Why everyone in a foreign country can tell you’re American

Are you headed abroad this summer?

While some of us might be eager to blend, turns out we might as well not bother.

That’s according to the many Europeans who responded to a recent Reddit post, insisting that Americans can be spotted from a mile away, sometimes without even opening our mouths.

Here were some of the most interesting responses to the question, “What’s an obvious sign someone’s American?”

“I’ve always observed that my friends from the US like to point at stuff while walking and narrate what it is. We were out walking around Amsterdam recently and they were like, ‘Hey, look, it’s a smoke shop’…‘Oh, look, a sex shop’…’Look at the canal.’ It was like watching Netflix with audio descriptions turned on,” one local joked.

“They give gentle grins to strangers as they pass by and make eye contact. It may be received in the Midwest, but not so much in Germany,” another chimed in.

“When asked how far away something is, an American will tell how you long it takes to get there in minutes as opposed to the physical distance,” someone observed.

“They always look cheerful and are constantly smiling and looking happy. Tourists from other places appear more neutral or even unhappy,” said another.

“I worked as a cashier in a touristy area of Paris. I always recognized Americans immediately because they were especially friendly to me and they always left tips,” a grateful Frenchman shared.

Some of the tells were extremely obvious, respondents said — for example, tipping.

“Americans will try to tip everyone, even in countries where tipping isn’t a thing and can even be considered insulting,” someone pointed out.

“They always order ice in their water,” another mentioned.

“They ask, ‘How’s your day going?’ or ‘How are you doing?’ in completely random circumstances,” one noted of our love of familiarity.

“They act so amazed by things that are more than 200 years old, presumably because they don’t have many things that old in the USA,” a history buff mused.

“They drive from one shop to the next, even if it’s only a 50-meter walk,” joked a foreigner, referencing the American penchant for driving.

“They ask, ‘So, what do you do?’ right after meeting someone. It’s not a faux pas or anything, but it’s just something that seems to be more important to Americans,” another mentioned.

“When they claim to be one-eighth German, one-eighth Irish, one-sixteenth Scottish, one-sixteenth Spanish, three-eighths French, and one-fourth Canadian,” joked another still.

Americans joined in the fun as well, sharing their own observations from their time abroad.

“In Salzburg, I went to pick up something from the drugstore. As I was checking out, I said hello to the cashier (thinking there was very little difference between how I said it and how Austrians say it). But the cashier immediately started speaking to me in English. I asked her how she knew I was American, and she stared at me in the eye and said, ‘Hellloooo.’ I just about died laughing. I’m a very stereotypical friendly American who says hello exactly like that. It’s one of my favorite memories from that trip,” one traveler recounted.

 “Someone asked if I was American in a group setting, and another person spoke up before I could respond. He said, ‘Of course he’s American, look at his teeth. Apparently, most Americans get braces,” another said.

“When I lived in Europe, people said only Americans eat while walking. If I was eating a bagel or something on the way to work or class, multiple people would ask if I was American,” a former expat revealed.

“An Italian told me that Americans walk confidently in the wrong direction,” someone else chimed in.

“An Italian told me he could tell I was American right away because I wore my sunglasses on the top of my head when I wasn’t using them,” claimed another.

“They drink coffee in to-go cups. My partner’s Italian mother absolutely can’t get over the idea of seeing people walk around holding coffees. Americans are the only ones who don’t enjoy their coffee while seated at a café,” an insider shared.

“In my homestay in London, I was told that I was ‘so American’ for enjoying a piece of cake for breakfast. I’m not talking frosted cake, but a slice of coffee cake with nuts and dried fruit. Apparently, in Europe this should exclusively be eaten as an afternoon snack,” one sweets lover pointed out.

“To quote a Latvian woman I met at a hostel: ‘You hear Americans coming like the thunder.’ More often than not, if people are talking and laughing louder than everyone else, they’re American,” another said.