Knowledge of Sweden is really lacking | Chronicles
I continue to be amazed at the depth of knowledge the average American possesses, common wisdom, if you will. Particularly impressive is our overall mastery of geography and the cultural customs of our neighbors in the world.
I am encouraged to make these observations because a group from Sweden recently visited a local study group. At first, our members were mad at the thought that the Swedish bikini team parachuted into our normally quiet session. Then we found out that the bikini-clad chippis would not show up without some thirty types of company instead. Well, we were still excited. After all, Sweden is exotic, right?
On the morning of the big visit, I had a conversation with Mable, “What is Sweden’s capital? Is it Bern or Geneva? Mable, who thought for a few minutes, came to “Stockholm.” Oh, yes, I knew that. After all, I carry a Swiss Army knife in my pocket. It is probably made in Stockholm.
At lunch, the Swedes were presented. Their first act was to show a map of Europe with Sweden clearly outlined. The guy next to me said: “Sure, I know where Sweden is. It is Belgium right next door. ” On closer inspection, Belgium turned out to be Denmark. Another guy then offered, “Sweden, nice place. I have been to Oslo, Sweden. Really clean but a bit chilly at night. ”
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From the next table I heard, “I love their sardines so as not to say anything about their meatballs and my daughter drives a Peugeot. It’s a nice little car.” My first friend then went into the fight again, “I think Belgian waffles are made in Sweden. They are quite good but not as good as the Swedish Beluga caviar. ”
From the table behind me: “I have never been to Sweden but I have been to Scandinavia. It is one of the most beautiful countries in the world. It is not far from Sweden. ” To the right I heard, “Speaking of sardines, this is Sardinia there,” pointing to Finland. “I remember it was an island and warm enough to start. Maybe the sardines dredged up the seabed and connected Sardinia to the mainland as the Dutch did in Flemland. That’s why all Flemish paintings have water in them.”
My head started spinning when a club member gave us this piece of information: “When I graduated from college, I went from Greenland over Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Sardinia. Man, those Alps almost killed me. “Fortunately, the Swedes did not hear any of this.
I was ashamed of my friends, but before it got worse I noticed that my fake Rolex, another nice Swedish product, had taken an hour and it was time to stop. Thank goodness I was afraid we would say something really stupid.