International Traveling Tip: Telling People Where You’re From
March 20, 2008 by Greg
When traveling in in Argentina, I got mixed responses when I told people I was an American. Some would express interest and some would express contempt. It wasn’t till my fellow traveler offered me a piece of advice, that my responses were almost always positive.
Tell people exactly where you’re from. Say, “I’m from Denver,” or, “I’m from Colorado.”
This almost always resulted in questions about the city or the state, the rocky mountains, or, for a few, confusion. Never again did it result in questions of my patriotism and support for our president. Once it even resulted in someone mocking my pronounciation of Colorado, which in Spanish, means colorful, but not quite in the cowboy way we pronounce it.
Some very good advice here. I have found the same in Europe, especially in the major city areas. I will try this the next time I go. I was going with Canadian if my spidey senses started to go off but that just feels so wrong. This approach is much better thanks.
Everywhere I’ve been most English speaking patrons I’ve talked to know Colorado. In fact, they probably know more cities within the states than my younger brother would know who lives in Parker, Colorado.