Just a comment about balance really. There have been a number of threads about 'foreign countries' , 'nude beaches', 'shooting guns', 'being robbed in a foreign country' all referring to the United States as the norm and making it sound like the membership of this forum is entirely North American and making it look like the rest of the world is a strange place where these things do or don't happen depending on their palatability.

This is a forum for frequent flyers who live all over the world and presumeably see many other cultures on a regular basis. Some people find the United States an unusual place.

What is so strange about the rest of the world that these questions need to be asked?

Is this just a United States forum?

I don't think they're directing Europe as foreign, it's what ever is foreign to the poster. So, in your case, North America, my case Europe.

I always though a foreign country was every other one in the world outside the one you live in/are a native/are resident/have your passport from, regardless of which country this happens to be. Has this changed?

The UN has something like 184 members, so no matter where you live on the planet, you have a choice of 183 foreign countries to visit.

(Dual citizenships not counting. )

Don't know if it's a true story... heard it on a radio programme on the English-language Radio Netherlands many many years ago, and it must have happened long before my time.

The ferry from Harwich docks in Hoek van Holland. Foot passengers get off. There are two queues for Immigration, one saying "Dutch Nationals", one saying "Foreign Nationals".

Little old lady from England stops in the middle, looking all puzzled, calls out:

"And where we do BRITISH nationals go"?

(I know this must have happened long before my time because I don't ever recall seeing separate queues for Dutch/non-Dutch!)

"What's a diorama?"

And some of us who DO live in the United States still find it an unusual place

Oh no, does this mean for every have you ever thread about foreign countries we'll have have you ever in the US thread?

No, we also talk about, and have posters from, the foreign countries.

Could be worse. At least it wasn't that horrible misuse of the word 'international' to mean 'foreign' that I keep seeing these days...

alex0683de from ZRH/FRA posted that he had fired a gun in the United States, as did Sprocket from Montreal.

eatmoresushi, from YYZ, posted about being pickpockettd in the US, and OiRRio (Ireland) posted about being robbed in Rio. alex0683de pulled a double header, having been robbed in Mexico City (maybe why he was firing a gun). I-flybynight from BKK has been robbed in three counties foreign to him. SchmeckFlyer, from JNB and AMS. was unfortunate enough to list four, including one in the US.

Not once did someone reply "Hey, by foreign, we meant outside the USA". I read through every thread and not once did I see anything referring to the US as "the norm". Those in the US replied about experiences in the other 182 countries around the world (by the UN's count). Those outside the US replied about the 182 countries outside of their country of residence, including the US.

So who's being presumptuous here?