Leonardo"s Notebook by Mattheus Mei

I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do.

Sunday, April 05, 2009

If it weren't so sad, it'd probably be funny...

Columbia has an annual international festival, but as The State Newspaper reveals the celebration of diversity can quickly become a fifth grade geography class:

First, Georgia is not a neighbor of South Carolina and not a member of the Southeastern Conference. It borders the Black Sea, sandwiched between Russia and Turkey.

Second, it has not been “Soviet Georgia” since the Soviet Union collapsed in 1990.

“We’re an independent sovereign nation with our own language and alphabet,” said Machitdize, who plans to be a career diplomat.

Machitidze wasn’t the only one trying to clear up some misunderstandings.

and this gem...

Henry Henriksen, an affable Norwegian and retired SCE&G hydroelectric engineer, smiled when he mentioned the question people ask him most about Norway.

“They want to know if Norway is the capital of Sweden,” said Henriksen, who has lived in Columbia for 22 years.

Norway, of course, is an independent nation and Oslo is its capital. Sweden, likewise, is an independent nation, and Stockholm is its capital.

This is what happens when people don't: read, watch the news (other than local news), and travel.

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