I thought it was weird, too. My city’s school system actually mandates white trainers for students and teachers alike.
There are two reasons why you don’t want to look like a tourist:
- You are a target for robbers: the solution: carry no jewelry and dress in cheap, worn-out clothing. It also helps to avoid logos on your clothing.
- You are a target for push street vendors: ditto the above. also, when asked a question, reply with a meaningless line of gibberish
You can avoid all of this by dressing like a mormon missionary-and constantly ask people if they want a copy of the book of mormon.
And if you are young and female, depending on where you are, you are a target for that slimy subsector of society that thinks that American women will have sex with anyone at all, on very short acquaintance.
I usually try to look like a courteous tourist. I don’t mind if they know I’m a tourist, just so that I’m courteous. I’m usually treated well.
“Excuse me, I’m new in your country and would like to try your country’s best beer.”
Of course, the one guy in France gave me a Belgian beer, but I’m guessing that is because France doesn’t have too many beers.
I must have really stood out in the UK. White sneakers and a baseball cap most of the time. On the other hand, the places I went were tourist meccas: Tower of London, the British Museum, St Pauls, etc… So it’s certainly not always important to avoid looking like a tourist. To me, it’s just a matter of being respectful.
That and hiding your money well.
Are these Americans visiting the great tourist sites or being parachuted in as spies???
Seriously? Don’t ask for American condiments? Here’s a hint: They’ll know you’re not a local when you open your mouth. There’s no escaping it. There’s no reason to, really, unless you are indeed a spy. Most people I’ve met while travelling were happy that I was visiting their town/restaurant and very happy that I knew some of their language. It could be that I was a small, young woman, but people were often particularly protective, giving me extra directions before I asked, and recommending things to do or places to eat.
That said, I agree that there are some things you want to avoid: looking like a clueless tourist (big map open at the corner of a busy intersection - someone will grab your bag while you’re staring hopelessly), and looking like a rude tourist (wearing overly-revealing clothes). The latter can be dangerous as well.
I guess demanding ketchup or ice where none is offered could be rude, if you do it with an air of “why don’t these Europeans get it.” But I really don’t think that it’s a realistic goal to blend in entirely.
(Also, tourists don’t just wear white athletic shoes and baseball caps to be annoyingly American. We wear them because we are walking all day. When I “did” Europe, I was on my feet from 8 in the morning until 10 at night. I would have dressed like a European businesswoman if I had been going to work in a European office.)
They don’t need to worry-- Because Americans don’t feel threatened by Europeans, and don’t hate them.
McDonalds arches look garish and scary to Europeans*, so they disdain American tourists and sometimes make them feel unwelcome, even at legitimate tourist attractions.
But the reverse is not common: Americans rarely make Europeans feel unwelcome (and those who do hate them don’t hang around the tourist attractions–they usually live in trailer parks where the tourists won’t have any contact with them.)
*(and sometimes rightly so, when the Arches loom over the local cultural landmarks.)
[Minor Nitpick]There are plenty of other options for walking shoes than white sneakers. Those options usually look a lot better. [/minor nitpick]
Europeans feel threatened and hate Americans? News to me. In all the times I’ve been to Europe, Europeans on the whole have been polite and friendly.
Under no circumstances allow a gorilla to test your luggage.
They forgot to add losing 30 pounds to the list.
I’ve heard that in some countries, proselytizing is, in itself, a criminal offence.
Actually, they’ll know you’re not a native when you open your mouth. But fitting in better (even if not perfectly) with the locals is an attainable goal, at least in big cities.
For what it’s worth, I’ll never speak French like a Parisian, but when I lived in Paris I was rarely taken for an American. People guessed German, English, Irish, Belgian, and Canadian, but speaking quietly and avoiding sneakers (and, I suppose, staying out of McDonald’s) did throw people off the scent.
Seriously. Be courteous and proud. Wear your Obama 08 button to buy yourself some international policy cred.
Yup. An American friend of mine toured Germany when she was in her late teens. In some coffee place, a group of Italian men noticed that they were speaking English, but as is common for non-native speakers, they couldn’t place the accent. So they asked if the girls were British or American. When my friend’s group replied that they were American, the testosterone level rose appreciably.
While I try not to dress like an American while traveling, I don’t pretend to pass as a native (fork hand, language, etc.) Once a local described Americans as dressing like children preparing to do lawn work.
Oddly though, I have found that I will inevitably be asked for directions within 3 hours of arriving in a new city. This is true visiting cities in the US and abroad. When I explain that I just arrived myself, people always tell me that I look like I know where I’m going. Curious, that.
I’ve traveled extensively and I don’t think I was ever mistreated for being American. The advice listed only really helps you in Western European countries anyway, you can’t blend in in China even without the sneakers.
It worked just fine for me in the Soviet Union. I may not have been mistaken for a local, or a native Russian speaker, but apparently the combo of appearance and accent in Russian was good enough to get me mistaken for, say, an Armenian. And unless I ran into some anti-Caucasian skinheads, being mistaken for Armenian was a lot less likely to get me into trouble than if they knew I was American.
Same in Spain: I have a bit of an accent in Spanish (which I don’t speak like a Spaniard, anyway), but I could tell people I was, say, Italian and get away with it. At least then guys wouldn’t think I was going to have sex with them because they bought me a drink.
Actually, when I was in Europe I wore hideous Columbia sport sandals. They were truly hideous, I don’t pretend they weren’t, but they literally bounced when I walked. 
Seriously, I agree that there isn’t really a need for athletic shoes as daily footwear, but some tourism is like athletic activity.
Okay, if the goal is not to be taken for AMERICAN. Is the ugly American stereotype still so strong that you’d be better off being assumed to be Canadian? What I meant is just what you said, you will never be seen as a native, and in a city centre in high tourist season, that’s what you’re assumed to be. (I lived in Quebec City for a year as an Anglo Canadian. In the winter, people asked me in French what I was studying (assuming I was an exchange student). In the summer, they switched to English and asked if I was up for the weekend.)
Huh, really? I’ve only seen one onsen here with actual signs (well, actual picture signs, anyway-- though I can read tattoo in katakana) banning tatts. And friends with a couple of them have no trouble getting in, and no one stares. Maybe if you’re gaijin it’s easier to get away with?
I’ll have to ask my tattoo’d J friends next time I see them.