I was living in Seoul during the height of mad cow season in 2008. American beef being shipped to Korea was suspected of containing mad cow disease, and Korea’s president was accused of kowtowing to the Americans. For 100 days of protesting, openly going to downtown Seoul as an American was not something you wanted to do.
While the situation ends up being a little different in other countries, the story is the same: Americans who travel face a reputation created by their far away politicians and government. In some cases, this is an exciting chance to show what Americans are like in real life – gregarious, friendly, and generally awesome. In other cases, there is no changing of minds, and your objective is merely to blend in without being called out. In some countries, tourists have a harder time blending in. In other countries, it might end up in open hostility against Americans (and others, perhaps, since too many folks hilariously assume ‘white = American’). Whatever the case, it’s time to impersonate.
(In case you’re wondering, Canada, there’s nothing but love for you here. You’re neighbors with the US, your Timbits are awesome, and I married into you. We’re like brothers-in-law or something. Also, don’t try this with a police officer or public official. Lying to officials tends not to endear you to their good graces.)
Don’t say ‘eh’ all the time.
‘Eh’, to most Canadians is an ending along the lines of ‘I know, right?’ or ‘don’t you agree?’.
‘Eh’ is not used as an answer or a retort. Aim to use ‘eh’ less than 20% of the time.
The other stereotype about Canadians always apologizing? Yeah, drop that act, too.
Drop your shoulders and add on the modesty.
To most other nationalities, Americans appear about three levels more confident than anyone else. For better or worse, it often comes off as brash and bold to many. Stop striding, take smaller steps, and act low-key. Act when acted upon, not the other way around. Confrontations are avoided, not escalated. Your behavior and mannerisms will give you away faster than anything out of your mouth.
These two steps should prevent a fair number of issues you might have - but if you’re stopped or confronted, there’s a few more steps to take.
Know your geography.
Authenticate your Canadian-ness by saying the province or major city you’re from. If you’re from a major US city (or nearby one), say the equivalent Canadian city / area in terms of size and urban density. Since most ‘Muricans can’t name more than a few Canadian cities, I’ve made a cheatsheet for you:
Mind your p’s and q’s – and u’s.
If confronted in writing, remember the ‘u’ in words like ‘neighbour’, ‘flavour’, ‘armour’, ‘colour’, ‘honour’, ‘moustache’, and ‘labour’. Use ‘cheque’, ‘grey’, ‘centre’, ‘kilometre’ and ‘litre’ like the British, but ‘defense’, ‘license’, ‘practice, ‘realize’ and ‘analyze’ like Americans do. There are some other idiosyncrasies around,
Meters, Grams, and Celsius.
Despite most Canadians knowing the American system of feet and miles, the metric system is universal. If you’re traveling the world, or at least getting out of the US, learn it, love it, use it. You are not 5 foot 11 inches, you are 1.8 meters tall. You are not 175 pounds, you are 79 kilos. Again, cheatsheets:
As mentioned before, your mannerisms and behavior will give you away long before anything else will.
Have you found traveling while American to be a problem? Or do you look as traveling as an opportunity to show people what Americans are really like? Comments are open.
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This post first appeared at Americans: how to impersonate a Canadian in five simple steps.
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