Dimcl Dimcl:
And, to finalize this thread, here's some information that I'm sure most any Canadian would recognize - on my trip to New Orleans last month, I chatted with a young man born and raised there who was planning a trip to Australia. He wanted me to bring him some Canada flag patches to sew on his jackets so the Aussies would think he was Canadian! He (seriously!) said he'd tell them he was from Quebec. I guess he figured the Aussies would mistake his Louisiana drawl for "Quebecois"! I love all you proud Americans!
There are whole businesses established around that, it might pay to take the URL of one of them with you when you travel in the US.
"The Times December 08, 2004
Why Americans pretend to be Canadian
By Elaine Monaghan
Travellers adopt new identity to escape scorn abroad
FOR some Americans, to be mistaken for a Canadian is the ultimate humiliation, yet hundreds of US citizens travelling abroad have willingly acquired a disguise of a T-shirt with a Canadian flag.
Traditionally, Americans have looked down on their northern neighbours and Canadians are the butt of a thousand American jokes. But faced with hostility on their foreign holidays, some Americans are going to great lengths to conceal their nationality.
Those prepared to make the switch can now buy maple leaf stickers for their luggage. The truly adventurous can even learn the dialect and replenish their knowledge of the adopted homeland with the help of the quick reference guide How to Speak Canadian, Eh?
Relations between the two countries have been strained by Canada’s refusal to back the US-led war on Iraq. President Bush did not help matters during a recent visit to Ottawa. Confronted by protesters, he said that he was grateful to those Canadians who came out to wave “with all five fingers”.
However, Mr Bush’s election victory last month prompted a flood of inquiries on Canada’s main immigration website. Sensing a business opportunity, an American company is selling a “Go Canadian” package for $24.95 (£13) after an employee heard of someone being harassed over US politics during a recent trip overseas."
The package above is regularly out of stock, but there are plenty of other places people can get T-shirts, pins and such. I'd list the URL of some, but you know, those CKA shirts should do quite well. Why not just send them here?
One request, though. Tell your American acquaintences that Canadians are known for being friendly and polite, so their disguise will fail if they're rude or inconsiderate. I can understand why they might want the disguise, but we do have a reputation to maintain.
