During my travels, I do my best to interact with locals wherever I go – even if the exchange only happens while I’m haggling for something at the market. Not only is interacting with locals the best way to learn about culture, restaurants and other hidden gems, it also provides a fun way to see stereotyping at its finest :p. But hey, now I have a list of twenty hilarious snippets of “local wisdom” that have been shared with me during my travels. Enjoy!
“You’re from Sudan?! Like the country? But your skin…!” – Kenyan vendor
Maybe this guy helped inspire this scene from Mean Girls? “If you’re from Africa, then why are you white?”
“Wait, you’re only 1.5 meters tall? You’re legally a midget!”- extremely tall Danish guy
Apparently Denmark is where the tall guys are hiding.
*Snaps photo.* – person in China
This happened in Indonesia too, and I was hanging out with blondes both times.
“You’re traveling alone? Have you seen ‘Taken?’” – anonymous 😉
Yes, I’ve seen Taken. For anyone that thinks getting into a cab with a random stranger is a good idea…you should not be traveling alone.
“Don’t speak to them in English!” – Parisian father to his daughter
Yep…Paris is one of my least favorite cities, and I’d rather forget this bit of “local wisdom”. #rude
“What is it with you Americans and peanut butter?” – Australian friend
I actually don’t care much for peanut butter, but if you study abroad, you’ll see that the peanut butter thirst is REAL.
“Can you please explain why Americans don’t want free healthcare?” – Spanish friend
LOL. I mean, I’d like free healthcare. And tuition that doesn’t put me in debt for the rest of my life. I don’t get it either, guys.
“You look like Adele!” – some children in Indonesia (yeah, I was mystified as well)
Was I experiencing one of those “every foreigner looks the same” moments? That was a first. This is Adele’s fan club by the way:
“You aren’t Indonesian?!” – so many Indonesians
This even happened to me at an Indonesian restaurant in Los Angeles. Apparently I look really Indonesian.
“Hello. Hola. Salam.” – vendors in Turkey
They couldn’t tell where I was from either.
“Americans have machines for everything! Even machines to peel bananas!” – my Spanish Airbnb host
FALSE. But we do have banana slicers!
“You live in America, but you like Egypt better, right?” – all the citizens of Egypt
I guess that depends if I’m in the mood for chaos or order that day. Not that we Arab-Americans are that quiet either :).
“Americans take casual to a whole new level.” – British friend
Errrm, you mean you flip-flops aren’t appropriate attire at a nice restaurant? I saw this phenomenon in action at a Michelin star restaurant in Spain. Cargo shorts were also present. *facepalm*
“It’s more important for a guy to know how to dance than to cook.” – Spanish teacher in Chile
If this bit of local wisdom is true, then…baila, baila!
“I’m here with the bule (foreigner).” – My Indonesian coworker helping me get an apartment
Setting expectations.
“Muzungu (foreigner)!” – children in Kenya
This might be my favorite way to say foreigner, ever.
“Braziliana! Peruana! Mejicana!” – Argentine men
The ethnic ambiguity is strong, guys.
“I opened the newspaper and saw an article about your friend Donald Trump.” – Spanish friend
This is why so many foreigners follow our politics. Just sayin.
“I’ll give you a special price…so cheap I have to write it down.” – vendor in Turkey
It just wasn’t cheap enough for us to buy.
“I love when Americans say, ‘you know what I mean?’” – vendor in Italy
Slayin’ with that California accent…you know what I mean? 😉
I look back at all these things and I just have to laugh. I know people generally hate stereotypes, but most of the time, people are just as fascinated by your culture as you are with theirs. And frankly, that makes for some (hilarious) cultural learning.
What are some funny or unexpected things locals have said to you while traveling? Share your favorite “local wisdom” in the comments below!
What an entertaining read! Reinforces the value of travel for me- to learn more about other cultures and to break down stereotypes.
Agreed wholeheartedly! I don’t take any of the comments personally but it definitely reinforces the need for all of us to travel deeper and really learn about new cultures instead of making assumptions.
Oh this is so hilarious! Loved reading it. 🙂
Thanks Vyjay! Glad you enjoyed it 🙂
HAHAHAHAHA! Loved the first ones, actually all of it! Didn’t know you’re friends with Donald Trump. Lol.
LOL. So ridiculous! I’m definitely NOT a supporter! My response was “don’t even get me started on that topic.” :p
Hahaha, laughed so hard about this list! Very much relates to my experiences too. Being from the Netherlands we get the drugs related (how surprising!) questions and statements.
‘You’re from the Netherlands? Are you from Amsterdam?!’
‘Well, actually I am but……’ (… there is more in the Netherlands than Amsterdam)
‘You want to do Marijuana?’
