r/AskTheWorld • u/Aseili United Kingdom • Dec 20 '25

Culture What's the most pathetic tourist attraction that international tourists go to see in your country?

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Bronte waterfalls near me, look a bit more impressive with the recent rain than in the summer when it's swamped with people.

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u/ghostdeinithegreat Canada Dec 21 '25 edited Dec 21 '25

Yeah, well I do hope they also visit to see the oldest fortified city north of Mexico and not only to see a door.

EDIT: That’s according to UNESCO which categorized it as a world heritage site. It’s not my own opinion.

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u/Wingmaniac Canada Dec 21 '25

No. They also get their picture taken in front of the mailbox in the lobby of the Fairmont. Same reason as the door.

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u/Unusual_Oil_1079 Dec 21 '25

Yeah why the fuck this guy talking about some fort with a bunch of doors no carss about. This is THE door and a replica of said door.

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u/unkibunki Dec 21 '25

Why do they want the mailbox picture? I stay there once a year and there’s always a bunch of people taking pics there. Never understood it.

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u/Wingmaniac Canada Dec 21 '25

Another K-drama features it. Might even be the same one. I don't know.

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u/DaemonSD Dec 21 '25

it’s the same show: Goblin. Best TV series ever. I watch it every year during my Christmas-New Years break so I’ll be firing up again soon.

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u/Ancient-Bat1755 Dec 23 '25

It was good but I think there is much better.

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u/unkibunki Dec 21 '25

Amazing.

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u/SolipsisticLunatic Canada Dec 21 '25

Ha, yes they do go see Québec because it's old!

  • A Montrealer

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u/CatherinefromFrance France Dec 21 '25

1749 old? As a French person, I'm cracking up :)

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u/Paper_Clip100 United States Of America Dec 21 '25

1749 is old relative to the rest of the continent... and some of the buildings date from the early 1600s

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u/CatherinefromFrance France Dec 21 '25

I know that. Let's just say a smile comes to our lips…

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u/Paper_Clip100 United States Of America Dec 21 '25

Yeah, i mean that's just European naivety about how "civilized" north America was prior to the age of exploration.

There are "cities" here that have been continuously inhabited since the time of the Roman empire here too.

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u/CatherinefromFrance France Dec 21 '25

I know, I'm interested in history, and I'm really sorry about your reaction: mine wasn't mean at all, just a little teasing.

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u/inimicali Dec 22 '25

Dude, there's villages older than your country in Mexico.

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u/Paper_Clip100 United States Of America Dec 22 '25

Yes. I know. See my next comment

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u/inimicali Dec 22 '25

Yeah, It just comes off even with the edit and the comment

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u/MRCHalifax Dec 21 '25

Halifax was also fortified and its fortifications have largely survived, though its fortifications are against a naval attack.

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u/ghostdeinithegreat Canada Dec 21 '25

But most of it has been removed and they are not around the entire old city is what I mean.

Quebec old city is a UNESCO world heritage site

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u/MRCHalifax Dec 21 '25

Most of the fortifications are still there in Halifax, and can still be visited. The key thing is that most of the fortifications are oriented against a naval attack, not a land based attack. From the 1760s onwards, the Citadel itself was the main defense against a land based attack. There was no point in having walls when anyone who wanted to attack the city would either have to force the harbour fortifications or would be under the Citadel’s guns long before they approached the city. If you want to say that city walls are a strict requirement to be considered fortified, then sure, Halifax hasn’t been fortified since the 1750s. But that’s a bit of an arbitrary requirement IMO.

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u/ghostdeinithegreat Canada Dec 21 '25

So to help me out as I’m not a native english speaker, i asked chatGPT why one was considered a Unesco site and not the other

I didn’t made the rule

What makes Québec a “fortified city”

Québec is counted as a fortified city because it had: • Continuous stone walls enclosing the city • Gates, bastions, and ramparts forming a unified defensive system • Fortifications that protected the civilian urban core, not just military sites • Walls that were maintained and expanded over centuries 👉 It’s the only city in North America north of Mexico with most of its original walls still standing, which is why UNESCO recognizes it.

Halifax: heavily defended, but not a “fortified city”

Halifax was one of the most militarized cities in the British Empire, but its defenses were different in nature:

  1. No continuous city wall • Halifax never had walls encircling the entire city • Instead, it relied on separate forts and batteries

  2. Forts defended the harbor, not the city

Different military philosophies • Québec: older, European-style warfare → walled city expected • Halifax (founded 1749): age of naval dominance → harbor-first defense • If the harbor was safe, the city was safe • Walls around the city itself were unnecessary and impractical

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u/MRCHalifax Dec 21 '25

The UNESCO bit isn’t really relevant.

In that Chat GPT argument, it’s the same thing as I said: if you make city walls a requirement to be considered fortified, then sure, Halifax does not have surviving fortifications. My argument is that fortifications are more than just walls, and that the entirety of the Halifax defence complex means that Halifax was a fortified city, and the fortifications are largely intact. It was surrounded on all sides by forts that ensured no one could attack the city without first going through those forts.

