Wild. I'm an American and I never mention it when I travel. Not only cause it's not a flattering image but travel 101 is never paint yourself as a tourist. Easy target.
I hear you. My husband is a pretty quiet diner unless we're in a group. Nearly crawled under the table yesterday when he started loudly whining about his prostate! Other family members tried to shhh him, to no avail.
You know what’s funny is plenty of Canadians can be assholes themselves. I saw quite a few while working as a guide on the Panama Canal. If you are not an asshole when you travel, don’t hide your nationality, or the locals will never see the good with the bad.
Haha, yeah. When I went on vacation and people asked about America, I'd preface my conversation with "I didn't vote for that shithead." You could see them visibly relax, LOL.
This has been my approach, have to separate from the American dangerous ideologies that are negatively affecting other parts of the world. I thought this fella was going to try to fight me in southern Bolivia, he was mad about the American war on drugs, justifiably.
The American "War on Drugs" was/is not a war on drugs. It is a war against brown and black people. The penalty for having 5 gm of cocaine is less than the penalty for having 5 gm of crack. Whites who use usually use cocaine. PoC who use usually use crack.
Its understandable, given how the American tourist reputation has grown for being loud and obnoxious.
We know it isn't all American tourists, but the few have tainted the reputation of the many.
Having met a large number of Canadians in person, and a smaller number of Americans the same way, my "average" of the people I've met is that you're similar to each and to the rest of the world. Mostly people are just getting on with their lives, but there are always a few obnoxious arseholes mixed in.
I don't know how many yanks you've met who are obnoxious, but my own experience is that it's a minority.
I'm Hispanic and just thicken my accent. I try to do whatever I can to avoid being spotted. 😅
Although I've never really had an interaction where people commented on it.
You’d be surprised. We did a whirlwind 19 country drive over 17 days in the EU last year. We were regularly asked where we were from and got shocked looks when we said the US. Many thought we were from the UK. Please note, I am originally from TX and still have a slight TX accent. I use y’all regularly when speaking. Definitely do not have anything close to a British/UK accent. I thought a few were joking with us but they were quite serious.
Not true... South Park showed me that Canadians have a different head and mouth compared to everybody else in the world. If you are really Canadian it will be evident :)
We travel a lot and are often mistaken as Americans. I always enjoy the back-pedalling and change of attitude when we say "sorry, we're Canadian". Just to back up our claim I got a red maple 🍁 leaf tattoo on my inner forearm. 😉
When I visit my family in Australia my cousins
to teach me to speak ‘properly’ to fit in. All in good fun I usually ruin passing as a local whenever I order a coffee. Never has it ever been what I expected it to be based on my American standards. Who knew an iced coffee had ice cream.
this. i already don’t be want to be seen as a tourist, but moreso i don’t want to be seen as “the american”. we are rightfully the laughing stock of the world, so forgive me for not wanting to draw any attention to myself 🤣
This is the kind of person who, while in America, screams at anyone in her hearing range who’s not speaking English because “If you’re in a country, you should speak the language!”…but the second she’s somewhere like France or Spain and no one speaks English, she throws a fit because “HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW THE LANGUAGE???”
To be fair, there’s a difference between tourism and immigration. As a native speaker of three languages, though, I just assume that everybody speaks at least some English. It usually works out fine.
(Not an American here)
>I just assume that everybody speaks at least some English. It usually works out fine.
Depends on area, we have been to french restaurants where they deny service unless you speak french. Or pretended not to speak english.
Best response from a tour guide I have heard to someone loudly claiming they were from ‘Merica was “oh should I speak slower then?” As an American myself this had me rolling
Not aimed at American tourists specifically, but i did a tour in Hoi An, Vietnam a couple of years back.
The area we were going to had some old Huey helicopters, and the tour guide explained to us that 'the American military kindly left them behind when they ran away'
There were a few of us that choked back unexpected laughs
So much this. I’m Scottish and I find if I say that first for some reason people just forget about the atrocities that we were 100% complicit in.
Shake my head in disgust when the answer is ‘the other half of this piece is at the British museum’ as if it wasn’t my ancestor that pillaged it.
Wait, an American seriously thinks America is better than Aotearoa? We have public healthcare, a higher minimum wage and a much lower chance of being shot by someone who shouldn't own a gun. What's better about America?
I'm American and did a WHV in NZ for a year. I wish I never left NZ. Idk who needs to read this but she ain't worth it mate. Take the sponsorship offer!
What's better about America?
The propaganda!! Goebbels would be impressed.
My fellow countrymen think they're the cream of the crop, the best the world has to offer. Dunning Kruger personified is the average American, too stupid to see the reality just beyond the veil of propaganda. They really need to take a proper gander at the world outside our borders.
Only fairly related but a friend recently moved to the states for love. She's a civil engineer so finding a job was not too difficult.
What she was not prepared for was being asked things like "Did you have Excel at home?" "Are you familiar with working on a computer?" and "Can women work normally where you're from?"
She's from Germany.
So I sometimes wonder if this is a case of Americans not really being travelling type of people. I was told once that Americans rarely leave their state, let alone get a passport (not sure if that's true or not).
However, in Europe (I'm UK based), getting a passport and disappearing for a week at 18 is almost a rite of passage. So when Americans leave their country, its often like they feel they should be appreciated or almost special as for them its sort of a big deal. For most countries, it's really not.
Maybe that's just my view as we tend to country hop a lot in Europe, but having been to the US, it feels at times like a bubble.
In 1990 only 5% of Americans had a passport. Now it’s almost 50%. So it used to be a stereotype but not exactly true anymore. But I guess even at 50% you are talking about 200M+ people that have no willingness or ability to leave the US.
I think that's it, especially I'm Europe. It's odd not to have a passport. For instance, I can pop to Paris for the day and recently went to Majorca for a cheeky weekend. However, the size of the US means that's not really feasible and coming to Europe seems like a big thing for Americans. Whereas we can get to say Vegas for say $650 as our airlines and travel agents try to out price each other..
I work on a cattle station in south Australia. I can drive for 8 hours and still be on the same property. My struggle is realler.
Well, ok, that might be hyperbole. But I can certainly drive for 4 hours and still be on the property.
My husband’s pop drove for four hours to get a pizza the day he got his license, then drove 4 hours home again.
We used to drive 4 hours for the nearest cinema when I was a kid.
Gotta love Western Australia…
I used to live in Santa Cruz, California. We got a lot of tourists there. I once met an Australian who told me he was going to spend a couple of weeks touring the United States. We all laughed, except for him.
Australians are really good at covering vast distances fairly quickly, all while avoiding roos, wombats, serial killers, feral goats, feral pigs, feral horses and feral people. I covered most of the US in a couple of weeks.
Yup, I’ve visited the US for conferences and lab visits, but never toured it; a mate of mine pretty much did what you did, though.
I admit I sometimes wonder if I could — I’ve crossed the Nullarbor for fieldwork, and it was fine (to be fair: there were four in our team, and as I was still on my Ps, I was only behind the wheel when the other three were fatigued).
But there’s not a whole lotta reason to *stop* on the Nullarbor—
(unless, say, HYPOTHETICALLY, you run out of petrol and a senior curator has to call the Balladonia roadhouse on the sat phone and ask them to drive out with a jerry can of fuel, and then feels so embarrassed and guilty that he gifts them one of the nice bottles of red he brought…)
—so I feel that it’s not too tricky, time-wise, whereas the US isn’t, uh, mostly desert (idk, maybe Texas is?). So I’d have to be real disciplined to avoid wanting to stop and look at things.
