Personal Experiences French Reactions to Americans

The French will know you are an anglophone, but, unless you tell someone, no one will know if you are from Canada, South Africa, New Zealand, or from Cincinnati. You´re a tourist, that's all anyone will contemplate.

Since the new administration took over in January, I have been to the UK, Germany, Austria, Czechia, Poland, Latvia and Finland.

No negativity at all. I'm being treated the same as in the past.

Yes, your experiences are typical, Tod.

This is not a criticism of you or your post.

I know when I travel (or when I interact with tourists from other countries here in the US), I never judge individuals based on the politicians that are in charge in their countries, so I certainly would not assume they would do it to me.

One of our more hilarious experiences decades ago was in Florence where a German couple with whom we had shared a bench for a picnic lit into us when we made a disparaging remark about a US political figure. They said America was great and everyone should 'bow down to America' (and that figure) because of what America had done for Europe after WWII.

We just spent 6 weeks in Paris and no one held the current regime against us.

Thanks to everyone who chimed in. I have travelled all over Europe and I have never had a bad experience based solely on country of origin. I was simply posting this because previously several people had posted "Should I travel given everything?" types posts and I just thought I would share the experiences I have had.

As Rick says: "Through travel we see a world filled with joy, with compassion, and with good people. We learn the more we reach out, the more we receive. We learn that we all share the same world, and we all share the same window of time. [] There's so much fear these days. The flip side of fear? It's understanding, and we gain understanding when we travel."

Just wanted to reassure anyone who might be worried - the world is still out there.

=Tod

A German, an Italian, a Frenchman, and an American are debating philosophy.

The question arises over the course of their debates: What separates man from the animals?

"Technology," says the German. "Other creatures have tools, yet none can match the hights of engineering we have accomplished. It is our industry that separates us from the beasts."

"I disagree," announces the Italian. "It is our food. The creatures of the wild eat, but they do not cook. Humans on the other hand, create amazing dishes and new combination that make eating a most enjoyable experience."

"I say it's art," decides the Frenchman. "No other being can create art. From our earliest days we have painted, and now we sculpt, write and compose as well. The wild animals cannot ever know what it is like to cry over a beautiful piece of art."

All three now look towards the American, expecting his answer. He takes a long sip of tea before answering.

"The Atlantic Ocean."

I've found that generally Europeans don't care where a tourist is from. Why would they?

I was asked once by a woman in Tossa de Mar, Spain if I knew Kim Kardashian because she asked and I told her I lived in Los Angeles. Other than that............

As a 50 year resident of Central Florida, I have encountered many foreign tourists from all over the world, most here to visit theme parks. It has never occurred to me nor have I ever witnessed any animosity towards these travelers based on the political climate in their country. Why would Europeans treat Americans any differently? They have experienced political change in their countries and can clearly separate politics from people. This was not an issue during previous American “regimes” from either party and remains a non issue.

David, I loved it.

I recently spent 3 years on tour (well, still on tour). Hungary, Germany, Austria, Luxembourg (is that really a country?), Malta, Romania, Ukraine, Australia, Bosnia & Hrezegovina, Slovakia, Montenegro, United States, Indonesia and Moldova (okay, only hours in the last two). No one gave a rat's patuty about my politics or my being a Texan.

But back to Europe. I heard this French physician, lawyer and politician who has served as a member of the Senate since 2014 say this :

"Monsieur le Président Monsieur le
Premier Ministre messieurs les ministres
mesdames et messieurs les ministres mes
chers collègues l'Europe est un tournant
critique de son histoire le bouclier
EDIT: REMOVED END OF QUOTE

Which I think translates loosely to "no matter how little you may like pickles there are still just about the best thing to do with cucumbers." But I don't know for sure since my Hungarian is a little rusty. Still, the takeaway is this: keep on traveling!

Happy travels.

And I completely agree with tge pickle comment expressed in French above.

Speaking of which, did you see the unexpected release of the new Mission Impossible story? Complete with self distructing container trucks?

If Rick Steves were an actor and a scientologist and shorter and could run fast and do his own stunts, I think he could replace Tom Cruise for the next mission impossible movie. He certainly knows where to do the filming! Places like... oh, I dunno... Europe!