From: Al
Subject: Man, never realized how fat americans were!!!
Date: 23 May 1999 00:00:00 GMT
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After 17 days, 3600 miles, and 10 countries later, we returned home, and the first thing we noticed was how many fat people there were in North America, compared to Europe. Even in the Bavarian Alps region, an area noted for jolly chubby germans, the % of fat people was not even close to the average americam town/city... At breakfast, we noticed that our fellow travellers, all european, never took more than they needed... a croissant, an egg, just enough till lunch...the portions at the restaurants were not as big, the meat cuts at the supermarkets were smaller...but still, everyone looked so healthy and slim!!! In fact, I think they quietly shoot ugly people in europe...everyone looked so damn good! In fact, the only fat people we saw were...well...american tourists pouring out of a bus, loud enough to be heard in Mosquito Neck, Iowa (a really really small place) (grin)

And that particular brand of creature seen frequenting bingo halls and drag races, the North American redneck, was nowhere to be seen...not a single shorth haired fat woman clad in white t-shirt, navy shorts, red plastic fingernails, white socks and sneakers...her mate clad in black t-shirt brandishing some sports team or a brand of beer, sweatpants, boots, with 6 days stubble, a greasy caterpillat cap...trailed by unkempt dirty urchins also clad in sports sweats, chubby, chubbier, and holy cow!...driving that standard issue redneck vehicle of a SUV, truck, or minivan...in fact, almost all the cars we saw in europe were normal cars...

Now some of you are already foaming at the mouth...ready to flame me... (grin) the point of this was in part humor, part truth, part generalizing...dont condemn until you too have spent the time and seen what we saw...granted it's not a perfect world in europe, but you have to admit, north americans are generally heavier and less likely to dress in good clothes all the time.

Also, the redneck family I described probably does not have the intelligence to get past the pornos and astrology web sites on the internet and burrow deep enough read this newgroup (uh-oh! there he goes again (grin) and their idea of a vacation is generally to watch a NASCAR race (heehee) oh, lighten up people!! (grin) I'm joking....when a comedian does it, you pay money to watch it...when someone does it here, everyone condemns....hee hee.

And what about the booze... available for purchase everywhere, yet not a single drunk teenager anywhere... imagine that... whereas in north america, teenage/college drinking is a fact of life... oh, we saw them, but they acted like mature adults, enjoying each others company, or the surrounding area, or the entertainment... didn't see the chubby college kids throwing their fists in the air, screaming "woo-hoooooooo" like we see here... interesting...

And since almost everyone we saw smoked, didn't encounter any hotels with 'no smoking rooms' or restaurants with 'no smoking' sections, and cigarette vending machines hung on every streetcorner in germany, none of this "have to be 18 to by smokes" crap that we have here, (non-smoker here), what do you think of North America's drive to ban smoking, whereas in europe, none of that was evident?

And did anyone notice that german toilets and restaurants smelled almost the same? (grin)

And how come I drove 3600 miles across 10 countries, and saw only one accident and no cops, my average speed of 75 - 90 mph on the highways, yet I see stupid fender benders here everyday, with dozens of revenue generating radar traps (oops, answered part of my question).

And how come I never saw any road rage...if someone was about to get cut off, they back away until the offending vehicle went back into their own lane...everyone drove on the right, except to pass...no left lane bandits...even though the average distance between cars in places like paris was 3 inches, no one was slamming on the brakes because the guy behind them was too close...great drivers!!

And how come my hotel rooms had XXX hardcore pornos on ch 21, 5 minute free preview, and no one complained about how the morality of children was ruined? And how come I was able to see breasts/nipples on things like soap and cel phone commercials, yet some north americans are still offended by Playboy magazine?

Yes, it was a completely different world...

BUT!!! I did miss the eyecontact and smile and hello I get from strangers in my small town...we found europeans rarely made eye contact... interesting...

Your thoughts on all these points folks?

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