a moment:

although i've been singing praises about this place, i had an interaction with someone last night that made me want to turn around and come back to the US.
i'll begin here:
i don't know if anybody in the states keeps track of rugby, but if you don't, here's the lowdown:
in the quarter finals, france beat new zealand. HUGE DEAL. new zealand was the best team in the world. so last night, france was playing against england in the semi finals. france last. HUGE DEAL. everybody got depressed. also, in a bar, someone heard my friend as me a question in english, and someone said "ils sont les anglais" (they're english) and at 11:30 (the bars stay open til 2am here, clubs until 5am) the bartender informed me he was closed.
thank you, england. i'm glad i claimed my independence from you over 200 years ago.
but that's not the point.
there was an english girl, who was with a large group of italians that i met through another assistant who is part italian. she was (pardon my french, and for those with sensitive eyes, i will censor) a big b****. she started her conversation telling me that she doesn't like americans, because of an experience she had with a group of stoners who wanted to go to bob marley's house on a tour a couple years ago. she also openly said "i'm making generalizations here, but the cowboy image.... the politics.... the president... americans are all dumb and shallow" in so many words.
here's what's wrong with that statement.
I am not dumb and shallow, you cow.
i am not the one making sweeping generalizations about a nation, and openly admitting it. that makes you dumb. and what makes you shallow, is you judged me without even knowing me. because you think my president is an idiot, you think i'm an idiot. you didn't even ask me about my opinions, or my thoughts on politics. because you think the kids you met a few years ago weren't interested in you, you weren't interested in me. every time i spoke and said "well there is that image, but really if you were to talk to half the country, or the kids on this trip, or if you were to talk to someone else, you'll discover that there's .... whatever" you would respond with "i'm making a generalization here". AND I'M DUMB?? no darling, you are. one of the first things you learn in school is that generalizations don't work.
finally, by the end of the conversation, she said "well i guess there are two types of americans, ones who are mean and don't care about the world, and others who are really friendly" and i said "well i think it's sad that it seems like so much of my country is so egotistcal and self-centered. really i don't think it speaks of the people but of the education of those people. i wouldn't blame the actual citizens, but the politics. and the small children who are 8, and taught in school that the US is the best, don't have control over that do they?" and she shut up.
fact of the matter is, there are a lot of people here who i have met who seem to think that (especially american girls) are all dumb, and self-centered, and close-minded. they judge me before they know me. and it drives me up a wall. i think last night, i made progress with the italians and a french guy who i had met a week ago and wound up seeing, because i finally said (in french) "leave me alone. you're judging me all the time. i feel like i can't do anything right, and all i want to do is get to know you people." and they did. they left me alone and treated me like a person. FINALLY. we talked, we hung out. it was nice.
i expected for there to be some friction because i'm american. but i wasn't prepared for it.