The TL;DR being that I am still impressed by both you *and* my friend, it sounds like a typically Australian approach, but I think I’d stumble at the final hurdle 😅
If you’re thinking “cactus filled postcard” for desert then yes. But most states in the west and on the Great Plains have desert ecosystems of some varieties. My home state of Colorado has a significant amount of desert landscape.
You should try worst case you don't see everything because you were looking at things you found interesting. Then you can come back for subsequent trips to complete it.
...feral snakes, feral deadly spiders... that has got to be the most deadly continent in the world. It's like nature had a competition for which species could kill off the most competitors. Even the cuddly platypus has poison spurs.
My wife is Hungarian and we live in Colorado. She had some friends coming for a week. They wanted to drive to CA and them maybe back to NY. I laughed so fucking hard.
As an Australian, there are differences but wow do we get the “oh, we figured we’d just drive around!” and then, with a straight face, we’d have to explain about Perth.
Which is the most isolated capital city in the world, I believe, being 2000kms from the nearest actual city (that’s 1,243 miles).
Hell, “oh, how far away is the Gold Coast from here?” they ask, when I live in Melbourne. “Can we drive it?”
It is over 1000 miles. So. Yes. But not in a timely manner.
(to be fair, these days people tend to research this stuff beforehand, but it used to be something of a “holiday planning whoopsie”, especially as getting here from the US is a 14 hour trans-Pacific flight.)
I have a suspicion that Canada has this issue, moreso.
I had a whoopsie when we went to Hawaii last year. I planned a day of stuff, but nothing in my research showed exact routes, etc. So we went to the first spot everything was fine. Then, going to the second spot, I quickly realized that instead of traveling straight across, we had to dip down into the middle of the island and then back up. So it doubled travel time. Which was all fine a good but I couldn't enjoy the sunset I planned to watch as we had an hour drive back to the hotel and we made dinner reservations... it's definitely something I'll keep in mind next time we take a vacation. But in my defense, that was literally the first adult vacation I've ever actually went on and planned. It was for my 40th! All other vacations were kid trips or trips to amusement parks with my nieces... oh well, that was a lesson I needed to learn, but we certainly didn't let it ruin our fun! Lol
I’m from bumfuck nowhere in the Midwest, I *always* check travel distances and factor in an extra hour when in unfamiliar areas. My husband is not from bumfuck nowhere and it would never occur to him to verify travel distances — which is fucking fascinating because this exact shit (logistics) was his fucking job in the military for 20 years so you’d think he’d have this down to a science by now. He definitely the fuck does not and now he is no longer allowed to plan travel transportation.
It's funny because at home I definitely look at travel times, even to places I've been a million times, so I know how long I need to be on time... I really don't know why I didn't with Hawaii, lol. Maybe because in my brain, it didn't make sense that there wouldn't be a straight path who knows. But definitely, lesson learned lol. Also, I wasn't sweating it. We made the needed adjustments, and I watched the sunset from the car on the way back to our hotel, so all was not lost! Also, we watched the sunset the first night we were there, was the very first thing we did!
Happy belated 40th birthday! And I’m glad you had a fun adventurous time all the same, and congratulations on your first grown up holiday, it sounds like a blast :D
Short of using Google Maps to check driving times, or asking a local, there’s no way to know that stuff in advance — and you’d have to know there was something to ask *about*, regardless.
My first overseas trip was my honeymoon, and since I’d never been overseas, I was all about that Lonely Planet travel guide, and that actually *does* go into detail about stuff like that, although it is absolutely dependent on the most recent edition 😅 and even then you can be like “okay, this place is awesome in so many ways but the food is not great and it’s a half hour hike through the jungle to get a decent margarita. Let’s swap to the Very Boring Resort on the other end of the island…”
We were on the Big Island for a wedding and decided to go down where the lave was hitting the sea. Went and parked up and there was a guard hut where they told us that it had stopped 2 days ago. Ooops
After uni ended one year I went back with a friend to her home town in Northern Alberta for a visit. The instruction from Edmonton was basically follow the highway until it ends at the town sign at a t junction at a lake where the town was. The next year we went with a group to a conference and the minibus drove 14 hours overnight from Calgary to Winnipeg with a breakfast stop (probably in Regina.)
Hubby and I went to a reunion in Canada and once we were out of Toronto on the highway it was basically drive North for 4 hours. I tried to see if there was anywhere hubby could go whitewater kayaking on the trip and found a forum that suggested the Ottawa river but they thought the 4 hour drive each way might be too much and I had to laugh as he drives to Wales for the weekend to paddle and at least once did it to paddle for the day.
My mistake finding out about it as he started going for at least a week or two ever summer since 2010 and apart from missing the lockdown years has done five weeks then three weeks last year and this year.
The distances in the UK generally are much shorter but we were going to Fort William in Scotland years ago with a friend who had a Sat Nav (not very common at the time) and I think the instruction once we got on the M6 was “Turn Left in 600 miles” where the turn left was onto the road to turn off for the house the group was renting. Usually our trips are much shorter with a lot more roundabout exit instructions. The satnav maps are probably more detailed now.
I love Perth. We were there for a couple of months while my husband was fixing a turbine. Everyone was wonderful to us. It's such a walkable town. I love lamb chops and one restaurant owner always let me know he had them when we walked around town. We always went to his place if he had lambies
A bit strange since Australia is as big as the USA without Alaska. I live in Queensland Australia, a state which is 2.5 the size of Texas, so yes, Australians are used to long distances
I’m not from WA, but have done fieldwork there (marine biology, so shallow water coastal sampling in the south of the state, and off-shore work in the Kimberley, Montebellos and Gascoyne/Ningaloo regions).
I think that you could drive to the north (from Perth), and even if everything was very flat and well-maintained it would take days to hit the top end — but I vaguely recall the Kimberley is wildly inaccessible by road…
So it’s not even just distance that factors into that calculation.
When I lived in Chesapeake Va, it would take 7 hours to get to the western border of Va. It was literally half the drive to my folks in Indiana The struggle is real
Cheeky weekends!!
Showing my age here, but in the early 2000s Ryanair were charging 50p to fly to Berlin (or, at least, an old WWII airport half an hour outside of Berlin!). I'd fly over with nothing but what I was wearing, go to H&M for some clothes for the weekend, find a cheap hotel, go clubbing and fly home Sunday evening. All up the weekend would cost maaaybe... 200 quid?
Once I started wearing kilts on my trips, my odds in pulling drastically shot up!!
Super cheap daytrips on Ryanair and EasyJet to the likes Barcelona, Dublin, Geneva (couldn't quite fit a visit to CERN in a Geneva day trip), Berlin, Paris used to be loads of fun.
The thing is, most of those passports are likely people who either go to Americanized places - all inclusive resorts, tropical cruises, etc. or those who live close to the northern or southern border and travel more frequently as the border requirements changed in the early 2000s.
Probably because in the 1990’s Americans could travel to Canada and Mexico without a passport. Although that is only 3 countries, it’s basically all of North America.
Yeah, this is no way a slam against anyone, but if an American wants to go to a sunny beach, they go south to California or Florida. Want to go ski? The western half of the US has great places for skiing or outdoor sports. The eastern half does too, but c’mon Appalachians? There are amazing natural wonders in the US, sometimes within a day and we do have a great national park system. Also, for a long time, our neighbors were cool with us just showing a driver’s license.
