Re: Canadians
jason varsoke (jjv@caesun.msd.ray.com)
Thu, 29 Jul 1999 14:57:54 -0400 (EDT)
On Thu, 29 Jul 1999 erespess@inil.com wrote:
> >But I don't know about the people being that
> >much nicer. People are people no matter where you go, you know?
>
> people are people, but cultures can differ. and the usa is not known by
> travelers to be full of kind people. i was only in canada for one evening,
> so i can't claim to know what i'm talking about. i can only tell you what
> i experienced. and on my little excursion, the people i ran into on the
> street were remarkably friendly and helpful. strangers weren't cold and
> indifferent. cashiers weren't annoyed if i asked for directions. maybe
> that's because minimum wage is better in canada, so people aren't as
> annoyed to be sitting there in the first place. i can't quite put my
> finger on it, i just felt a sense of genuine kindness that is much more
> rare here. but that's just my experience.
hmmm, sounds like you were south of the Mason-Dixon line if you ask me.
The problem is that most travellers visit NYC and make their decision
there. They're also influenced by all the hype around the city. It's
really not as bad as people say, as long as you look like you belong. God
help you if you don't. I've hand plenty of experiences in NYC that are
contrary to the rumors. Three guys picked up an old lady to carry her
across a side street when it was flooded with less than an inch of water
because she was so upset she was going to ruin her new shoes. It was
pretty funny. She was complaining right up until the light changed, just
talking to herself and cussing out Guliani. These three guys just looked
at each other, never said a word, just lifted her up and carried her
across the street, one carried her grociery bag. The plopped her down
gave her the groceries and took off. She was just stunned. Personally I
think they were just sick of her complaining, but never the less. NYC has
an odd way of doing things, but the people are still people. Like it says
on a T-shirt I found in the E. Village: "8 million people living together
in peace, and a hand full of assholes who get their name in the papers."
-j