A foreigner here in Romania whom I met recently said something that reminded me of a couple of true stories from my own past:

Person: Where are you going on your big vacation?
Me: Uh, Romania actually.
Person: Huh, where?
Me: Romania. It’s in Europe.
Person: Ohhh… Europe! Yeah I heard of that country.
Me: Uh… no. Europe isn’t a country.
Person: Psshaw of course it is. Europe’s a country.
Me: No. No it really isn’t.
Person: Oh yeah smarty, then how do they have their own money? You never heard of the euro, genius? Busted!
Me: *sigh*

Person: Where are you going on your big vacation?
Me: Uh, a city called Cluj-Napoca actually.
Person: Huh, where?
Me: It’s a city in Romania.
Person: Rome? Enjoy the pizza!
Me: No, Romania. It’s a country.
Person: In Africa? Dark continent!
Me: Actually Romania is in Europe.
Person: You’re what?
Me: *sigh* Okay, fine. I’m going to Transylvania. Cluj is the capital of Transylvania.
Person: Oh cool, vampires! Watch out they don’t get you.
Me: Good advice, thanks. I’ll be sure to wear some garlic.
Person: Huh? I don’t get it.

Person: So how was your trip to vampire land?
Me: Romania was great. Here, I got you a souvenir. It’s some Romanian money.
Person: This is real money, like you can buy stuff with it and everything? It looks just like Monopoly money. So cute.
Me: Yes, it’s real. The money there is called lei.
Person: So what could I buy over there with this fifty thousand lei note?
Me: Uh, I don’t know. A beer?
Person: Wow, so expensive! Should’ve stayed in good old America, buddy.