| Pages in topic: < [1 2 3 4] > | Off topic: Those living abroad: how is your home country portrayed in the local media? Thread poster: Marion Lurf
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Fan Gao
Australia
Local time: 00:51
English to Chinese
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| that's so funny.. | Jun 10, 2006 |
Tim van den Oudenhoven wrote:
Also funny, when I told certain people in Belgium I was going to Australia for a year (where I am now), some of them warned me about the "fact" that all Australians are criminals, - "it used to be a prison you know!!!!" - so that I should be careful.
I forgot about that! When I tell Chinese people that my brother lives in Australia they always say "Isn't that where criminals are sent?"
Don't know why but they have this idea that murderers are tried and convicted in their own countries but then they are released and sent to Australia under some kind of relocation program and given new identities. I tell them that's not true of course. At least I hope not!
Best wishes,
Mark
| | | | Williamson 
United Kingdom
Local time: 15:51
Flemish to English
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| As seen by the British | Jun 10, 2006 |
Mr.John (John Makin)
Potverdekke (It's great to be a belgian)
Chorus Potverdekke, it's great to be a Belgian
I'm not English, I'm not French and I'm not Dutch
(I'm not Spanish, Portuguese or German)
I'm a Belgian, so thank you very much!
As I walk along the streets
With my mayonnaise and frites
You can tell I'm as happy as can be
With my Duvel in my hand
Then you must understand
I'm a Belgian, so nothing worries me!
C... See more Mr.John (John Makin)
Potverdekke (It's great to be a belgian)
Chorus Potverdekke, it's great to be a Belgian
I'm not English, I'm not French and I'm not Dutch
(I'm not Spanish, Portuguese or German)
I'm a Belgian, so thank you very much!
As I walk along the streets
With my mayonnaise and frites
You can tell I'm as happy as can be
With my Duvel in my hand
Then you must understand
I'm a Belgian, so nothing worries me!
Chorus Potverdekke, it's great to be a Belgian
I'm not English, I'm not French and I'm not Dutch
(I'm not Irish, Italian or Danish)
I'm a Belgian, so thank you very much
Without the Belgians there would be no saxophone
no Tintin, captain Haddock or Poirot
and you'll excuse me if I 've missed
anybody of the list
These are the only Belgians that I know!
Chorus Potverdekke, it's great to be a Belgian
I'm not English, I'm not French and I'm not Dutch
(I'm not Finnish, Austrian or Swedish)
I'm a Belgian, so thank you very much!
Chorus Potverdekke, it's great to be a Belgian
I'm not English, I'm not French and I'm not Dutch
(I'm not Spanish, Portuguese or German)
I'm a Belgian, so thank you very much!
Now the English egg and bacon's not so bad
Especially since all their cows went mad
But if they've never tasted mussels
On the Grand Place down in Brussels
It's no wonder they're feeling very sad!
Chorus Potverdekke, it's great to be a Belgian
I'm not English, I'm not French and I'm not Dutch
(I'm not Irish, Italian or Danish)
I'm a Belgian, so thank you very much
I'm a Belgian, I'm not Irish, I'm not Greek
I don't drink Guinness or Retsina, I drink Kriek!
On the Schelde or the Meuse
You find me drinking Gueuze
Or Leffe or Chimay or Lambik!
Chorus Potverdekke, it's great to be a Belgian
I'm not English, I'm not French and I'm not Dutch
(I'm not Spanish, Portuguese or German)
I'm a Belgian, so thank you very much
Chorus Potverdekke, it's great to be a Belgian
I'm not English, I'm not French and I'm not Dutch
(And me, I'm not a Luxemburger)
I'm a Belgian, so thank you very much
Chorus Potverdekke, it's great to be a Belgian
I'm not English, I'm not French and I'm not Dutch
(I'm not Spanish, Portuguese or German)
I'm a Belgian, so thank you very much
-
A decade ago, I was looking for a job in Germany. So I registered at the local Arbeitsamt in the South of Germany. "Also, Sie sprechen Belgisch und arbeiten bei der Europäische Union. Was machen Sie denn hier und warum suchen Sie sich hier eine Stelle?"
Aber nein, Frau Eulenbacher (could not sound more German), es gibt kein Belgisch. In Belgien spricht man Französisch, Flämisch und Deutsch (transl.: O, you speak Belgian and you work at the European Union. What are you doing here then? And why are you looking for a job here?
Answer: No, Mrs.Eulenbacher, there is no Belgian language. French, German and Flemish/Dutch are the official languages.
To explain to Frau E. the difference between Flemish and Dutch, I didn't even try...