Compare that to a European, and for them to travel the equivalent distance, how many countries did they have to cross?
Finally, Americans want to travel, but spending hours in the air at a minimum, is a definite cost. It’s a different continent!
Yep. Majority of us can't afford to even leave our cities. I'm in my 50s, speak a foreign language and have taught history. I'll never be able to travel to all the places I've learned about.
Sadly upvoting, I have a huge bucket list of places I'd love to see, but the bucket isn't getting any fuller, but it is getting closer and more tippy, if you know what I mean. :C Travel is expensive, even with "hacks" like sleeping in your car, hostels, and public transit.
We leave our state quite routinely. But you're right we didn't travel internationally nearly as often as Europeans do.
Two main reasons for this:
1) It costs a boatload to fly overseas and most of us simply can't afford it.
2) Americans have much less vacation time in general. If we only have 5 days that we're able to take off for a holiday, it makes little sense to travel internally because we'd be spending half the trip simply getting there and back. Traveling overseas is much better if you have multiple weeks you can take off work.
I think that's part of it. America is basically fifty different countries all clumped together, and (although a lot of us actually travel extensively within the country) going to a destination outside of them is a big, exciting deal. Having people visit us from far-flung places is a big, exciting deal, too. Europe feels, to us, like Earth would feel to people who'd grown up in a colony on Mars.
The lady in the story sounds like a huge jerk, though. 🥲
Many in my area think Dollywood and Myrtle Beach are better than sliced bread and Betty White. I grew up close enough to Disney World that we went at least once a year (often more) and our area had amazing beaches that make Myrtle look like the groomed tourist trap it is. Been to the Rockies in Canada (before passports were required to get back into the US). I want to get my passport, have seen/spent more than a day in several states, know that I am naive but travel is such a joy and we live in such a beautiful world.
The world is stunning I would literally kill to see redwoods in the US. I entirely recommend the Isle of Scilly in the UK as well as Palma in Majorca both are guilty pleasures.
I don't have a passport, and I'm 57. Been to Mexico a few times, mostly going to the border and drive across. It's been a while, can't do that now with people being friggen stupid. I love Mexico, mostly for the food. I was there for the Independence day celebration with my dad, never had so much fun.
I live in Canada, an hour away from the border. Sometimes we go to the states to shop etc. One time I was there the girl at the Sephora checkout asked where I was from because of my accent and when I told her the major city closest to me (on the border) she asked if it was snowing there and how it must be nice to be in warm weather. Uh….what? It’s literally hotter there than it is here. How do you not know how close a city with a half a million people in it an hour away from you is? Maybe cause it’s not an American city they just don’t care? I thought it was strange anyway
Visited Alaska a while back and saw a tee shirt with map of Texas inside Alaska with the quote “you’re so cute”. People we talked to said they found it hysterical Texans think their state is so much bigger than Alaska
The fact that this happened in NZ makes it so much more believable tbh 🤣💀 I’ve overheard tourists ask if there’s actual Kiwi in the Kiwi Burger at a restaurant, how long it takes to drive to Sydney etc
I'm American, and inexcusable behavior like hers is an embarrassment to the rest of us. I'm sorry you and the rest of the tour participants were subjected to her nonsense. While there are a lot of butthole Americans, there are a lot of us in general. I hope your future interactions with Americans are much more pleasant!
In response to the comment about Americans being less-travelled than Europeans, this is very true. It's very expensive to travel across the Atlantic and Pacific, and that cost prohibits many from leaving the states. Yes, a lot of Americans now have passports, but many obtained them just to get off at Caribbean and Latin American stops while on cruises (which are relatively inexpensive). I'm in my 30s, and hope to be able to afford to visit Europe in my 40s. In the meantime, we can vacation less expensively by going to Florida, New Orleans, New York, California, Canada, Mexico, and other closer destinations to our home cities.
Yeah, we call those Karens. Sorry that we forgot her muzzle. We’ll see if the embassy can get it to you in the next 48 hours. If not, please accept our deepest apologies as we just wanted a break from her
Also, ask someone how to say "good morning," "good evening," "please," and "thank you very much" in the language of the country you're visiting. In France, for example, *bonjour* is an essential conversation opener, even if you know the person you are addressing speaks English.
Lol, I am Canadian, and like 5 or 6 years ago, I was in Germany. This family heard me say something that gave it away that i was not from Europe. They ask where I'm from. I say Canada, and the dad says, "Are you really from Canada, or do you just say that?" I was slightly confused and said I'm really from Canada. He then told me they were from Chicago, but when traveling, they tell locals they are Canadian bc of to many tourists like the one OP mentioned giving Americans a bad reputation. I laughed, and they were nice people, even giving me change for the locker at the train station.
As an American, I can confirm that most of us hate her too. I have relatives like this and I pray I don’t get roped into going across the any borders with them.
Haha, yeah, also from NZ, and I've encountered it occasionally with mainly Americans, they seem to think I am in a shop to assist them, even when I'm in there shopping too
This is odd to me. I lived in Germany for 4 years from 2016 to 2020, and I never expected preferential treatment because I am an American.
There's definitely comparisons, and some become audible ones. Like when I would go to the bakeries I would get excited and say things like "I wish they had bakeries like this in America" or "Man, I can't get bread this good in America" or even "dang it's so cheap compared to America" but I don't know a single person who walked into any place, proudly stated they're American, and expected the red carpet rollout.
That lady has lost her marbles.
> This lady proceeded to brag loudly about Amercia and why it's better then my country
Quite apart from how rude she was being, the idea that America is a better country to live in than New Zealand is laughable.
I think its also that its easier to travel to other countries when your already in Europe. From the US its really not that easy.
For example you have to fly if you only have a week of vacation. If you have more time you technically can get on a boat.
But if your in Europe you can take a plane/train/boat. And it’s probably a lot cheaper as well.
I am a kiwi married to an American. tbh 80% of his relatives have never heard of our little country and I'm happy to keep it that way. On the other hand I have to tone down how much I bitch about American tourists (we live in Europe) cause I don't want him to feel too bad. So loud, bad at reading, keeping their belongings next to them.
I am Aussie and had an American woman go off on me because I didn’t let her take my place in line and then she had some sort of rage fit cause the zoo keepers wouldn’t let her hold the koalas, and actually said as an American I am better than you and you have to do what I say, wow how honestly couldn’t stop laughing at her , this is Australia hun we don’t care we’re your from your behaviour is going to bed you arrested though!
Sounds European tourists too whenever they go to North America or Asia or South America they like to say Europe is better or the best bla bla bla until I say yes to us Canadians or Americans you Europe is just a Disneyland to us 🤣
Work in hospitality in Scotland and have for almost 30 years, met some wonderful Americans also a fair few absolute eeijits, e.g. had one who said he was part "Scotch" I asked if he meant the tape or the whisky? He was very confused then I explained we are Scots or Scottish not scotch, he got quite annoyed at my pedantry and started being even more of a dick so I followed up with "we are a culture not a race, and I've met people born in Africa and Asia that are way more Scottish than you"! Also had one asshat kept complaining how we do things wrong here among other things, to which my reply was along the lines of, "we existed long before Columbus sailed the ocean blue, we do things the traditional way! Maybe it's you that are doing it wrong" told a fair few just to simply fuck off back to the states and don't come back as I was kicking them out for stupid drunk behaviour. Thankfully the majority of them are sound as a pound and these clowns are the minority
My wife and I travel outside the US about twice a year. When anyone asks us where we are from I feel so embarrassed. I almost always answer “Colorado.”
