''San Sombrèro'' (subtitled ''A Land of Carnivals, Cocktails and Coups'') is a

parody A parody, also known as a spoof, a satire, a send-up, a take-off, a lampoon, a play on (something), or a caricature, is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satiric or ironic imitation. Often its sub ...

travel

guide book A guide book or travel guide is "a book of information about a place designed for the use of visitors or tourists". It will usually include information about sights, accommodation, restaurants, transportation, and activities. Maps of varying det ...

examining the

eponymous An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Usage of the word The term ''epon ...

fictional country A fictional country is a country that is made up for fictional stories, and does not exist in real life, or one that people believe in without proof. Sailors have always mistaken low clouds for land masses, and in later times this was given ...

, described as the birthplace of tinted sunglasses and

sequin A sequin () is a small, typically shiny, generally disk-shaped ornament. Sequins are also referred to as paillettes, spangles, or ''diamanté'' (also spelled ''diamante''). Although the words sequins, paillettes, lentejuelas, and spangles can ...

s. This country is set in

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

, and was created by Australian comedic writers

Tom Gleisner Thomas Edmund Gleisner (born 24 October 1962) is an Australian comedian, television presenter, producer, director, writer, occasional actor and author. Gleisner currently hosts Network 10's ''Have You Been Paying Attention?''. Early life and ...

, Santo Cilauro and Rob Sitch (of ''

The D-Generation ''The D-Generation'' was a popular and influential Australian TV sketch comedy show, produced and broadcast by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) for two series, between 1986 and 1987. A further four specials were broadcast on the ...

'' and '' The Panel'' fame). Along with the other Jetlag Travel volumes, 2003's ''

Molvanîa ''Molvanîa'' (subtitled ''A Land Untouched by Modern Dentistry'') is a book parodying travel guidebooks. The guide describes the fictional country Molvanîa, a post-Soviet state, a nation described as "the birthplace of the whooping cough" and ...

'' and 2004's ''

Phaic Tăn ''Phaic Tăn'' (subtitled ''Sunstroke on a Shoestring'') is a 2004 parody travel guidebook examining imaginary country Phaic Tăn. The book was written by Australians Tom Gleisner, Santo Cilauro, and Rob Sitch. Along with the other Jetlag Trav ...

'', the book parodies both the language of

heritage tourism Cultural heritage tourism (or just heritage tourism) is a branch of tourism oriented towards the cultural heritage of the location where tourism is occurring. The National Trust for Historic Preservation in the United States defines heritage t ...

and the legacy of

colonialism Colonialism is a practice or policy of control by one people or power over other people or areas, often by establishing colony, colonies and generally with the aim of economic dominance. In the process of colonisation, colonisers may impose the ...

and imperialism. In Spanish, San Sombrèro would be translated into English as "Saint Hat", "San" being the shortened word for the Spanish word "santo" meaning saint, and "sombrero" (no

accent mark A diacritic (also diacritical mark, diacritical point, diacritical sign, or accent) is a glyph added to a letter or to a basic glyph. The term derives from the Ancient Greek (, "distinguishing"), from (, "to distinguish"). The word ''diacriti ...

in real-world Spanish) meaning hat. According to the book the "full and technically correct" name of San Sombrèro is the "Democratic Free People's United Republic of San Sombrèro", and citizens may be arrested, without a warrant, if the title is ''not'' used.

About San Sombrèro

The "Democratic Free People’s United Republic of San Sombrèro" is a composite of many stereotypes and clichés about

and South America. It would be difficult to position the fictional San Sombèro on a map of Central America. Although it is presented as a thin country between the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contin ...

and the

Caribbean Sea The Caribbean Sea ( es, Mar Caribe; french: Mer des Caraïbes; ht, Lanmè Karayib; jam, Kiaribiyan Sii; nl, Caraïbische Zee; pap, Laman Karibe) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico ...

(similar to

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...

