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Author Topic: What seemed weird when I visited your country  (Read 95753 times)

Neko_Ali

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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #500 on: 05 Jun 2014, 07:47 »

To many Erics....
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #501 on: 05 Jun 2014, 07:50 »

Well, that just means you started earlier. We won't know who's the winner until one of you finishes the human race.

This could get uncomfortable.  How do you define "the end"?  Is the "winner" the one who gets to the end first, or the one who keeps going...?
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Mlle Germain

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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #502 on: 05 Jun 2014, 07:56 »

Being born in China, I was not given a Western name at birth. I was named in the traditional way, inheriting my family surname from my father, and having my personal name selected by my grandparents. When we moved to Australia, my family obviously had to adopt Western name order, romanized spelling for our names, and English-language "first names". In my case, the two syllables of my Chinese personal name each sound like a common English girl's name, so the school where I was first enrolled wrote them down separately as my first and middle names using English spelling, and that is how I got my Australian name. I'm OK with it, and I made it "official" when I became an Australian citizen.
I actually find it slightly strange that most people from East Asia seem to take on a standard western/English name for western/English people to use instead of their actual one. It makes sense to find a way to spell your actual name in Latin characters, but why not try to adapt it as closely to the actual pronounciation as possible and then use that? To me at least, being called by a completely different name would always feel like it's not really me. Of course, Chinese names are sometimes hard for Westerners to pronounce, but people can at least try. Changing your name completely to a standard western name feels to me like giving up part of your cultural identity, just to accomodate lazy Westeners who can't be bothered to learn Chinese names - I realise that this is not necessarily how people who are in that situation actually feel about it, though! I might be getting it completely wrong.
I'd be happy to have you comment on that, Akima, if you like!

As far as I am aware, taking on a western name is not that common in Germany. Three of my boyfriend's friends have parents who migrated from China to Germany; two of them were born in Germany and they all have Chinese personal names that they use in their daily life (adapted to the western order of putting the personal name first). A friend of another friend who is Chinese and came to Germany to go to university is using her Chinese name, too. Another family of Chinese origin that I know with three children gave the older one a Chinese name and German names to the younger two (of course I don't know whether they also have a Chinese middle name or not).
However, here in the UK, everyone from South-East Asia that I've met is using an English first name. I talked about this to a girl from Taiwan who came to the UK for her PhD in my volleyball team; she said that she was given the name by her first English teacher like all other students in her class and she uses that for everyone in the UK beause it's easier and she doesn't mind, because normally, only her family and close friends would use her personal name to address her anyways.

(I have to say that I'm very lucky that in the UK everyone uses first names, because my first name also exists in English with a slightly adapted pronounciation, but my last name is very hard to say and to understand for English-speakers. Whenever I need to give it somewhere, I have to spell it letter by letter - it has 15 letters - or show them my ID.)
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Ben

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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #503 on: 05 Jun 2014, 21:57 »

Regarding usage of personal names, I found out many years ago that the Liberal-left, politically-correct, Guardian-reading, twinkly-eyed multi-cultural nirvana is an entirely Western delusion. One of the perennial drivers behind my travels is the widespread practice of employing and promoting local nationals, and the resulting balance between the local workforce and the expats employed to maintain necessary functions.

I've done a good deal of work in a Muslim countries, but I have no-one I'd regard as a personal friend as a result. The reason is simple and obvious; as a beer-drinking, bacon-eating Englishman who regards secular law as paramount over religious law and sees no reason why my wife and daughter can't go where they like and marry whom they please, my frame of reference is completely incompatible with theirs. That's just how it is and they see no reason why not, either.

This doesn't worry me and it doesn't appear to worry them, either.
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Akima

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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #504 on: 06 Jun 2014, 02:53 »

Of course, Chinese names are sometimes hard for Westerners to pronounce, but people can at least try. Changing your name completely to a standard western name feels to me like giving up part of your cultural identity, just to accomodate lazy Westeners who can't be bothered to learn Chinese names - I realise that this is not necessarily how people who are in that situation actually feel about it, though!
Well... Of course taking on a Western name does feel like giving up part of your cultural identity, but when you emigrate to another country with an (initially) very alien culture, that is a standard part of the package. In order just to function effectively in society, or to aspire (however futilely, see the posting before this) to being seen as a fully equal citizen in it, you have to put on your "host-country suit" before you walk out of the front door. Obviously, the longer you've been wearing the suit, and the younger you were when you first put it on, the better the suit fits, but it never entirely stops chafing I think, not least because nobody will ever let you forget you are wearing it. Do I mind that? Yes I do, but it has to be set against the great advantages my family has gained by emigrating. As we say: Eat bitter; taste sweet!

