I don't know if this topic would cause me any problem or not, I just want to share my point of view about the relationship between people and people in America.
I usually use the bus to go to school as my main transportation. When I first came in the bus, the bus driver would say:" Hi, how are you?" with a warm welcome. It was really impressive to me because I even didn't know him. Then I recognized that it was just an polite behavior and normal attitude. Also in the bus, people talked to each other as if they had known each other for a long time even though they just met for few minutes. With just an simple sentence or question, they would talk and discuss about it for half an hour in a very friendly and humor atmosphere. It is impossible in Vietnam.
While talking about this, it reminds me about some awkward experiences. One time, when I was waiting for the bus on the corner of Guadalupe and 24th street, there was one guy who wear a very formal suit. He came to me and sat next to me. I guess he was not original American but he was a native speaker; and he was really handsome, I swear. He was on the phone and he frequently looked at me and smiled. I felt really awkward at that time. After finishing his phone call, he suddenly looked at me and said something really fast, that I just could caught one part "...I love you!" Frankly, I was almost freezing. After getting back my calm, I asked him: " Sorry, what did you said?" Then, I recognized I misunderstood him; he asked : "What do you think when a boy call a girl and said "I love you" while he was drunk ?" I was shocked again because of that spontaneous question. Out of the blue, there was another guy just came and heard that question, he answered it and they started discussing about it while I was sitting between them in silence.
In addition, I was walking to school from the Co-op, there was one guy who is making an interview on the street. I tried to avoid him by walking faster and bowing my head, but he finally chased after me and caught my hand. I knew that I had better give him few minutes. I said "no" to all the questions and suggestions that he gave me about giving money to help saving the polar bears; yet he was always smiling and even getting more exciting. Then, to finish the interview and let me walk away, he said "give me a hug" and then just hug me without waiting for my answer.
*Source: image "People" from deviantART.com
I have the same problem with you. When I waited for the bus few month ago, a homeless-looking person came to me and chatted with me like "are you a student?","what's your major?",etc. I felt very uncomfortable when he asked more and more. In addition, I can't really understand his English very well. So I just smile and nod. Therefore, he found somebody else to talk. I think we should try to practice English with them and don't think too much about how will they think about us. I guess that they don't care at all.
ReplyDelete