{"id":22892,"date":"2023-03-24T20:35:56","date_gmt":"2023-03-25T00:35:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/?p=22892"},"modified":"2023-03-24T20:45:45","modified_gmt":"2023-03-25T00:45:45","slug":"guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/","title":{"rendered":"Guest Contributor – ArthurinCali – 24MAR2023 – Ugly Americans"},"content":{"rendered":"

The trope of the \u2018Ugly American\u2019 can be a sad reality at times. What is an Ugly American you ask?\u00a0From Wikipedia;<\/a><\/p>\n

“Ugly American<\/strong>” is a\u00a0<\/em>stereotype<\/em><\/a>\u00a0depicting\u00a0<\/em>American<\/em><\/a>\u00a0citizens as exhibiting loud, arrogant, demeaning, thoughtless, ignorant, and\u00a0<\/em>ethnocentric<\/em><\/a>\u00a0behavior mainly abroad, but also at home.<\/em><\/p>\n

It is important to recognize that applying this pejorative to every scenario that involves a cultural faux pas is incorrect. For example, when dining overseas it is not rude or inconsiderate to ask for clarification on what a menu item is, or what ingredients it contains. For those with food allergies this can mean the difference between life and death.\u00a0This article<\/a>\u00a0on the signs of an Ugly American points to the practice of asking the exchange rate in US dollars for items. This I disagree with as not everyone can always have currency exchange information on their smart phones. Many merchants and businesses helpfully keep currency conversion handy just for this reason. There are however, a few clear-cut examples I recall from traveling overseas that are worth mentioning. These I classify as Ugly American Situational Syndrome, or UASS for short.<\/p>\n

I have written before about Guam<\/a>, but here is another story on island life\u2026<\/p>\n

A lifetime ago in the late 90s I was stationed on the pacific island of Guam at the start of my naval career. After purchasing a \u2018Boonie\u2019 car whose better days were seen around the Reagan administration I began to explore the island in my time off. Being a na\u00efve 19-year-old sailor, I went pretty much all over the island without regard to islander dynamics in mind.<\/p>\n

One weekend, I went to a pool hall by myself and began to play with a group of Chamorros (local Guamanians). I had noticed the bar in passing a few times and decided to finally check it out. After meeting the owner and playing a few games with him, I noticed that I was the only American in this local bar. I asked Richard (the bar owner) if it was ok to be in the pool hall, and he replied, \u201cYou are welcome here anytime. You are respectful.\u201d<\/p>\n

Back at work that Monday, several fellow sailors asked where I was that weekend. (pre-cell phone era) I explained that I had gone to the pool hall downtown. They expressed shock and dismay that I went there, explaining that they had tried to go a few weeks ago and had been summarily thrown out after being told it was for locals only.<\/p>\n

\u201cWere you drunk and being dumb?\u201d I asked. \u201cYeah,\u201d they admitted.<\/p>\n

This attitude of barging into places and acting as if there was a sacrosanct right to be in a space was a common theme overseas. Going into a local bar and trying to take over is textbook UASS behavior.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Spending time exploring the country of\u00a0Singapore<\/a>\u00a0is quite the experience. Located at the southern tip of Malaysia, this small island nation has many attractions. From the world famous\u00a0Singapore Zoo<\/a>, to the famed\u00a0Gardens by the Bay<\/a>, a $1 billion botanical garden inspired by the three distinct ethnic cultures of Chinese, Malay, and Indian. On this visit, our group of Sailors found ourselves on the famed\u00a0Orchard road<\/a>, a retail and dining district. Lining the street were plenty of restaurants to choose from, and we quickly decided on a pleasant outside caf\u00e9 with a patio. A large sandwich style billboard on the sidewalk displayed the drinks available for order. Besides Coca-Cola and various teas, the caf\u00e9 had three types of beer; Heineken, Stella Artois, and Tiger beer (the local favorite, usually consumed as a last resort).<\/p>\n

A polite waitress came to the table and we began to place our drink orders. Everything was moving along smoothly until she came to our traveling companion that I\u2019ll call \u2018Don.\u2019 Without too much backstory let\u2019s say that Don was, well, unworldly is the nice way to describe it. On this deployment, he was one who would look for the nearest McDonald\u2019s, or ask nonsensical questions on local culture. Not one to disappoint, he requested a Budweiser. Then a Coors Light. When informed that the caf\u00e9 did not carry those he topped it off with, \u201cYou mean to tell me you don\u2019t have any American beers?\u201d Maintaining my composure through gritted teeth I helpfully directed Don\u2019s attention to the before mentioned sign on the sidewalk that had the available refreshments. He continued to show his dismay that a restaurant 8800 miles from the USA would not carry his favorite swill.<\/p>\n

It is not that difficult to avoid the UASS label while traveling and living overseas. Understanding different customs and cultures will help one avoid becoming a living embodiment of UASS.<\/p>\n

Links:<\/p>\n

Ugly American Definition<\/p>\n

https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Ugly_American_(pejorative)<\/a><\/p>\n

7 Signs You’re An Ugly American<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.huffpost.com\/entry\/seven-signs-youre-an-ugly-american_b_1952474<\/a><\/p>\n

