I have mostly been treated fairly in any country to which I have travelled. I haven’t been to foreign lands since the war in Ukraine started, so I can’t judge from my personal POV what people now would think of me because I’m a Russian.
I remember French guys, my fellow copywriters, being nice to me in Paris in March 2013 at a Reader’s Digest creative workshop. They did their best to explain how to get from the Parisian Reader Digest office to the fancy Rue de la Paix on the subway… I’ve got along well with Polish guys and girls, Czech guys, Germans, Americans, Japanese, Portuguese, British, and even Koreans at various points of my foreign travels.
Though… there were a couple of minor incidents… One in Japan and another one in Alaska.
Back in 2002, during my first visit to Japan, I was on a track at Takao-san, a fascinating hill just outside Tokyo, with my Japanese girlfriend. A middle-aged Japanese guy approached me and asked:
- Are you from America?
- No.
- England?
- No.
- Where are you from??!
- Russia.
The guy smiled politely and left, but he didn’t like what he heard.
Another episode happened in a bar in Anchorage in May 2011. I chatted with some Alaskan guy at the counter late at night. I was drinking, and so was he. At some point, he said: ‘You are from Russia; people live pretty badly there…’ I don’t think he meant to discourage me in any way. Yet, I remember being rude to him as my national pride was hurt. Though no conflict happened then, we almost fought each other. I was pretty drunk, and so was he. It’s a typical bar story.
Those were the only episodes in which I’ve felt certain discomfort in treating myself as a Russian.
How am I treated in another country?
As a Brit, I have rarely come across any negativity towards my nationality when travelling abroad.
My first trip to the USA, back in the 1970s, I found fascinating. I was with a band of Welshmen, and of course we all spoke English without an American accent. The locals couldn’t keep away from us. They appeared to adore our accents and “Britishness”, and were profoundly friendly and welcoming.
My many visits to third-world countries, mostly on vacation, also saw the locals fascinated by us Brits. But while very convivial and open-hearted, they did have an ulterior motive. They assumed we were mega-wealthy, which I suppose compared to them, we were. But while we didn’t have unlimited funds, we used to help the local population by, for instance, buying rice for families, or inviting them for a meal, although I felt our biggest contribution was showing them total respect for their decency, hard work and smiling faces despite often very difficult lifestyles.
I travel very little these days, but have settled with Mrs B in a foreign country, and proud to be living in one that actually is not recognised by 99 percent of the rest of the world. Turkish Cypriots are the most wonderful folk, making us Brits extremely welcome, for which most of us return the compliment by using their business, bars and restaurants to spend our hard-earned pensions.
Sadly, COVID and then a spectacular drop in the value of the local currency, (Turkish Lira) has meant life, especially in business, has become very, very difficult for the TCs. There are now many reports that Brits are being charged more than locals for goods and services, because again the assumption is that we are all rich. But that’s not because they don’t like Brits, it’s because they are getting desperate.
My British grand-daughter lived here for five years while earning herself a fabulous degree in one of our international highly-rated universities. She was the only British student, but was treated brilliantly, and there were over 90 different nationalities there. She soon found out how fortunate she was to have a British passport……
Even though the British government are a bunch of cretinous criminals, I am still staunchly proud of my nationality, and consider myself somewhat blessed to be British, though for how long remains to be seen.
How am I treated as an American in another country?
One thing all three writers of this blog share: we are from countries with world-spanning influence. You can be certain that others hate these countries; not from any personal experience but because … just because.
Here’s an example. A friend came by and over the course of conversation said he hoped Trump would win the American elections. Of course, I wanted to know why and he explained the US would withdraw from the world stage under Trump. He’s right about that. He also said the Americans have 129 military bases across Africa and only wanted war. I didn’t say it to him, but that’s total bullshit. But it doesn’t matter. His mind is made up and that’s all.
Having had time to consider his thoughts, it seems most likely a difference in the definition of the phrase “Military Base” may be at the core of our difference of opinion. I was born on a US military base and I damn well know what one looks like. On the other hand, if you counted the embassy guards (marines) at every embassy, and every rented warehouse filled with pre-positioned blankets, cots, and what-nots, maybe you would get to that 129 number across the entire continent.
I used to travel more than I do now and I was always very conscious of my behavior. Most folks only meet one, or a few people from any given country and will form their opinion of the nation and its entire population from those two or three encounters. The flaw in that logic looks obvious and even dumb when put in writing but that’s my experience. You were unhappy with the meal? Your entire country is filled with picky jerks!
I can honestly say that I have not had any serious incidents that involve national identity while traveling. In large measure I think that’s because of the personal behavior I mentioned above.
People are mostly the same across the world. Yes, there are differences based on environment but most folks are open and kind, a few are broken inside and angry. I have never had a problem with police or officials in any encounter. In fact, the exact opposite, I have been shown kindness from the US Capitol to the Kremlin. Did you have problems traveling? May I suggest you look inside yourself and check the impressions and energy you give off. It’s also possible you met someone who is broken inside; let it go.
P.S. Out of curiosity, after finishing this I looked up the number of US Military Bases on the African Continent. Turns out the correct number, based on a Pentagon document, is 29. I would have guessed five or six, not including the areas adjacent to the Middle East. Excluding that area, the number is 11; that’s still high in my mind. Looking some more, all 11 are called Cooperative Security Locations. Wikipedia says: “A CSL is a host-nation facility with little or no permanent U.S. personnel presence”. These are training facilities and forward supply points (remember me talking about warehouses?) If you want to count it that way the number is zero, which is also a surprise to me. Think inkblot test: the correct number is whatever you want to see. Also of interest are the 129 and 29 numbers. This cannot possibly be a coincidence and no, I didn’t mis-hear the “fact”. We accept what we wish was true as fact without asking too many questions.