‘No’ (I can do that at home, and I don’t do it really. Why do it here so illegally with probably more shitty drugs?!)
‘Yes, but really, you must try, you are from Amsterdam….’ etc.
Haha, fortunately this does not happen all the time, but while traveling you sure get some stereotypes! Have almost the same kind of experience in Paris though….
hahahaahah oh that’s a good one! It’s so funny how people stereotype all the people from an entire country! I’m from Los Angeles and sometimes I get “so do you see movie stars all the time?” All you can do is laugh at the stereotypes 😀
That’s one of the “perks” of being a “brown” person. Other people have a tough time figuring out whether you’re a local or a traveler!
Haha very true! It’s my favorite icebreaker / guessing game!
Haha! Some of these are really, really great. Lately I’ve got a lot of questions about why Americans want Donald Trump for president. So that makes things pretty interesting.
And people seriously need to understand how real the need is for peanut butter abroad. When I studied in Rome, some of my classmates were just beside themselves with lust for peanut butter again. Ha!!
LOL thanks. And yessss that happened a fair amount during my last couple of trips as well! I think people are often mystified by our politics!
Hahah! I’m not a big peanut butter person but I definitely noticed this phenomenon when people studied abroad. Apparently it’s a staple part of some people’s diets!
I just have one question…
Are you sure you’re not Indonesian?
Haha! This was such a fun post. I’m right there with you with the photos in China and the vendors in Turkey lol!
hahaha last I checked! BUT depending on who you ask, I can be Middle Eastern, Latin American or even Malagasy (seriously someone asked me if I was from Madagascar once LOL).
Glad to hear other people have similar experiences! It certainly keeps traveling that much more interesting 🙂
This was a fun read. I frequently get, “Oh, you’re American? Which city – NY or LA?” We don’t have other cities in America apparently. I live in Portland, and when I explain that it’s the state above California (huge sigh), I then get, “Oh, you must go to LA all the time!” What is it with foreigners and LA?? I haven’t been and honestly don’t even have much of an interest..I’m perfectly happy in the north. Haha
Thanks! 🙂
Hahahah this used to happen to my friend from New Hampshire ALL the time during study abroad. People are obsessed with LA and they think I see famous people every day. It’s hilarious!
Lol the PB thirst… totally. My coworker is form Mexico and was losing her mind when (like 5 minutes ago) she spotted me dipping apples in pb haha!
LOL! Yeah, nobody understands the PB thirst except fellow Americans. It’s hilarious!
lol. I don’t get the Peanut butter and never been asked that. I don’t even like PB. Your post is quite interesting post and I can relate to some. I’ve also had some interesting remarks said to me on my travels. Particularly because I’m black and the braids I rock. I caught a girl filming me on the bus with her phone while I was standing at an intersection. I’ve been called “Michelle Obama”, “Brown Sugar”, “Chocolat”, etc. I’ve had strangers ask me if they can take photos with me. I’ve also had people ask about my political views.
Haha I think because I studied abroad and people were gone long enough to start really missing peanut butter. Strange, right?
Oh, I can only imagine the kind of attention you get being black and having braids! My younger sister is a lot darker than me (my family is from Sudan, not that you can tell by my skin tone lol) and she would get called “chocolata” all the time in Europe and Asia!
It’s funny because I think people genuinely do it out of curiosity – makes for some hilarious stories! Also LOL Michelle Obama.
Lol. I love your commentary on these. Should dig back into my own experiences to come up with my own favorites. When I lived in Hyderabad, India, most random people I met asked me what I ate while living in India. They were surprised or tickled that I ate Indian food, but the thing is, it’s not a tourist city. There was no other option!
haha thanks! I had a lot of fun writing this post to be honest. LOL I didn’t realize not eating Indian food was a thing in India! People have some hilarious comments!
One of my favorite funny moments abroad was when I was in the Madrid airport and several people became convinced that I was Nick Nolte. I think they must have been comparing me to Nick’s arrest photo! (I’m the “Marvin” of Mona Marvin Sowers.)
LOL getting mistaken for a celebrity is hilarious I imagine! You definitely do resemble him though.
I was sitting in a perfume shop in Cairo. I’d made it clear that I had no money, but the owner insisted on me joining him for some tea. After some silly smalltalk and faintly amusing efforts to chat me up and sell me perfume, he proudly presented me with a large volume of visitors’ comments, telling me how much everyone liked him and his shop. I flicked through until my eyes fell on a comment from a French tourist …
“Be careful of this man, he would sell his own grandmother!” Because it was written in French, our perfumer had no idea what it said, but had been told it was highly complimentary!
HAHAHH oh my gosh, that’s great! I just came back from 3 months in Cairo and can attest that there are some shopkeepers like that. Hilarious!