I don't accuse Westerners who can't or won't pronounce Chinese names correctly of laziness necessarily, and expecting correct pronunciation is very unrealistic. Considering that even newscasters on national television habitually mispronounce the name of China's capital city (it is Bay-jing, not Beige-ing), where is the average person going to learn? The "official" Pinyin romanization system does not help matters. Would you immediately recognise that ZH is pronounced like the hard J at the beginning of jungle, or that Q is pronounced like the CH at the beginning of chintz while CH represents the sound at the beginning of chop, or that C is pronounced TS like the sound in the middle of besT-Seller? All of this requires study, which the average person will probably not have done. The out-of-fashion Yale romanization system works much better for English-speakers (it was designed for the U.S.Army), but would mislead Germans, for example, because the habitual way they pronounce the letter J is different. The interface between Chinese and European languages is simply a very difficult problem even for Standard Mandarin, never mind the regional dialects.

As for the "Liberal-left, politically-correct, Guardian-reading, twinkly-eyed multi-cultural nirvana"; the notion that it could exist might be a liberal delusion, but the belief that the only alternative is blank rejection is a fairly extreme conservative one. I do not myself find that my religious, cultural, or dietary practices preclude friendship with people who do not share them.

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Mlle Germain

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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #505 on: 06 Jun 2014, 03:45 »

Thanks for you long answer, Akima! Your suit metaphor is very instructive.

Re: Ben. :roll: Somehow I don't think me willing to try pronouncing names that do not come from a European language as correctly as possible in order to acknowledge people's identity instead of expecting them to take on a name from my culture that has nothing to do with them is part of any "illusional twinkly-eyed multi-cultural nirvana". But this is not the Discuss Forum, so I'll leave my respsonse at that.
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #506 on: 06 Jun 2014, 06:44 »

When I was growing up, we called it "Peking."

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Mlle Germain

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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #507 on: 06 Jun 2014, 06:58 »

In German, "Peking" is still used very often.
But I wouldn't really call that a mispronounciation so much as a different name for a city in a different language/ adapting the city name to a different language. That happens with practically all major cities in almost every language! Köln is "Cologne" in English, München is "Munich", Berlin and Hamburg are written the same, but the pronounciation is anglicised. Paris is also written the same, but pronounced English. In German, London is still called London, but pronounced in a German way. Strasbourg (which is of course extremely close to the German border and in an area historically heavily influenced by Germany) is also called Straßburg, a German version of the name. Every English speaker knows the Polish capital Warszawa as Warsaw, and German speakers as Warschau. I could go on; there are plenty more examples.
To be honest, I don't really see a problem adapting geographical names to other languages if they are also commonly used in that language. I'm not offended if English speakers don't pronounce German cities German.

I am also not offended by people pronouncing my first name as it would be pronounced in English; it is still my name.
Both of these are still very different from expecting (There are historic examples of people actually being forced to change their names in similar situations) a group of people to take on completely different personal names that have no connection to their previous name, I would say.

Edit: I just thought of of a scenario I hadn't thought of before: Colonial powers often changed geographical names of places in their colonies or named the places in their language and those colonial names inevitably have connotations of the often brutal and oppressive colonial period and do not take into account the culture of the native inhabitants. In such cases I find it more respectful and adequate to stop using that name and change to using the name that the actual inhabitants/ owners of the land use (examples that come to my mind first are aboriginal sacred sites like Uluru and Kata Tjuta in Australia that have today been returned to the administration of the native inhabitants of the land). There are more such cases around the world, especially in Africa.
Is Beijing maybe one of them, too? Of course, China was never a British colony, but still there is a problematic period in Anglo-Chinese history. Does "Peking" come from that period?
In any case, it puzzles me why English speakers would want to pronounce Beijing any differently than Bay-Jing. I mean, this is precisely how the "J"-sound is usually pronounced in English words!
« Last Edit: 06 Jun 2014, 07:32 by Mlle Germain »
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Akima

