去美国的时候，有哪些事情绝对不要去做？
What should I absolutely not do when visiting the USA?
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作为一个从游客变成当地居民的人，给你以下建议。
正文翻译
What should I absolutely not do when visiting the USA?
有什么事情是去美国的时候绝对不能做的？
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, Traveled and lived in the US for almost 4 years now
Richard Redmond
, lives in The United States of America
Take this from a tourist-turned-resident.
1. Don't trust the Americans when it comes to the attractiveness of tourist traps
After being in New York for almost four years now, I have come to share my opinion with the locals on how boring and annoying Times Square is. However, anyone who has never been to New York loves being here - and you should never take the locals' word on how boring or tourist-trap-y a place is. It might not be a daily excitement for the people who have been here for a long time, but it is iconic and you'd probably kick yourself later if you don't go. Enjoy it, and enjoy it all - Statue of Liberty, Times Square, Empire State Building...do avoid Port Authority though. That place is a mess.
2. Don't downplay the locals' opinion when it comes to the potential dangers of said tourist traps
On the flip side, do trust the locals on what to be careful about at these places. The Times Square costumed-hagglers, the no-restroom-New-Years-Eve-Times-Square, the exorbitant price of New York Water Taxi, the fake taxi at JFK Airport, the long lines at Empire State Building and Rockefeller Tower... Locals have been here long enough for the disillusionment to set in, and while not being excited about tourist traps might be a downside, knowing the potential problems of these places is the upside. Trust locals on this, and ask them about it.
作为一个从游客变成当地居民的人，给你以下建议。
1. 在旅游陷阱的吸引力上，不要相信美国人。
在纽约呆了快四年了，我已经和当地人一样，认为时代广场是非常无聊和烦人的了。然而，任何一个没来过纽约的人都会喜欢上这里--你千万不要听信当地人的话，说一个地方有多无聊或旅游陷阱。对于在这里呆了很久的人来说，可能已经对它失去了兴奋感，但它还是是标志性的，如果你不去一趟，以后可能会后悔。好好享受吧，自由女神像、时代广场、帝国大厦......不过要避开港务局。那个地方很乱。
2. 当涉及到上述旅游陷阱的潜在危险时，不要轻视当地人的意见。
反过来说，要相信当地人的话，在这些地方要小心什么。时代广场的骗子、挤到爆时代广场新年夜、价格过于高昂的纽约水上出租车、肯尼迪机场的假出租车、帝国大厦和洛克菲勒大厦的长队......当地人在这里呆的时间长了，兴奋劲没有了，虽然对旅游陷阱不兴奋可能是缺点，但知道这些地方的潜在问题是个优点。在这一点上要相信当地人，并向他们询问。
USA, USA, USA - the Americans think their country is top-notch and the best in everything, even when they don't say it or say otherwise. The teachers who complain about how the US ranks 27th in Mathematics will still feel disgruntled when you appear to share your disbelief at the wreck that is the Common Core. Americans are especially touchy about this, so keep your opinions to yourself. If this is a short trip, I think it would be natural - even with all the mess the USA is still an amazing place, and it will be easy to be awed by this wonderful country. Except if you're Canadian, or from the Scandinavian countries. Don't judge.
4. Don't display opinions about sports - especially "American" sports
There is one thing that many Americans are even more passionate about than their patriotic pride and that's their sports. Don't be annoyed about how "football" seems more like handegg (goodness gracious, that over-sized olive pit is in no way a "ball"!), or how the real football is played with 11 players on each side and a real spherical ball. Don't say things like "soccer is football actually". Don't show the weird face when Americans go overboard about hockey, baseball, basketball or the Super Bowl. Do not even mention that baseball, the favourite pastime of America, originated from a street game in Britain called the diamond.