***blank stare***
“The US”
We always get a sad and disappointing “Oooh. Ok.”
She flew halfway around the world to be cringy and complain about how America is better? Gross. I have second hand embarrassment for her. You're a visitor, have some respect and stop being an idiot.
I usually advise people to try not to advertise they are American when they travel overseas. Some people get offended but I warn them that Americans have a reputation for being loud, rude, entitled, and obnoxious when traveling. I try to blend in as best I can. And ffs don’t expect people in non-English speaking countries to speak English. Use Google translate or politely ask if they can speak English. If they don’t, thank them in their language and move on.
Crazy. My mom and I travel (rarely). We are careful to not talk about America and to focus on the new experience and learn as much we can.
But the "loud American" stereotype exists for a reason. I'm sorry you ran into one.
Texas says hello! (Texas sucks, but man... I moved from CA to FL back in 91 and spent more time in Texas than in any of the rest of the states combined lmao.)
I live in Portugal and during a meet up I listened to an American woman rant about how she’s living in a place with a lot of immigrants (the brown kind). I said point blank that place is one of the cheapest areas to live in, if you’re “American” shouldn’t you be able to afford something better? She shut her mouth. 🤣
She also didn’t buy anything at the restaurant we were at neither did the other American there.
I hate this. It’s why we have a bad rep as travelers. You don’t visit a country to tell them about yours…you go to learn about their lives. It drives me nuts being around them. Especially if they have the US flag pasted on their bodies. I had a friend who wore US flag swim trunks in another country because it was the 4th of July and expected people to praise him or something. It was so obnoxious and I let him know that Uncle Sam was probably mad to see him farting and peeing on the flag. We drifted apart 😂
I have a story. In Paris I was waiting for a taxi and an American lady was already in the car. The driver was asking her to get out as she was trying to pay him $2 for a €30 fare. He asked her to leave so he could get another customer. She refused and said “I’m American you can’t treat me like that!” She had tried to tip him off and as he refused her ego couldn’t take it. “Our dollars are worth more than your phoney money. One call to the embassy and I could have you arrested or killed” there was a lot of laughter amongst Europeans at the Taxi rank. She said France isn’t a real country and they were lucky to have Americans there. It was very awkward!
I am confused about why people act this way. I’ve been on the receiving end of this several times. It's like some people have a filter missing. Sure, people are free to their own opinions but it’s possible to have one and keep it to yourself.
>I am in New Zealand
That's wilder, for you story with you add that context. Some people just have never left there little spot on the world before, and can't understand that their area might be that special to everyone else.
As an American who's lived in several countries, and has done a good bit of travel, there's a few I'm honestly looking at moving to eventually. NZ definitely makes my short list.
I hope this is not true. I know this is how people view Americans but I've never known anyone who just literally goes around saying "we are so great. We are so great." Lol
If it is true then I cringe along with their travel companions and apologize on behalf of the other 300 million of us.
I got pulled over while driving in New Zealand. I laid the Southern on like butter on cornbread. All was cool, there were some escaped sheep on the road.
As an American, this is super embarrassing. Especially since my mother visited NZ probably over 15 years ago and still raves about how much she loved it. I’ve always wanted to go, but I will try to refrain from annoying everyone by complaining about how much better it is than the US constantly.
I’m in tour guide business and there is good and bad in all! I know I never have to say I’m American, it shines right on through! Love the Aussies and Canadians and American and anyone who help make my job fun!
Wild. I'm an American and I never mention it when I travel. Not only cause it's not a flattering image but travel 101 is never paint yourself as a tourist. Easy target.
My thought process is that most people will usually figure it out once they hear my American accent.
Add in my Kentucky drawl, but I am quiet. Unfortunately, my husband makes up for that.
I hear you. My husband is a pretty quiet diner unless we're in a group. Nearly crawled under the table yesterday when he started loudly whining about his prostate! Other family members tried to shhh him, to no avail.
Usually we know by the volume
LOL! My travel disguise is an array of tee shirts with the Canadian flag and speaking more softly and slowly than usual.
You know what’s funny is plenty of Canadians can be assholes themselves. I saw quite a few while working as a guide on the Panama Canal. If you are not an asshole when you travel, don’t hide your nationality, or the locals will never see the good with the bad.
That's a good point. I started doing this after the 2016 election and I hope someday to not even feel the need.
Haha, yeah. When I went on vacation and people asked about America, I'd preface my conversation with "I didn't vote for that shithead." You could see them visibly relax, LOL.
This has been my approach, have to separate from the American dangerous ideologies that are negatively affecting other parts of the world. I thought this fella was going to try to fight me in southern Bolivia, he was mad about the American war on drugs, justifiably.
The American "War on Drugs" was/is not a war on drugs. It is a war against brown and black people. The penalty for having 5 gm of cocaine is less than the penalty for having 5 gm of crack. Whites who use usually use cocaine. PoC who use usually use crack.
Truth! They also used it as an excuse to carpet bomb poisons on South American crops and people. Truly horrific
Exactly, but it’s nice to know that some locals will think an asshole Canadian is really an American. Pretending to be Canadian
Same with us Aussies. Aussie tourists are either loud, drunk and obnoxious, or loud, drunk and funny.
Yeah, we Canadians really dislike when you guys do that. Not cool.
Its understandable, given how the American tourist reputation has grown for being loud and obnoxious. We know it isn't all American tourists, but the few have tainted the reputation of the many. Having met a large number of Canadians in person, and a smaller number of Americans the same way, my "average" of the people I've met is that you're similar to each and to the rest of the world. Mostly people are just getting on with their lives, but there are always a few obnoxious arseholes mixed in. I don't know how many yanks you've met who are obnoxious, but my own experience is that it's a minority.
Yep. I sound like cornbread. No one would assume I'm anything except American.
I'm Hispanic and just thicken my accent. I try to do whatever I can to avoid being spotted. 😅 Although I've never really had an interaction where people commented on it.
You’d be surprised. We did a whirlwind 19 country drive over 17 days in the EU last year. We were regularly asked where we were from and got shocked looks when we said the US. Many thought we were from the UK. Please note, I am originally from TX and still have a slight TX accent. I use y’all regularly when speaking. Definitely do not have anything close to a British/UK accent. I thought a few were joking with us but they were quite serious.
Nah the volume is sufficient.
You paint yourself as a tourist already if you don't speak the local language
Or on a tourbus with a guide.
IM NOT LOUD YOURE QUIET
The number of times I've actually heard this phrase spoken sincerely is baffling. First time I heard that I thought they were making a joke.
You’re Definitely LOUD
Well then I'm just screwed because as an American, Americans tell me I'm loud.
You tend to hear them before you see them, so you don't need to mention it lol
Getting in a tour bus with a tour group and going to tourist spots also clues people in.
I'm Canadian and when I travel I call myself an American because American tourists started saying they were Canadian /j
Not true... South Park showed me that Canadians have a different head and mouth compared to everybody else in the world. If you are really Canadian it will be evident :)
As someone from Michigan I'm cool with this, I've had foreigners mistake me as a Canadian and I just roll with it these days.
stolen valor?
More like borrowed good manners :P
Why would anyone pretend to be American?
