One afternoon while planning my first trip to Europe, about ten years ago, my to-be traveling companion talked about sewing a Canadian flag to her backpack as some sort of cultural camouflage. Of course, these were the days when Clinton was president and we were mainly hated for translating and sending shows like Baywatch (“Vigilantes de la Playa”), The A-Team (“El Equipe A”) and Alf (“Alf”) to places like Spain and Mexico. My friend never mentioned it again and the only thing I sowed on my backpack was my name.
Reading the news today, I’m sad to see the “I’m a Canadian Master Disguise” plan is still alive. The theory behind the plan goes like this: “The world hates Americans. Americans don’t hate Canadians thus the world must not hate Canadians. Since Americans can’t tell the difference between Canadians and Americans, the rest of the world can’t either. Hence, I can disguise myself as a Canadian with a simple patch or t-shirt. Bwah-ha-ha-ha!”
Of course, there are some simple flaws to the theory. There’s a good chance that you’ll actually meet real Canadians while traveling. I’ve found a good rule of thumb for getting along while traveling is that no culture – not even the Australians - likes to be imitated, either in accent, mannerism, or garb. This probably goes double for Canadians who do get mixed up with Americans regularly. Also, it’s possible those wily foreigners in such far off places as Europe have heard of this trick. I’ve checked – they have the Internets over there too. Most people will treat you far better if they think you are being honest with them.
Just as wearing an eye patch does not actually make a person a pirate, wearing a Canadian flag patch does not make one Canadian. I’ve found that most places I’ve traveled the locals tend to be curious and will ask you questions about yourself and your homeland. Having to fake or lie your way through a conversation when asked such questions as “What is the weather like?” “What part of Canada is that city located in?” and “I see that you’re wearing an eye patch. Are there a lot of pirates in Canada?” If you’re not studied up on Canada but you're pretending to be from there, you’ll be a lot less happy when having one of these conversations. Plus, you’ll miss a chance to plug your homeland and talk about what does make America great.
This article today, and the whole concept of a Canadian disguise, disturbs me mainly for the fact that it indicates that Americans are embarrassed and scared to talk about American politics. Growing up in Montana, I was taught that politics, religion, and salary where no one’s business except your own and topics of conversation to avoid. Let me be honest, as an American traveling abroad, you will be faced with questions about American politics. This was as true for me when I traveled in India in 1998 where the people wanted to talk Lewinski as it was in Mexico last year where people wanted to talk Iraq. American foreign policy often influences foreign governments and countries. As the people living in those countries who are affected by our policies yet have no say in our government, they’ll welcome the chance to actually talk to someone who does.
I see this as the greatest opportunity for the U.S. Our country has no greater diplomatic power than having its citizens traveling abroad and talking with the citizens of other countries. It doesn’t matter what side of the political divide you are on either. Do not be afraid of talking politics.
If you are against the current U.S. government and their foreign policies in the world, explain that you are and that many Americans are also. You’ll have it easy - most likely, the person you are talking to will agree with you and be happy to hear that many Americans share their worldview. If you’re lucky or skillful, you might get them to buy you a beer out of solidarity. If you support current U.S. government and their policies, do not be afraid to talk about why you do. It will be a much harder conversation and probably won’t include free beer but this is your big chance to try to get a small part of the rest of the world to understand why our government is doing what it is doing. Most likely the person will disagree with you, but will be polite and there is a good chance you will make them think more about U.S. policies than they would by just reading another newspaper article.
Americans are known for being friendly and we can use this to our advantage. Be polite, be honest, and the person you are talking to, no matter if they agree with you or not, will most likely be friendly too. It doesn’t hurt to read a little about the politics going on in the place you are visiting or how U.S. policies have affected it. America has a sordid history in many Central American countries for example. The good news is that most locals will not hold it against you – however, it helps to be informed on what that history is.
Man, I guess that’s enough unsolicited travel recommendations for one afternoon. Okay, okay, one final piece of advice for traveling: it’s probably best not to wear a Canadian disguise if your foreign travel plans only include visiting Canada. Pirate disguises work anywhere, though.
