German tabloid mocks UK tourists

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Title – German tabloid mocks UK tourists
Source – www.bbc.co.uk
Date – 3rd June 2008

No doubt some people will take great offence at the article in ‘Bild’ and how will they respond, well it’s simple they will resort to all the old German clichés. The odd thing is that they will be wholly unaware that they are doing exactly what they are complaining about. How many times have our tabloid press stepped well over the line when describing our European neighbours, especially when it comes to Football; how many of the songs sung on the terraces at internationals are derogatory of our opponents. Possibly we should for once listen to our own sayings, ‘if you can dish it out then you also have to be able to take it’ or ‘what goes around comes around’.

The sad fact is there is some truth in what the Germans are mocking us for here, how strange has our country got that someone can win damages from a court, because they were surrounded by ‘foreigners’ when they went abroad? But then should we be that surprised by it; go to many of the most popular southern European resorts and you will find more ‘British’ pubs advertising ‘authentic British grub’ and selling the uniquely ‘British Pint’ then any local dishes or delicacies.

But there is a more serious point we should take from this story and that is the image the British have in other countries round the world. As travellers we have two responsibilities, firstly to understand and accept the current view people have of us and deal with the consequences and secondly we have to try and change that view by our actions.

Britain has undoubtedly lost some of its gloss in the eyes of rest of the world, once held up as a bastion of democracy, progress and politeness, the more modern view of Britain revolves around our actions in Iraq, our unquestioning loyalty to the USA, the sporting failures of our national teams, the associated hooliganism and the behaviour and arrogance of many of our tourists when abroad. We have to realise that all the good things that come out of the UK may not be reported on across the world, but the killing by police of and innocent Brazilian on our tube system, the compliance of our government in rendition flights are. In exactly the same way we view other countries through the media we are characterised by the negative aspects of our country. If we think of Syria, we naturally think of terrorism, extremism, middle east conflict, yet if you visit Syria, you will be treated as an honoured guest, the very friendly people will welcome you and treat you with respect; hardly the image most of us have of that country.

It is not all negative, you will find the UK still held in great respect in many countries; there are many countries where although language barriers prevent you from communicating the language of the Premier League will transcend these barriers and start heated debates about which team will win the next seasons competition. I have been to remote parts of the world and frequently meet people who know every player in every team and results dating back years that my knowledge simply can’t compete with, that they view Britain as a wonderful country is because of David Beckham, Micheal Owen and the great Steven Gerrard.

Our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness workshop discusses your destinations and what preconceptions local populations might have of the UK and how your behaviour and plans should reflect these to make your travel safer and more enjoyable.

Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com or join us on Facebook. For a complete list of Blog entries visit our National Press Archive page.