Can you tell who's American just by looking at them?, Just a curiosity I've had Options

[LoLo]

Now if I were to do this silly thread properly I would put pictures up of random people and see if people could figure out who was from where, but all I really want is to have my curiosity somewhat quenched.

So here's the back story. The two times I went to England I noticed that the people around me would often start talking about America and Americans. I would guess that it would happen because of my accent, if I were talking, but I was self conscious of my accent and I like to listen in on what people are talking about because it's entertaining, so a lot of those times I wasn't even talking. When I was there for Cand and Moop's wedding I pointed this out to Cand and asked her if she thought people could tell we were Americans simply by looking at us.

So do you think people can tell who is American simply by looking at them or is there just a preoccupation by others with America and I just happened to notice it in their conversational topics?

Oh and if anyone is so inclined for entertainment value and making this thread truly daft, perhaps it would be fun to post pictures of various people and see if people can pick where they are from.

[Yannick]

Haha, I used to play this thing we called the Tourist Game when I was like 12. Basically, me and a few friends would head down to I-Drive (touristy street with Wet N Wild, near Universal and IOA, has Wonderworks, Sky Venture, etc.), buy some smoothies, find a nice seat, and bet on who was from where. (And then find out by telling them it had to do with some school project about tourism and the economy.)

I don't know about Americans, but man can you tell when someone's British.

[Mata]

Sometimes, but it's usually much easier when people are travelling in packs. I could usually tell the nationality of tourists in Winchester way before they got into hearing range. I found French and Italian tourists the easiest to spot. German groups were more tricky, sometimes they disguised themselves as being French, but usually you could spot them.

One universal thing about European countries: their children always seem to be wearing the fashions that are two decades out of date in the UK.

[Phyllis]

Sometimes. I don't really expect to meet other people from the US in Derby, so I'm always surprised when I hear someone with an accent like mine. Ste has a friend from work who I think looks very American -- specifically Californian. He's English, though. As Mata says, it's easier to guess the nationalities of people when they are travelling in packs. It's also a lot easier for me to spot people from the US who are middle aged. I'm not sure what it is, exactly, but something about the way they dress and carry themselves just screams American.

I've been mistaken for Australian, Irish, and Canadian, and that was after I'd said something. The Canadian thing is an easy mistake to make, of course, but Australian and Irish?!

[Daria]

I love the people game! I used to play it when I lived in Paris. As a result of having no one to play it with I now have a notebook of copious yet creepy notes on people.
As far as stereotypical tourists, I guess I could probably tell them apart without hearing them. There are always some that buck the trend, though.
As for people looking like they're American- when I was in New York, it was interesting to be surrounded by people who seemed slightly not right. Like, you'd see something in your periphiral vision and go "what?". I realised that it was just the clothes they were wearing- they were similar to what I was used to in London, but just that much different to seem weird.

[Mata]

William Gibson calls that the mirror world - like you've stepped through a mirror and everything is familiar but slightly wrong. He wrote about it from the American-coming-to-the-UK perspective, so all the plugs seemed too big, the coins seemed chunkier, etc.

[voices_in_my_hea...]

Can I tell when someone's from a different country? Sometimes.
There are slight differences in the way people carry themselves and the way they dress.

While I'll only occasionally spot someone very obviously from another country, I'll usually guess correctly about who's not "from 'round these here parts"
How?
It's a lot to do with culture - For example, my friends and I have a game where we spot out-of-staters by their driving style. In Texas, and in most southern places, politeness is extremely prevelant when driving. People will wave to you as they pass, they'll let a few extra cars go, and will pull off to the side of the road a little bit before their turn so other cars behind them don't have to slow down, too. Of course, those things don't apply to all southerners, but to most, it seems to fit.
Also, there's the way they carry themselves. If a person is unfamiliar to an area, they're more likely to have less confidence in their walk and gestures, and will rarely look others in the eyes when talking.

Like I said, this doesn't apply 100% of the time, it's just a general observation.

[gothictheysay]

In Texas, and in most southern places, politeness is extremely prevelant when driving. People will wave to you as they pass, they'll let a few extra cars go, and will pull off to the side of the road a little bit before their turn so other cars behind them don't have to slow down, too. Of course, those things don't apply to all southerners, but to most, it seems to fit.

Can I import this one thing from Texas up to New England/New Jersey area? People are not nice drivers. At all. Also, do you know if the same holds true in cities? I'm just curious... I was sort of under the impression that driving in any city is a guarantee of an encounter with rude drivers.

[LoLo]

In Texas, and in most southern places, politeness is extremely prevelant when driving. People will wave to you as they pass, they'll let a few extra cars go, and will pull off to the side of the road a little bit before their turn so other cars behind them don't have to slow down, too. Of course, those things don't apply to all southerners, but to most, it seems to fit.

My own personal experience with driving in Texas would be opposite to that, though I will say I've only driven across the panhandle on my way back to California from Tennessee, so my Texas driving experience is not that vast. I felt like I was going to die and it would be because two semis had decided to make me into a semi and car sandwich.

I did notice in Tennessee though the waving thing. Mostly it was between drivers of the same type of vehicles ie when I was in my ex boyfriends jeep, jeep drivers would wave at him. I've only noticed that in California when I was driving my brother's Mini.

