maps

I have two T-shirts featuring the silhouette of New Zealand. Apparently, this is just recognizable enough for people to know it is a landmass, but obscure enough for them to have a hard time knowing which landmass it represents.

While we were home for the wedding, I wore one of the shirts and had two people ask my why Italy was upside down. The other day I wore one out to the bar and a girl asked why I was wearing a map of Japan.

I don't know if I would have picked it out either, before I lived there. But it's not helping the American reputation for geographic knowledge.