), it runs diagonally from northeast to southwest, in comparison to the other states on the Central American strip of land that run more from the northwest to southeast, or west to east. If San Sombrèro were to be geographically placed it would probably fit best between Panama and Costa Rica. The book says the nation has "362 separate public holidays (not including the 'carnivale' long weekend)". San Sombrèro appears to be a stereotypically corrupt and unstable

banana republic In political science, the term banana republic describes a politically unstable country with an economy dependent upon the export of natural resources. In 1904, the American author O. Henry coined the term to describe Honduras and neighboring c ...

with seemingly everlasting revolutions and counter-revolutions. The country is said to have had 17 different presidents over 10 years. San Sombrèro is described as having a very high literacy rate because of an anti-illiteracy campaign in which "over 53,000 citizens who were unable to read erejailed or deported to Haiti". Before the arrival of the Spanish, San Sombrèro was said to inhabited by several "Amer-Indian" ethnic groups, called the "Ciboney" (Siboney) (Nomadic hunter-gatherers), " Taino" (who lived on seafood), "Puorcina" (who practiced simple agriculture) and the most dominant "Guanajaxo" (they just stole from everyone else). But there was a tribe that existed before called the "Bollivquar", fierce warriors who regarded themselves as a very complex and advanced society, which is said to be odd because they "never quite" mastered fire, irrigation or star jumps. But they learnt how to farm tobacco, which to this day still remains a part of the Bollivquar diet, explaining their stunted growth. Note that their inability to light a fire made it harder to take up smoking.

Language

San Sombrèro is a Spanish-speaking country, but a dialect has developed known as San Sombrèran, which combines Castilian grammar,

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

pronunciation, and indigenous shouting. San Sombrèran Spanish is spoken a lot faster than normal Spanish, because it is considered impolite for people to take a breath during a sentence (particularly since their breath is so foul). San Sombrèran Spanish has many English loanwords, some of which are "beisbol" - baseball, "hamburgesa" - hamburger (these two are actual Spanish words), "beeras" - beers, and "dryvebyshooting" -

drive by shooting A drive-by shooting is a type of assault that usually involves the perpetrator(s) firing a weapon from within a motor vehicle and then fleeing. Drive-by shootings allow the perpetrator(s) to quickly strike their target and flee the scene before ...

National anthem

The San Sombrèran national anthem is "O Patria Gloriosa" (O Glorious Motherland), written in 1853 by independence leader Juan Robirro, who is famous for uttering "He who loves his country, lives forever" shortly before falling off a ladder and dying. The national anthem is set to a bossa nova beat, and loyal citizens of San Sombrèro will stand respectfully, place a hand on each hip and start to gyrate while the anthem is played. *A verse :: My baby melts my heart :: My baby drives me nuts :: The way she swings her hips :: The way her hair hangs down :: Give me a kiss, :: O gorgeous woman :: Cover my lips :: In passionate bliss :: Long live San Sombrèro :: O glorious fatherland.

Flag

The flag of San Sombrèro is the "Camouflagio", which resembles

military camouflage Military camouflage is the use of camouflage by an armed force to protect personnel and equipment from observation by enemy forces. In practice, this means applying colour and materials to military equipment of all kinds, including vehicles, ...

, with a narrow vertical white stripe on the left side. When the nation first became independent from Spain a dirty red and white chequered

tablecloth A tablecloth is a cloth used to cover a table. Some are mainly ornamental coverings, which may also help protect the table from scratches and stains. Other tablecloths are designed to be spread on a dining table before laying out tableware and ...

made an impromptu flag.

Regions

The capital city of San Sombrèro is Cucaracha City in Polluçión. There are five provinces in San Sombrèro including Polluçión, the other provinces are: *Maracca (Capital: San Pistachio) *Guacomala (Capital: Fumarole) *Lambarda (Capital: Aguazura) *San Abandonio (Capital: Nicotiño)

Fictional travel guides

The book advertises (fictional) guides on the following places: Unaudited Arab Emirates (the Middle East), Costa Lottsa (akin to Monaco), the Barbituros Islands (the Caribbean), Alpenstein (the Alps), Tyranistan (Former Soviet Union), Nuku'la Atoll (Polynesia), frozen Norgborg (Scandinavia), and the miserable Isle of Fogg (North Sea). It also advertises its website's forum, as well as world tours for botanists and golfers, and an opportunity to spend a year in an untouched part of Europe. The book ends with The Jetlag Story.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:San Sombrero Fictional North American countries 2006 books Australian books Travel guide books Australian travel books Parody books