6 Ways to Stand Out Like an Obnoxious American While Traveling Abroad
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The country that brought the world the brilliance of fast food, cable marathons, Starbucks and Coca Cola is not always recognized by others for the badassery Americans wear so proudly. Abroad, Americans are often considered rude, obnoxious and uncultured oafs, incapable of coherent speech (including our own language, according to the Brits). The first step to challenging these stereotypes is by being aware of them. When you travel, people know you’re American. Here’s how:
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A common complaint about Americans abroad is that we’re always drunk. While binge drinking is an American reality, in many countries alcohol consumption is a natural, civilized act. It may be your first time boozing legally, but that pee-your-pants excitement when you don’t get carded gives away your embarrassing virgin status. Diving into local culture also means drinking responsibly. Parents introduce their children to wine early on, teaching them important habits like pace and enjoying taste. There’s no need to act like a shitfaced frat boy. Try the local specialty of limoncello/sake/arak/absinthe and remember: Nights out are a marathon, not a sprint. Puking in the gutter at 10pm won’t help you make it to sunrise.
The US is notorious for producing expensively-educated mono-linguists. English is a foreign language to a big chunk of the world population so speaking it louder and slower doesn’t help people understand. Instead, it pisses them off because you’re talking to them as if they suffer from a mental illness. If English is not listed as the official language, there is no reason for you to expect people to speak it. Knowing a few key phrases in the native language of the country you’re visiting earns brownie points and politeness is a universally cherished trait. Not only will “please”, “thank you”, and “excuse me” get you far, but trying some handy ones like “Two beers, please” and “Where are the bathrooms?” will save you from looking like an egocentric tard.
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Assuming everyone speaks English is just as bad as the notion that nobody does. Thanks to international television, foreigners everywhere can understand choice selections of English, something forgotten by Americans who loudly insult the foreign cultures that surround them. It’s not recommended to curse the “stupid fucking (insert nationality here)!” when there are numerous members of said nationality nearby. Note: Fuck is a universal word. Use it at your peril.
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Spaniards and Filipinos might sound like they’re shrieking their lungs out when they’re really pleasantly discussing the weather, but Americans, in Spain or the Philippines, screaming in English, are quickly categorized as loud and obnoxious. You have two choices here: a) learn the native language and scream all you want using it or b) keep the English at a reasonable volume. Not everyone wants to hear (or can understand) that oh-so-hilarious time you were stuck in Budapest or how you just can’t figure out where to catch the bus.
Beef hamburgers don’t exist in India, Turkey has few sandwiches of its namesake deli meat and Latin American food is not automatically Mexican. Growing up with never-ending food choices creates some of world’s pickiest eaters, resulting in Americans seeking the same familiar bites even when local choices are way more interesting. Ketchup (mushy tomatoes) might be your go-to sauce but don’t expect local restaurants to cater to your unadventurous tastes. Restaurant servers overseas won’t bend to your whims (they’re not fishing for tips) and find it insulting when you smother local cuisine in ketchup, particularly the French (the self-proclaimed sauce experts). Try something new. You’d be surprised at the goodness of well-prepared snails, frog legs, alligator and kangaroo.
Globalization follows the rich around the world. As such, there is a McDonald’s everywhere but the moon. In our opinion, eating there in lieu of local cuisine is lame. Same goes for Burger King.
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While this is an isolated fact, it is known by all of Europe and only a select few Americans (gold star for you if you’re in the know). Generally speaking, a lot of Americans travel without doing minimal background reading about the history and current politics of the places they visit. The result is ignorance. Trust us, it’s not fun dealing with the aftermath of assuming Slovaks and Czechs speak the same language (they don’t), or that all countries in the Middle East speak Arabic (they don’t). A cultural or social faux pas like that could seriously mess up your game.
Now that you know what some Americans do to give the rest of us cool Americans a bad name, let’s change the game. OTP encourages open-mindedness and we’re desperate to change the American global stereotype. It’s getting annoying practicing that Canadian accent so we can lie about our origins when we travel.
Traveling is my only healthy addiction. The more time I spend living abroad, the longer the list gets of places I need to visit and adventures I want to undertake.
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there is a reason to expect people to know english: it’s the international business language.
Should you expect everyone to be a business person? Money is not as highly valued around the world as it is in the U.S. to most people.
Such a great list. You’ve found a lot of my pet peeves about my fellow American travelers–and you could add don’t wear your baseball hats/college logo sweatshirts/white socks and dress shoes.
The widespread use of English has made it easier for us Americans to have the false idea the entire world knows the language. That doesn’t excuse these other pitfalls.
Not that I agree with them 100%, they are the general consensus of other cultures and I can definitely spot the typical American from miles away.
Last note: Spain’s national language – Spanish…Italy’s national language: Italian…Korea’s national language: Korean…When foreigners come to the States they are generally expected to speak English….United State’s national language: none
Just a thought…
Ahimsa: We have an article covering exactly that. Check it: http://offtrackplanet.com/inspiration/sure-fire-signs-that-you-are-an-american/
That’s hilarious, and pretty spot-on with my experiences. Thanks for pointing it out.
Reading this list made me think of my time traveling in South America. My friend, who I was staying with, had soy sauce that tasted like ketchup. The spaghetti sauce, too. I couldn’t get away from ketchup!
I have a friends who want to South America with me next time I go. They insist they don’t need to learn Spanish because several of my friends down there speak English. I keep trying to tell them that Spanish is a pretty key thing to know, but they are sure they’ll be fine.
I got such a kick out of reading this list. I have not traveled abroad (yet) and I don’t count Puerto Rico because A) I speak Spanish and B) pretty much my entire family still lives on the island. However, these stereotypes can even be found on the tiny island. I can only imagine how much more magnified they are elsewhere. It’s a shame that a small number of people give the rest of us bad names. After all, most of the things on this list should be common sense to any sane, considerate person. Plus, it’s so much fun to learn about other cultures so why wouldn’t you?
Haha – you hit it exactly! I was extremely embarrassed on a trip in Chong Qing PRC to see another American on the trip madly pantomining how to use the toilet. It was a bit unbelievable. Come on America – anyone can at least buy a basic phrasebook before leaving the country and point to the phrases – at the very least! (I claimed to be a Canadian for the rest of the trip – not wanting to be associated with the mime-group).
Great article! Another one I hate (and this kind of goes with insulting the people of the country you are in) is making a big deal of something being gross. It’s fine if something isn’t for you but you don’t need to make a big show about it. I’m sure no one is completely innocent of that, myself included, but watching someone else do it just grates on my nerves.