3. 不要拿你的国家和美国相比。永远不要。
USA，USA，USA--美国人认为自己的国家是一流的，什么都是最好的，即使他们没有用语言来表达，也会在其他方面表现出来。即使是那些抱怨美国数学只排名第27位的老师们，当你和他们讨论，对他们的教学大纲表达怀疑的时候，他们还是会感到不满。美国人对这个问题特别敏感，所以你的意见就不要多说了。如果这是一次短途旅行，我想这是很自然的事情--即使有那么多的烂摊子，美国仍然是一个很棒的地方，会很容易被这个美好的国家所惊艳。除非你是加拿大人，或者来自斯堪的纳维亚国家。否则不要对他们进行评判。
4. 不要发表对体育--尤其是"美国"体育的看法。
有一件事，很多美国人对待它甚至比他们的爱国自豪感更热衷，那就是他们的运动。不要恼怒于他们的"足球"看起来更像handegg（手上的蛋，天哪，那个超大的橄榄核绝不是"球"！），也不要恼怒于真正的足球其实是每边11名球员和一个真正的球形的球。不要跟他们说什么"足球其实就是脚下踢得球"之类的话。当美国人对曲棍球、棒球、篮球或超级碗过度关注时，不要露出奇怪的表情。甚至不要提到，美国人最喜欢的消遣--棒球，起源于英国的一种叫做“棱形”的街头游戏。
I never tip in my country, waitresses and waiters where I'm from get paid enough and you should only tip when you're being treated especially well! That's what I thought fresh off the boat. In the US, the issue is a bit muddled - servers are not paid comfortably to live without tips in most places, and yet people still hold to the notion that tips are gifts. At the same time, it is generally expected that you tip regardless as well. Trust me when I say Americans are slowly realising the conundrum and working on it, but for now as a tourist just tip 15% or more.
6. Don't discuss race/gender issues or happenings
Americans are especially proud about how open-minded and diverse their society is, and for good reason, even when troubles persist. Just avoid talking too much about this issue if you can to avoid stepping on any toes. Don't say anything with the word Trump, wall, Cruz, Muslims, Syrians.
5. 不要觉得小费很烦
在我的国家，我从不给小费，我所在的地方的女服务员和服务员的工资已经够高了，只有当你受到特别好的待遇时，你才应该给小费！这是我刚下船时的想法。在美国，这个问题有点混乱--在大多数地方，服务员的工资不足以让他们在没有小费的情况下舒适地生活，但人们仍然坚持小费是礼物的观念。同时，一般人也希望你无论如何都要给小费。相信我说，美国人正在慢慢意识到这是个问题，并在努力解决，但目前作为游客，只要给15%或多一点的小费就可以了。
6. 不要讨论种族/性别问题或事件。
美国人对他们的社会是多么的开放和多元化感到特别自豪，这是有充分理由的，即使在麻烦不断的时候。不过如果可以的话，请避免过多谈论这个问题，以免踩到任何雷区。不要说任何带有特朗普、墙、克鲁兹、穆斯林、叙利亚人等字眼的东西。
Unless you know that your host/companions are open-minded, peaceful orators, do not discuss politics, especially the aforementioned issues. At all. With the exception of the beautiful people on Parks and Recreation, people with differing political opinions in America hate each others guts - and they might hate you too if you don't agree with them on some opinions. On the flip side, if you do, they might take it that their opponents are even more wrong "because the world agrees with them", and worst case scenario parade you around as an unwilling supporter. I've been through this. You don't want this.
8. Don't look at or show opinion about obese Americans
In your country, fat people might be shunned, and obesity is widely accepted as a health problem. In America, there's an odd duality of "love your image" and "skinny is good". Being vocal about folks in Wal-Mart will almost certainly earn you looks - you're either a bigot or a superficial hater. Don't say that "I'm not hating the person, I just think being fat is a serious health issue". Just be mum about it.
7. 政治问题也是如此，特别是关于移民、军费开支、医疗保健、枪支管制和种族/性别的政策。
除非你知道你的东道主/同伴是思想开放、和平的演说家，否则不要讨论政治，特别是上述问题。完全不要。除了《公园与娱乐》里的美女们，在美国，政治观点不同的人都互相恨得牙痒痒--如果你不同意他们的某些观点，他们可能也会恨你。反过来说，如果你同意，他们可能会认为他们的对手更错了，因为"全世界都同意我们的观点"，最坏的情况是把你当做一个当面一套背地一套的口头支持者。我经历过这种情况。你也不想这样吧
8. 别看或表现出对美国肥胖者的看法。
在你的国家，胖子可能会被避之不及，肥胖被广泛接受为健康问题。在美国，"爱自己的样子"和"瘦是好的"之间有一种奇怪的二元对立的情况。在沃尔玛对逛超市的人随意评价，几乎肯定会给你挣得以下看法--你要么是个心胸狭窄的偏执狂，要么是个肤浅的讨厌鬼。不要试图争辩"我不是讨厌这个人，我只是觉得胖是个严重的健康问题"。只要假装木讷一点就好了。
Last but not least, don't assume Americans are stupid. They might know more about your country than you think, and with all the troubles in number 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8, you might be discouraged from even talking to them. Just talk to Americans, don't assume anything about their intelligence, and avoid those touchy waters. The majority of Americans love to talk, and once they've decided that you act with respect and friendliness, you'll oft be surprised. Once you're comfortable enough, you may allow yourself to touch 5, 6, 7 and 8.
