So, I never wanted to be perceived as a tourist. And, especially in my teens, I'd go out of my way to pretend that I wasn't one. Even if I was completely lost. I do recall being flattered at being confused for a Spaniard at age 16 when I was studying in Granada. However, the confused people were American tourists asking me in broken Spanish if I knew how to get to the nearest McDonald's. The locals weren't fooled.
And so I sometimes felt that I didn't want to be perceived as an American. It had something to do with the stereotype of American tourists as boorish and uncouth. I didn't want to be labeled that way.
Yesterday, I saw a piece titled "My American Friends" posted by friend of mine on Facebook, who for a while was an American living in England. I thought it offered a different (or perhaps more nuanced) perspective of what us Americans can be like when we travel abroad. In the article, Geoff Dyer writes:
"The archetypal American abroad is perceived as loud and crass even though actually existing American tourists are distinguished by the way they address bus drivers and bartenders as “sir” and are effusive in their thanks when any small service is rendered. We look on with some confusion at these encounters because, on the one hand, the Americans seem a bit country-bumpkinish, and, on the other, good manners are a form of sophistication."The article's worth a read and you can go here to find it.
It'll be interesting to experience what it is like to be an American in Brazil. I'll be especially curious to hear what the kids I'll be working with have to say about Americans and America.
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Reference:
Dyer, G. (2009, December 31). My American friends. The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/03/books/review/Dyer-t.html
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