"The traveler sees what he sees. The tourist sees what he has come to
see."
- G.K. Chesterton
Last month, I returned from the US, after having lived there for few years. Naturally, many people are tempted to inquire me about difference between the two countries. Though not always keen to talk on this subject, I have been honest about what differences I have been able to observe and experience. A couple of days ago, sitting at a café, I mulled over the conversations about the US, post my return. I was familiar with the pattern, but was not able express my experience. Suddenly, I remembered this ancient story, which I had read as a kid and I was able to exactly relate to the ideas and opinions which I had encountered. The story of seven blind men and the elephant. In case if you are not familiar, read the below rewritten version of the same.
A sage while passing through a village, asks the bystanders, seven blind men, to go to the elephant and explain how they thought the elephant looked like. The first blind man goes, touches the tusks and reports, “this creature is like a plowshare.” The next one goes, touches the ear, and upon returning says, “this creature is like a winnowing basket.” Then the third one goes, touches the body and exclaims, “this creature is like a granary.” The fourth one touches the foot and says, “this creature is like a pillar.” The next one goes, touches the back and says, “this creature is like a mortar.” The sixth man goes, touches the tail and says, “this creature is like a pestle.” Then the last man goes, touches the trunk and says, “this creature is like a plow.”
In reality, they were all correct, but they were all wrong too. For each of them touched only one part of the animal. Similarly, the US, like the elephant, is enormous, with unparalleled diversity. So, it is very likely that all the descriptions of the US, both geographically and in terms of culture, you have heard so far is through men, who didn't realize they were blind in reality. Relying on others’ version of the US would make you draw misleading conclusions. My recommendation is, go there and experience it personally.
So, what is the US like, in reality? Like many claim, “is it a desert”, “is it a mountain”, “is it corn-field”, “is it surrounded by ocean”, “is it very cold”, “is it very hot” etc. Each description is only partially true. To get the correct picture, one has to travel a lot in the US. And what are the people of the US like? Having lived there, I was lucky enough to build relations with some of them, just like a family. My honest answer is there is not much of difference between aspirations of people, be it America or India or any other part of the world. In my experience, Americans are among the warmest of people you can meet in life. However if you expect an American to interact with you in the same manner, as someone from your own country would do, there cannot be a bigger wrong expectation. So, how Americans are, would essentially depend on who you are, how you interact with them and above all what you expect out of them? This probably works, not just in case of the Americans, but for anyone in general.