Still avoid sports though. Even the most open-minded professor I know turns into a hardcore Patriots fan when cornered.
9. 不要预设一个"愚蠢的美国人"的刻板印象。
最后但并非最不重要的是，不要以为美国人是愚蠢的。他们可能比你想象的更了解你的国家，并且也在烦恼着4、5、6、7和8的所有麻烦，和他们讨论这些你可能还真说不过他们。和美国人聊天，不要对他们的智商有什么假设，避开那些敏感的话题就好。大多数美国人都喜欢交谈，一旦他们认定你的行为是尊重和友好的，你会经常感到惊讶。一旦你足够自在，你就可以允许自己接触5、6、7和8中的避讳了。
不过还是要避开讨论体育。即使是我认识的最开明的教授，被逼急了也会变成铁杆的爱国者球迷。
The only inaccuracy in your post is that baseball is not the “favorite pastime” of America. Historically that is true, but college & professional football (gridiron) has long since overtaken baseball in terms of revenues, viewership, and attendance at games.
你文章中唯一不准确的地方是，棒球已经不是美国人"最喜欢的消遣"。从历史上看，这是事实，但大学与职业橄榄球在收入、收视率和比赛上座率上早已超过了棒球。
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It's a pretty good list, but two or three of the items could be summed up by just not criticizing the country you are visiting. I think that is a really good idea no matter what country you are going to isn't it? Would you go to France and gripe to French citizens about all the the things you don't like there? Don't do it in the U.S., don't do it in France, don't do it anywhere. It's rude.
这是一个相当不错的清单，但其中有两三条可以用“不要批评你要去的国家”来概括。我觉得无论你去哪个国家，这都是一个非常好的想法，不是吗？你会去法国向法国公民抱怨你不喜欢那里的一切吗？在美国不要这么做，在法国不要这么做，在任何地方都不要这么做。这是不礼貌的。
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Aye, but since the US enjoys a prestigious position few countries have, many people gladly ignore the etiquette to boast about their country and/or throw the US under the bus to feel good. I see this more with tourists here, at least.
是的，但由于美国享有很少国家有的威望地位，许多人乐于无视礼节来夸耀自己的国家，和/或把美国贬低一番来让自己感觉爽一点。至少这一点我在来这里的游客身上看到过不少。
Last year, I visited Macedonia, stayed for 2 weeks, and married my husband who is from there. As an American tourist, I can say only this. Act with others as you want to be treated. I didn't make a big deal about where I'm from. To me, people are just people. On the other hand, it amazed me how much people bent over backwards to help me once they realized where I was from. It's not right that one country's people should be treated differently than another, but that's how it apparently is. My husband waited for me to judge his country as backward compared to mine. I loved the people and the countryside and expressed this. It blows my mind how judgmental people can be about one another. As I said, act as towards others as you want to be treated. That's my rule in and out if the USA.
去年，我访问了马其顿，住了两个星期，并与来自那里的丈夫结婚。作为一个美国游客，我只能这样说：以你希望被对待的方式与他人相处。我并没有大肆宣扬我来自哪里。对我来说，人就是人。另一方面，让我惊讶的是，一旦人们知道我来自哪里，他们就会过于帮助我。一个国家的人和另一个国家的人受到不同的待遇，这是不对的，但事情显然就是这样。我的丈夫等着我去评价他的国家与我的国家相比是落后的。我爱这里的人民和国家，也这么表达。人与人之间的相互评判，让我很震惊。就像我说的，对别人的行为要像你希望被对待的那样。这是我无论在美国还是不在美国都奉行的准则。
Would I criticise a country? Yes.
And the Frenchman I was speaking with not only agreed with me but gave me his own examples.
Americans are more than usually touchy about how great their country is - as is seen by the plethora of insecure questioners about the place that you see on here.
Incidentally, absolutely nobody seems to have a problem criticising Britain for just about everything so I don’t feel at all constrained not to speak as I find.
我会批评一个国家吗？会。
而且和我说话的那个法国人不仅同意我的观点，还给我举了他自己的例子。
美国人对于他们的国家有多伟大，通常都是很敏感的--从你在这里看到的大量对这个地方缺乏安全感的质疑者就可以看出。
顺便说一下，似乎完全没有人对英国的几乎所有事情进行批评有任何问题，所以我一点也不觉得按我的发现说话有什么约束。
Absolutely Rich. I really don't know why people need to be told these things. It's only common courtesy - and common sense. To be fair, as a Canadian I am far more exposed to U.S. culture and affairs than those from other countries, and I may know better what issues should really be avoided. Even so, no matter what Country you live in, surely you wouldn't go and visit your neighbours in their home and criticize their furniture, or pictures on the wall, etcetera. Why would anyone think it is okay in another Country?
