Lea Posted November 25, 2007 Report Share Posted November 25, 2007 I had asked our wonderful Non-US Citizen friends here at SF (In the Tens forum)if I could pt my silly questions about their homelands to them. I had many volunteers offer to let me ask them questions about their country. You guys are so cool. Anyway, I was thinking I'm probably not the only one who is interested in such things and thought maybe a lot of others are also curious about the countries, traditions, lifestyles, politics, school system etc. So, I thought I'd just start a thread here so anyone could ask about something they my be wondering about. I hope our non-US friends don't mind if I started the post My first question would be to all of them: Where do you live? In the country, city or somewhere in between. Is the terrain rolling green hills, mountains or on the sea shore. Do you like where you live or do you wish you could move somewhere else? Not out of the country just out of the neighborhood. A kind of "When you look out your window what do you", see question. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farin Posted November 25, 2007 Report Share Posted November 25, 2007 I'm from the North-Eastern part of Germany, Mecklenburg, the least densely populated area of the country... close to the Baltic Sea, flat lands, fields, meadows, lakes, some forests check out pictures here and here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Seeker Posted November 25, 2007 Report Share Posted November 25, 2007 I live in the third-biggest city in the north-east of Scotland (wikipedia is useful... and I only just moved here a few weeks ago to study) which really isn't all that big, especially since I lived in the... let me see... third-biggest city of the whole of the UK before that. Nothing much to say about that one... and I don't know it that well anyway. I think I like it better here... There's mountains and rolling hills to one side, and the sea to the other, and the beach is just twenty minutes away from me. It's very nice I think... pretty, quiet, I can walk everywhere, but it's not too small either. Lots of granite houses and cobble stone streets everywhere which looks very nice, very few big buildings and I've always wanted to live this close to the sea (even though the weather doesn't really make me want to jump in). I grew up in south western Ireland though (okay okay... fourth-biggest city there) which I think is even nicer though some people might disagree, and I'm sure you've all heard the cliches about Ireland and what it looks like. And to take you literally... The view out my window isn't very exciting... trees, a gate, and the spire of the university chapel. That's also where I see the only thing that's sort of 'exotic' to me (I'm sure what I described could be anywhere in the US too)... Scottish weddings with bagpipes and kilts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Levis Posted November 25, 2007 Report Share Posted November 25, 2007 I live in a suburb of Delhi... which is as good as living in Delhi itself. I'm in the up-and-coming suburbs, so I'm watching my city evolve and grow every single day. I've been here about 15 years and it used to be absolutely barren. Suddenly there's always always something being built. Right now they're constructing a Metro so that it's more smoothly connected to the heart of Delhi. Delhi's like that too... there's always something coming up. I'm from the city in that sense Ah as for the 'seeing' part... I haven't been all around the world, but what I like about here is the fact that your eyes aren't the most important senses. You've got a lot to take in. Sights, sounds, smells and tastes. I don't think there's any other place that caters to taste... and such a variety of taste as much as India does. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lea Posted November 25, 2007 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2007 I'm from the North-Eastern part of Germany, Mecklenburg, the least densely populated area of the country... close to the Baltic Sea, flat lands, fields, meadows, lakes, some forests check out pictures here and here It sounds and looks like the area you live in is beautiful Farin. Will you stay there or like a lot of other young people go to the city for awhile. Are you a student? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lea Posted November 25, 2007 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2007 I live in the third-biggest city in the north-east of Scotland (wikipedia is useful... and I only just moved here a few weeks ago to study) which really isn't all that big, especially since I lived in the... let me see... third-biggest city of the whole of the UK before that. Nothing much to say about that one... and I don't know it that well anyway. I think I like it better here... There's mountains and rolling hills to one side, and the sea to the other, and the beach is just twenty minutes away from me. It's very nice I think... pretty, quiet, I can walk everywhere, but it's not too small either. Lots of granite houses and cobble stone streets everywhere which looks very nice, very few big buildings and I've always