Avoid the Oops when in…Canada

Posted on June 14, 2013 by sglaser

It must really annoy Canadians when visitors say, “So, you’re Canadian, EH?” And if the eeehhhhh is drawn out, it definitely must send them over the edge.

Not much bothers Sophie although she finds it frustrating when people don't book ahead

Not much bothers Sophie, but she finds it somewhat frustrating when people don’t book ahead.

“Actually, I sometimes up my “Ehs” to give people the Canadian experience,” says Sophie Gotschal who works the front desk at Hostelling International (HI) Toronto.

It turns out Canadians are quite aware that they say “eh” and that including this interjection in their casual conversation is part of their identity. Generally, Canadians seem to be a pretty polite and tolerant lot, but there are a few things you don’t want to do while visiting Canada.

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Signs of the Times: “Look, Here’s the Deal, Dumb Drivers…”

Posted on June 9, 2013 by sglaser

Highway 285, Colorado, USA. There must be a point when sign writers (especially traffic sign writers) get tired of stating the same message over and over and having drivers ignore the advice. That’s why the sign above is particularly funny. It’s got voice and attitude. Here are the signs that lead up to this flashing beauty.

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Travel Oops: Drinks are on me! (But can you give me your cash?)

Posted on June 6, 2013 by sglaser

Steph’s note: Because I’ve been in Toronto, Canada, at a conference (Travel Blog Exchange — TBEX) and gathering some material for Travel Oops and some other assignments, I’ve been a bit MIA on WordPress. However, I do have a short Oops to share.

Toronto, Canada. May 2013.

Pueblo Bank and Trust was ON IT. I found this out Friday, May 31, as I tried to withdraw funds from an ATM in Toronto, Canada. I got the same message over and over. Your financial institution will not allocate funds at this time (or something to this effect.)

I had forgotten to call PB&T to let them know I was traveling internationally. It’s funny how, in February, the bank couldn’t care less when I took out cash via an ATM in Las Vegas, the city of vices including compulsive gambling with ATM funds. Thankfully, Capital One knew since I remembered to alert them about my trip to Canada.

It was time to see if one could live off $45 of exchanged cash for three days in Toronto since PB&T is closed on Saturdays and Sundays and has no 24-hour hotline to call. Essentially, it turns out the situation was not too dire since you can pay for pretty much everything with a credit card. However, still unsure about Toronto transactions, I discovered another easy solution: buy items (for example, alcoholic beverages at The Fifth Social Club) with your credit card for other conference goers who have cash with which to pay you back.

Travel Oops: Souvenirs are Forever (unless you leave them in the airport)

Posted on May 30, 2013 by sglaser

The Air New Zealand ticket agent secured neon green “heavy” tags to half of our eight checked bags. Kurt, Kasey, Eddie and I also had two carry-ons each. We had maxed out the luggage allotment. Kurt also carried a commando poster that came straight from the Bondi Beach Pavillion in Sydney.

With no protective tube — just a rubber band — the poster was the final souvenir I purchased in Australia. Somehow I had convinced Kurt that we must have it and that he could easily carry it on the four flights that would get us from Sydney to Denver in the US.

“Because you guys bought your return tickets in 2009,” the ticket agent explained to us, “you are still eligible for the two free checked bags per person.” He held one end of a long trail of baggage claim tickets that continued to print. “The policy was just changed in July, allowing passengers only one free checked bag,” he added with a look like “Damn, you REALLY lucked out.” Indeed we were very lucky since we weren’t charged a cent for baggage.

He heaved the bags onto the conveyor belt. I really wanted him to ask me something like, “Wow, what’ve you got in here? Rocks?”

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Priceless Products and Packaging: Bubble & B

Posted on May 25, 2013 by sglaser

Seoul Market, Colorado Springs, CO USA. l am completely fascinated by “Bubble & B,” which turns out to be a foaming hair coloring kit from Korea. I asked Seoul Market’s shopkeeper if I could take a photo of the product and she said “Sure!” and got it down from the counter and placed it close to me. As I mentioned in an earlier post about visiting this same market, I thought it was shampoo and it reminded me of the Denorex commercial when people test the lather of Denorex against another shampoo directly on their heads. Classic.

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Travel Oops: “I’m sorry, she’s left the country.”

Posted on May 22, 2013 by sglaser

Two things you automatically have going for you when you’re a foreign exchange teacher and things go wrong:

1. You are foreign and your manner is often chalked up as being an unfortunate result of your nationality.

2. Eventually you will leave the country.

Ultimately you can get away with being strange or a little bit crazy. Even better, if it’s necessary, the excuse that you’ve moved to another country can legitimately be used.