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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #508 on: 06 Jun 2014, 17:40 »

Of course, China was never a British colony, but still there is a problematic period in Anglo-Chinese history. Does "Peking" come from that period?
You mean that not all of China was a British colony; you are forgetting Hong Kong, Weihai, and the quasi-colony of the Shanghai International Settlement. The British imperial boot was not removed from China's face until 1997. So yes, a problematic period only recently ended (though it pales utterly in brutality, if not duration, compared with the period of Japanese imperialism in  China). The name Peking was used during that period, but is not regarded as particularly of it. Peking was in use long before the First Opium War kicked off the Century of Humiliation. It derives from the pronunciation of the characters 北京 in the dialects spoken in the southern ports through which Portuguese traders and missionaries first entered China in the 16th century. Bay-jing is simply the northern pronunciation of the same characters, because Standard Mandarin (pǔtōnghuà) is based on northern dialects. Peking preserves the syllable-structure of the Chinese in a way that Beige-ing does not and is really far more legitimate. I have written before about the many ways in which Westerners and Chinese people have managed to misunderstand one another.

Quote
In any case, it puzzles me why English speakers would want to pronounce Beijing any differently than Bay-Jing. I mean, this is precisely how the "J"-sound is usually pronounced in English words!
Exactly. The soft French-style pronunciation of the J in Beijing is alien to both Chinese and English. Noam Chomsky argues that we exoticise the "other" in language, and that for many English-speakers, the default exotic is French. :P 
« Last Edit: 06 Jun 2014, 17:55 by Akima »
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GarandMarine

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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #509 on: 06 Jun 2014, 18:31 »

I think I pronounce Beijing "Bey-Jing" but that's probably a regional English thing on the first vowel.
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Mlle Germain

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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #510 on: 07 Jun 2014, 04:32 »

I have written before about the many ways in which Westerners and Chinese people have managed to misunderstand one another.
That was an interesting read!

I think I pronounce Beijing "Bey-Jing" but that's probably a regional English thing on the first vowel.
Uh, is there a pronounciation difference between Bey and Bay? I would pronounce them the same...
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Method of Madness

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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #511 on: 07 Jun 2014, 05:33 »

I don't think so.
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GarandMarine

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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #512 on: 07 Jun 2014, 06:50 »

Time for another sound cloud pronunciation thread?
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #513 on: 07 Jun 2014, 20:10 »

If someone ever calls you out for mispronouncing a word, reply with "I'll thank you for not drawing attention to my speech impediment."
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #514 on: 07 Jun 2014, 20:12 »

One of my professors, who is Chinese, once said to a student who would always mispronounce his name: "I try very hard to pronounce your name. Please try to pronounce mine."
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #515 on: 09 Jun 2014, 06:55 »

The soft French-style pronunciation of the J in Beijing is alien to both Chinese and English. Noam Chomsky argues that we exoticise the "other" in language, and that for many English-speakers, the default exotic is French. :P

I find this point of view interesting given that I live in a strongly English/French part of the world. I would have assumed that what I was seeing was just local to me.
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Ben

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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #516 on: 09 Jun 2014, 08:44 »

Flicking through my passport, I find that the Russian visa office have used no less than four different Roman alphabet spellings of my name, and three different Cyrillic transliterations. It doesn't seem to worry them so I don't worry about it either providing it produces some recognisable variant and we all agree that it represents a specific individual, for the purpose of the exercise.

I have been called "Mr Ben" in many Eastern Mediterranean and Central Asian countries over the years; this is a misunderstanding based on misinterpreting the firms if names, which anyone familiar with these countries will know well. I sometimes have problems in Russian speaking countries because virtually all Russians have a patronymic, a form of name unknown in the West.

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GarandMarine

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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #517 on: 09 Jun 2014, 10:06 »

Well assuming you have a father, it would follow you just don't use your patronymic yes? So if your father's name is John, Ben Ivanovich or in my personal case GM Petrovich
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #518 on: 09 Jun 2014, 10:10 »

My dad had the same first name as me, so if I used a patronymic it would be somewhat repetitive, though I guess it isn't any different among actual Russians. "Vladimir Vladimirovich" is apparently a fairly common combination in Russia.
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #519 on: 09 Jun 2014, 14:50 »

GM Petrovich sounds hilarious.

