a question for people outside of north america
- Thread starter darthotaku
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I don't think I'd make any assumptions, but then I've only met pleasant Americans.
I will say that a courteous American is hard to beat. I used to take calls on a customer service line that sometimes dealt with US soldiers based in the UK, and they were some of the most polite and well mannered guys I have spoken to in 20 years of dealing with the public.
I will say that a courteous American is hard to beat. I used to take calls on a customer service line that sometimes dealt with US soldiers based in the UK, and they were some of the most polite and well mannered guys I have spoken to in 20 years of dealing with the public.
I was in London last summer and when I packed my bags I just tossed in my regular clothes. Of course as a raging Doctor Who fan I couldn't help bringing a few of those T-shirts along.
Really if you just mind your own business and act like a normal sane person when traveling...well anywhere; people don't really give to shits where your from. You will give yourself away when you open your mouth though. (I apparently have a north of the mason dixon accent despite living in the south all my life; go figure) Despite what all the travel books will tell you places outside of Canada and the US are not lawless anarchy where every other person on the street is looking to rob you blind.
Really if you just mind your own business and act like a normal sane person when traveling...well anywhere; people don't really give to shits where your from. You will give yourself away when you open your mouth though. (I apparently have a north of the mason dixon accent despite living in the south all my life; go figure) Despite what all the travel books will tell you places outside of Canada and the US are not lawless anarchy where every other person on the street is looking to rob you blind.
I can't speak for many other places, but be sure to clearly describe yourself as Canadian in the uk, and the middle east (and possibly Australia too).
In general, those countries just don't like Americans, and that's the reason why you don't see many US citizens, and tourists there.
I live in Britain, and i have only ever came across four american's in my whole life. One loud mouth girl in a busy high street, One guy who was punching this Arab guy in the street for saying stuff about his misses, A woman who i was chatting to about kittens, and one american woman working in Burger king.
In general, those countries just don't like Americans, and that's the reason why you don't see many US citizens, and tourists there.
I live in Britain, and i have only ever came across four american's in my whole life. One loud mouth girl in a busy high street, One guy who was punching this Arab guy in the street for saying stuff about his misses, A woman who i was chatting to about kittens, and one american woman working in Burger king.
Depends where you go:
Countries where English is the national language? They might be able to tell from your accent.
Countries where people do not distinguish between "Canadian" and "American"? Not much point.
Countries where Canadians often go and act like arseholes ? Don't identify yourself as Canadian. (Not sure if you face this last problem, but Australians do. Many Aussies have a habit of going to S.E. Asian countries to get drunk and be fuckwits.)
Wearing an emblem is a bit tacky though. Probably don't do that.
Countries where English is the national language? They might be able to tell from your accent.
Countries where people do not distinguish between "Canadian" and "American"? Not much point.
Countries where Canadians often go and act like arseholes ? Don't identify yourself as Canadian. (Not sure if you face this last problem, but Australians do. Many Aussies have a habit of going to S.E. Asian countries to get drunk and be fuckwits.)
Wearing an emblem is a bit tacky though. Probably don't do that.
Depends entirely on where you are travelling. For many parts of the world, including most of Europe, you really should stick a Canadian patch on your jacket, or similar. When I spent a year backpacking around Europe, I found (as an Australian) that Americans were basically the running jokes of the backpacker scene, and in some countries the locals loathed them as well. Often that wasn't entirely fair - the cliched 'ignorant American' isn't likely to show up in a backpackers' working the bar in rural Spain - but by and large the typical US tourist is seen to rush in and out of a country in a generic packaged tour, with no knowledge of local languages/culture and very little comprehension of the world outside the US. It's a hard reputation to shake, even for the Americans who are multilingual and well-educated (though admittedly, even then most Americans I ran into were more ignorant about other countries than most people of a similar educational sophistication).
Obviously if you're doing the 'fly-in/do-a-tour/fly-out' kind of trip then you aren't going to have to worry about the backpackers' scene. BUT still pack the canadian patches if you are spending a lot of time in France, Germany, Sweden, Italy or Spain. The last two aren't as anti-American, so long as you act appropriately to the culture. Big mistake that you see Americans making there is to go into a shop and expect to be 'the boss' or for there to be a 'customer is always right' attitude. In Spain and southern Italy, if you go into someone's shop, the onus of politeness is revesed - it's THEIR place, so you need to be polite to them. People are used to having things move at a slower pace, so cafe/shop staff will take their time with serving you, and won't hesitate to fire back at you, or just refuse to serve you, if you complain in a manner they feel is unreasonable. I've seen Americans in Spanish shops be denied service because they've started tapping their fingers on the counter impatiently - the staff won't tell them to get out, but they'll just ignore them and serve everybody else until the finger-tapper gets the message. Most of the time they'd probably put up with it from other locals, but again...Americans come with a reputation.