I suggested that my principal use that very excuse on my behalf the next time Gertrude Brown called to demand I give her $1,000. In two weeks, I would be returning to the United States after one year of teaching in Adelaide, South Australia. So, indeed, I was leaving the country. Maybe that knowledge would finally shut Trudy up.

Mitchell (right) and his minions © Stephanie Glaser

Early in the 2010 academic year, I had confiscated her son Trent’s mobile phone after he took it out during class to text and show it off to his classmates.

When Trent, who was a whinger to begin with, argued that I had no right to take his phone, Mitchell, the class clown, piped up, “You know she told us we can’t use mobiles in class, Trent.” Ignoring that Mitchell next leaned back in his seat and placed his feet up on the table, I stood in front of Trent with my arm extended, palm upright.

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Signs of the Times: “Leave your fancy footwear behind — oh, and your feet, too.”

Posted on May 19, 2013 by sglaser

Yangon, Myanmar. I love this sign, and it’s actually pretty famous in terms of funny mistranslations from around the world. Good family friends visited Burma earlier this year and took this photo. I’ve since seen it in Lonely Planet’s Signspotting and other blogs. I think it goes particularly well with the photo below.

McDonald’s, Colorado Springs, CO, USA. This completely cracked me up. I can’t imagine running in heels after toddlers in the first place. In fact, I only started wearing wedge sandals and heels occasionally when with my kids about one year ago (and only on completely sturdy surfaces.) Being a geeky English teacher, I also noticed that an unnecessary apostrophe appears with Moms. The poor apostrophe — it’s so misused. However, that’s a different post.

Travel Ahh….Color

Posted on May 14, 2013 by sglaser

Hosier Lane, Melbourne, Australia. Color and travel go together since we are always looking for something striking to catch our eyes. I took the photo above of my sister, Suzanne, and the the next two photos of rubbish bins while meandering down the famous graffiti alley, Hosier Lane.

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Signs of the Times — Please and thank you kindly, Pain-In-The-Butt People!

Posted on May 11, 2013 by sglaser

So many signs are straightforward, indifferent and lack personality. The following messages are actually quite polite and even include script writing or a fancy insignia (above at the Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas). However, there’s just a slight edge in the voice that borders on sarcasm — a sort of yes, we must be polite to you imbeciles. Or I could just be reading way too much into these signs. It’s entirely possible since I just spent the last ten years teaching high school literature.

East Bentleigh, Victoria, Australia. I can just hear what the sign maker of this Coles store really wants to write with this one: okay, hooligans, no joyriding, no racing or using as a moving van.

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Travel Oops: Supersize Me with Some Kim Chee, Please!

Posted on May 7, 2013 by sglaser

Wandering through Seoul Market’s seaweed section, which is just as expansive and visually overloading as the cereal aisle of any Wal-Mart, I’m overwhelmed. Seaweed comes in jars, plastic bags, foil bags, freeze-dried bags, individually wrapped snack packs and family sized jumbo bags.

Seaweed snack packs — notice how I stacked on upside down. Oops….

Seaweed that looks like kelp looms large in a long baguette like bag, and then there’s red seaweed, green seaweed, roasted seaweed, rectangular seaweed and small square seaweed. Asian writing appears on every bag, and although I can’t read the characters, it’s clear from their differing shapes that they identify seaweeds from not only Korea, but probably from Japan and China, too.

Clearly I’m a complete amateur Asian market shopper even in the US. Maybe trying another aisle will be less intense. The noodle shelves are no different: udon, soba, somen, bean thread cellophane, rice, wheat, thick, curly, transparent. Really, what should I expect? Roaming through the noodle section of a standard American grocery store could be mind blowing for someone who is not familiar with Italian pasta.

I had been so confident before entering the Colorado Springs store. After all, I had seen Anthony Bourdain’s “No Reservations” episode in Korea where he samples fermented kim chee from recently unearthed clay urns. I eat Asian food whenever I can, but I guess I’ve not seen it much in the pre-preparation phase.

“Mom, where’s the ice cream?” my son Eddie approaches me after having cased the somewhat cramped market out. He’s clearly not intimidated. Sensing my paralysis, he leaves and I hear him talk to the shop keeper behind the counter. I peek over and see the woman show him a refrigerated case. Ice cream, that’s definitely doable. I leave the noodle aisle.

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