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20 dumb questions Banff tour operators hear on the job
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by Barry Artiste | September 5, 2009 at 09:33 am
199 views | 32 Recommendations | 4 comments
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Barry Artiste Op/Ed
Gee I can think of way more than 20 questions people ask, including one I got when in Ferndale, Washington in the USA at a sporting goods shop. I wanted to have a special order shipped to my place.
The clerk asked me where I wanted it shipped to, and I said Vancouver, Canada, He said, Vancouver is in Washington (true there is a Vancouver, Washington) I replied, No! Vancouver, British Columbia!
The clerk replied they do not ship to England, because The Queen of England doesn't allow guns in her kingdom, but I hear it rains a lot, just like here!
Now for many who are not from Canada, Ferndale, Washington is like 42 miles from Canada, so you can imagine my surprise when he said that!
Needless to say I was gobsmacked looking at this 20 something clerk, howcould I respond as he looked dead serious when he told me this. I did however explain to him how geography works, he then said he thought the next state up north was Alaska, though true, to get there by car, you have to pass through Canada!
The look on his face was priceless, no doubt at dinner tonight he will smugly say to his family, Guess what? I know where Canada is!
AH the American School system, I wonder if Obama is stopping by Washington State schools to drop off a Lesson Plan in Geography?
20 dumb questions Banff tour operators hear on the job
By Lisa Monforton, Calgary Herald It could be all that fresh mountain air. Or maybe it's the altitude, a different time zone or even jet lag.
Otherwise there's no excuse for what makes tourists ask the dumbest questions.
There are some real gems, and it happens all the time. Just ask the patient and good-natured folks who make a living showing tourists around Banff National Park.
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Barry Artiste
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Recommendations (32)
Roy C
Vancouver, Washington, United States
Rhonda J Mangus
North Tonawanda, New York, United States
Tina Kells
Vancouver, Canada
albertacowpoke
Canada
Most RecentMost Recommended Comments (4)
at 10:04 on September 5th, 2009
Priceless, my wife giggled as she grew up 14 miles East of Vancouver, WA. Back in her days they still taught geography and she knew how to find Canada. Oops I found Texas lol
at 10:16 on September 5th, 2009
"AH the American School system, I wonder if Obama is stopping by Washington State schools to drop off a Lesson Plan in Geography?"
If not, he should:
Study: Geography Greek to young Americans.
at 13:24 on September 5th, 2009
We don't make the kids memorize anything anymore. Memorization is work and enforcing it is "authoritarian" and "needlessly harsh". The child can then "fail" or "succeed" on something whose relevance he has had no part in judging!
Imagine that ! Trusting judgments on curriculum to adults who have actually lived in the world!
Hell, a principal once took me to task for making the high schoolers show their work when doing math. Not necessary, he said. They agreed and copied off each other.
One class on American History studied the 1920s and knew all about the nasty Republicans imposing an income tax of 2% on all workers, but they knew nothing about the stock market, how a corporation worked, or what caused the Great Depression.
They just knew that Republicans were, as we say on the East Coast, "schmucks".
at 14:14 on September 5th, 2009
HA, thanks Roy, who knew teachers collectively in Canada and the US push the Liberal agenda, Small World eh?