First post, please forgive the overall lameness
Undoubtedly, the stupidest tourists I have met are the Americans in America. I work for a tour company in downtown Chicago, and have fielded some astonishingly dumb questions from people who ought to know better. Yes, we are in the Midwest. This does not mean that the Sears tower is the exact midpoint of the country, and please don't continue this misconception by informing your children such (the actual midpoint is somewhere in Kansas if you don't include Alaska and Hawaii). No, a cow didn't really start the Great Fire. Actually, Al Capone does not live in the Loop (as he is long dead). I do not know Oprah's home address, and Lake Michigan is that large body of water directly east. And it pains me to say this, but YES, American travellers are for the most part obese, loud, ignorant and very poorly dressed. They drive around the country with their whiny children, and instead of taking advantage of the museums, concerts, architecture or art festivals, they ask where they can stuff their faces with deep dish pizza.


Just to point out that even Europeans make dumb mistakes, however, I will share the story of a good friend of mine attempting to drive from New Jersey to Kalamazoo, Michigan. She set the GPS direction-giving thing in the car she was driving and ended up making it all the way to Kalamazoo Avenue, Conneticut, before realizing her error.

(I would also like to remind the people of Britain that, although Bush is indeed a war criminal, Britain is also engaged in a war with Iraq. Not all Americans are personally responsible for the actions of our government.)
(schwamaster, Mon 11 Jul 2005, 18:01, Reply)