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30 years ago I was blessed with the opportunity to go to Europe. It is the one and only time I have ever left North America. I found London and UK residents to be very welcoming. One local even invited us to a local pub with him to have a few drinks. Germany was friendly too but I did see them as loud and boastful of thier country, but who am I to talk about that as after all I am an American. Most of the German speaking countries were friendly to us. Only France, especially Paris seemed rude and unwelcoming. I loved my short time over there and wish I could afford to return. My impressions of Europe are however from the eyes of an 18 year old and those experiences are now 30 years old. A lot has changed since then, people everywhere are so very different from back then.
The OP should find the friendliness he is looking for in Canada, both the USA and Canada are known for thier friendly welcoming people. The only difference is the northern US and Canada tend to be more reserved (still friendly) while the southern US is more open. Some posters have commented already on thier experiences down here. Of course big fast paced or uptight cities like San Francisco, New York, or Toronto may not feel as friendly but I bet that is true world wide.
Yes I agree with most of what you are saying there especially with the loud Germans and rude Parisians but the only different experience was in London, I have been to London 5 times in the past 15 years and every time I have found the people aloof and rude but the more frequently I visited the ruder I found them and now I don't want to go back. We Americans are known for being happy and extroverted where the British are the opposite miserable and introverted, sure some people in the UK might be a bit extroverted but that is a very small percentage. I don't know where in the US you live, but I live just outside NYC and in my little town of Valley Stream is not common to say hi in passing to someone in the street, definitely weird in NYC to do that because there are so many people but in a quiet town it is common, I tried that in the UK smiling at someone and I got a distasteful look and an eyeroll, what an *******, and I said hi to another guy and he said what did you say and looked shocked that a stranger was talking to him since it is uncommon for the British to make small talk with strangers. Yeah I was happy to return to sunny New York after a horrible week and waste of money in dreary overcast London, but yeah this is an unpopular opinion but the people in south France are very friendly, its just Paris that has the a holes, and the Italians some were friendly some were not but all the people in restaurants in Italy and shops were friendly, and the Germans are just really loud and don't care what you think of them.
I was in both of those cities just over a year ago. Incredibly friendly and warm people! And I loooooved the Riverwalk in San Antonio.
I'm from San Antonio and loved Montreal and Toronto. I really didn't notice people being not enough or too cordial. What I did notice is Canada is cleaner then the US I'm jealous.
Location: Montreal -> CT -> MA -> Montreal -> Ottawa
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Originally Posted by BillyH
I'm from San Antonio and loved Montreal and Toronto. I really didn't notice people being not enough or too cordial. What I did notice is Canada is cleaner then the US I'm jealous.
I'm of the mind that friendliness begets friendliness. You get what you give. So if you came here (well, Montreal, although I'm finding Ottawa to be the same) and were friendly, you'd get that in return.
I'm jealous that San Antonio is your playground. I really loved it there. Hotter than hell and it was beyond humid (complains the girl with curly hair), but it was a great visit. I know that Riverwalk is touristy, but we didn't spend all of our time there. Actually, we stumbled onto a pizza place (it's a chain, I believe, but I think limited to Texas) that was amaaaaazing. I don't remember the name of the place -- I think it was in Quarry Village -- but the Caesar salad was incredible and the pizza (coal fire oven) was... can't type now, I'm drooling.
ETA: Grimaldi's!!! And it's not limited to Texas. They're in 15 other states as well, none of which are near me.
I'm of the mind that friendliness begets friendliness. You get what you give.
I do not agree....at all...some places are just harder to "crack" socially (I'm not saying impossible...but it just take much more effort)...it is a fact.
Location: Montreal -> CT -> MA -> Montreal -> Ottawa
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Originally Posted by saturno_v
I do not agree....at all...some places are just harder to "crack" socially (I'm not saying impossible...but it just take much more effort)...it is a fact.
You might be right, but I've never had that problem.
