<HTML><FONT FACE=arial,helvetica><FONT SIZE=2 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" FACE="Arial" LANG="0">It seems that an attempt to destroy what I thought was the Jacobean spirit in this forum is succeeding, seemingly with the facilitator's willing and enthusiastic support. The very best of luck to you, and my appreciation for what I've learned here.<BR>
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Please unsubscribe.<BR>
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God bless,<BR>
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Xosé Manuel<BR>
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In a message dated 1/28/2003 7:03:33 PM Eastern Standard Time, maurasantangeloaSTNY.RR.COM writes:<BR>
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<BLOCKQUOTE TYPE=CITE style="BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px">I thought that I had said my last about this, but I want to share a<BR>
story with you. I grew up in Italy but came to the US in 1964. During<BR>
my first year I attended a Catholic high school. During the Easter<BR>
break the students from the Latin class traveled to Rome. On their<BR>
return they shared slides of the trip. One photo particularly baffled<BR>
them and so they asked me to explain what they were seeing. It was<BR>
actually a beautiful photo of Italian school children in their school<BR>
uniforms running out of school, uniforms and school bags lifted up in<BR>
the air with exuberance.<BR>
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The uniforms or the strangeness of them provoked a great deal of<BR>
laughter, some not so polite. As I tried to explain further, I was<BR>
stopped by the teacher who was predicting an uncomfortable exchange, and<BR>
who thought she was protecting my feelings. She wasn't, I was more<BR>
than capable of taking care of myself. The result is that I was<BR>
stopped, but all I had wanted to point out is that all of us in that<BR>
room were wearing a uniform as well: the same shirt with peter pan<BR>
collar, the same maroon jumper down to the same pair of unbelievably<BR>
ugly green oxford shoes. At the time I felt that an opportunity to learn<BR>
something had been missed in the interest of 'making nice'. I hope<BR>
that we realize in this group that the camino is an international<BR>
experience, it was always an international experience and that it is<BR>
appropriate to discuss some of these issues.<BR>
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I have traveled extensively in the last 20 years and my experience with<BR>
tourists is that Americans are not the worst, not the best, they are<BR>
just like everybody else.<BR>
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Maura<BR>
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