Only In America
When I was a sophomore in high school, a classmate asked to borrow a pen, and I lent him one of mine that had the Eiffel Tower on it.
He asked where the building was from, and I said Paris. He gave me a confused look and asked where Paris was. Was it further away than Chicago?
Now it was my turn to be confused. We were in high school. How the heck did he not know Paris was in France? But whatever, maybe he’s not the brightest.
So, I inform him that Paris is in France. But he still looks utterly confused. I assume he misheard me, so I start explaining it.
“France, you know, like, FRANCE. From history class? World War II, Napoleon… that France.” He says he was bad at history and has never heard of France before.
He then asks me if it was another state or if it was like a region of our state. Utterly baffled at this point, I try to explain that it was another country entirely, and it was in Europe.
Exasperated, I remember saying, “you know, Europe?! That other continent?” He still looks confused, so I add, “THE LAND ACROSS THE OCEAN!” Finally, there is recognition on his face.
He tells me he heard of oceans before, and he thinks he understands now. I remind you that this encounter was with a student who didn’t know what Europe was took place in high school.