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I can't seem to recall his name but I remember finding articles from this blogger about this. He's an Asian American guy who spent a great deal of time in Russia and found it easier to make friends there than in both America and Asia. I can't recall specifically but he did mention something about American culture being more suspicious of people outside of family and circles of friends compared to most other cultures around the world. Not sure if he or others would have had a similar experience in the rest of Europe, especially in Western Europe.
For me personally, I did find it a lot easier to interact and chat up with new people in Europe (more specifically Switzerland) when I lived there for a few months a decade ago, even though I didn't speak the local language (French) very well at all. People seemed to meet new people all the time on buses and trains whereas in the US, meeting new people seemed like less of an organic process: you have to make time out of your day to go to networking events, parties, etc. and very few people who chat you up on the bus, in cafes, at the library, in the supermarket line, etc.
Did everyone else have a similar experience in the US vs. in Europe?
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What is meant by:
"All else being equal" ??
I am originally from Asia (south east area, born there), but do not look at all Asian !
Then moved to Europe for educational purposes, and finally ended up in he USA.
Because of my language capability (I am a polyglot with 5 languages fluent) I was able to work in many places in Europe and Asia. I am also a brown face ! People never seem to be able to know, or guess, where I come from !
So after this, does "All else being equal" still applies ?
If so, then here my take on this question.
It depends on the person's outlook on life !
I have never felt that there were places, "all easy", or places, "all difficult".
So, yes I have found some people, everywhere, who were difficult to approach.
If that happened, I just moved on and never gave it another thought.
So my question to the OP is:
Does it bother you that *you* can not make friends everywhere, but only in some places ?
It is what it is.. you keep everything else as constant as possible and only adjust the "location" parameter from "Europe" to "US" and vice versa.
Quote:
I am originally from Asia (south east area, born there), but do not look at all Asian !
Then moved to Europe for educational purposes, and finally ended up in he USA.
Because of my language capability (I am a polyglot with 5 languages fluent) I was able to work in many places in Europe and Asia. I am also a brown face ! People never seem to be able to know, or guess, where I come from !
So after this, does "All else being equal" still applies ?
If so, then here my take on this question.
It depends on the person's outlook on life !
I have never felt that there were places, "all easy", or places, "all difficult".
So, yes I have found some people, everywhere, who were difficult to approach.
If that happened, I just moved on and never gave it another thought.
Good anecdote, thx for the data point.
Quote:
So my question to the OP is:
Does it bother you that *you* can not make friends everywhere, but only in some places ?
I think you must first establish what your definition of 'friend' is before I could accurately answer. I've spent about eight years living in Europe, one living in Canada, and the rest living in California.
If I can not get along with some poor soul, once in a blue moon, then I just move on ...
All I am trying to convey is that is is nonsense that there are whole countries that *seem* to be unfriendly, just because a few naysayers find it that way !
The same with whole countries that seem to be friendly overall !
OP, you can't generalize for all of America, nor for all of Europe. I'm from a part of America, where people are friendly, and it's not unusual to meet people at the bus stop, or simply walking down the street. I've found that to be true in several parts of the US.
The Swiss, btw, are known for being reserved, but that's more the Germanic part, than the French part, depending. Russians, contrary to some people's impressions, are warm and friendly, especially if you speak the language. I actually feel the most at home in Russia. But I'm from a Russian community in the US, so that's to be expected.
You cannot put Europeans all in the same bag now you can lump Americans all together.
Talking about averages and general cultural trends, a Swede is different from a Spaniard as an Oregonian is different than a Floridian.
Exactly. Each country is so different. Each country has its own customs and languages. I made friends in Ireland very easily, but I also speak English. Spain and France and Germany would definitely make it more difficult for me to communicate effectively so it's doubtful I'd be making friends very easily.
That could be a person who has lived in Tallinn, Estonia and Brooklyn, New York.
Or Thessaloniki, Greece and El Paso, Texas.
And then there is their personality and their individual experiences. A question this broad is not going to have a satisfactory answer in any objective sense.
(on the other hand, if you are just fishing for a cathartic denigration of the US as a boorish culture of anti-social behavior versus an enlightened and humane Europe, I am sure someone will rush to assuage you. :-)
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But I'm from a Russian community in the US, so that's to be expected.