It is not because the E.U.'s main institutions are in Brussels that every Belgian is working for these institutions.
In England, Tintin is also added to the know stereotypes. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Fan Gao
Australia
Local time: 00:51
English to Chinese
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Williamson wrote:
In England, Tintin is also added to the known stereotypes.
...not forgetting Belgian chocolates...yum!!
| | | | Clare Barnes
Sweden
Local time: 16:51
Swedish to English
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| A Brit in Sweden... | Jun 10, 2006 |
Every single British man falls into of the following categories (and sometimes all of them at the same time, though don't ask me how that works):
John Cleese
A football hooligan
Short and ugly
Very polite
A comedian
As for British women, there are no stereotypes about us at all! Apart from the fact that we are terrible cooks...
And it rains all the time in Britian, and we are uptight and repressed and... what else was there... oh, o... See more Every single British man falls into of the following categories (and sometimes all of them at the same time, though don't ask me how that works):
John Cleese
A football hooligan
Short and ugly
Very polite
A comedian
As for British women, there are no stereotypes about us at all! Apart from the fact that we are terrible cooks...
And it rains all the time in Britian, and we are uptight and repressed and... what else was there... oh, our Prime Minister (best left unsaid). And everyone lives in London...
I am, of course, now stereotyping the general response of Swedes, but it's fairly accurate - I've probably taught more than a thousand Swedish students over the years, and we always end up having this discussion. ▲ Collapse
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| A Brit in France | Jun 10, 2006 |
Great topic!
As an English woman living in the south of France, I get lots of comments on the fact that in England it "rains every day" and that there's "lots of fog" (we have Asterix to thank for that...).
Yes, Clare, people also assume that I MUST come from London, and when I say Bristol they ask me if that's where the paper comes from, but I must admit with shame that I'd never heard of it before moving here.
And you can imagine the shock when I refuse ... See more Great topic!
As an English woman living in the south of France, I get lots of comments on the fact that in England it "rains every day" and that there's "lots of fog" (we have Asterix to thank for that...).
Yes, Clare, people also assume that I MUST come from London, and when I say Bristol they ask me if that's where the paper comes from, but I must admit with shame that I'd never heard of it before moving here.
And you can imagine the shock when I refuse a cup of tea, and explain that I don't really like it!
As for the image that the media conveys, without going too far into politics, they show the English as doing everything that the Americans do.
[Edited at 2006-06-10 08:30] ▲ Collapse
| | | | | A random American on Belgium | Jun 10, 2006 |
Williamson wrote:
Without the Belgians there would be no saxophone
no Tintin, captain Haddock or Poirot
and you'll excuse me if I 've missed
anybody of the list
These are the only Belgians that I know!
It's indeed very true that most people just don't know anything about Belgium apart from that.
It's great to use that ignorance for your own amusement: I convinced an American here that we've only had electricity for two years and indoor plumbing for ten years. He bought it. Now how stereotypically American was he?
| | | | | India in the eyes of Japanese | Jun 10, 2006 |
Marion Lurf wrote: ...Or, what is equally interesting, what perception do the locals have of your home country? This thought came to my mind when watching the football match Germany - Costa Rica on BBC just before. I once again realised that the atmosphere would have probably been different if I had watched it on German (or Austrian) TV... I also recall the Olympic Games in Turin this year. I was watching alpine skiing on BBC with some Austrian friends, when one of the commentators said: "Austria is a skiing nation. In fact, every Austrian is dreaming of becoming a professional skier." We had a very good laugh! Also, when telling people here that I'm from Austria, most do not relate anything to my home country (apart from the Sound of Music maybe, or "the beautiful city of Vienna"), and often they even confess that I'm the first Austrian they meet. Similarly, years before I moved to Scotland, the only impression I had was one of "the mystic highlands you need to see". What about those of you also living abroad, do you have similar (funny) experiences you would like to share? Marion [Edited at 2006-06-09 19:13]
[Edited at 2006-06-10 10:21]
[Edited at 2006-06-10 10:22]
| | | | Marion Lurf
United Kingdom
Local time: 15:51
English to German
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TOPIC STARTER | Very amusing! | Jun 10, 2006 |
Hi everyone,
Thanks for all your comments, some stories are hilarious! Clare, I liked the Swedish description of British men...
Mark, I have to agree, British food is not as bad as people say - except for one thing: proper BREAD!
And the weather is fine, too - at the moment we have sunshine and 26°. I don't know why some people in Austria still pity me because it always rains Britain, in fact, I've ... See more Hi everyone,
Thanks for all your comments, some stories are hilarious! Clare, I liked the Swedish description of British men...
