How to look less like an American when travelling
Jun 21, 2016, 1:45 pm
#76
Join Date: Oct 2008
Posts: 338
Actually this is not universal. In some countries "fanny" packs or man purses are popular with locals. Many Americans on the other hand despise both and would not be caught dead with ether. 
Overstuffed pants could be a giveaway in those situations.
Overstuffed pants could be a giveaway in those situations.
Jun 21, 2016, 2:06 pm
#78
Join Date: Feb 2008
Posts: 1,154
The whole shorts thing was something I'd always been told was a no-no, but the first time I went to Europe, it was hot enough that I wasn't going to wander around in long pants. Turns out what I found was plenty of people wore shorts, and I'm relatively sure they couldn't *all* be americans. Even the churches were pretty lax about wearing pants - with some obvious exceptions. Mosques in Istanbul were pretty strict, and the St Peters was pretty strict (although they were allowing a lot of stuff in that didn't match their signs). On days when we'd planned on going into churches, we had some pants to slide on (I certainly wouldn't enter a mosque in shorts), but I know in Malta at the one church, the one guy at the entrance saw us off to the side working on getting pants out and just kinda laughed and told us to come in. (Course, it was also 104 out that day.)
Jun 21, 2016, 2:20 pm
#79
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: SBA and LAX
Programs: AA, UA
Posts: 334
On days when we'd planned on going into churches, we had some pants to slide on (I certainly wouldn't enter a mosque in shorts), but I know in Malta at the one church, the one guy at the entrance saw us off to the side working on getting pants out and just kinda laughed and told us to come in. (Course, it was also 104 out that day.)
Jun 22, 2016, 8:52 am
#80
Moderator: Travel Buzz
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: Sunny San Diego
Posts: 3,099
I notice that I "fit in" more, (or "stand out" less) if I wear a lot of black when I travel in Europe. My travel wardrobe is now nearly all black and grey, with a couple of misc. colored tee shirts or what not. The flashy, splashy California colors that make up a lot of my wardrobe just seem out of place, especially since I'm not passing as a study abroad student. I have noticed that the fashionistas in Europe tend to be more in the fashionable cities... London, Milan, Florence. In Florence, boots and top end clothing are the norm. Everyone looks terrific-- like they stepped out of a magazine. But, I travel off the beaten path, and saw plenty of casual clothes in the hinterlands- the farming villages and small towns of Italy.
Jun 22, 2016, 9:00 am
#81
Join Date: Apr 2007
Posts: 499
I would think fanny packs and man purses are very different things. In fact a man purse might be a very definite "not American" article.
Jun 22, 2016, 9:12 am
#82
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: DAY/CMH
Programs: UA MileagePlus
Posts: 2,474
I was taking a walk in an Ohio state park when I saw a group of people ahead of me. I was immediately certain they were European, and guessed Swiss, without hearing them talk. They were too carefully dressed in "outdoorsy" attire to be natives.
Sure enough, as we got closer, I could hear them speaking German.
Sure enough, as we got closer, I could hear them speaking German.
Jun 22, 2016, 10:10 am
#83
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Central Mass
Programs: Independent
Posts: 4,829
Maybe i am visiting a different country? If anything, from what I have seen Americans dress downright dowdy. Every time I have been abroad, everyone is wearing glowing neon football shirts and brightly colored sneakers. Matching of course, which might be the telltale.
Jun 22, 2016, 10:49 am
#84
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: YWG
Programs: Aeroplan, MileagePlus, Marriott Rewards
Posts: 2,159
I have noticed that the fashionistas in Europe tend to be more in the fashionable cities... London, Milan, Florence. In Florence, boots and top end clothing are the norm. Everyone looks terrific-- like they stepped out of a magazine. But, I travel off the beaten path, and saw plenty of casual clothes in the hinterlands- the farming villages and small towns of Italy.
Jun 22, 2016, 11:39 am
#85
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Central Mass
Programs: Independent
Posts: 4,829
Very good point. You go to Paris and people look like their clothes are chosen by a wardrobe consultant, but you get a couple hours away from the big city and into the smaller French burgs, and they start looking a lot more like your average suburban or small town North Americans.
Jun 22, 2016, 11:37 pm
#87
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: SJC/SFO
Programs: WN A+ CP, UA 1MM/*A Gold, Mar LT Tit, IHG Plat, HH Dia
Posts: 6,285
I was taking a walk in an Ohio state park when I saw a group of people ahead of me. I was immediately certain they were European, and guessed Swiss, without hearing them talk. They were too carefully dressed in "outdoorsy" attire to be natives.
Sure enough, as we got closer, I could hear them speaking German.
Sure enough, as we got closer, I could hear them speaking German.
Jun 23, 2016, 4:18 am
#88
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: London
Programs: US Gold
Posts: 627
I find it hilarious how many Americans think Europeans are always formally dressed. See this guy - https://www.janalbrecht.eu/ueber-jan/fotos.html - in the T-shirt and casual jacket? That's how he dresses to attend his job as a Member of the European Parliament.
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