tom1
Rain
It's one of the things that struck us when we moved to the US. Here, you make eye contact with someone, you say "hi". Back home, you don't acknowledge, until you know the person.
 
 
 
I talk to many newcomers to the U.S. when I walk my pooch at the local park and they say the same thing. They seem genuinely impressed with the friendliness of the American public in general.

Kind of nice.

Pretty much everything I thought I knew about us back in Quebec and the US was distorted or a lie. The funniest thing is that we're indoctrinated to believe that we're good, caring, warm people - and nothing is further from the truth. But we really believe it with all our hearts.
 
I couldn't go back there. Sometimes we look at ourselves, the way we think, the way we talk, and live and realize that there's no going back. 
 
My wife was too much to handle for them, anyway. :P

bapu

Rain
Imagine the damage a Plexi could do... :P

Fire juan up and sea?

Not sure this'd work.
 

tom1
Rain
It's one of the things that struck us when we moved to the US. Here, you make eye contact with someone, you say "hi". Back home, you don't acknowledge, until you know the person.
 
 
 
I talk to many newcomers to the U.S. when I walk my pooch at the local park and they say the same thing. They seem genuinely impressed with the friendliness of the American public in general.

Kind of nice.

We visited our daughter in Germany a few years ago. Wow, people seem to think you are insane if you speak to them, smile at them, or even acknowledge their presence. I did it anyway. It got to be sort of funny.
J 

My ex-wife is from Romania - she grew up in a Communist regime, and everybody turned everybody else in to the secret police, so there wasn't too much neighboring going on.
 
On the bright side of that, she doesn't talk to me much these days.
 
Isn't Canada a suburb of Detroit?  hee hee
 
I played basketball in a bunch of different countries, and was fortunate to experience a bunch of different cultures.  In some places, when folks ask how you are doing, it's because they really want to know, and if you ask them in passing how THEY are doing, you will get picture of the grand kids and an invitation to grab a switch and take a steam.  Other places, they seem to get annoyed and sometimes frightened when you approach them and talk or make eye contact.
 
It's a big planet.
 
Bob Bone
 

I'm not sure about the rest of Canada - as I said, a lot of us are indoctrinated to see them as the enemy. Unless you spend a lot of time on the outside, it's something that's hard to break free from. Both my wife and I experienced similar "awakenings", though she was very nationalist to begin with, whereas, I've always preferred to keep my distance from any movement or system of idea. Nevertheless, there were still a lot of things I took for granted.
 
As for Quebec, where we supposedly are the warmest folks, you usually do your best not to be forced into acknowledging a stranger. This whole "us against them" mindset affect the entire attitude towards strangers and even amongst ourselves. If you even so much as question this hardcore socialism that prevails back home and have even just a hint of ambition, you're a traitor. You always need to think in terms of the collective.
 
They should call it Queborg. 
 

Rain
As for Quebec, where we supposedly are the warmest folks, you usually do your best not to be forced into acknowledging a stranger. 

That's the French component making itself known. 
 
I've met quite a few Canadians that come down from that "other" Vancouver (I'm now back to living in the Washington state one) and they have pretty much all been very easy going and engaging.  I've had some stay at my house when they came for a tournament (and I still had a house  ) and my roommate is currently dating a lass from there now.  I guess the west coast of the Great White North is less stand-offish.

Isn't Canada a suburb of Detroit?  hee hee
 
When I was someone else, in 1971, we went to Ontario. Through downtown Detroit, under the lake and out into Windsor, Ontario.. it was like going from a dump into a garden. Everything in Detroit was literally brown or gray. We came out into Windsor and there were really wide sidewalks with trees planted in little places, flowers, it was beautiful. Detroit literally had trash on the sidewalks. I have never seen such a difference in such a short span time or space. We went on the NCHA Campvention in Brantford (had my first Chinese food there), from there to spend a few days in Bancroft (collected some great mineral specimens), to North Bay, to Sudbury, up to hwy 11, and over to Thunder Bay (still have some huge amethyst crystals from the amethyst mine there) , then made our way back to GA.
..but I digress into memory. Detroit to Windsor is like going from night to day (or it was in 1971).
My daughter visited Ireland last year, she said it is a lot like the American south. People wave at strangers etc. The American south was settled mostly by the Irish, I guess it makes sense.
 
 

jbow
Isn't Canada a suburb of Detroit?  hee hee
 
When I was someone else, in 1971, we went to Ontario. Through downtown Detroit, under the lake and out into Windsor, Ontario.. it was like going from a dump into a garden. Everything in Detroit was literally brown or gray. We came out into Windsor and there were really wide sidewalks with trees planted in little places, flowers, it was beautiful. Detroit literally had trash on the sidewalks. I have never seen such a difference in such a short span time or space. 

I still sort-of remember seeing the Niagara Falls from both sides of the border back in the 60's (in fact, the last time I was anywhere east of Colorado inside the U.S. was in 1969).
 
But I also had a very similar contrast in cities in 1981 when I went from Rothenburg West Germany into East Germany (at Checkpoint Charlie).  Talk about going from paradise into the bleakest city I've ever seen!

I DO know that transition.  I am 6'9", and got to play basketball in a bunch of different countries.
 
We went on a pro-team tournament trip through East Germany.  It LITERALLY had guys that looked like they were right out of Hogan's Heroes with sub-machines and dogs (they were looking for someone as our train rolled into the station).  It was quite scary looking.
 
The town was called Chemnitz.
 
Turns out we just had to get everybody drunk after the game and then we all had a great time.
 
Bob Bone