Mark, I have to agree, British food is not as bad as people say - except for one thing: proper BREAD!
And the weather is fine, too - at the moment we have sunshine and 26°. I don't know why some people in Austria still pity me because it always rains Britain, in fact, I've only used an umbrella twice in 3 years!
I also had to laugh about what people think about Belgium and Canada!
Another funny story I remember now:
We once did a school trip to Southern England, and one day we had to go and ask random people in the street what they connected with Austria - guess what, "kangaroo" was a frequent answer!! (Please note, this was just a few months before we joined the EU, so one could have expected people to be a bit better informed about what's going on in the world.)
And sometimes people who are aware that I'm not from the country with the kangaroos ask me to yodel for them...
PS: Yes, let's leave politics out of here...too much to say, too many controversies, and not allowed anyway.
Have a nice weekend everyone,
Marion ▲ Collapse
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In France:
I still am as embarrassed about it as I was when it happened...
All that the students in most classes where I was teaching knew about India was "Kamasutra"... and well, we Indians rarely talk about such things so imagine my embarrassment (as a young Indian girl) when all that my students wanted to ask during the class was about this "literary work".
At least I managed to survive better than the other girl who was at a Hotel-management school... s... See more In France:
I still am as embarrassed about it as I was when it happened...
All that the students in most classes where I was teaching knew about India was "Kamasutra"... and well, we Indians rarely talk about such things so imagine my embarrassment (as a young Indian girl) when all that my students wanted to ask during the class was about this "literary work".
At least I managed to survive better than the other girl who was at a Hotel-management school... she was giving an Indian Recipe and at one point told the students to put in "preservative" in the dish... and when they continued to gape at her... she repeated it several times before someone reminded her what it meant in French!!!
I don't know what her students think about India! ▲ Collapse
| | | | Rebecca Hendry
United Kingdom
Local time: 15:51
Member (2005)
Spanish to English
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| A Scot in Spain | Jun 10, 2006 |
When I lived in Spain the most common questions I was asked when I told people I was Scottish were:
Do you drink a lot of whisky?
Is Braveheart your favourite film?
Have you seen the Loch Ness monster?
The answer to all three is NO!
| | | | teju
Local time: 08:51
English to Spanish
+ ...
| A Spaniard in the US | Jun 10, 2006 |
Very interesting thread! These are the comments I've heard:
Do they have dogs in Spain?
Can you dance flamenco?
Can you make paella?
You must like spicy food!
Tacos are not from Spain?
And my favortites:
You don't look Spanish.
Your last name sounds American.
My maiden name is Martín, with an accent on the i, not Martin, as everyone insisted on calling me. They were very surprised when I told them than indeed, my... See more Very interesting thread! These are the comments I've heard:
Do they have dogs in Spain?
Can you dance flamenco?
Can you make paella?
You must like spicy food!
Tacos are not from Spain?
And my favortites:
You don't look Spanish.
Your last name sounds American.
My maiden name is Martín, with an accent on the i, not Martin, as everyone insisted on calling me. They were very surprised when I told them than indeed, my last name was Spanish. When someone said that I didn't look Spanish, and I've heard this comment a lot, no one who said that to me had ever been to Spain (imagine my shock). I still can't figure out the comment about the dog. I don't remember what my reply was, I've blocked it out of my mind.
Since I live in the Mexico-US border, I get a completely different reaction from Mexicans, or Mexican-Americans, when I say that I'm from Spain.
My grandfather (grandmother, uncle, aunt, etc.) was from Spain.
But you don't have a Spanish accent! (I'm from the South, I don't speak with the Spanish Z).
Oh, I want to visit Spain so bad.
Is everyone there a prince or a count?
I've lived here for many years, learning to modify the way I speak Spanish so local people won't giggle when I use words that have a different meaning here (you Spanish speakers know what I'm talking about). Once, I met another Spaniard who had the nerve to say that I didn't speak with a Spanish accent (how dare she?), and went on to say "you are not from Spain". Completely offended, I thought humor was the best way to handle the situation, and without blinking an eye, I replied: "someone please tell my mother, she's been lied to, we've got to correct my birth certificate".
I'm very happy living here, I've adapted the way I speak, but as soon as I get on the phone with my family, my husband claims that my Spanish accent comes out loud and clear. I don't know if that's true, but when I go home to visit my family, I do notice that I speak as if I had never left. I do it without thinking, it just comes out.
Very interesting observations. And yes, I do make a mean paella, but I learned to make it from a cookbook, after I had lived in the US more than 20 years!