I lived in Connecticut, a state that is notorious for being... not rude, but standoffish. "Reserved" is the word that they use. I was told not to expect to be friends with my neighbors. Maybe a nod or a hello, but not more than that. Well, I lived in a cul-de-sac and knew almost everyone by the end of the first week. Some, yes, became just nod-and-hello acquaintances/neighbors. But I'm still friends -- truly friends -- with 5 or 6 others, even though I left there almost 6 years ago. One of them came to visit me in Montreal twice per year and came to Ottawa a few weeks ago. One came to visit me in Ottawa a couple of months ago.
You might be right, but I've never had that problem.
I lived in Connecticut, a state that is notorious for being... not rude, but standoffish. "Reserved" is the word that they use. I was told not to expect to be friends with my neighbors. Maybe a nod or a hello, but not more than that. Well, I lived in a cul-de-sac and knew almost everyone by the end of the first week. Some, yes, became just nod-and-hello acquaintances/neighbors. But I'm still friends -- truly friends -- with 5 or 6 others, even though I left there almost 6 years ago. One of them came to visit me in Montreal twice per year and came to Ottawa a few weeks ago. One came to visit me in Ottawa a couple of months ago.
It can definitely happen and maybe you got lucky...but differences do exists between different locations, absolutely. That does not mean that everybody is a socially inept in places that are well known to be standoffish. One of my best friends in North America lives in Vancouver (however, to be precise, he was an immigrant like me but not from the same nation so the "living far away and meeting someone coming from your same country" factor did not apply) and I met him 2 days after I landed....he had a small restaurant back then and we just started talking when I happened to get dinner at his place.....we hit it off almost immediately.
Last edited by saturno_v; 10-28-2017 at 12:43 AM..
Location: Montreal -> CT -> MA -> Montreal -> Ottawa
17,330 posts, read 33,025,722 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by saturno_v
It can definitely happen and maybe you got lucky...but differences do exists between different locations, absolutely. That does not mean that everybody is a socially inept in places that are well known to be standoffish. One of my best friends in North America lives in Vancouver (however, to be precise, he was an immigrant like me but not from the same nation so the "living far away and meeting someone coming from your same country" factor did not apply) and I met him 2 days after I landed....he had a small restaurant back then and we just started talking when I happened to get dinner at his place.....we hit it off almost immediately.
Nice story! Unique circumstances worked in your favor. Beautiful!
I'm of the mind that friendliness begets friendliness. You get what you give. So if you came here (well, Montreal, although I'm finding Ottawa to be the same) and were friendly, you'd get that in return.
I'm jealous that San Antonio is your playground. I really loved it there. Hotter than hell and it was beyond humid (complains the girl with curly hair), but it was a great visit. I know that Riverwalk is touristy, but we didn't spend all of our time there. Actually, we stumbled onto a pizza place (it's a chain, I believe, but I think limited to Texas) that was amaaaaazing. I don't remember the name of the place -- I think it was in Quarry Village -- but the Caesar salad was incredible and the pizza (coal fire oven) was... can't type now, I'm drooling.
ETA: Grimaldi's!!! And it's not limited to Texas. They're in 15 other states as well, none of which are near me.
I went to Montreal with a friend who was born and raised in Toronto. He did more of the talking then I did and knew where he was going. I was a little intimidated when a waiter or hotel clerk would start off speaking French. I was surprised how easily they would switch to English "so you want a Miller Lite sure" I really didn't know what to expect. I had never been to Quebec before. I haven't been to Grimaldi's yet, we tried on a Saturday night and there was a 45 minute wait and we went somewhere else.
Location: Montreal -> CT -> MA -> Montreal -> Ottawa
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BillyH
I went to Montreal with a friend who was born and raised in Toronto. He did more of the talking then I did and knew where he was going. I was a little intimidated when a waiter or hotel clerk would start off speaking French. I was surprised how easily they would switch to English "so you want a Miller Lite sure" I really didn't know what to expect. I had never been to Quebec before. I haven't been to Grimaldi's yet, we tried on a Saturday night and there was a 45 minute wait and we went somewhere else.
They switched to English right quick -- they knew y'all weren't from 'round here.
See how good the pizza is there?!? People are waiting for 45 minutes! I'm guessing a weekday has a shorter wait.
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I'm guessing a weekday has a shorter wait.
