Don't Be An Ugly American

Given our relative isolation geographically, it is fairly amazing that so many American travel abroad. Unfortunately, this brings us to the issue of the Ugly American.

Don't Be An Ugly American

Never heard of the Ugly American? It is a term used by locals in other countries for many American tourists. It refers to the fact that we have a tendency to whine. This usually occurs when something is different from what we are used to.

Being an Ugly American is not a good thing. First, it is incredibly rude, which you should keep in mind since we don't exactly have the best reputation at the moment around the world. Second, complaining about this and that is not going to make things better. Instead, it is more likely to result in more problems and worse treatment. Nobody likes to deal with a complainer, so don't expect to make any friends.

When traveling abroad, you need to use your common sense. Things are going to be different. Different countries have different cultures, standards and ways of doing things. If you aren't comfortable with this concept, maybe you should think twice about going somewhere. If the clich