Friendliest foreign country or place you have been to.

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around participants sharing their experiences regarding the friendliest foreign countries or places they have visited. The scope includes personal anecdotes and reflections on hospitality across various regions, including Europe, North America, and Asia.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants propose Thailand as the friendliest foreign country based on their experiences.
  • Others mention Mexico, highlighting a specific encounter that reflects both friendliness and a sense of caution.
  • Experiences in various European countries are mixed, with some participants expressing dissatisfaction with hospitality in Spain and Italy, while others mention positive experiences in Austria and Germany.
  • Participants share contrasting views on the friendliness of people in the U.S., with mentions of Kentucky, Fairbanks, Chicago, and East Tennessee as notably hospitable places.
  • Some participants reflect on their experiences in Canada, particularly in Nova Scotia and Quebec, as friendly and welcoming.
  • There are mentions of the Dominican Republic and Aruba as friendly destinations, with specific invitations to visit.
  • One participant from Singapore comments on a perceived lack of courtesy in their home country, attributing it to shyness.
  • Another participant shares a personal story about the kindness of Mainers, contrasting it with their experiences in other states.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on which country or place is the friendliest, as multiple competing views and personal experiences are presented throughout the discussion.

Contextual Notes

Participants' claims are based on personal experiences and may not represent broader trends or generalizations about hospitality in the mentioned countries.

gravenewworld
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Friendliest foreign country- Thailand by far.


People in Spain and Italy really weren't that friendly at all. Spain was really pretty bad. Maybe that was just because I was in major cities for those two countries though.
 
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Well, it's not a foreign place, but the friendliest place I've been in the U.S. was Kentucky. Tennessee was extremely hospitable too.
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I've been over most of Europe and the friendliest place I've been is Mexico.

One time I got off the bus in Puerta Vallarta and was carrying two large bags. (I had accumulated a lot of junk over my 3 months there.) Some guy came up and offered to help me carry them. I thought to myself this might be a trick, but at least he won't be running too fast if he is carrying my bag. I should be able to catch him easily. And if he was going to threaten me with a weapon then it doesn't matter if he is carrying my bag anyway. So I agreed to let him help.

I was looking to take a boat to an isolated community. He told me that the dock on the beach where I was had already finished it's last run for the day. It was early afternoon at the time, but it isn't like the US where things are open 24/7. He said there was another place that still has a boat running. So we got on the bus and went for a 15 minute ride out of the downtown area. At this point I'm starting to think I'm pretty stupid.

We get off at this little restaurant with a nearby dock. The next boat is ready to leave in about 30 minutes. I see other foreigners there arranging there belongings on the boat. I start to feel safer. I offer to buy this helpful guy some lunch, and we sit down and talk for a short time. This is where he tells me that he was planning to rob me. Then he gives me the name of someone in the area that I'm going to that can hook me up with a place to stay for the time I'm there. (oh, he asked for a few bucks also, which I gladly gave him. He earned it.)

See? Even the criminals are polite!

I ran into the guy that he recommended. He was wealking on the beach selling pot from a fat log that he carried around in his hand. There was no authority at this location. He was also sleazing my friend's sister persistently. Even despite these things I wouldn't have trusted this guy. I got bad vibes from him.
 
I was not impressed with the hospitality in most of Europe. I've had beer poured on my head by strangers. A taxi driver altered his fare and drew a knife on my friends when they refused to pay the extra amount. Someone I knew was raped by transvestites. (no kidding) Not to mention the numerous paltry insults and prejudices.

Not that I think the US is any friendlier than Europe. Pretty similar actually.
 
Fairbanks, Alaska. Lived there for a year. The people are open and intimate from the day you meet them. At least that's true of the people I met who were associated with the University there.
 
I've lived in Poland for 4 years and in the US for the remainder. I have to say, generally the people in the US are nicer folk. At least among my peers. I left Poland when I was 12-ish, and pretty much everybody in school was a jerk. Not just to me, but it was very dog-eat-dog. And it wasn't just limited to my school at all.

When I got back here, I was surprised that when someone bumped into me (in school) they actually said "Oh, excuse me." and generally not be jerks to you.

Of course I'm making generalities in both cases.


Huckleberry said:
This is where he tells me that he was planning to rob me.

Hahahahaha!
 
haha, one thing is for sure, my country's people are somewhat lacking in basic courtesy and manners. But maybe it's just because we're shy :X

BTW I'm from Singapore
 
People in Aruba were incredibly nice on my trip there. I'd love to live there someday when retired.
 
Dominican Republic!, very friendly come visit and bring your euros or dollars :smile:
 
  • #10
Parts of Canada are very friendly. I've had pleasant experiences in Nova Scotia and in Quebec. Even with my crappy French, I've had a blast at Winter Carnival and hanging out with bikers there in the summer. Usually, I would get "adopted" by some nice bilingual lady, and she'd keep me caught up with the conversations.
 
  • #11
Austria or Germany. Boy are they friendly...
 
  • #12
I was impressed by how friendly everyone was in Chicago. I was expecting the typical snootiness of big city folk but everyone was very nice. I live in East Tennessee where everyone smiles and says hi so I have high standards for niceness.
 
  • #13
larkspur said:
I was impressed by how friendly everyone was in Chicago. I was expecting the typical snootiness of big city folk but everyone was very nice. I live in East Tennessee where everyone smiles and says hi so I have high standards for niceness.
I have spent a lot of time in the south, and the much-vaunted "Southern hospitality" seems like so much veneer and pretense to me.

We Mainers are portrayed as being reserved and stand-offish, but we are polite in the ways that count. I can't tell you how many times that people from other states have visited and have raved at how nice Mainers are. It can be as simple as people in cars stopping for pedestrians that are not in crosswalks so they can cross a street. One couple from Mass that my wife and I had ridden with annually for years (Harley riders like us) got caught in a thunderstorm here and pulled over under a big maple tree to ride it out. An elderly couple across the road told them to get over to their porch and fed them cookies and lemonade until the storm blew over. As Bob said "bikers in black leather would not get any such treatment in Mass - they'd probably call the cops" and he and his wife and kids moved here within a couple of years. They're not going back.
 
  • #14
People in CA were also very very friendly. Especially in San Diego.
 
  • #15
gravenewworld said:
Friendliest foreign country- Thailand by far.
I quickly clicked on this thread ready to type in a country, and to my surprise, in the first sentence somebody says the same one.

Thailand, by far.
 

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