:
1) That most of the rest of the world is developmentally stuck somewhere between the 1950s and the pre-industrial era, meaning that Asian people live in huts, African people in the jungle and Eastern Europeans live in bread lines.
2) That America is a completely unique nation when it comes to the concept of 'freedom' and that us primitive folk, with the exception perhaps of a couple Western European nations, just don't understand this brilliant concept and even if we did could never apply it even 10% as well as the way Americans did in the most perfect country on the planet.
3) That culture just means eating different food, speaking a different language and wearing different clothes. That it is impossible to have something in one country be completely acceptable, even praiseworthy, but in another seen as completely rude. All things signify one thing and one thing only, and that is of course what Americans think of it. Thus, for example, if an American thinks foreigners wearing a kimono is cultural appropriation, then it's cultural appropriation, no matter what the Japanese people themselves think.
Oh god, the cultural appropriation obsession there is crazy!
It isn’t confidence. It is ignorance.
Online, an American said to me "you have cars in Australia?!?!?" 😂😂😂😂
No, we're one of the wealthiest countries on earth but we haven't discovered cars yet. 😂😂😂
Remember, that even Obama in a public speech assumed that the "American nation" invented the automobile?
@@ulrikof.2486 LMAO That same person that was amazed we have cars refused to believe me that wifi was an Australian invention. 😂😂😂
Tbh I think asking someone where they are from is not necessarily the the issue, it's more how they react and the consequent questions that make it cringey and rude and racist.
In my country, people are friendly to tourists and will ask them where they are from, out of curiosity and almost always will then just say something like "wow, that is wonderful that you travelled all the way to visit etc, hope you enjoy your time here."