From personal experience, in France you want to make clear to pretty much everyone that you're not American or English. E.g. when I asked when the next train to Lyons is that day, the rail guy says 'I do not speak english, no trains today'. I then say 'Je ne suis pax American! Je suis Australian!' (bad French for 'I am not American! I am Australian!'. Rail guy (in English): Oh, I'm sorry. There are trains leaving from here to Lyon every 2 hours on track number 4. Do you want to reserve a ticket?'
That kind of thing happened a lot, and friends who have been to France have had similar experiences (same for other European countries, but France is reknowned for it) - locals would be deliberately difficult/rude if they thought I was from the US, but would happily speak english and help out once they knew I wasn't American.
As a consequence, every single Canadian I met while travelling (and I met a lot) had the flag on their luggage and on at least one item of clothing that they'd be wearing often (say a hat, or a jacket). This included several Canadians who started off travelling without the flag anywhere, but who had quickly purchased and attached it after discovering the anti-Americanism, and the comparative popularity of Canadians.
In Australia, Canadians are much more well liked than Americans, but people aren't going to personally dislike you or hassle you about it one way or the other.
TL;DR: Canadians are well liked in Europe, Anti-Americanism is common in Europe.
Obviously if you're doing the 'fly-in/do-a-tour/fly-out' kind of trip then you aren't going to have to worry about the backpackers' scene. BUT still pack the canadian patches if you are spending a lot of time in France, Germany, Sweden, Italy or Spain. The last two aren't as anti-American, so long as you act appropriately to the culture. Big mistake that you see Americans making there is to go into a shop and expect to be 'the boss' or for there to be a 'customer is always right' attitude. In Spain and southern Italy, if you go into someone's shop, the onus of politeness is revesed - it's THEIR place, so you need to be polite to them. People are used to having things move at a slower pace, so cafe/shop staff will take their time with serving you, and won't hesitate to fire back at you, or just refuse to serve you, if you complain in a manner they feel is unreasonable. I've seen Americans in Spanish shops be denied service because they've started tapping their fingers on the counter impatiently - the staff won't tell them to get out, but they'll just ignore them and serve everybody else until the finger-tapper gets the message. Most of the time they'd probably put up with it from other locals, but again...Americans come with a reputation.
From personal experience, in France you want to make clear to pretty much everyone that you're not American or English. E.g. when I asked when the next train to Lyons is that day, the rail guy says 'I do not speak english, no trains today'. I then say 'Je ne suis pax American! Je suis Australian!' (bad French for 'I am not American! I am Australian!'. Rail guy (in English): Oh, I'm sorry. There are trains leaving from here to Lyon every 2 hours on track number 4. Do you want to reserve a ticket?'
That kind of thing happened a lot, and friends who have been to France have had similar experiences (same for other European countries, but France is reknowned for it) - locals would be deliberately difficult/rude if they thought I was from the US, but would happily speak english and help out once they knew I wasn't American.
As a consequence, every single Canadian I met while travelling (and I met a lot) had the flag on their luggage and on at least one item of clothing that they'd be wearing often (say a hat, or a jacket). This included several Canadians who started off travelling without the flag anywhere, but who had quickly purchased and attached it after discovering the anti-Americanism, and the comparative popularity of Canadians.
In Australia, Canadians are much more well liked than Americans, but people aren't going to personally dislike you or hassle you about it one way or the other.
TL;DR: Canadians are well liked in Europe, Anti-Americanism is common in Europe.
I live in Scotland, and a lot of people I know would like you more if they thought you were Canadian instead of American. Maybe it's that America seems like a bit of a douche bag of a country at times, or maybe it's because Scots hate being mistaken as people from that country below us, yes the more famous one, no we don't sound the same.
Depends on where you're going, it's probably more likely that if you're going outside the US you're simply less likely to get robbed etc....
*cough* but on a better note I HAVE seen similar and they do treat tourists a LOT better in other country's - means more money for them so you can hardly complain.