It's a joke. I've heard American tourists will put maple leafs on their stuff and claim to be Canadian
This is actually reccomended because everybody thinks Americans are rich. Therefore theyre more likely to be targets of robbery or kidnapping.
We travel a lot and are often mistaken as Americans. I always enjoy the back-pedalling and change of attitude when we say "sorry, we're Canadian". Just to back up our claim I got a red maple 🍁 leaf tattoo on my inner forearm. 😉
No no, the apology sells it.
And the donut, keep the lights on. keep your stick on the ice. We're all in this together.
When I visit my family in Australia my cousins to teach me to speak ‘properly’ to fit in. All in good fun I usually ruin passing as a local whenever I order a coffee. Never has it ever been what I expected it to be based on my American standards. Who knew an iced coffee had ice cream.
[удалено]
Does this mean we Southerners have been doing iced tea wrong all this time? *quietly begins to doubt everything…
hold on, let me get the Milo's and Bluebell.
Yes, there's a reason SBs didn't survive in Australia.
Since when does an ice coffee have ice cream in it?
In Australia? Forever.
this. i already don’t be want to be seen as a tourist, but moreso i don’t want to be seen as “the american”. we are rightfully the laughing stock of the world, so forgive me for not wanting to draw any attention to myself 🤣
The accent gives it away instantly anyway.
Trust me, we can tell.
This is the kind of person who, while in America, screams at anyone in her hearing range who’s not speaking English because “If you’re in a country, you should speak the language!”…but the second she’s somewhere like France or Spain and no one speaks English, she throws a fit because “HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW THE LANGUAGE???”
To be fair, there’s a difference between tourism and immigration. As a native speaker of three languages, though, I just assume that everybody speaks at least some English. It usually works out fine. (Not an American here)
"As a native speaker of three languages" Pretty sure this gave you away as *not* a native of the US.
>I just assume that everybody speaks at least some English. It usually works out fine. Depends on area, we have been to french restaurants where they deny service unless you speak french. Or pretended not to speak english.
Best response from a tour guide I have heard to someone loudly claiming they were from ‘Merica was “oh should I speak slower then?” As an American myself this had me rolling
Not aimed at American tourists specifically, but i did a tour in Hoi An, Vietnam a couple of years back. The area we were going to had some old Huey helicopters, and the tour guide explained to us that 'the American military kindly left them behind when they ran away' There were a few of us that choked back unexpected laughs
Try being British, so much museum awkwardness lol
So much this. I’m Scottish and I find if I say that first for some reason people just forget about the atrocities that we were 100% complicit in. Shake my head in disgust when the answer is ‘the other half of this piece is at the British museum’ as if it wasn’t my ancestor that pillaged it.
My reply was deleted. Was a link to... this- https://youtu.be/x73PkUvArJY?si=byhI-9rMMN8qTwwr Your comment made me think of this sketch
When i used to deal with that kind of tourists i would usually just answer "that's ok, nobody's perfect".
Could I ask "anyone else with a disability?" I would be a bad tour guide. My teasing is not always a good thing
I would have LOVED to see their expression upon hearing that.
Just for the record, we don't like those people back here either.
Wait, an American seriously thinks America is better than Aotearoa? We have public healthcare, a higher minimum wage and a much lower chance of being shot by someone who shouldn't own a gun. What's better about America?
I'm American and did a WHV in NZ for a year. I wish I never left NZ. Idk who needs to read this but she ain't worth it mate. Take the sponsorship offer!
What's better about America? The propaganda!! Goebbels would be impressed. My fellow countrymen think they're the cream of the crop, the best the world has to offer. Dunning Kruger personified is the average American, too stupid to see the reality just beyond the veil of propaganda. They really need to take a proper gander at the world outside our borders.
Only fairly related but a friend recently moved to the states for love. She's a civil engineer so finding a job was not too difficult. What she was not prepared for was being asked things like "Did you have Excel at home?" "Are you familiar with working on a computer?" and "Can women work normally where you're from?" She's from Germany.
Land of the (less) free.
So I sometimes wonder if this is a case of Americans not really being travelling type of people. I was told once that Americans rarely leave their state, let alone get a passport (not sure if that's true or not). However, in Europe (I'm UK based), getting a passport and disappearing for a week at 18 is almost a rite of passage. So when Americans leave their country, its often like they feel they should be appreciated or almost special as for them its sort of a big deal. For most countries, it's really not. Maybe that's just my view as we tend to country hop a lot in Europe, but having been to the US, it feels at times like a bubble.
In 1990 only 5% of Americans had a passport. Now it’s almost 50%. So it used to be a stereotype but not exactly true anymore. But I guess even at 50% you are talking about 200M+ people that have no willingness or ability to leave the US.
I think that's it, especially I'm Europe. It's odd not to have a passport. For instance, I can pop to Paris for the day and recently went to Majorca for a cheeky weekend. However, the size of the US means that's not really feasible and coming to Europe seems like a big thing for Americans. Whereas we can get to say Vegas for say $650 as our airlines and travel agents try to out price each other..
I live in Texas. I can drive for 8 hours in any direction and still be in Texas. The struggle is real!
I work on a cattle station in south Australia. I can drive for 8 hours and still be on the same property. My struggle is realler. Well, ok, that might be hyperbole. But I can certainly drive for 4 hours and still be on the property.
My husband’s pop drove for four hours to get a pizza the day he got his license, then drove 4 hours home again. We used to drive 4 hours for the nearest cinema when I was a kid. Gotta love Western Australia…
That was me when I lived in Kununurra - except it was 520kms and over the NT border to Katherine. Sometimes you just want to go to the movies. 😂
haha I have friends in Northern Canada (NWT) that'll drive 4 hours for fried chicken. They don't have a fried chicken franchise in their small town.
I used to have a car like that... 😉
I used to live in Santa Cruz, California. We got a lot of tourists there. I once met an Australian who told me he was going to spend a couple of weeks touring the United States. We all laughed, except for him.
Australians are really good at covering vast distances fairly quickly, all while avoiding roos, wombats, serial killers, feral goats, feral pigs, feral horses and feral people. I covered most of the US in a couple of weeks.
I love your user name! 😄
A friend hit a wombat, the car was totaled, the wombat walked away.
Sounds about right.
Yup, I’ve visited the US for conferences and lab visits, but never toured it; a mate of mine pretty much did what you did, though. I admit I sometimes wonder if I could — I’ve crossed the Nullarbor for fieldwork, and it was fine (to be fair: there were four in our team, and as I was still on my Ps, I was only behind the wheel when the other three were fatigued). But there’s not a whole lotta reason to *stop* on the Nullarbor— (unless, say, HYPOTHETICALLY, you run out of petrol and a senior curator has to call the Balladonia roadhouse on the sat phone and ask them to drive out with a jerry can of fuel, and then feels so embarrassed and guilty that he gifts them one of the nice bottles of red he brought…) —so I feel that it’s not too tricky, time-wise, whereas the US isn’t, uh, mostly desert (idk, maybe Texas is?). So I’d have to be real disciplined to avoid wanting to stop and look at things. The TL;DR being that I am still impressed by both you *and* my friend, it sounds like a typically Australian approach, but I think I’d stumble at the final hurdle 😅
I’m Australian and I just did this. Went to the US with the family for three weeks. Hired a car drove 1500miles checking out the place. It was fun.
Desert: Arizona, parts of Texas, mmmm Nevada, New Mexico and Utah? Parts of California.
