Travelers, America’s humble envoys

Reading “12 Tips for Bridging the Cultural Divide” [Jan. 23], I was reminded of my trip to Europe and the constant, exhausting struggle to be “a de facto ambassador” for my country.

An old Greek woman on the island of Corfu mistakenly complimented my traveling companion and me for being well-mannered British, “not like those rude Americans.” Rather than embarrass her, we let it go.

I’ll never forget the young Italian I met on a beach in Sorrento, Italy, who started our conversation with “I hate Americans.” After an afternoon discussing communism and trade unions, imperialism and foreign aid, Italian films and American rock ‘n’ roll, we parted as friends.

Author Jeff Greenwald is asking us to listen, to be patient, to respect, to be humble. I was struck by the paradox: Can a person be proud and humble at the same time? Can a country? I say yes. To me that seems to be the definition of the wise traveler or the truly great country.

In those tiny personal interactions we show our leaders how to live in peace with our neighbors on the rest of the planet.

James Blythe

Valley Village