Foreigners in National Parks.

[dmccarty]

...

Reminds me of a story from where I worked right before retiring. A couple came to the western Tennessee factory from Europe. When asked what their plans were for the week following the meetings her husband was in the wife said they were going to drive see all of Disney World, then the Grand Canyon, then to Yellowstone, and back to Washington D.C.. The husband just stood there and nodded his head in agreement. My boss explained that is would take two LONG days of driving to get to Disney. Then three LONG days of driving to get to the Grand Canyon. They ended up cutting out a map of France and putting it on top of a same scale US map to make them understand. They had no concept of the distances involved in driving across the United States.

RSKY

I think there is a fundamental difference between people from larger countries like the US, Canada, Russia, China, Australia, etc and people from more smaller, more "normal" sized countries. There has to be an unconscious recognition of the size of your country. We had this conversation with people in Ireland. Some have been to the US can understand the size of the US but others just do not get the size of the US. We landed in Dublin on the east coast or Ireland, rented a car, and five hours later where in a rural west coast of the country along the Atlantic. If a person from Ireland flew out of Dublin and landed at RDU and drove east for five hours they should be on the Atlantic coast of NC. If the person had driven west, they would likely still be in NC. Granted if they had driven north or south they would have been out of NC in a couple of hours. Of course, if there was an airport in the middle of Ireland, a trip of 2-3 hours would get you too, or close too, any coast on the island.

We were in some out of the way places in Ireland, though some places are tourist attractions. We saw a few people from Asia, Japanese I think, but lots of people from Germany. Some from UK, Italy, Switzerland, and France but a bunch of people from Germany which was a bit surprising. Flip side, we saw a hordes of Americans! :shocked::laughing::laughing::laughing: Thankfully, well behaved, heck everyone was well behaved.

Later,
Dan

 

[ultrarunner]

The Safeway grocery store on the way home from work always has RoadBear RVs in the lot... the franchise rents almost exclusively to German Speakers...

I can always spot them grocery shopping... sometimes I strike up a conversation... they are just happy to be here.

When I see them... it is after their flight to SF and then shuttle to RoadBear and then first stop to pick up provisions...

Last week... I met a couple with 2 young kids... they were trying to figure things out... I said first visit to the States... they said yes... how did you know... well, first families generally don't shop together and they had a Euro Look.

Anyway... I asked if they were from Germany... they said Austria... I said I have spent time in Salzburg and they said they are from Salzburg... then I said direct in the city... they said no... a very small area of about 50... Halwang... I said just between Salzburg and Eugendorf... they were besides themselves and couldn't believe the first stranger they met knew Halwang...

It is almost a right of passage for a family to plan for a National Park motor home trip... they are amazed because in Europe a special license is required and here... a huge motor home is legal with just a regular driver's license...

 

[dfkrug]

I'm not interested in cities, mainly just seeing beautiful country-sides and natural wonders.

I suggest crossing the border and seeing British Columbia, along the coast. You will need your passport,
however.

We recently returned from a 2-week drive up to the Theodore Roosevelt National Park in ND, traveling
thru SD, WY, CO, MT, and NE. We met an intrepid couple from Germany, who were on a 6-mo
driving trip in the US and Canada. They were driving a large diesel Toyota 4x4, which they had shipped
from the UK. This is the map they had emblazoned on their SUV.

 

[ultrarunner]

Met a Swiss couple in their 30's and they took a year off... South America to Alaska... I met them in Sonoma...

They said people could not have nicer... did have few issues in Central America but were able to work through it... mostly boarder guards and local police.

 

[buickanddeere]

Foreign visitors usually book travel by train as they are used to subsidized, fast, frequent service at home . They are surprised to find Canadian and US train service less than what they are used to.
Two of my children have travelled a day's worth of the Via Toronto to Vancouver route and the train clientele was almost entirely foreign. The kids disembarked at Nakina to join our group for moose hunting.
The tourists were usually surprised at the time required to cross half the country as they were used to small European nations.

 

[tallyho8]

I suggest crossing the border and seeing British Columbia, along the coast. You will need your passport,
however.

We have been to Vancouver, Victoria and Prince Rupert. Very beautiful country. I wish I was able to just take off 6 months to tour the Northwest areas.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

My trips are always too short in time.

 

[cqaigy2]

We have been to Vancouver, Victoria and Prince Rupert. Very beautiful country. I wish I was able to just take off 6 months to tour the Northwest areas.

Alberta also had some beautiful places to sight see.

 

[rox]

Amazing pic Boyleman, and that is just how I like to see dangerous wildlife, through the car window

 

[rox]

We wondered what the people from the more crowded countries thought about the long drives to get anywhere out there.

Reminds me of a story from where I worked right before retiring. A couple came to the western Tennessee factory from Europe. When asked what their plans were for the week following the meetings her husband was in the wife said they were going to drive see all of Disney World, then the Grand Canyon, then to Yellowstone, and back to Washington D.C.. The husband just stood there and nodded his head in agreement. My boss explained that is would take two LONG days of driving to get to Disney. Then three LONG days of driving to get to the Grand Canyon. They ended up cutting out a map of France and putting it on top of a same scale US map to make them understand. They had no concept of the distances involved in driving across the United States.

RSKY

Yeah, France is just about the size of Texas.