In 1967, I was in the Canadian Navy and my ship was visiting Londonderry, Northern Ireland. Tensions (Catholic vs. Protestant) were running very high and we were warned not to discuss religion AT ALL with the locals. What's more, at that time, Canadian Navy uniforms were very similar to Royal Navy uniforms (no longer true) so we went ashore in civvies only. In spite of the warnings, one of our geniuses (with a few drinks into him) got into a religious argument with the locals. The M.P.s dragged him back to the ship beaten up and wearing only his pants - no shoes, no socks, no shirt, no jacket, and possibly lucky he was still alive.
完全没错。我真的不知道为什么人们需要别人告知这些事情。这只是普通的礼貌和常识。公平地说，作为一个加拿大人，我比其他国家的人更多地接触到美国的文化和事务，我可能更知道什么问题应该真正避免。即便如此，不管你住在哪个国家，你肯定不会在去邻居家拜访的时候批评他们的家具，或者墙上的图片等等。为什么会有人认为在别的国家可以这么做呢？
1967年，我在加拿大海军服役，我的舰艇正在访问北爱尔兰的伦敦德里（英国港口城市）。当时的局势非常紧张（天主教与新教），我们被警告不要与当地人讨论宗教问题。更重要的是，当时加拿大海军的制服与英国皇家海军的制服非常相似（现在已经不一样了），所以我们上岸时只穿便服。尽管有警告，我们中的一个天才（喝了几杯酒）还是和当地人发生了宗教争执。长官把他拖回了船上，他被打得遍体鳞伤，只穿着裤子--没有鞋子，没有袜子，没有衬衫，没有外套，可能还算幸运的是他还活着。
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Americans travel elsewhere and gripe about the places they’re in all the time (I’m American and have traveled a lot - you see it *all* the time). They definitely dish it out, but can’t take it.
美国人到其他地方旅游，对他们所在的地方总是怨声载道（我是美国人，经常旅行--这种事见的太多了）。他们肯定会各种诋毁别的国家，但不能接受别人也对他们这么做。
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Well written, Nguyen, thanks! This rings true with my experience in Californian cities too.
I do think America is a bit more 'sensitive' than any other country I have lived in. I believe it is simply a normal part of the American cultural persona in which face-to-face graciousness and politeness is a strongly felt value. There is nothing wrong with that.
It is very helpful, however, to those of us from elsewhere (as asked in the question) to understand how that value presents itself in everyday life so that we do not misunderstand one another. I think Nguyen has explained this really well.
Here is my perspective. In my homeland, Australia, we value face-to-face honesty and trustworthiness, much more than graciousness, so needless to say, I got myself in trouble easily, and was quite frustrated, when I first moved to the US. I spoke my mind expecting to have an honest and detailed discussion, and immediately offended people who clammed up and walked away. I looked for people to be honest with me, and instead was told what people thought I wanted to hear, making me feel I would never find a true friend.
I have now learned something of the subtle differences between all countries, and I hope this helps me to communicate much more effectively wherever I go in the world. In addition, I am sure, I have become a blend of those places too. I have definitely absorbed much of the American and Canadian persona since I have lived in north America now for almost half of my life. Yet I am not completely either American or Canadian. Nor am I any longer completely Australian. Not even European, though I have spent some time there too. Truth is I cannot claim a specific cultural identity anymore, so perhaps that's a good thing?
(Sorry this is so long! I guess I still can ramble ...)
