4 ms·

It's also true for Belarus, Baltics, and some parts of Ukraine. Generally, we can speak about North-Eastern European cuisine with potatoes, secale flour breads,

It's also true for Belarus, Baltics, and some parts of Ukraine. Generally, we can speak about North-Eastern European cuisine with potatoes, secale flour breads, and various pickled things. And that name will make a lot of everybody upset, cause everybody in those lands pretend they are "Central". Americans would not believe how many "geographical centers of Europe" are claimed there.

rconti 4mo ago
I'm not sure how surprised Americans would be to learn that there are so many "centers of Europe". After all, we all know that Colorado is in "the west", Texas in the "southwest", and, clearly, "the South" is located in the geographical southeast :D
- broken-kebab 4mo ago
  These American peculiarities are funny too, but they are mostly historical, and from that perspective have reasonable explanation. In turn "we are not Eastern, but Central" is relatively recent PR-born madness. Somebody decided that EE often associates with questionable things like alcohol consumption somehow, so the solution is to separate yourself from other drinkers by claiming being completely different "Central" kind. Nobody stops drinking meanwhile, because why would you? I simplify the story, of course, but the logic is exactly like that.
  - rconti 4mo ago
    Also, I imagine that the expansion and reduction in size of the Soviet empire over the decades has played a part, not to mention a certain provincialism among (western) European powers in terms of what they consider to be "real" Europe. When it was a poor backwater "somewhere over there", it wasn't part of Europe. When it was Soviet, it wasn't Europe. Now that it's a bulwark against a militaristic Russia and a convenient place to do lower-cost manufacturing: "Hello, my European compatriots!"
- bleepblap 4mo ago
  And my favorite -- you need to go north from Miami to be in "the South"
  - gkedzierski 4mo ago
    Miami is a latin American city that happens to be part of the US.
  - ErroneousBosh 4mo ago
    Here in Scotland, if you start at the famous Gretna Green on the west coast (it's on the estuary of the River Esk) and drive more-or-less dead north up the A7 (it's quite wiggly) until you hit the next beach, you're on the east coast at Portobello.
rich_sasha 4mo ago
> Americans would not believe how many "geographical centers of Europe" are claimed there. They have their own weirdnesses. How is Chicago "mid-west" when it is so far east? How is Virginia south?

rconti 4mo ago

I'm not sure how surprised Americans would be to learn that there are so many "centers of Europe". After all, we all know that Colorado is in "the west", Texas in the "southwest", and, clearly, "the South" is located in the geographical southeast :D

broken-kebab 4mo ago
These American peculiarities are funny too, but they are mostly historical, and from that perspective have reasonable explanation. In turn "we are not Eastern, but Central" is relatively recent PR-born madness. Somebody decided that EE often associates with questionable things like alcohol consumption somehow, so the solution is to separate yourself from other drinkers by claiming being completely different "Central" kind. Nobody stops drinking meanwhile, because why would you? I simplify the story, of course, but the logic is exactly like that.
- rconti 4mo ago
  Also, I imagine that the expansion and reduction in size of the Soviet empire over the decades has played a part, not to mention a certain provincialism among (western) European powers in terms of what they consider to be "real" Europe. When it was a poor backwater "somewhere over there", it wasn't part of Europe. When it was Soviet, it wasn't Europe. Now that it's a bulwark against a militaristic Russia and a convenient place to do lower-cost manufacturing: "Hello, my European compatriots!"
bleepblap 4mo ago
And my favorite -- you need to go north from Miami to be in "the South"
- gkedzierski 4mo ago
  Miami is a latin American city that happens to be part of the US.
- ErroneousBosh 4mo ago
  Here in Scotland, if you start at the famous Gretna Green on the west coast (it's on the estuary of the River Esk) and drive more-or-less dead north up the A7 (it's quite wiggly) until you hit the next beach, you're on the east coast at Portobello.

rich_sasha 4mo ago

> Americans would not believe how many "geographical centers of Europe" are claimed there. They have their own weirdnesses. How is Chicago "mid-west" when it is so far east? How is Virginia south?