Where I'm at in California, people are so diverse the only way I can tell they are not from here is if they have an accent, or if they ask me directions. I feel sorry for anyone who does though, because I get people lost trying to explain how to get across the street.

/babbling

[Yannick]

Voices, heh, not in Florida. Though, when we were driving through Alabama a while back, there were these teenage guys in a car blasting Guns n' Roses, and I started singing, and they noticed, waved, said hi, and were really cool.

[gothictheysay]

I felt like I was going to die and it would be because two semis had decided to make me into a semi and car sandwich.

This happened to me getting on the New Jersey turnpike. I was sobbing because one semi was trying to switch lanes, therefore almost hitting the semi behind me. I then watched them argue, because the one behind me got out of his truck, and the other guy slam his door shut after a while as the other guy tried to tug it back open. I let the guy behind of me pull ahead of me, but after the other guy was out of the way he told me to go in front of him (since I had pulled over to the side) and this meant driving over cones, which meant the thing under my wheel well came off, I had to go through the EZPass lane and therefore didn't have a ticket to pay the toll later, and basically had a panic attack in my car.

That trip kind of sucked. Not to mention the traffic before and after that little interchange!

[voices_in_my_hea...]

Lolo: Semis really aren't a good way to judge driving in Texas, mostly because the drivers are from out of state most of the time, but also because, let's face it: when's the last time you saw someone driving a semi and thought they were doing an excellent job?
Of course, like I said, it doesn't apply to all people all of the time. It might just be my perception.

As for big cities - it depends. I recall the traffic in Houston being HORRIBLE to drive in, but in several other big cities (Dallas being the first to come to mind) it wasn't that bad at all.

ANYWAY. I think I made us get a bit off topic.

[LoLo]

Like I said I really don't have much experience driving in Texas.

And if we got off topic, oh well, it's just a silly thread anyway.

[Sir Psycho Sexy]

It can be pretty easy. Little things like clothing, hair styles and the like can be very telling. People watching can be quite entertaining.

[Phyllis]

I was thinking about this thread when I was grocery shopping earlier. I think that if the accents were taken away, it would be very easy to spot the British people based on how many times per hour they say the word "sorry." I wonder if that is part of what makes the uber-polite stereotype persist. Hmmmm.

In Texas, and in most southern places, politeness is extremely prevelant when driving. People will wave to you as they pass, they'll let a few extra cars go, and will pull off to the side of the road a little bit before their turn so other cars behind them don't have to slow down, too. Of course, those things don't apply to all southerners, but to most, it seems to fit.

I think that's kind of a rural thing. It's like that where I'm from in Oregon, too.

[Smiler]

Bum bags / fanny packs! Eveyr American abroad wears them

I've long held that you can, to a point. You can see a lot of ancestry in certain people, although as a melting pot America makes it more difficult to finger someone as an American.

[gothictheysay]

Oh god, no, no fanny packs for me please. That's horrifying. Someone access the quotesite and pull up syuu's quote about those. People, we need to diminish this STAT.

[LoLo]

I've long held that you can, to a point. You can see a lot of ancestry in certain people, although as a melting pot America makes it more difficult to finger someone as an American.

See that's part of what confused me there...

When I was out and about I was seeing a lot of my features over there. For example, my nose. My family is weird and has praised the shape of my nose since I was a child, and it's a rare thing to see someone who has one similar to mine, but when I was out there I saw noses similar to mine everywhere. I figured the majority of my features came from my English ancestors, so when it seemed like people could just tell I was American, it was intriguing.

That and I don't wear a fanny or bum pack. I only had a purse on there because I needed a place to put my camera. Perhaps that's what gave it away. haha

[Daria]

I get told I look (in the face) German/ Russian/ Hungarian. I'm as English as far as the eye (and family tree) can see- mostly from one part of England, too, so I'm pretty sure it's more of a style rather than facial features when it comes to recognising Americans/ British etc.

[Phyllis]

Pop quiz! Half of the following images are taken from news sites here in the UK, and half are taken from news sites in the US. How many of you can correctly guess who is from the US and who is from the UK? I tried to take them from boring local interest stories, but a few more well-known ones might have found their way in.

1. Link
2. Link
3. Link
4. Link
5. Link
6. Link
7. Link
8. Link
9. Link
10. Link
11. Link
12. Link

[Daria]

My guessin' is:
1 - US
2 - UK
3 - UK
4 - US
5 - Unsure, but UK?
6 - US
7 - UK
8 - US
9 - US
10 - UK?
11 - US
12 - US

[Yannick]

My guesses:
1. US
2. UK?
3. UK
4. UK
5. US
6. ...US? (Nutella!!!)
7. US
8. US
9. UK
10. UK
11. US?
12. US

[Phyllis]

(Nutella!!!)

Haha, I didn't even see the jar of Nutella in the background! It is available in the UK as well. (That's not a hint either way, just stating a fact)

Iiiiinteresting. I will grade everyone's quizzes after a couple of days. Some of you may need to see me after class. *stern look*

[mooooooooooopo]

1. US
2. UK
3. UK
4. US
5. UK
6. UK
7. UK
8. US
9. US
10. US
11. US
12. UK

[LoLo]

1 - UK
2 - US
3 - UK
4 - UK
5 - US
6 - US
7 - UK
8 - US
9 - UK
10 - US
11 - US
12 - UK

By the way....Cand you rock.