www.CostaRicaTicas.com

Hey guys,

If you read my original post "SCHMUCKS WITH BAD ATTITUDES!", you'll see that there is no reference to any nationality. I think these guys are SCHMUCKS no matter where they are from or where they live.

Common courtesy is not and should not be considered a trait that is based on geography. My point is simple. A SCHMUCK is a SCHMUCK wherever he may be and wherever he is from if he treats people with little or no respect. There is NO excuse.

Respect and common courtesy for anyone is just a little moral that I live by.

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"We few, we happy few, we band of brothers" - Maybe Shakespeare was a CRT member?

I agree with the sentiment that it is not just an "American" thing, but a type of social misfit that comes down here. I also have to say, this behavior is more noticeable in the Delrey than any other place in Costa Rica. Fortunately I have seen it very rarely with any of our CRT brotherhood...but you dont usually see this behavior in the regular tourists, eco tour types that come down here to the same extent. I have gotten to the point in 3.5 yrs here that I really dont try to meet new guys at the Delrey. I only go to see our CRT brethren and the ever entertaining game of the ladies. But generally I feel very little in common with the "typical" Delrey mongerer. I hate admitting this, but it's the truth...

Circus,

I have some limited experience with folks from other foreign countries here. First, I have no experience with Saudis either here or there. I have with German and French in both places. While the French were not open to Americans in France; actually, kind of rude, the French folks that I have had contact with in the U.S. were OK.

Likewise were the Germans that I have encountered visiting the U.S. Also, the first time that I was in Germany I had driven from Utrect, on thew A12 in Holland, to Germany and proceeded on the autobahn towards Dusseldorf. After a while I was not certain of directions, and pulled off at an exit to confirm where I was going at a Service Station. None of the folks available spoke English, and I did not speak German. One of the guys that worked there went to a near by house (about a block away) annd returned with a lady that spoke English; and she provided the directions I needed. Pretty good service, and I doubt that would happen in very many places in the U.S. Mabe I was lucky that day.

The country that I have seen bigger inconsiderate assholes than some people from the U.S. can be are the folks from the U.K. They are assholes there, on the Europe mainland, and in the U.S. The last time that I was in London, I tried to get some directions from several people there, and always they would just turn their heads and walk away with no response. Another example, I was at a Pub accross the street from the Hotel that I was staying at, and met a guy from Colorado that was working in the U.K. Actually, as it turned out we went to the same school, however at different times. He did not like being there, and was anxious to return back home. It was Happy Hour and he and two other guys were drinking with around 10 British ladies, and the guy invited me to join them. I tried to be friendly to the ladies, and not even a friendly response. My new found acquaintance and I walked up to the bar to get some more pints, and I asked him what was with the chicks, and he said that is because you are an obvious "Yank". He also said that if it were just him and myself, without the other two Brits, that the chicks would warm up, and that I could probably "shag" one.

Also, saw the Brits act worse in Amsterdam than any Gringo I have ever seen in CR. London to Amsterdam is only a 45 minute flight, and a lot of folks from the U.K. go there every weekend for the dope and providers.

A couple of other comments were made, about every foreigner trying to make their way to the U.S. I agree, that this is partially true, and my comments about being humble in other countries was only mentioned because a lot of these folks in there home countries really resent the wealth that we enjoy, and sometimes take for granted; and I have seen other U.S. citizerns flaunt it, which is really resented at the "local" level.

Also, regarding the effort a lot of these people exercise to get to the U.S. (legal or illegal) is to try to find a better perceived life than they currently have, whether that is political, monetary, etc.

Anyway, mabe some answers and more comments.

Denver

YO Denver:
I too have run into some hard nose Brits. They are definitely difficult in many cases to agree with Yank opinion. Guess I have a fondness for the Scots......perhaps I partied with them too much but I really love the countryside.

In closing, it is an ever changing political along with culture change evolving in this big world and I miss the more quieter or simpler times of the 50's thru 70's even though we had the cold war. But, it was a much more enjoyable time for travel with less personal agendas than we have today. Could be the reason I no longer travel abroad.

Life seem more simple then........I miss that.

[quote="Denver". He also said that if it were just him and myself, without the other two Brits, that the chicks would warm up, and that I could probably "shag" one. .........................you should have bought black stocking's, cigarettes and chocolate,i,ve heard it worked rather well, for a shag in the past......

Circus,

I have met some Scots here in the U.S. that were great folks; however, never went to Scotland. From what I understand, those folks were basically "nationalized" by the folks from the South around six hundred years ago; and unlike the Irish, have somewhat accepted it while maintaining their own cultural identity.

Also, most all of the folks in Western Europe really do not like us; although, most treat us pretty decent (exept for the Brits and French), and they would ever want to live in the U.S. However, Western Europe WATCH OUT FOR CHINA AND INDIA, the days of the European Union might be difficult in the near future, and experience some turmoil. The lack of efficient productivity and high production costs in Western Europe is really impacting their ability to remain a Global competitor.

Most all of my travel is business related, I always take some free time to get out for a few days on my own.

Actually, you and I met for the first time at the BM on Holloween Happy Hour that Rico, CRS, put together, 2002, Cygnus, DMan, and a few others were there as well. I recall you, Cygnus, and myself talking about Viet Nam; and I am a Vet to.