Singapore Travel<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.lonelyplanet.com\/singapore<\/a><\/p>\n

Singapore\u2019s Orchard Road<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.visitsingapore.com\/see-do-singapore\/places-to-see\/orchard\/<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The trope of the \u2018Ugly American\u2019 can be a sad reality at times. What is an Ugly American you ask?\u00a0From Wikipedia; “Ugly American” is a\u00a0stereotype\u00a0depicting\u00a0American\u00a0citizens<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,1489],"tags":[3846,198,1596,3847,3963],"class_list":["post-22892","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-events","category-guest-contributors","tag-arthurincali","tag-fun","tag-guest-contributors","tag-overseas","tag-travel"],"yoast_head":"\nGuest Contributor - ArthurinCali - 24MAR2023 - Ugly Americans - Orion's Cold Fire<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Guest Contributor - ArthurinCali - 24MAR2023 - Ugly Americans - Orion's Cold Fire\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The trope of the \u2018Ugly American\u2019 can be a sad reality at times. What is an Ugly American you ask?\u00a0From Wikipedia; “Ugly American” is a\u00a0stereotype\u00a0depicting\u00a0American\u00a0citizens\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Orion's Cold Fire\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-03-25T00:35:56+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-03-25T00:45:45+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/ArthurinCali-Ugly-American-Photo-1.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"photog\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@orionscoldfire\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@orionscoldfire\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"photog\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"photog\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#\/schema\/person\/d11e80f83f3825ce9fe38a5303eb64d3\"},\"headline\":\"Guest Contributor – ArthurinCali – 24MAR2023 – Ugly Americans\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-03-25T00:35:56+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-03-25T00:45:45+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/\"},\"wordCount\":842,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"ArthurinCali\",\"fun\",\"Guest Contributors\",\"overseas\",\"travel\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Current Events\",\"Guest Contributors\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/\",\"name\":\"Guest Contributor - ArthurinCali - 24MAR2023 - Ugly Americans - Orion's Cold Fire\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2023-03-25T00:35:56+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-03-25T00:45:45+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Guest Contributor – ArthurinCali – 24MAR2023 – Ugly Americans\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/\",\"name\":\"Orion's Cold Fire\",\"description\":\"All the Secrets of the Universe and Some Really Important Stuff Too!\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Orion's Cold Fire\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/DSC06141.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/DSC06141.jpg\",\"width\":4022,\"height\":1419,\"caption\":\"Orion's Cold Fire\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/orionscoldfire\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#\/schema\/person\/d11e80f83f3825ce9fe38a5303eb64d3\",\"name\":\"photog\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/photog-image.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/photog-image.jpg\",\"caption\":\"photog\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/author\/photog\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Guest Contributor - ArthurinCali - 24MAR2023 - Ugly Americans - Orion's Cold Fire","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Guest Contributor - ArthurinCali - 24MAR2023 - Ugly Americans - Orion's Cold Fire","og_description":"The trope of the \u2018Ugly American\u2019 can be a sad reality at times. What is an Ugly American you ask?\u00a0From Wikipedia; “Ugly American” is a\u00a0stereotype\u00a0depicting\u00a0American\u00a0citizens","og_url":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/","og_site_name":"Orion's Cold Fire","article_published_time":"2023-03-25T00:35:56+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-03-25T00:45:45+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/ArthurinCali-Ugly-American-Photo-1.jpg"}],"author":"photog","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@orionscoldfire","twitter_site":"@orionscoldfire","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"photog","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/"},"author":{"name":"photog","@id":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#\/schema\/person\/d11e80f83f3825ce9fe38a5303eb64d3"},"headline":"Guest Contributor – ArthurinCali – 24MAR2023 – Ugly Americans","datePublished":"2023-03-25T00:35:56+00:00","dateModified":"2023-03-25T00:45:45+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/"},"wordCount":842,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#organization"},"keywords":["ArthurinCali","fun","Guest Contributors","overseas","travel"],"articleSection":["Current Events","Guest Contributors"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/","url":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/","name":"Guest Contributor - ArthurinCali - 24MAR2023 - Ugly Americans - Orion's Cold Fire","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#website"},"datePublished":"2023-03-25T00:35:56+00:00","dateModified":"2023-03-25T00:45:45+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/2023\/03\/24\/guest-contributor-arthurincali-24mar2023-ugly-americans\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Guest Contributor – ArthurinCali – 24MAR2023 – Ugly Americans"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/","name":"Orion's Cold Fire","description":"All the Secrets of the Universe and Some Really Important Stuff Too!","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#organization","name":"Orion's Cold Fire","url":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/DSC06141.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/DSC06141.jpg","width":4022,"height":1419,"caption":"Orion's Cold Fire"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/twitter.com\/orionscoldfire"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#\/schema\/person\/d11e80f83f3825ce9fe38a5303eb64d3","name":"photog","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/photog-image.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/photog-image.jpg","caption":"photog"},"url":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/author\/photog\/"}]}},"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22892","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22892"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22892\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22898,"href":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22892\/revisions\/22898"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22892"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22892"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/orionscoldfire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22892"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}