Yeah, yeah, the Yoopers are funny folk, but they're also amazingly diverse...in
heritage anyway. A literal melting pot, well, smelting pot. Miners from a good
half dozen distinct nationalities settled at the turn of the century right there
where the Masters Nats will be. It was like a United Nations up there for awhile.
Vestiges remain. Of course there was conflict as well---race riots in the woods.
But it was a fairly recent fairly maximal melting pot with fairly good
multicultural tolerance. I wonder how many other rural areas had a good half
dozen languages spoken in them by immigrants in the last century.

sknyski wrote:

[ ] If you want to ski with Scandis and can't go overseas, head to the UP.

Dude, please. I've been to the UP (Junior Olympics in Ishpeming,
1983, WA-HOO!) and if I'm going to travel anywhere to ski I'm going to
avoid a place where the main form of communication is grunting,
walking upright is considered sophisticated, and you have to kill your
dinner each afternoon. (c'mon, I'm kidding. relax.)

--

Jeff Potter
****
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