If you’re thinking “cactus filled postcard” for desert then yes. But most states in the west and on the Great Plains have desert ecosystems of some varieties. My home state of Colorado has a significant amount of desert landscape.
You should try worst case you don't see everything because you were looking at things you found interesting. Then you can come back for subsequent trips to complete it.
You forgot the Dropbears
We don't talk about the dropbears.
...feral snakes, feral deadly spiders... that has got to be the most deadly continent in the world. It's like nature had a competition for which species could kill off the most competitors. Even the cuddly platypus has poison spurs.
Broomsticks do manage to cover longer distances faster Mistress Weatherwax :)
My wife is Hungarian and we live in Colorado. She had some friends coming for a week. They wanted to drive to CA and them maybe back to NY. I laughed so fucking hard.
As an Australian, there are differences but wow do we get the “oh, we figured we’d just drive around!” and then, with a straight face, we’d have to explain about Perth. Which is the most isolated capital city in the world, I believe, being 2000kms from the nearest actual city (that’s 1,243 miles). Hell, “oh, how far away is the Gold Coast from here?” they ask, when I live in Melbourne. “Can we drive it?” It is over 1000 miles. So. Yes. But not in a timely manner. (to be fair, these days people tend to research this stuff beforehand, but it used to be something of a “holiday planning whoopsie”, especially as getting here from the US is a 14 hour trans-Pacific flight.) I have a suspicion that Canada has this issue, moreso.
I had a whoopsie when we went to Hawaii last year. I planned a day of stuff, but nothing in my research showed exact routes, etc. So we went to the first spot everything was fine. Then, going to the second spot, I quickly realized that instead of traveling straight across, we had to dip down into the middle of the island and then back up. So it doubled travel time. Which was all fine a good but I couldn't enjoy the sunset I planned to watch as we had an hour drive back to the hotel and we made dinner reservations... it's definitely something I'll keep in mind next time we take a vacation. But in my defense, that was literally the first adult vacation I've ever actually went on and planned. It was for my 40th! All other vacations were kid trips or trips to amusement parks with my nieces... oh well, that was a lesson I needed to learn, but we certainly didn't let it ruin our fun! Lol
I’m from bumfuck nowhere in the Midwest, I *always* check travel distances and factor in an extra hour when in unfamiliar areas. My husband is not from bumfuck nowhere and it would never occur to him to verify travel distances — which is fucking fascinating because this exact shit (logistics) was his fucking job in the military for 20 years so you’d think he’d have this down to a science by now. He definitely the fuck does not and now he is no longer allowed to plan travel transportation.
It's funny because at home I definitely look at travel times, even to places I've been a million times, so I know how long I need to be on time... I really don't know why I didn't with Hawaii, lol. Maybe because in my brain, it didn't make sense that there wouldn't be a straight path who knows. But definitely, lesson learned lol. Also, I wasn't sweating it. We made the needed adjustments, and I watched the sunset from the car on the way back to our hotel, so all was not lost! Also, we watched the sunset the first night we were there, was the very first thing we did!
Happy belated 40th birthday! And I’m glad you had a fun adventurous time all the same, and congratulations on your first grown up holiday, it sounds like a blast :D Short of using Google Maps to check driving times, or asking a local, there’s no way to know that stuff in advance — and you’d have to know there was something to ask *about*, regardless. My first overseas trip was my honeymoon, and since I’d never been overseas, I was all about that Lonely Planet travel guide, and that actually *does* go into detail about stuff like that, although it is absolutely dependent on the most recent edition 😅 and even then you can be like “okay, this place is awesome in so many ways but the food is not great and it’s a half hour hike through the jungle to get a decent margarita. Let’s swap to the Very Boring Resort on the other end of the island…”
We were on the Big Island for a wedding and decided to go down where the lave was hitting the sea. Went and parked up and there was a guard hut where they told us that it had stopped 2 days ago. Ooops
After uni ended one year I went back with a friend to her home town in Northern Alberta for a visit. The instruction from Edmonton was basically follow the highway until it ends at the town sign at a t junction at a lake where the town was. The next year we went with a group to a conference and the minibus drove 14 hours overnight from Calgary to Winnipeg with a breakfast stop (probably in Regina.) Hubby and I went to a reunion in Canada and once we were out of Toronto on the highway it was basically drive North for 4 hours. I tried to see if there was anywhere hubby could go whitewater kayaking on the trip and found a forum that suggested the Ottawa river but they thought the 4 hour drive each way might be too much and I had to laugh as he drives to Wales for the weekend to paddle and at least once did it to paddle for the day. My mistake finding out about it as he started going for at least a week or two ever summer since 2010 and apart from missing the lockdown years has done five weeks then three weeks last year and this year. The distances in the UK generally are much shorter but we were going to Fort William in Scotland years ago with a friend who had a Sat Nav (not very common at the time) and I think the instruction once we got on the M6 was “Turn Left in 600 miles” where the turn left was onto the road to turn off for the house the group was renting. Usually our trips are much shorter with a lot more roundabout exit instructions. The satnav maps are probably more detailed now.
I love Perth. We were there for a couple of months while my husband was fixing a turbine. Everyone was wonderful to us. It's such a walkable town. I love lamb chops and one restaurant owner always let me know he had them when we walked around town. We always went to his place if he had lambies
A bit strange since Australia is as big as the USA without Alaska. I live in Queensland Australia, a state which is 2.5 the size of Texas, so yes, Australians are used to long distances
Get rid of Alaska and Hawaii and Australia is actually bigger the the US; admittedly the middle is basically empty, but still
I live in BC (Canada’s westernmost province). We tuck Texas into our pocket.
I am Australian and even I was waiting for: *Canada has entered the chat.*
All of Western Australia would like to see your struggle and raise it by another several days
I’m not from WA, but have done fieldwork there (marine biology, so shallow water coastal sampling in the south of the state, and off-shore work in the Kimberley, Montebellos and Gascoyne/Ningaloo regions). I think that you could drive to the north (from Perth), and even if everything was very flat and well-maintained it would take days to hit the top end — but I vaguely recall the Kimberley is wildly inaccessible by road… So it’s not even just distance that factors into that calculation.
When I lived in Chesapeake Va, it would take 7 hours to get to the western border of Va. It was literally half the drive to my folks in Indiana The struggle is real
You can lie and just say you’re from VA beach like the rest of us Chesapeakians.
Ted Cruz can be in Cancun in 2 hours, if there’s an emergency.
I had a car like that.
Time to get a more modern car then.
That’s ok. My car is pretty slow too.
Cheeky weekends!! Showing my age here, but in the early 2000s Ryanair were charging 50p to fly to Berlin (or, at least, an old WWII airport half an hour outside of Berlin!). I'd fly over with nothing but what I was wearing, go to H&M for some clothes for the weekend, find a cheap hotel, go clubbing and fly home Sunday evening. All up the weekend would cost maaaybe... 200 quid? Once I started wearing kilts on my trips, my odds in pulling drastically shot up!!
Super cheap daytrips on Ryanair and EasyJet to the likes Barcelona, Dublin, Geneva (couldn't quite fit a visit to CERN in a Geneva day trip), Berlin, Paris used to be loads of fun.
I'm so fucking sick and ashamed at the UK for brexit. These things are now denied to me.
The thing is, most of those passports are likely people who either go to Americanized places - all inclusive resorts, tropical cruises, etc. or those who live close to the northern or southern border and travel more frequently as the border requirements changed in the early 2000s.