Ivan Ivanovich Ivanov is sometimes used as a placeholder for a name (e.g. if you specify how a certain form has to be filled out.); I think it is similar to "John Smith" in that regard.
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #520 on: 09 Jun 2014, 18:07 »

the new 2014 GM Petrovitch (tm) only gets 12 miles to the gallon, but has a towing capacity of 4.3 tons. it comes standard with a roof mounted lighting system, and optional twin M60 SAW mounting system.
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #521 on: 09 Jun 2014, 18:22 »

I'd imagine GM's response to be "what the hell do you mean optional?" :roll:
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #522 on: 09 Jun 2014, 18:24 »

the twin machineguns are only optional if you're the type of person who shouldn't be driving a GM Petrovich. Smart cars are located in the Toy aisle of your local Wal-Mart. The self deploying and loading 120mm mortar is optional, but recommended for most drivers. There is no OnStar service available, but the dealer will provide you a complimentary flare gun and a pint of whiskey.

I'd imagine GM's response to be "what the hell do you mean optional?" :roll:

....well... he's not wrong kids.
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I built the walls that make my life a prison, I built them all and cannot be forgiven... ...Sold my soul to carry your vendetta, So let me go before you can regret it, You've made your choice and now it's come to this, But that's price you pay when you're a monster with no name.

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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #523 on: 10 Jun 2014, 03:07 »

Apparently Scandinavia and the Baltic countries have a thing called 'name day', which is like a birthday only it's celebrated on the day of the calendar that bears your name. All the calendar days were named after saints in the past, and if your name is the same or similar, it's cause to celebrate. In the more hospital countries, you can expect visitors as everyone who knows your name knows that you'll want to celebrate that day.
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #524 on: 10 Jun 2014, 03:11 »

Germany and Russia have that too, but it's not widely celebrated.
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Thrillho

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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #525 on: 10 Jun 2014, 03:13 »

Doesn't that rely on everyone choosing from the same pool of 365 names?
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #526 on: 10 Jun 2014, 03:16 »

Well, my first name is not directly in the calender, but it's a short form with swedish origin of one, so it's not only 365 names, but also variations thereof. On the other hand, I had heard of name days only when I was ten or so, so it's not really common in Germany.
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #527 on: 10 Jun 2014, 03:22 »

Yeah, every once in a while I got a card for St. Joseph's Day. (March 19th).
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #528 on: 10 Jun 2014, 04:08 »

There are also sometimes multiple name days on the same day.
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #529 on: 10 Jun 2014, 05:02 »

the more hospital countries

 :?
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #530 on: 10 Jun 2014, 05:22 »

France has that too - I think it's more of a Catholic thing.
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #531 on: 10 Jun 2014, 05:41 »

Some saints have multiple days - Mary, in particular!  Even St Paul has two (Feast of St Peter & St Paul, which celebrates the martyrdom of both, and The Conversion of St Paul).
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #533 on: 10 Jun 2014, 05:47 »

the more hospital countries
:?
Hospitable?
Maybe they really do mean hospital countries - you know, countries with hospital-like qualities: Old, devoid of light, terrible food, an unending sense of dread?

[cough]England[/cough]  :mrgreen:


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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #534 on: 10 Jun 2014, 06:39 »

Here in England right now, there is glorious sunshine and I live a few minutes' walk from the world-famous Balti triangle. I certainly don't have an unending sense of dread (mostly because I take tablets for that...). Old, I will give you ;)
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #535 on: 10 Jun 2014, 06:51 »

Ironically it is rainy and miserable here in supposedly sunny Adelaide, also the perpetual dread because of our federal government trying relentlessly to take us back to the 50's..  :-(

But oh well, at least our food is amazing.
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #536 on: 10 Jun 2014, 06:58 »

Shame about your water. :wink:
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #537 on: 10 Jun 2014, 07:03 »

the more hospital countries
:?
Hospitable?
Yes that's what I meant, I forgot a be. My mind was stuck thinking of this.

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Quote from: snalin
I just got the image of a midwife and a woman giving birth swinging towards each other on a trapeze - when they meet, the midwife pulls the baby out. The knife juggler is standing on the floor and cuts the umbilical cord with a a knifethrow.

