I’ve lived in Europe now for three years altogether. I’ve been to more countries than you can shake a stick at. - Thailand, Mexico, South Korea, Turkey, Russia, several countries in Europe etc. In the USA I was born and raised in the south. I was an army brat and we lived in trailer parks and moved from fort to fort.

My mom was a strict little Korean woman and my dad was a laid back Georgia fellow who grew up on a farm. I have two brothers. One has worked for the same company for 30 years. My younger brother up until recently was Technical Stage Director for a very prominent dance company in the northeast. I chose engineering, deciding not to go into music even though I have a voice that puts many professional singers to shame.

My daughter speaks three languages. I could go on. But I won’t.

Having worked with Italians, Germans, Saudis, Thais and Koreans I can say that Americans are the most open hearted, friendly, kindest, most NON RACIST and most concerned people in the world.

I am also horrified at how unknowledgable people in others countries are. Things so basic in life that it is astounding. I had to explain to the Saudi engineers that antibiotics have no effect on viruses. I had to explain to some of the Brits I worked with that Muslims don’t eat pork, just like devout Jewish people.

I get a little offended when I hear someone from Europe saying Americans are loud and don’t dress very well. Today on the train in the Sachsen state I couldn’t take my nap because a bunch of Germans just wouldn’t shut up. Another incident: we took an overnight train to Milano to visit some American and Italian friends. A group of Europeans talked and laughed loudly in the bicycle storage section next to our couchette car drinking beer until about 3am. It wasn’t until some American lady yelled at them to Shut the F up that they finally shut up.

In the morning I found out it was my wife that was the one telling them to shut the F up.

And apparently you’ve never ridden in a train or on a subway full of Italians. The talking and laughter is always music to my ears. Believe me, they are NOT quiet. And I love it!

As far as dressing…I really don’t know what country you are talking about. As far as I can tell, it’s only in S. Korea where the people are very self conscious about how they dress. Since I work in an engineering environment I try to dress casual, with slacks and a dress shirt. My German counterparts wear T-shirts and bluejeans to work!!

And I’ve paid attention to how Europeans dress since i have heard so much about how Americans are such sloppy dressers. And I have no idea what you are talking about! Even in Milan, there was a more high fashion group…but they were not the majority. In the Eastern part of Germany, many of the women (old and young) have streaks of purple or very bright red in their hair. This is better?

The only thing I may agree with you on is what I call the Too Much/Too Little paradigm: You go to a Kino to watch a movie and in one instance the theater is very full with only a few seats to choose from. The choices are few and the decision is hard. The other instance is if the theater is only sparsely populated. Then there are too many choices and the decision is hard, too. The Too Much instance is representative of the USA.

But unlike how you feel about your land of birth (I may be presuming too much), I don’t hold any of this against any of the Europeans (or Orientals). Other than some quirks here and there, I’ve found people to be people regardless of where they come from. They feel pain, rage, happiness, love, etc. just like Americans. If you start with the assumption your dealing with an intelligent person, you always make a friend.

It was good to read your journal. We have wondered where you are and what you are doing now. Are you back in U.S.A. or still in U.K?

Best wishes

David and Brenda Potter