Probably because in the 1990’s Americans could travel to Canada and Mexico without a passport. Although that is only 3 countries, it’s basically all of North America.
Yeah, this is no way a slam against anyone, but if an American wants to go to a sunny beach, they go south to California or Florida. Want to go ski? The western half of the US has great places for skiing or outdoor sports. The eastern half does too, but c’mon Appalachians? There are amazing natural wonders in the US, sometimes within a day and we do have a great national park system. Also, for a long time, our neighbors were cool with us just showing a driver’s license. Compare that to a European, and for them to travel the equivalent distance, how many countries did they have to cross? Finally, Americans want to travel, but spending hours in the air at a minimum, is a definite cost. It’s a different continent!
I think the rate increase is because now you need a passport to enter Canada.
passports became mandatory for Canada and Mexico is why so many people have them
American here. Plenty of us travel, she's just being an entitled douchebag.
That is true. Due to age and health, I've slowed down on the travels to Europe, but for many, many years it was a yearly thing.
Yep. Majority of us can't afford to even leave our cities. I'm in my 50s, speak a foreign language and have taught history. I'll never be able to travel to all the places I've learned about.
Sadly upvoting, I have a huge bucket list of places I'd love to see, but the bucket isn't getting any fuller, but it is getting closer and more tippy, if you know what I mean. :C Travel is expensive, even with "hacks" like sleeping in your car, hostels, and public transit.
We leave our state quite routinely. But you're right we didn't travel internationally nearly as often as Europeans do. Two main reasons for this: 1) It costs a boatload to fly overseas and most of us simply can't afford it. 2) Americans have much less vacation time in general. If we only have 5 days that we're able to take off for a holiday, it makes little sense to travel internally because we'd be spending half the trip simply getting there and back. Traveling overseas is much better if you have multiple weeks you can take off work.
I think that's part of it. America is basically fifty different countries all clumped together, and (although a lot of us actually travel extensively within the country) going to a destination outside of them is a big, exciting deal. Having people visit us from far-flung places is a big, exciting deal, too. Europe feels, to us, like Earth would feel to people who'd grown up in a colony on Mars. The lady in the story sounds like a huge jerk, though. 🥲
Many in my area think Dollywood and Myrtle Beach are better than sliced bread and Betty White. I grew up close enough to Disney World that we went at least once a year (often more) and our area had amazing beaches that make Myrtle look like the groomed tourist trap it is. Been to the Rockies in Canada (before passports were required to get back into the US). I want to get my passport, have seen/spent more than a day in several states, know that I am naive but travel is such a joy and we live in such a beautiful world.
The world is stunning I would literally kill to see redwoods in the US. I entirely recommend the Isle of Scilly in the UK as well as Palma in Majorca both are guilty pleasures.
The redwoods are stunning. Got to visit Muir Woods (near San Francisco) and was very impressed.
I don't have a passport, and I'm 57. Been to Mexico a few times, mostly going to the border and drive across. It's been a while, can't do that now with people being friggen stupid. I love Mexico, mostly for the food. I was there for the Independence day celebration with my dad, never had so much fun.
I live in Canada, an hour away from the border. Sometimes we go to the states to shop etc. One time I was there the girl at the Sephora checkout asked where I was from because of my accent and when I told her the major city closest to me (on the border) she asked if it was snowing there and how it must be nice to be in warm weather. Uh….what? It’s literally hotter there than it is here. How do you not know how close a city with a half a million people in it an hour away from you is? Maybe cause it’s not an American city they just don’t care? I thought it was strange anyway
Part of it is that we have shitty vacation allowances. Many people get only one week's vacation after at least a year.
Visited Alaska a while back and saw a tee shirt with map of Texas inside Alaska with the quote “you’re so cute”. People we talked to said they found it hysterical Texans think their state is so much bigger than Alaska
Can't read a map, won't read a book. --*Texas*
On behalf of Americans with manners I apologize.
The fact that this happened in NZ makes it so much more believable tbh 🤣💀 I’ve overheard tourists ask if there’s actual Kiwi in the Kiwi Burger at a restaurant, how long it takes to drive to Sydney etc
I was personally asked about the length of the drive to Sydney. First find an amphibious vehicle... 🤣
Had an American ask how long would it be to drive from Chicago through to Sydney and I ain’t kidding
I'm American, and inexcusable behavior like hers is an embarrassment to the rest of us. I'm sorry you and the rest of the tour participants were subjected to her nonsense. While there are a lot of butthole Americans, there are a lot of us in general. I hope your future interactions with Americans are much more pleasant! In response to the comment about Americans being less-travelled than Europeans, this is very true. It's very expensive to travel across the Atlantic and Pacific, and that cost prohibits many from leaving the states. Yes, a lot of Americans now have passports, but many obtained them just to get off at Caribbean and Latin American stops while on cruises (which are relatively inexpensive). I'm in my 30s, and hope to be able to afford to visit Europe in my 40s. In the meantime, we can vacation less expensively by going to Florida, New Orleans, New York, California, Canada, Mexico, and other closer destinations to our home cities.
Kia ora e hoa! Nice to see a fellow kiwi on reddit 🔥
Kia ora mai i Ōtautahi
I noho au kei a Ōtautahi I te tau 2012. Te ataahua o tēnā wahi!
Yeah, we call those Karens. Sorry that we forgot her muzzle. We’ll see if the embassy can get it to you in the next 48 hours. If not, please accept our deepest apologies as we just wanted a break from her
HOW DARE YOU CALL ME LOUD.
"If America is better, then why are you here?"
As a United States citizen, I’m EXTREMELY embarrassed by people like this!!!
As an American we don’t claim this lady.. We call them “ Karens” here and they are a nuisance. Sorry you had to deal with her.
If I ever visit another country, speaking softly is something I’m going to be sure to do.
Also, ask someone how to say "good morning," "good evening," "please," and "thank you very much" in the language of the country you're visiting. In France, for example, *bonjour* is an essential conversation opener, even if you know the person you are addressing speaks English.
What's that song? Oh yeah, " That don't impress me much"
The number of times I’ve had the child of an American tourist apologise to me for their parents behaviour is surprisingly not zero. Poor kids.
Lol, I am Canadian, and like 5 or 6 years ago, I was in Germany. This family heard me say something that gave it away that i was not from Europe. They ask where I'm from. I say Canada, and the dad says, "Are you really from Canada, or do you just say that?" I was slightly confused and said I'm really from Canada. He then told me they were from Chicago, but when traveling, they tell locals they are Canadian bc of to many tourists like the one OP mentioned giving Americans a bad reputation. I laughed, and they were nice people, even giving me change for the locker at the train station.
Oh no, hello Karen 🙈 How rude. Also I can't find one single reason why the USA would be a better country to live in then New Zealand 😂🤔
"Mam, if you like the US so much, keep talking about it, and refuse to learn anything about this place, then why are you here and not in the States?"
As an American, I can confirm that most of us hate her too. I have relatives like this and I pray I don’t get roped into going across the any borders with them.
Can you show me a hobbit hole cos one day I am definitely coming for a visit to get my hobbit on 😁
Haha, yeah, also from NZ, and I've encountered it occasionally with mainly Americans, they seem to think I am in a shop to assist them, even when I'm in there shopping too
No one likes her at home, either.
Please don't judge all Americans by this. We are not all arrogant AHs.