Take Care Bro,

Denver

YO Osgood:
One of the quite pleasant and intelligent persons I met this last trip. Wish we could have spent more time together. It's funny but the Brits that I have known in past years and that were friends have always been warm and accepted me without politics being an issue. It's in the last several years that not all, but a fair share, seem to be so political. Perhaps it's just the ones I have ncountered I suppose.

I do not like the current climate in international society.

I feel I must come to the defense of the Brittish, in a limited way at least. I have spent considerable time in England, but away from London. I think it's quite true that people in London tend to be rude and are intolerant of visitors, see them as a nuisance. I think the same is pretty true in a lot of MAJOR tourist destinations, Paris, and New York being two prime examples.

On the other hand, I have had nothing but fun and friendliness away from London. I have been treated with kindness and felt like I was not just welcome, but as if I were some sort of treasure. I have friends in the Manchester area and also down in Portsmouth. In either place I have people who would sit around for hours just to hear my adorable Yankee accent.

But on the OTHER other hand. I have seen the Brittish sex-tourist louts too, similar to the soccer-fan louts. The working girls of Prague said they hated the Brittish the most of all, even more than the Germans. But I would compare that to the scene in Tijuana. I think you will see the worst behaved Americans there, not in Prague or Amsterdam because the young and poor can't afford to go there. Likewise, the Brittish that visit Costa Rica arent' the ones on a sex-holiday for the weekend from Holloway.

So to generalize further, the young, lower-class males that go on sex or soccer holiday are definitely jerks. Londoners are jaded. That still leaves the best part of the country.

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"The only normal people are those you don't know very well." Joe Ancis

To Bilko:

Nice post. I lived near Oxford for 4 years and I have been to England many times, however spend most of it away from London and find the Brits very warm toward me.

You also distinguished well between the young soccer and sex holiday guys and the more well to do guys in England.

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I hope this is the last of any post regarding behavior of ANYONE in Costa Rica, because those that are jerks will be jerks regardless so writing about what you see in Costa Rica with regard to behavior isn't going to change anything. What it does is simply create a post of many opinions which in the end matter none and aren't in the slightest related to what CRT is all about.

I'll not reply to post such as these anymore.

hey younger circus,my thespian friend i,m still trying to recall the albert finney food fight movie,feeling's are mutual mi amigo!

Circus, Osgood, Denver, Bilko;

Need to put my two colones in here:
Have been traveling the world for almost 40 years now and I have always noticed how other Americans act overseas. As a young GI in Germany, I couldn't help noticing how many bars, resturants and hotels which catered to the GI's were named "New York Bar", "Uncle Sam's Place" or "Texas Bar". You get the idea. Most of my buddies would flock to these type of establishments, get drunk, make assholes of themselves and stagger back to the post at 4:00AM to stand revelie at 5:00.
Being pu*sy hungry and young, dumb and full of C*m, I looked at the situation, evaluated the competition and came to the conclusion that 1. I needed to learn German and 2. I needed to get away from the immeadiate area of the post. I immersed myself in German and German culture, bought a bike and traveled out to the smallest villages in quest of pu*sy and guess what? I found it and truly had no competition. I found that the people would go out of theier way when they saw that I truly was interested in them, their language and their customs. They treated me with respect as I did them. Some took me home for a good meal and even introduced me to thier daughters. In short, I had a blast and could never understand why my buddies spent all day griping about "Conrad" and thier inabilty to get any pu*sy.

The above set the standard for my actions while traveling overseas for the rest of my life. I have enjoyed meeting people worldwide for over 40 years of traveling the world. I have taken the time to learn as much as I can about my destinations and the cultures practiced there. This of course includes Costa Rica which I now call home. Like I did when I was 19, I learned the language, customs and got to know the people. I have a lot of friends here and a good deal of them are Ticos and Ticas.

In closing, I wince everytime I go to the gultch and hear Americans being obnoxious, loud and drunk. The only thing I say is under my breath is; "Tonto Gringo" which draws a laugh from my Costa Rican friends.

Just my two colones,
LVSteve
PS: The only place my M.O. failed me was in Paris but I found that it worked in the rest of France.

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Just an old horney, fat gambler.

YO LV:
I'll second that. Good post and I can relate since I have done very similiar things, especially riding 2nd and 3rd class carriage on the rails in Europe. Also made friends with the goats and chickens in 3rd.

Of course you are such a lovable, sweet and hugable hombre.....that helps.

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Damn if I'm going to repeat this shit again. I need a drink.
I've been drinking vodka every day for 45 years and I have certainly never found it to be habit forming.

Yo Osgood. Food fight was Tom Jones. Perhaps the most erotic use of food in a movie ever.

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Y.N.W.A.

cheer's, koppite............

I've been traveling to a good number of countries each year, thankfully spending a lot of time in havens like CR, Argentina and Brazil. While there is truth to the 'Ugly American' thing, I would like to point out that monger-tourists should get a little break. We are simply accosted from the time we get through customs until back in the departure lounge.

Dealing with the professional chicas is not easy, and bad things happen to nice mongers who let their guards down. Unfortunately, the response for many is a bit severe -- treating chicas and other local countrymen like used car salesmen. While better methods should/could be employed, I think you can chalk-up a lot of the negative observations to people dealing with a stressful situation.

In other parts of the world, I've noticed much more sublime Americans. While narrow in our perception of the world, many seem to realize that the world's view of us needs to improve, and seem to be conscious of their behavior. Either that, or I've unwittingly become the overbearing obnoxcious American incapable of noticing such things.

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SlickWings


Seems like I spend half my life drinking, gambling, and mongering. The other half... I waste.