American tourist giveaways: Habits that scream "I'm from the US"

Believing that is another way of outing yourself as an American!

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Thank fuck Not All™ shorts look like those monstrosities, FFS!

Oh, and don’t people on vacation smile?! Are we supposed to look fucking glum while visiting other countries and enjoying sunshine, great food, terrific music, arts, and culture?! WTF

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I certainly would. Though i am guessing this ties into the whole “Americans are overly friendly and outgoing” thing.

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It’s the smiling at strangers bit that can come across as creepy or flirty

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You know, being pegged as an American tourist isn’t the worst thing in the world. Lately Americans actually have a pretty decent reputation as being among the most desirable tourists, ranking second place to the Japanese:

https://www.reuters.com/article/lifestyle/and-the-best-tourists-in-the-world-are-idUSL22730731/

I’m sure that our tendency to leave tips is one of the main reasons for that.

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I never realized those are character flaws.

Must get to work on being withdrawn. /s

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If it’s bothering you, you might try some lightweight pants instead of shorts. Linen pants can feel pretty cool, but you get the added benefit of avoiding burns on your legs. Credentials: I’m a melanin-deficient man from Michigan that moved to Florida.

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Linen was good enough for the Ancient Egyptians, so it should be good enough for sweaty tourists!

It wrinkles like mad, so hang up linen clothes in the bathroom while showering, and the wrinkles will at least be lessened.

ETA:
A nice, long cotton kurta from India


or a Mediterranean thobe/dishdasha/kaftan

is always a comfortable choice for hot weather, and for both garments, many styles are available

But please, for the love of Buddha and Kama and Allah and G*d and God, please, please, Please! choose your footwear more wisely and with more care than what this chap has done!

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I could give you tips on being more antisocial :stuck_out_tongue:

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Not that I’m a fashionista, but I can usually tell when folks visiting here are from Eastern Europe by their clothing. The patterns, how things look & fit.

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Last week i saw a couple of middle aged (i think Japanese) gents and they had what looked like really nice linen baggy pants. I almost stopped them to ask where they got them but figured there was a good chance it’d be an awkward encounter… but i did want to know :eyes:

One was kind of like this


And the other in this style

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I would totally wear one of those in the summer, but worry about cultural fashion appropriation - a legit concern? Sensible clothing is sensible clothing.

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Oh, I can always take off my glasses/remove contacts (when I have them), which invariably makes me look frown-y and pissed off b/c squinting.

An ancient pair of glasses finally broke during high school, and before acquiring my first contact lenses, hyper-concerned friends kept stopping me as I walked down the hall.

"My God, Chris! What’s happened?! What’s wrong?!"
I asked them WTF they were on about. When they explained, I laughed and told them I couldn’t see for shit w/o my broken glasses - that I was only squinting, and they freaked TF out.

“Man, I never would have guessed! You looked so upset!”

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I’ve had this concern too about wearing kilts and utilikilts. I have considered buying and wearing them but i have never been able to shake off feeling guilty about wearing something from another culture that isn’t mine. It’s probably not a big deal but i haven’t been able to overcome being selfconscious about it.

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I’d ask a buncha folks working in shops about it - not only in the clothing shops where I’d be a potential customer, and not only people of my gender. [ETA: Nor only people in my age group.] I’d say summat along the lines of:

“How would you feel/What would you think about seeing a gringa like me wearing something like this?”

Should more than two members of a different gender than your own tell you, “Oh, I think it would look cute [or some similar construct] on you!”
you should Believe them.

At the very least one would acquire some V comfortable loungewear/sleepwear/At Home host/ess partywear, depending on design, fabric, etc.

Bonus:
The men’s kurtas and kaftans always have pockets.

Luckouts!

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Kilts are Genius, and they are for Everyone who Loves them.

Disclaimer:
A paternal great-grandfather was a Highlander, giving me strong opinions re: such matters (before I even knew about him!).

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Where there is a will, there’s a way.

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I was in New Zealand on a tour bus recently, and the Americans, without exception, told us what city/state they were from, instead of what country they were from.

Like, I’ve heard of Arkansas, but I couldn’t tell you what quadrant of the country it was in. If pressed, I’m like 95% sure it’s a state, but it could be a city.

It makes you look pretty parochial.

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'Srather a funny print: all them “a”'s" scattered about, and that “alamy” right across the solar plexus.

Other than that, it doesn’t seem beyond the pale. Perfectly legit, even for bizness wear.

'Course my opinion doesn’t count for much in the straight world. It’s been exactly 40 yrs since my hair looked like this:
84---1
but I still think a lot like her.

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