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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #538 on: 10 Jun 2014, 08:09 »

Shame about your water. :wink:
Shame about your Liberal* Premier  :-P






*For the non-antipodeans: The Liberals are the Right-Wing Conservatives here.
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #539 on: 10 Jun 2014, 21:18 »

The Liberals are the Right-Wing Conservatives here.
Buh? :psyduck:
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #540 on: 10 Jun 2014, 21:36 »

The Liberals are the Right-Wing Conservatives here.
Buh? :psyduck:
Australia is upside-down, remember?
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #541 on: 10 Jun 2014, 23:09 »

Tony Abbott is in a whole new league of fucktard.
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #542 on: 11 Jun 2014, 01:25 »

Satire, but relevant to our *illustrious* Oz Prime Minister. God I hate that man. http://www.theshovel.com.au/2014/06/08/abbott-commits-to-cutting-australias-reputation-by-30-by-2015/
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #543 on: 16 Jun 2014, 05:40 »

Okay, so I know it's pretty normal in a lot of places to have an elaborate lunch with friends, which is what I'd do when I just got out of a lecture here in Sweden, but now I'm working on something alone and I don't want to lose too much time so I go into town just to get a sandwich. The last time I went into an Italian café and ordered the thing most resembling a sandwich to me: a grilled foccacia. It was without a doubt the fattiest thing I have ever eaten. I could swear I could feel my arteries clogging after the first bite. They must have smothered it in oil. The inside was thick with mozzarella cheese and pesto. I just wanted something tasty I could eat with my hands!

So I tried again today, at the café next to the previous one. I order a ciabatta sandwich with shrimp to go. I get back to the office lounge and open it up, and there's a pile of fried potatoes that's bigger than the sandwich itself! At least I got my money's worth in calories, but the sandwich alone would have been plenty. Apparently Swedes don't do small lunches. I wish the university cafeterias were still open, at least they had things that are the appropriate size for my hands and my stomach.
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Quote from: snalin
I just got the image of a midwife and a woman giving birth swinging towards each other on a trapeze - when they meet, the midwife pulls the baby out. The knife juggler is standing on the floor and cuts the umbilical cord with a a knifethrow.

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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #544 on: 16 Jun 2014, 14:39 »

Found on another forum and I conclude from context this is US-American.

Quote
 I wouldn't ask her out, per se, but asking her on a date would probably be solid. Or don't even do that. Just ask to do something date-like alone. Ask her to coffee or something, see how alone time goes.

aaargh
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #545 on: 16 Jun 2014, 14:41 »

"I wouldn't ask her out, but ask her out. Or maybe ask her out." is pretty much what I got from that quote :psyduck:
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #546 on: 16 Jun 2014, 14:54 »

There are subtle differences though. "Will you go out with me?" is a slightly crass way to ask someone to start a relationship with you - it was how people got together in my secondary school mostly. "Would you like to go on a date?" is different, as all you're asking for is a single date's worth of commitment. "Want to go and get coffee?" is different again, because that can be a friend thing.
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #547 on: 16 Jun 2014, 14:56 »

Okay, obviously I was mistaken in stereotyping this as "Americans have this weird notion of dates and non-dates". My apologies.

Edit: *blink* "go out" implies permanence (in Britain, I assume)? I never knew that.
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #548 on: 16 Jun 2014, 15:21 »

Really? I dunno, when I was single I'd ask a girl if she "wanted to go out sometime?*". I'd consider that asking someone out. And yeah, the whole "will you go out with me?" doesn't seem to be a thing past the teenage years. I'd suggest going on a few dates with someone or at least spending time with them before even thinking of starting a relationship with them.

*This can be dinner or coffee or whatever, but if you use the phrase "go out" it's probably clear that it's some sort of date. Actually those things are never really clear, never mind. Dating is confusing and I really don't miss it.
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Re: What seemed weird when I visited your country
« Reply #549 on: 16 Jun 2014, 16:43 »

Satire, but relevant to our *illustrious* Oz Prime Minister. God I hate that man. http://www.theshovel.com.au/2014/06/08/abbott-commits-to-cutting-australias-reputation-by-30-by-2015/

The horrible thing is is I can imagine that being real.  I feel sorry for you Aussies. 

Mind you, we have Darth Key, so things aren't that great here either.
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