Posted by PartlyCloudy on July 31, 2010, at 17:24:35
In reply to Re: America » PartlyCloudy, posted by sigismund on July 31, 2010, at 15:59:45
> I have learned from experience that it is wiser to say 'Are you from Canada?' first.
>
> The accent may be a little easier for me, I'm not sure.
>
> A very nice looking American came up to me and said 'Where is Wahlrutz?' I asked him to repeat it twice and eventually understood him to mean Woolworths.
> We don't use consonants here, which must be a problem in reverse.I haven't lived in my home country since 1983 (!!!) so I have worked very hard at both retaining my national identity and suppressing it at times. I try to be a quick vocabulary study in my surrounds, but it can be tricky! (I am pretty attached to my consonants.) Frankly, I'm surprised an American would be looking for a Woolworths and not a Walmart - maybe that was them trying to fit in, too? I haven't shooped at a Wooly's since, er, I lived in Canada and England. Long gone from the US of A as far as I know.
poster:PartlyCloudy
thread:956518
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20100716/msgs/956606.html