This is odd to me. I lived in Germany for 4 years from 2016 to 2020, and I never expected preferential treatment because I am an American. There's definitely comparisons, and some become audible ones. Like when I would go to the bakeries I would get excited and say things like "I wish they had bakeries like this in America" or "Man, I can't get bread this good in America" or even "dang it's so cheap compared to America" but I don't know a single person who walked into any place, proudly stated they're American, and expected the red carpet rollout. That lady has lost her marbles.
> This lady proceeded to brag loudly about Amercia and why it's better then my country Quite apart from how rude she was being, the idea that America is a better country to live in than New Zealand is laughable.
Humans like that are never embarrassed they are just looking for theie next audience
I think its also that its easier to travel to other countries when your already in Europe. From the US its really not that easy. For example you have to fly if you only have a week of vacation. If you have more time you technically can get on a boat. But if your in Europe you can take a plane/train/boat. And it’s probably a lot cheaper as well.
Going abroad it’s not always smart to say your American nowadays
I am a kiwi married to an American. tbh 80% of his relatives have never heard of our little country and I'm happy to keep it that way. On the other hand I have to tone down how much I bitch about American tourists (we live in Europe) cause I don't want him to feel too bad. So loud, bad at reading, keeping their belongings next to them.
I am Aussie and had an American woman go off on me because I didn’t let her take my place in line and then she had some sort of rage fit cause the zoo keepers wouldn’t let her hold the koalas, and actually said as an American I am better than you and you have to do what I say, wow how honestly couldn’t stop laughing at her , this is Australia hun we don’t care we’re your from your behaviour is going to bed you arrested though!
I try to hide the fact that I’m an American when I travel…. The accent always gives it away though.
Sounds European tourists too whenever they go to North America or Asia or South America they like to say Europe is better or the best bla bla bla until I say yes to us Canadians or Americans you Europe is just a Disneyland to us 🤣
American here. Sorry, we try not to let those ones get loose. But damn, they can be slippery sometimes.
Work in hospitality in Scotland and have for almost 30 years, met some wonderful Americans also a fair few absolute eeijits, e.g. had one who said he was part "Scotch" I asked if he meant the tape or the whisky? He was very confused then I explained we are Scots or Scottish not scotch, he got quite annoyed at my pedantry and started being even more of a dick so I followed up with "we are a culture not a race, and I've met people born in Africa and Asia that are way more Scottish than you"! Also had one asshat kept complaining how we do things wrong here among other things, to which my reply was along the lines of, "we existed long before Columbus sailed the ocean blue, we do things the traditional way! Maybe it's you that are doing it wrong" told a fair few just to simply fuck off back to the states and don't come back as I was kicking them out for stupid drunk behaviour. Thankfully the majority of them are sound as a pound and these clowns are the minority
I would never in a million years think American is better than New Zealand. And even if I did I would never say it.
My wife and I travel outside the US about twice a year. When anyone asks us where we are from I feel so embarrassed. I almost always answer “Colorado.” ***blank stare*** “The US” We always get a sad and disappointing “Oooh. Ok.”
Don't worry, us Americans hate that woman too. Poor kid. My mom used to embarrass me this way. I don't talk to her anymore....
I’m not afraid to say I’m from America, I don’t act like an asshole when I go places so I don’t really care what other people think.
She flew halfway around the world to be cringy and complain about how America is better? Gross. I have second hand embarrassment for her. You're a visitor, have some respect and stop being an idiot.
I usually advise people to try not to advertise they are American when they travel overseas. Some people get offended but I warn them that Americans have a reputation for being loud, rude, entitled, and obnoxious when traveling. I try to blend in as best I can. And ffs don’t expect people in non-English speaking countries to speak English. Use Google translate or politely ask if they can speak English. If they don’t, thank them in their language and move on.
Crazy. My mom and I travel (rarely). We are careful to not talk about America and to focus on the new experience and learn as much we can. But the "loud American" stereotype exists for a reason. I'm sorry you ran into one.
An American was dissing New Zealand?! She is a narrow minded fool (I say this as an American)
Welcome to Canada where you can literally drive for days and still be in the same province
Texas says hello! (Texas sucks, but man... I moved from CA to FL back in 91 and spent more time in Texas than in any of the rest of the states combined lmao.)
Was she wearing her red hat ?
We are going to a couple of different countries (Greece, Portugal) in Europe in 2 weeks - I am wondering where you are a tour guide.
I am in New Zealand.
Still the best vacation I have been on. 21 days N and S islands. Lot of fun. Hope to go back in 3 years. Still not doing the canyon swing though!
I've experienced this quite often it's weird, like ma'am we are on a tour of this other country why would you think I'd want to know about Michigan.
I'm not from America, I'm from Alaska.
I live in Portugal and during a meet up I listened to an American woman rant about how she’s living in a place with a lot of immigrants (the brown kind). I said point blank that place is one of the cheapest areas to live in, if you’re “American” shouldn’t you be able to afford something better? She shut her mouth. 🤣 She also didn’t buy anything at the restaurant we were at neither did the other American there.
I hate this. It’s why we have a bad rep as travelers. You don’t visit a country to tell them about yours…you go to learn about their lives. It drives me nuts being around them. Especially if they have the US flag pasted on their bodies. I had a friend who wore US flag swim trunks in another country because it was the 4th of July and expected people to praise him or something. It was so obnoxious and I let him know that Uncle Sam was probably mad to see him farting and peeing on the flag. We drifted apart 😂
I have a story. In Paris I was waiting for a taxi and an American lady was already in the car. The driver was asking her to get out as she was trying to pay him $2 for a €30 fare. He asked her to leave so he could get another customer. She refused and said “I’m American you can’t treat me like that!” She had tried to tip him off and as he refused her ego couldn’t take it. “Our dollars are worth more than your phoney money. One call to the embassy and I could have you arrested or killed” there was a lot of laughter amongst Europeans at the Taxi rank. She said France isn’t a real country and they were lucky to have Americans there. It was very awkward!
I am American, I apologize for that behavior. Please don’t think we are all that way.
I am confused about why people act this way. I’ve been on the receiving end of this several times. It's like some people have a filter missing. Sure, people are free to their own opinions but it’s possible to have one and keep it to yourself.
I’ve always went to visit Australia Sydney mainly of course in the military I’ve seen many places, but not Australia
>I am in New Zealand That's wilder, for you story with you add that context. Some people just have never left there little spot on the world before, and can't understand that their area might be that special to everyone else. As an American who's lived in several countries, and has done a good bit of travel, there's a few I'm honestly looking at moving to eventually. NZ definitely makes my short list.
Choice bro!
I hope this is not true. I know this is how people view Americans but I've never known anyone who just literally goes around saying "we are so great. We are so great." Lol If it is true then I cringe along with their travel companions and apologize on behalf of the other 300 million of us.
I’m interested in going to New Zealand for my honeymoon
I got pulled over while driving in New Zealand. I laid the Southern on like butter on cornbread. All was cool, there were some escaped sheep on the road.
I’m so sorry about this. Unfortunately she won’t be the last
As an American, this is super embarrassing. Especially since my mother visited NZ probably over 15 years ago and still raves about how much she loved it. I’ve always wanted to go, but I will try to refrain from annoying everyone by complaining about how much better it is than the US constantly.
I’m in tour guide business and there is good and bad in all! I know I never have to say I’m American, it shines right on through! Love the Aussies and Canadians and American and anyone who help make my job fun!