[Edited at 2006-06-10 15:51] ▲ Collapse
| | | | | From the US, living in Sweden | Jun 10, 2006 |
Just a few of the more common perceptions probably stemming from the media.
All Americans are fat, own a gun (and will shoot you if you trespass), watch TV all day, and eat only fast food.
Americans are loud, demanding, and superficial.
I too get the "you don't look (American, in this case)" comment. Still has me stumped, that one, since I'm Czech/Irish descent...
Some of the nicer generalizations, there are some, include:
Americans h... See more Just a few of the more common perceptions probably stemming from the media.
All Americans are fat, own a gun (and will shoot you if you trespass), watch TV all day, and eat only fast food.
Americans are loud, demanding, and superficial.
I too get the "you don't look (American, in this case)" comment. Still has me stumped, that one, since I'm Czech/Irish descent...
Some of the nicer generalizations, there are some, include:
Americans have great teeth (Colgate smiles all around!), are hospitable and very polite, great tippers, friendly, and easy going. You can talk to anyone anywhere at any time. They'll go out of their way to help you - service is the best in the world.
The thing that has me perplexed is the unending need to compare things in Sweden, be it cars, schools, healthcare, politics, the legal system with the equivalent in the States. It would make more sense to me if the comparison was made with another Scandinavian or European country. But that's a different question. Fun topic, by the way. ▲ Collapse
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Marion Lurf
United Kingdom
Local time: 15:51
English to German
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TOPIC STARTER | One more about the Scots... | Jun 10, 2006 |
In Austria I often get asked: "So, have you found out yet what the Scotsmen wear under their kilt?"
Mary, it seems like the clichés about US Americans are the same whereever you go...never heard the Colgate one though!
| | | | sarahl (X)
Local time: 07:51
English to French
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| France and the US | Jun 10, 2006 |
French person in the US:
1. You must drink a lot of wine!
wrong, very little.
2. French kids drink wine.
Define "kids". If you mean anyone under 30, the answer is yes. If you mean grade school kids, no way.
3. The French wear a béret.
No, I like baseball caps better.
4. French women are elegant, they all wear Christian Dior,
are you sure you're French?
 ... See more French person in the US:
1. You must drink a lot of wine!
wrong, very little.
2. French kids drink wine.
Define "kids". If you mean anyone under 30, the answer is yes. If you mean grade school kids, no way.
3. The French wear a béret.
No, I like baseball caps better.
4. French women are elegant, they all wear Christian Dior,
are you sure you're French?
An American in France:
1. In the US they'll fine you if you don't cross a street at the crossing!
Probably a mistranslation of "jaywalking".
2. Americans are filthy rich, all of them.
Hollywood?
3. Americans speak American
Well, last time I checked the language was still called English. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | "United Statesian" (don't get me started!) in Puerto Rico | Jun 10, 2006 |
"Where are you from originally?"
--Illinois.
"Oh, Illinois! [pronouncing the final s] That's in Chicago, isn't it?"
And after a conversation about Illinois and Chicago and the Midwest and distances between:
"And how often do you go back to Nueva York to visit?"
You wouldn't believe how many times I get the above comments! Another of my favorites:
"Americans don't cook, do they? Just pizza and sandwiches."
Of course, whe... See more "Where are you from originally?"
--Illinois.
"Oh, Illinois! [pronouncing the final s] That's in Chicago, isn't it?"
And after a conversation about Illinois and Chicago and the Midwest and distances between:
"And how often do you go back to Nueva York to visit?"
You wouldn't believe how many times I get the above comments! Another of my favorites:
"Americans don't cook, do they? Just pizza and sandwiches."
Of course, when I *do* go back to Illinois (unlike ALL my neighbors and friends here, I have never set foot in New York City), I get odd comments there too:
"Puerto Ricans want to be independent from the U.S., don't they?" [Don't get me started on the complexities of the PR status question! But no, most are not seeking independence.]
"Have you learned to eat lots of hot peppers?" [No, but a lot of my Puerto Rican friends have learned that habit at Mexican restaurants. So have a lot of my U.S. friends.]
"Do you have good doctors there? Did you have to come up to the States to get your braces?" [Oh, please!]
Sorry, I know the question was about media portrayal, but I can't get into that and avoid politics. In general, though, the media portrayal of the U.S. is not as negative here as it is in many other places. And as my paisana wrote above: news coverage about Puerto Rico is virtually nonexistent in Illinois. My daughter found out about the recent fiscal crisis through a phone call from PR. However, *all* my stateside friends know that we live in daily peril to life and limb from the hurricanes that never let up! ▲ Collapse
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