wanted to live this close to the sea (even though the weather doesn't really make me want to jump in). I grew up in south western Ireland though (okay okay... fourth-biggest city there) which I think is even nicer though some people might disagree, and I'm sure you've all heard the cliches about Ireland and what it looks like. And to take you literally... The view out my window isn't very exciting... trees, a gate, and the spire of the university chapel. That's also where I see the only thing that's sort of 'exotic' to me (I'm sure what I described could be anywhere in the US too)... Scottish weddings with bagpipes and kilts. My dads side of the family migrated from Scotland and my mothers from Ireland and England. I love bagpipes and Celtic music. The history of Scotland is amazing. I'd love to live in a castle by the sea. Do you have any royalty in you bloodline maybe someday you'll inherit a castle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lea Posted November 25, 2007 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2007 I live in a suburb of Delhi... which is as good as living in Delhi itself. I'm in the up-and-coming suburbs, so I'm watching my city evolve and grow every single day. I've been here about 15 years and it used to be absolutely barren. Suddenly there's always always something being built. Right now they're constructing a Metro so that it's more smoothly connected to the heart of Delhi. Delhi's like that too... there's always something coming up. I'm from the city in that sense Ah as for the 'seeing' part... I haven't been all around the world, but what I like about here is the fact that your eyes aren't the most important senses. You've got a lot to take in. Sights, sounds, smells and tastes. I don't think there's any other place that caters to taste... and such a variety of taste as much as India does. Were you born in India and are you a student like Seeker? I'm not real familier with todays India. Do they still were the long dresses and veils or has the culture changed to allow more Western dress styles? DH is back so he is interuping my thoughts I will have to google these places later to night. They sound fantatic. My next question will be on Education. That is when theres no one here to keep interupting me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edna Posted November 26, 2007 Report Share Posted November 26, 2007 Where do you live? In the country, city or somewhere in between. Is the terrain rolling green hills, mountains or on the sea shore. Do you like where you live or do you wish you could move somewhere else? Not out of the country just out of the neighborhood. A kind of "When you look out your window what do you", see question. I live in Madrid, 6 million people. You have the mountain at 20 minutes by car; in fact, I could see the mountain from my window when I lived in another house very near from where I live now (but the windows here only show the avenue) I love this city. I lived in Buenos Aires when a child but had been living here too and always dreamed I´d live here one day. I also lived in Paris cause I am French and had most of my friends there, but I love to be a stranger, so I came back to this city. I always lived in the posh and nice neighborhood, that´s where most of my friends lived too and the action is just five minutes from here. I have no plans to live anywhere else. Maybe when I´m old I´ll take my man and cats and come back to France, which is like home for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lea Posted November 26, 2007 Author Report Share Posted November 26, 2007 When I was a kid I read The Drifters by John Grisham and have wanted to go to Torremolinos every since But now that I'm old I guess I'll just stay home Now who wouldn't want to live in France? Have you ever been to the US? After living in Spain and France we would probably seem a bore Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edna Posted November 26, 2007 Report Share Posted November 26, 2007 Have you ever been to the US? After living in Spain and France we would probably seem a bore I just have been to NYC... and a couple of weeks, I was shooting rock concerts. But part of my family is American, they lived in Manhattan for ages; I have also cousins in Virginia, Alabama and Washington. And no, I must say I love America and the Americans and nothing is less boring for me than being in NYC. Actually, I would love to live there. You´re not aware of the culture there is... people think that Europe rules cause it has history. America also has history and big American cities have built the most important part of XIXth and XXth Century culture. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lea Posted November 26, 2007 Author Report Share Posted November 26, 2007 Well I guess that's true. Sometimes I guess we take things for granted. I was in NYC when I was about 16. I passed out in Philly from the heat so I was sick most of the time I was there. I have been to most of the US states but I like living in Oregon even tho it does rain alot. The Southern states are also quite beautiful and the people I met were great. Love the accents. I haven't really traveled in so long I forget sometime what great things my own country contains. Every state has something wonderful to offer. What rock concerts were you shooting? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edna Posted November 26, 2007 Report Share Posted November 26, 2007 Oh, lots of them... I can´t even remember, it was a music Seminar so... I remember David Byrne, Jellybean Benitez, Gypsy Kings Martha and the (new) Vandellas, Violent Femmes... or was it Dream Syndicate? and some German band as well... it was all so crazy... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farin Posted November 26, 2007 Report Share Posted November 26, 2007 It sounds and looks like the area you live in is beautiful Farin. Will you stay there or like a lot of other young people go to the city for awhile. Are you a student? well, I actually already live in the "big city" (well as big as it gets here ), but Hamburg and Berlin are just 2-3 hours away, so... and yep, I'm a student... computer science Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c_s_1987 Posted November 26, 2007 Report Share Posted November 26, 2007 I live in the metropolitan area of Perth, Western Australia, about 10km from the city centre. I live very close to a large park. Otherwise we are just surrounded by houses. The terrain is fairly flat and boring around here. The suburb I live in is fairly quiet, and not very close to any major roads. One thing I notice about Perth that is different from other cities is the number of trees. The nearby park is filled with trees, even the city centre has a lot of trees in it, especially in Kings Park (the largest inner city park in the world). I don't particularly want to live anywhere else, but I would like to see more of the other states sometime in the near future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Levis Posted November 26, 2007 Report Share Posted November 26, 2007 Were you born in India and are you a student like Seeker? I'm not real familier with todays India. Do they still were the long dresses and veils or has the culture changed to allow more Western dress styles? I was indeed Born and raised in and around Delhi. I got an undergraduate degree in psychology this year and then I just finished interning for a news station. Next year I'll be off to Oz for a master's The culture hasn't changed much at all. India... or at least this part of it... isn't very rigid, so the question of 'allow' doesn't really come up in the first place. People wear what they're comfortable in or what they're used to. And I don't see women wearing veils or burkhas as often as you might think. More casually... people my age and thereabouts are perfectly happy in "regular" clothes often fused with something Indian. Saris are more for special occasions if you're young, though people who're older wear almost exclusively Indian clothes. I've worn a sari precisely four times in my life Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Seeker Posted November 26, 2007 Report Share Posted November 26, 2007 My dads side of the family migrated from Scotland and my mothers from Ireland and England. I love bagpipes and Celtic music. The history of Scotland is amazing. I'd love to live in a castle by the sea. Do you have any royalty in you bloodline maybe someday you'll inherit a castle. I strongly doubt it... and I wouldn't really know what to do with a castle anyway! Too big and cold and expensive to maintain and most of them are hours away from everything else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lea Posted November 26, 2007 Author Report Share Posted November 26, 2007 I live in the metropolitan area of Perth, Western Australia, about 10km from the city centre. I live very close to a large park. Otherwise we are just surrounded by houses. The terrain is fairly flat and boring around here. The suburb I live in is fairly quiet, and not very close to any major roads. One thing I notice about Perth that is different from other cities is the number of trees. The nearby park is filled with trees, even the city centre has a lot of trees in it, especially in Kings Park (the largest inner city park in the world). I don't particularly want to live anywhere else, but I would like to see more of the other states sometime in the near future. Oh Australia another fascinating place. I used to talk to some people from Queensland until the program we were using to chat through was removed. We chatted for over a year and were going to visit each other. Then we just kind of lost touch. Katie, one of the people I chatted with wanted to catch a Hyena and keep it as a pet Somehow I think she could have handled a hyena to Are you a student like most of the others in this thread cs? And Edna it sounds like you have a dream job. My next question is about the education system in you different countries. My main reason for wondering about this is because I consider our school system to be one of the worst in the world. I'm speaking mostly non collage level education. Our schools here are over crowded, the class rooms mostly out of control. They no longer teach the basics like they used to. They are using the Out Comes Based style of education in most schools. A proven method of teaching that doesnt work. A lot of the kids coming out of our school system can hardly form a proper sentences. What was your experiences in the lower grades of your education? Do you feel you came away with everything you need to move forward in continuing your education? Were your classrooms overcrowded and out of control. Does everyone have the same opportunity to further their education. Does the government pay or is that up to the students who want to attend collage? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tenacious_Peaches Posted November 26, 2007 Report Share Posted November 26, 2007 Thanks for starting this thread, Lea. I'll be taking "The World and Its Peoples" next semester, so I'll have a leg up on my classmates with all this information. Anyone want to know about South Georgia? We have gnats, trains, and pour gravy over everything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweet Jane 61 Posted November 26, 2007 Report Share Posted November 26, 2007 Don't forget the grits and fried green tomatoes Peachy!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edna Posted November 26, 2007 Report Share Posted November 26, 2007 Katie, one of the people I chatted with wanted to catch a Hyena and keep it as a pet Somehow I think she could have handled a hyena to Maybe it´s our Katie... And Edna it sounds like you have a dream job. Actually I´m just a housewife now... and I have a part-time job but not in the rock scene anymore. My next question is about the education system in you different countries. Do you feel you came away with everything you need to move forward in continuing your education? Were your classrooms overcrowded and out of control. Does everyone have the same opportunity to further their education. Does the government pay or is that up to the students who want to attend collage? I went to French school and I believe it´s the best in the world. Or at least, it was. I had a scholarship for school, high-school and University, I can´t complain though the younger generations are probably not as lucky as I was... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farin Posted November 26, 2007 Report Share Posted November 26, 2007 the German education system is actually very complicated (also different from state to state), so I won't bother trying to explain it here (see wikipedia in case you're interested ) now our education system certainly isn't the best (some say it's a bit old-fashioned) and especially in the last years there have been quite a few troubles in co-called "problem-schools" (in poor and immigrant neighbourhoods), but I myself can't complain Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farin Posted November 26, 2007 Report Share Posted November 26, 2007 I was thinking the same Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonelyday Posted November 26, 2007 Report Share Posted November 26, 2007 Where do you live? In the country, city or somewhere in between. Is the terrain rolling green hills, mountains or on the sea shore. Do you like where you live or do you wish you could move somewhere else? Not out of the country just out of the neighborhood. A kind of "When you look out your window what do you", see question. I live in Auckland, the largest city in New Zealand, it has about a million people, while the entire country houses just over 4million. I live in an outer suburb which is about a 50minute trainride South from the city center(i have to catch this train every day during the semester for uni). South Auckland is generally put under a bad light by the media as it is a low socio-economic area with the highest rate of crime in NZ so it's probably not what everyone immediately thinks of when they picture NZ. Despite that i've lived here my entire life and while I don't wanna live here forever i'm glad i grew up here. Theres a real diversity of people...Maori, Cook Island, Samoan, NZ Europeans, Indians, Chileans, Greeks...you could probably list at least 1 person of every nationality imaginable living in my town, which i think is pretty cool. If i were to stand on my roof right now i would be able to see houses, shops, industrial areas, roads and and a school but also trees, paddocks, parks, bush(or forest i guess) and a mountain in the distance...and its a short drive to the beach depending on where you'd wanna go. Where i'd really love to live is Great Barrier Island...an island off the mainland with a population under 1000. We holiday there...it's mountainous with dense bush, native wildlife, natural hotpools, tumultuous roads, hippy-like locals and a beach wherever you look Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tenacious_Peaches Posted November 26, 2007 Report Share Posted November 26, 2007 Don't forget the grits and fried green tomatoes Peachy!! Mmmm...fried green tomatoes. :insert hungry smiley: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uncle Joe Posted November 27, 2007 Report Share Posted November 27, 2007 Hi. I'm not from around here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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