well, who cares what everyone else is wearing.? if they are comfortable what does it matter? look around, not everyone in london is wearing black.

I currently work in London. At the moment I am at work - looking down yeap - I'm wearing black and grey. But I think thats more for practicality than enough else. When you catch the dirty underground to work every day (crammed in, sweating people) then you want to wear a colour that looks cleaner longer. Not to mention its business like. Come the weekends and evenings (or annual leave) I (like most Londoners) can be seen outside wearing a colourful summer dress, or baggy shorts and bright tee shirt, etc. Its not just the way Americans dress (although some can be quite tacky) its the way people on holiday generally dress. Happy, casual clothes. Why "fit in" by wearing dark somber clothes when you don't have a business meeting to attend like we do? Wear whatever you're comfortable and happy in as long as its respectible and courteous to culture - damn what anyone else thinks! <BR>

Speaking as an American who can recount her meals by looking at her shirt "oh this dribble is salad dressing, and this schmutz is strawberry yoghurt", I do love dark clothes for traveling. I live in the desert, and for most of the year we wear white/light-colored cottons, so a chance to wear navy blue chino is a pleasure. Weird, though, the teenagers here in the Southwest like to wear black EVERYTHING. Damn you, you English fashion fascists, forcing us to wear that. <BR>And, yes, we Americans do carry plaid umbrellas and pronounce it Tott ing ham and Sall iz berry, but we do pronounce Mogollan, Oaxaca, Wilkes-Barre, Arkansas and Arkansas River without flinching. We ARE good for something....

Speaking about the Travel Channel, we agree that Ian Wright is like a breath of fresh air. Some others I can do without. That porky know-it-all with the beard. Bernstein? Ucko. Then there's that stylish British woman, Anna Walker, who is about as snobbish and condescending as they come. I'd like to rub some mud on her pretty face. Agreed: black belongs on Halloween, not as one's total wardrobe. Combined with oh-so-pale makeup, silver fingernails, green spikey hair, bits and pieces pierced through the body, and Doc Marten boots -- well, if that is a "fashion statement," please leave it unsaid. Don't you wonder what their breath smells like?

The day Elvira, Al and a few others stop posting replies, is the day I quit coming to this forum! Love your wit, you two! I think reading some of these posts is better than taking an actual trip to Europe!!!!!

The day Elvira, Al and a few others stop posting replies, is the day I quit coming to this forum! Love your wit, you two! I think reading some of these posts is better than taking an actual trip to Europe!!!!!

To the ones that are replying with hostile messages, I dont think Ashley meant to offend with her question. I agree that in some cases, you can spot Americans. Especially as mentioned above, in Washington DC. Really, i think you can spot Americans in most any city - with their fanny packs and plaid umbrellas.

Elvira, OK, no problem with Oaxaca, Wilkes-Barre or Arkansas but what or where is Mogollan? Where I'm from you knew an auslander by the pronunciation of Valatie and Claverack. Here in Texas the litmus test is Mexia and Refugio. Put me in the Ian Wright column, that guy will do and/or eat ANYthing.

Mogollan Rim is an area of the Grand Canyon, and it's very entertaining to hear newcomers/visitors try it out. Ok so I'm a luddite, and don't have cable, but was visiting this weekend where they did...is Ian Wright a Brit, the Tom Conte sort of looking guy? I saw a travel show from Northern Ireland, and the host ate oysters and...ahem...eels. <BR>

I'm glad to hear from other Ian Wright fans, I thought I was just weird and alone. Justine Shapiro is also good. But the other hosts they have are boring and not very street smart. I saw one get his bum bag ripped off in a mini-riot in Africa, and guess what he had in it, his passport and all his money..Duh. <BR>Regards, Walter <BR>

Al ..I can sympathise with you regarding Anna Walker. She used to host a show on satellite tv all about football (soccer) and she knew absolutely NOTHING about the sport. Always pronouncing well known players names wrong, making really lame comments etc .. She also did a holiday show here and I , for one, was never that impressed. I dont think she did her homework on the place. Either that or her observations were purely superficial. <BR> <BR>regards

As one who stares out at the Mogollon Rim all day long, let me be of some help. It is pronounced: moe-gah-YONE and was named after a Spanish explorer. It is not in the Grand Canyon but is, instead, an escarpment that tranverses Arizona from northwest toward the southeast, and can be as much as 2,500 ft. in height.

I am a docent at the most visited museum in the world, the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC; I spend my spare time with tourists. And while yes, Americans are often tackily dressed, so are the foreigners (who also wear fanny packs). I personally can't tell who's who until they speak. But, after my tours, I can never tell you about the poorly dressed people and whether or not they were Americans, because I can't remember. I just doesn't make that much of an impression. I can tell you, however, about all the people with poor attitudes, the people who can't believe a woman likes being at the Air and Space Museum all the time, and all the people who don't know how to conduct themselves properly (both American and foreign). That is what's important. Dress isn't.

Thank you, Ilisa. <BR> <BR>

Sorry, Al, I shorthanded by explanation of Mogollan; having had Europeans say "oh Grand Canyon!" when I mention Arizona, it seemed easier to post that than the actual description.

Mogollon? I always though it was an Island in the Chattahoochie River. Could it be that the pople wearing black were aliens such as the men in black. I agree Ian Wright is the best on Lonely Planet. I though I'd enter the fray. alan

Mogollon? I always though it was an Island in the Chattahoochie River. Could it be that the pople wearing black were aliens such as the men in black. I agree Ian Wright is the best on Lonely Planet. I though I'd enter the fray. alan

Just a bit of background on my Tottingham Court Road Comment earlier. When I was going from relatives home in Edgeware, Mdsx. into London porper via tube, I have to ask directions of one friendly appearing local. The directions had to do with getting of at Tottingham Court Road (Tot nim Court Road) and something about Easton Station (Hous ton is what I heard). None of the relatives mentioned I'd need an interpreter for the Queen's English.....I had to be very careful to listen....something I didn't do well at age 19!

Well...we are all in agreement..we need to start an Ian Wright fan club!!! And since I will be travelling to Paris and London the end of the month...and wearing my Thai patterned wrap skirts and funky tie pants with my hiking boots or hiking sandals...guess I will be the next topic of conversation. But I am really to mature (didn't want to say old!!) to really give a hoot! Individuality makes the world go round..and my sense of style is what I love and feel comfortable in!!

No one will confuse you with Sophie.