oaf@mit-vax.UUCP ([Oded Anoaf Feingold]) (05/03/85)
>> I can say nothing good about the Americans I met in Europe. >Amen! I don't know if I would condemn all American tourists in Europe, >but I have certainly witnessed my share of "Ugly Americans. ________________________________________ Just like bad apples and rotten eggs, it only takes a few to spoil things for others. However, I think you're being too hard on Americans as a nationality. Most are not loud, abrasive, or abusive. And it's no wonder we don't notice those - they don't call attention to themselves. Do you really think you can spot all the Americans in a crowd? Bets?? It is true that Americans on average suffer certain disadvantages when they travel, including their monolinguism and lack of experience with noticeably different cultures. In Israel, Italy, Greece, Iran, Spain and southern France I saw Americans backpedaling in front of a native, who kept advancing on them. Why? Because in those countries it's customary to stand closer to talk than in the US. The Americans thought the others were pushy and the others thought the Americans standoffish -- neither realizing that the difference was cultural rather than personal. Those folks were carrying on their ambulatory conversations without even knowing they were traveling around the room. And I'm sure neither was comfortable. There are a couple of books on the subject by Edward T. Hall, _the_ _Silent_ _Language_ and _the_ _Hidden_ _Dimension_, both in paperback, dating from the early 1960s. They're highly readable, and I commend them to people who intend to travel, as well as those who like "observing the natives," wherever they go. >> I would tell you where my favorite spots in France were, but I >> do not want to see any Americans there when I return. ________________________________________ Come off it!! Talk about snotty Americans. >In a few cases, I felt like taking them over my knee and giving them a >good spanking! ________________________________________ Perhaps taking them aside and explaining in friendly terms how "things are different over here" would help more than your violent approach. I found most people quite willing to learn a few moves to get along better. Example: In an Israeli restaurant, I noticed an American family keep missing their waiter's attention because they were unwilling to call out and gesticulate. Once I explained that the Israelis are much more informal (and louder?) than Americans in similar situations they got the service they wanted, and to their amazement the waiter wasn't angry at being yelled for. [Then again, I hope they didn't apply the same logic in Britain or Switzerland. Furthermore, I won't tell you what I told the Americans on line for the ski-lift at St. Moritz.] You don't have to act superior - commenting that you've had success in the past with such-and-such doesn't seem to arouse people's defensiveness. Very often the travelers don't know they're doing something wrong. It's rude to stretch (like unkinking your back, or something) in Portugal, but how do you know that if you aren't told? Even by observing the locals, can you make that deduction from the absence of such public gestures? Also, in England a peace sign (two fingers) means the same as a single middle finger here. Someone I know got a very close inspection from a policeman he sincerely tried to be nice to. >I think that the nicest compliment ever given to me was when a Doctor in >Stockholm said as we were leaving, "I really enjoyed meeting you... you're >not at all like most Americans that I meet." ________________________________________ In that case, you're hurting for compliments. That doctor should have had a bit more decency. Must have picked up some bad habits from time spent in the USA. -- Oded Feingold {decvax, harvard}!mitvax!oaf MIT AI Lab oaf%oz@mit-mc.ARPA 545 Tech Sq. 617-253-8598 work Cambridge, Mass. 02139 617-371-1796 home (*) Schmuck means jewel in German. What were _you_ thinking of?