[1964Alum]

DubaiSis posted:

"No, I'm in Kansas City. Cuz you know. Same/same. LOL.
And as far as how Arabs (and the entire rest of the world frankly) see president Obama, they ADORE him. And when you live outside the US you get to spend a great deal of time trying to explain why American government is they way it is. "You mean your people would seriously let a person die as opposed to providing good healthcare?" "Well, yes." And try to explain the candidacy of the candidate who shall go unnamed to a German. Good luck with that."

Oh, yes, I experienced that all the time in my site during my two years in Colombia. One thing that we Peace Corps volunteers were very, very good at was presenting and creating another view of Americans. I was initially surprised and how closely they followed what goes on here in the US. Going back to my old stomping grounds on the northern coast, people in Cartagena thought I was Colombian, then Venezuelan, then Chilean, then Spanish, LOL! (My Spanish is pretty darn fluent!) So I heard many a candid thought about the USA.

Europeans are also very candid with me as for better or worse they don't peg me as an American. It's a real eye-opener to see our country through other eyes. And why they see us that way.