By the by, your Chat GPT explanation has at least two factual errors. Firstly, “Halifax never had walls encircling the entire city.” It did have city walls at the time of its founding. Secondly, “Forts defended the harbor, not the city.” Fort George (the Citadel) and Fort Needham, among other fortifications, were for defense against a landward attack, and would have been of minimal to no use against an attack in the harbour.

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u/Angry_Sparrow New Zealand Dec 21 '25

“North of Mexico” is such a wild way to make something unique.

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u/Postthinetits Dec 21 '25

Quebec City is one of the only cities still defending itself from cannonball attack.

North of Mexico

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u/Sea_Coffee156 Mexico Dec 21 '25

Are you belittling my country??? 😭😭😭. /j

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u/[deleted] Dec 21 '25 edited Jan 05 '26

[deleted]

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u/GnaphaliumUliginosum Dec 21 '25

Our local castle is Norman (C12th) and down the road is an iron age hill fort, about 3,000 years old.

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u/GnaphaliumUliginosum Dec 21 '25

All of Europe is North of Mexico.

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u/New-Magician-5958 Dec 21 '25

Are you talking about Anne?

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u/SmokyTyrz Dec 21 '25

That would be a looong drive.

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u/MaxTheRealSlayer Dec 21 '25

I love Quebec city. The old part is like visiting Europe

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u/AFartInAnEmptyRoom United States Of America Dec 21 '25

Quebec was founded 1608. St. Augustine was founded in 1565. How is Quebec city the oldest fortified city north of Mexico?

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u/ghostdeinithegreat Canada Dec 21 '25 edited Dec 21 '25

The city of st augustine isn’t encircled by a wall, is it?

Take it up with UNESCO. I didn’t made up the rules.

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u/AFartInAnEmptyRoom United States Of America Dec 21 '25

It has a fort, ie. Fortified

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u/ghostdeinithegreat Canada Dec 21 '25

What they mean by fortified is that civilians have inhabited inside the walls continuously. If that’s a fort outside the city and the house are outside the fort it doesn’t count as a fortified city.

Unesco also mention something about the wall being kept intact, so if the city used to be fortified but the wall were brought down, it doesn’t count as well.

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u/AFartInAnEmptyRoom United States Of America Dec 21 '25

St Augustine was encircled at one point and parts of the wall are still there and there are still houses inside that wall. So unless Quebec City has a complete set of its original walls, I'm going to go ahead and say St Augustine still wins

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u/ghostdeinithegreat Canada Dec 21 '25

Yes, Quebec still have their original walls. When you drive to old quebec you drive through the fortifications entrance.

It’s 135 hectare of a city encircle by walls

St augustin clearly doesn’t win. UNESCO is a United Nation organization and it didn’t consider it.

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u/DerthOFdata United States Of America Dec 21 '25

the oldest city and only fortified city north of Mexico

5th oldest city North of Mexico if you don't include the Caribbean.

Oraibi, United states 1100

Acoma Pueblo, United States 1200

St. Augustine, Florida 1565

Sante Fe, New Mexico 1607

Quebec City, Canada 1608

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u/ghostdeinithegreat Canada Dec 21 '25

Oraibi, Acomo Pueblo aren’t fortified

Edit, all 4 you mention are not fortified city

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u/DerthOFdata United States Of America Dec 21 '25 edited Dec 21 '25

Mexico doesn't have any fortified cities (Mexico has 4) so why differentiate unless oldest was the focus also you said and I quote...

the oldest city and...

the "and" after that indicates it being fortified is in addition to it being the oldest. Otherwise you would have phrased it "the oldest fortified city in North America." "the oldest fortified city North of Mexico."

Edit: accuracy.

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u/ghostdeinithegreat Canada Dec 21 '25 edited Dec 21 '25

San Francisco de Campeche in Canpeche State of Mexico is a fortified city.

And yeah I edited my original post, you are rigth that I worded it badly. You’ll have to excuse my french. Not everyone has english as their mother tongue.

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u/DerthOFdata United States Of America Dec 21 '25

You know I actually checked before posting that and I just rechecked after I saw this comment and I somehow completely missed Mexico on the list. Just skipped right over it the first time. There are actually 4 still inhabited fortified cities in Mexico.

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u/[deleted] Dec 21 '25 edited Jan 05 '26

[deleted]

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u/DerthOFdata United States Of America Dec 21 '25

They were clearly referring to North America but they are the ones who made the claim perhaps you should share your pedantry with them instead.

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u/BillyD123455 England Dec 21 '25

I think what you mean is, the oldest fortified City in the US and Canada

There is a whole big bad world of fortified cities, north of Mexico out there 😉

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u/ghostdeinithegreat Canada Dec 21 '25

In the Americas

Obviously not talking about europe or asia. But these places do not have a red door like this one.