Jeremy Elwood
It’s extremely difficult to travel without gaining some measure of cultural awareness. Obviously it’s not impossible; anyone who has ever worked in hospitality will have a story of total ignorance ranging from visitors blatantly breaking a social taboo to simply complaining that the food is too ‘‘foreign’’ for their tastes (and yes, that includes New Zealanders whingeing that they can’t get a decent flat white or a pie).
Most of the time, though, these gripes are just part of the learning process. It takes time to acclimatise to anything new, but most people get there eventually and embrace it when they do. I’m sure there are even English football fans in Russia right now who have learnt a word or two of the local language, or developed a taste for vodka alongside their usual pints of lager.
We’ve just spent a week in the USA. You may have heard of it. It’s in the news quite a lot.
Although we were firmly in tourist mode – theme parks, baseball games and outlet shopping pretty much dominated the itinerary – there were still some timely reminders of the differences between our countries.
For starters, that overblown sense of national pride that we so often deride Americans for (sometimes literally) waving in our faces can actually be quite endearing when you’re there. We arrived just after the 4th of July, so a lot of the decorations were still up and people were still in a good mood after a day of barbecue and fireworks. Say what you like about Independence Day (and do feel free to argue about whose independence it really marks), but the locals really get into it. Unlike certain other national holidays I’ve witnessed, they genuinely take a moment to celebrate who they are, and what they have. When they say they live in ‘‘the best country on Earth’’, they truly believe it – and as flawed as you may think their reasoning is, it’s hard to disrespect their passion.
When I say ‘‘they’’, I mean people from all walks of life. The great irony for me, and the truth being tragically overlooked by certain members of their current government, is the people I met who were the most effusive about how much they love their country were the ones who hadn’t been born there. I had a Venezuelan Uber driver who spoke very little English, but still managed to declare how lucky she felt to be living in California at least half a dozen times in a 4km trip.
Yes, this level of blind patriotism can be tiring, and even, historically, downright dangerous, but as they say – when in Rome, enjoy the spectacle before the whole empire comes tumbling down.