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I live in Silicon Valley. When dropping my car rental on Friday late afternoon I bumped into a group of Polish tourists in 20's from Poland. I asked them reason for their visit and they told me for work meeting related but it looked to me more as students visiting their host friend who lives in Silicon Valley. They could be for both reasons but the fact that it was late Friday start of weekend and they did not have credit card and needed their friend to come to pay with CC, indicates most likely students who looked like they are in undergraduate college age range.
After introducing myself to them and few chats we did not exchange contact information including their host. I understand they did not want to invite to a road trip with a stranger but I felt disappointed that the local host did not want to actully get to know each other but rather they left quickly once they got their reservation. They all could had been visitors but unlikely.
Actually I could tell the moment I recognized they speak Polish and I came out to them, they smirked an entire time like they felt akward.
What your luck have been so far when you have met your country men in a foreign country? Did you make friends?
Does not have to be from your country. In case for English it could be from any English speaking country in nom-English country for example.
I made friends easily with people from here. I was in the Bahamas and since it was football season, I ran into a bunch of Niners fans which I thought was crazy.
But otherwise in most of my travels I really don't see much Americans.
When I meet people from other countries that I have spent a significant time in, I can chat with them easily. Sometimes we exchange contact information and sometimes not just like any other person that I meet.
When I meet people from other countries that I have spent a significant time in, I can chat with them easily. Sometimes we exchange contact information and sometimes not just like any other person that I meet.
This is our experience as well.
OP - it sounds like you were making MANY assumptions about this group. Perhaps all your questions made them wary of you. Perhaps there was an age difference? Perhaps they had just arrived and were not concentrating on meeting people. Maybe their mothers taught them not to talk to strangers.
Whatever. For a group of people to arrive in a foreign country and not know they need a credit card to rent a car sounds bizarre to me. I suspect you're well shod of them.
Usually I avoid French tourists when I'm travelling, because they sometimes can be obnoxious (not even wanting to learn the basics of the language they travel through). The worse are the package holida tourists and retirees (those are often half deaf, so they tend to speak very loud to say the stupidest of things, like I won't come to the USA anymore, because they gave me my steaks well done although I had asked rare). French Canadians are different though and I always had fun time with tem (besides for us their accent is exotic but I like it, it's the way the French spoke in the 18th century).
I don't mind meeting other Taiwanese people when I'm traveling. I wouldn't actively look for them but they are usually pretty ok. Like well-behaved and willing to help fellow Taiwanese and stuff.
I definitely would try to avoid Chinese tourists though, which is both difficult and easy at the same time. Difficult because there are a **** ton of them, easy because they are very concentrated in specific areas and are extremely obvious. It's kinda an irrational kneejerk reaction but eh, I can't help it.
The other two nationalities I don't mind meeting are Singaporeans and HKers. They are usually fairly easy to chat with.
When traveling, I try to meet other foreigners. Yes, I'm open to meet peopel from other English speaking countries but not U.S. so much. Not sure why, but I've had some interesting conversations with Americans on the plane coming back.
I purposefully stay away from other Americans. Hell, I don't even like travelers from other countries. I find most to be obnoxious.
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