*cough* but on a better note I HAVE seen similar and they do treat tourists a LOT better in other country's - means more money for them so you can hardly complain.
darthotaku said:
If you go to Europe this is useless advice as wearing your flag just makes you look incredibly silly, unless it is on a sports shirt or a cap or something and to be honest a mugging will occur no matter what the nationality in Europe, if your unlucky enough to get mugged on holiday then it was probably just rotten luck rather than the fact you aren't from that country.
However when you talk to people in Europe do make it clear that you're Canadian rather than American. Make it especially clear if you go the the UK because many people have a strange dislike of Americans and seem to become very patronising and start to talk down to them a bit, this shouldn't happen if you say your'e Canadian. However equally don't start a conversation with "Hi I'm Canadian can you please tell me..." because that makes you sound like a twat.
To make it clear, people will probably treat you better than they do Americans (at least in the UK.) However they won't treat you any better than someone from there own country.
As for the rest of the world I cannot say as I have only ventured to Africa once and honestly can't remember the attitude towards tourists in Botswana, I haven't been to any other continents and wouldn't like to give you random advice about.
Wow that was long, so Summary: In Europe don't bother with national colours etc because to be honest you could be from anywhere and just wearing a shirt you got from Canada. But do make it clear you're Canadian in conversations as it may make people less patronising.
Yes I do know some people who would treat an American worse than a Canadian or any other tourist.
Hell, I'm American and I'd wave the Canadian flag if I went out of the country. Stereotypes still exist and though we would all consider ourselves above that, preconceived notions are a tough thing to look past.
Granted, I don't appear to be a racist, poorly educated, xenophobic, imperalist, war loving, kitten eating, subhuman, mustache twirling, worse than Hitler, big fatass of an oaf... but such is the stereotype of my people.
Fortunately everyone loves Canada, so you shouldn't run into any problems if you make it known that's where you're from.
Granted, I don't appear to be a racist, poorly educated, xenophobic, imperalist, war loving, kitten eating, subhuman, mustache twirling, worse than Hitler, big fatass of an oaf... but such is the stereotype of my people.
Fortunately everyone loves Canada, so you shouldn't run into any problems if you make it known that's where you're from.
I'm sorry to say this,as I have loads of good friends and family from America who are smart,witty and not up their own arses...
but as an Irish Travel Journalist I found out through experience that the sooner that people outside of America realise I'm NOT from there,the smoother life is in general,
I usually wear an Irish top even though I wouldnt be caught dead in one at home,
and I've found that it pays to explain to people particularly in South East Asia where I spend a lot of time and am writing a book about-that I'm Irish,not American(although they mix up Iceland and Ireland every time until I say "Roy Keane"
,
for all of you US Escapists,unfortunately you've let the lowest common denominator become the symbol of your country,
I still remember the days when American tourists to Ireland were treated very well with a kind of "wow! they're American! thats COOL!" attitude...nowadays its more of a "feckin yanks" thing.
so yeah OP Wear a Canadian flag,Canucks are still widely regarded as ok.
No Tl/Dr..if you need a Tl/Dr you shouldnt be reading forums,you should be reading "Spot has a Ball".
but as an Irish Travel Journalist I found out through experience that the sooner that people outside of America realise I'm NOT from there,the smoother life is in general,
I usually wear an Irish top even though I wouldnt be caught dead in one at home,
and I've found that it pays to explain to people particularly in South East Asia where I spend a lot of time and am writing a book about-that I'm Irish,not American(although they mix up Iceland and Ireland every time until I say "Roy Keane"
,for all of you US Escapists,unfortunately you've let the lowest common denominator become the symbol of your country,
I still remember the days when American tourists to Ireland were treated very well with a kind of "wow! they're American! thats COOL!" attitude...nowadays its more of a "feckin yanks" thing.
so yeah OP Wear a Canadian flag,Canucks are still widely regarded as ok.
No Tl/Dr..if you need a Tl/Dr you shouldnt be reading forums,you should be reading "Spot has a Ball".
I don't think that works in England. I've never seen that kind of thing with tourists, then again, I don't think we exactly round tourists up and burn them at a stake. It's more if you're polite, you get politeness back. Though it's a cool idea to bring your flag with you. I kinda don't need one because my accent speaks for itself really...
Hmmm. Well, Canadians have a good reputation...
I have to admit, in Japan I'm quite tempted to wear Australian flags a lot of the time, just so people don't assume I'm American. I have nothing against Americans, but I'm not one, and I'd like that to be known.
I have to admit, in Japan I'm quite tempted to wear Australian flags a lot of the time, just so people don't assume I'm American. I have nothing against Americans, but I'm not one, and I'd like that to be known.
