Dear American travelers,
While traveling with a friend in Europe I was struck by her attitude. "I'm getting real sick of all these foreigners" I couldn't even formulate words to respond to this statement. Firstly, you ARE the foreigner. Secondly, why are you here? It took me a few days to really put together why this bothered me so much. Yes it was her first time out of the country, but that's no excuse. If it's a general bias against non-Americans, then why travel? So, my advice to others is simply to have an open mind. Try your best not to let the unknown make you uncomfortable. Keep in mind that you are in their world. Your preconceived notions about how the world should work only apply to your little bubble. What you may see as standoffish-ness may be just be a language barrier or a local faux pas. Don't be so quick to judge. And by all means, don't think that others need to adjust their way of life to accommodate you.
Lauren