写的好，阮，谢谢! 这与我在加州城市的经历也是一致的。
我确实认为美国比我生活过的其他国家更"敏感"一些。我相信这只是美国文化人格的一个正常部分，其中“面对面的亲切和礼貌”是一种强烈的价值观。这并没有错。
不过，对于我们这些来自其他地方的人（如问题中所问）来说，了解这种价值观在日常生活中是如何呈现的是非常有帮助的，这样我们就不会互相误解。我觉得阮先生对此解释得非常好。
下面是我的观点。在我的祖国澳大利亚，我们重视“面对面的诚实和信任”，而不光是亲切，所以不用说，我刚搬到美国时，很容易给自己带来麻烦，而且相当沮丧。我说出了自己的想法，期望能进行坦诚而详细的讨论，马上就得罪了一些人，他们哗啦啦地走了。我找人跟我坦诚相待，却被告知一些人们以为我想听的话，让我觉得自己永远找不到真正的朋友。
现在，我已经了解了各国之间的一些细微差异，我希望这能帮助我在世界任何地方更有效地进行沟通。此外，我相信，我也已经成为那些地方的融合体。我肯定吸收了很多美国和加拿大的人设，因为我现在已经在北美生活了人生将近一半的时间。然而，我并不是完全的美国人或加拿大人。我也不再完全是澳大利亚人。甚至不是欧洲人，虽然我也在那里呆过一段时间。事实是我不能再宣称自己有特定的文化身份了，也许这是件好事？
(不好意思，写了这么长！虽然我想我还是可以说下去......)
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I think you can get away with the direct approach better on the East Coast than anywhere else in the U.S. I was born in the South, grew up in California, and now live in the South again. My daughter lives in Boston. I am always amazed at the differences in the different regions. I feel like you do. There isn’t one of the regional cultures I feel I belong to. I never quite fit in anywhere, and I was born in the U.S. It must be much worse for you
我认为你在东海岸可以比在美国任何地方都能更好地适应你的直来直去。我出生在南方，在加州长大，现在又住在南方。我的女儿住在波士顿。我总是对美国不同地区的差异感到惊讶。我觉得你也一样。没有一个地区的文化让我觉得属于自己。我从来没有在任何地方适应过，而且我出生在美国，对你来说一定更糟。
I spent some time in Australia last year, and I loved the Australian plain-spoken attitude. I said something in a training class in response to some teasing that was taken well there, but would've gotten me disciplinedin the US. I found that being open and interested in the people and places I was served me well.
去年我在澳大利亚呆了一段时间，我很喜欢澳大利亚人直言不讳的态度。我在一次培训课上针对一些嘲笑说了一些话，在那里被认为是很好的，但在美国会让我受到惩罚。我发现一个对人有趣又开放的地方真的让我很自在。
Very well written and observed! I love these “outside” observations from people who have come to the U.S. and lived. Spot on!
This in particular: “You should never take the locals' word on how boring or tourist-trap-y a place is. It might not be a daily excitement for the people who have been here for a long time, but it is iconic and you'd probably kick yourself later if you don't go.”
I agree 100%, especially in places like NYC, LA, San Francisco. The icons are new to you, so go enjoy them. I’ve lived in NYC 18 years and some icons I still love and marvel at (Empire State), others I don’t think are worth the time (Statue of Liberty). But I made the mistake big time in July, 2001.
Friend was in town for the first time, I took him all over. Tried to take him to the Empire State, but the lines were prohibitively long. He said, “what about the World Trade Center?” I said, “nah, view’s not as good, the building’s not as cool.” He was clearly disappointed, but followed my lead. You know what happened two months later…
If you want to see the Naked Singing Cowboy or eat at John’s Pizza or watch whatever is the most crowd-pleasing musical of the moment (“Hamilton” is an exception as it’s amazing), by all means do it! If your hosts don’t want to do it, go without them! Enjoy!
写的很好，观察得很到位! 我喜欢这些来美国生活过的人的"外围"观察。一针见血!
尤其是这句话。“你千万不要听信当地人的话，说一个地方有多无聊或旅游陷阱。对于在这里呆了很久的人来说，可能已经对它失去了兴奋感，但它还是是标志性的，如果你不去一趟，以后可能会后悔。”
我100%同意，尤其是在纽约、洛杉矶、旧金山这样的地方。标志性的东西对你来说是新的，所以要去享受它们。我在纽约住了18年，有些标志性的东西我还是很喜欢，很赞叹（帝国大厦），有些我觉得不值得去（自由女神像）。但我在2001年7月犯了大错。
朋友第一次来城里，我带他到处去玩。想带他去帝国大厦，但排队的时间太长了。他说，"世贸中心怎么样？" 我说："不行，景色没那么好，建筑没那么酷。" 他显然很失望 但还是听从了我的建议。你知道两个月后发生了什么...
如果你想看裸体唱歌的牛仔或者在约翰比萨店吃饭，或者看任何当下最吸引人的音乐剧("汉密尔顿"是个例外，因为它非常棒)，无论如何都要去做! 如果你的东道主不想去，就离开他! 自己好好享受吧!
The issue is that Americans can also be curious, some of them keep asking many of these questions to us strangers... Often it's the same ones who believe there is a right and a wrong answer for every subject.
Examples:
Redneck America, 5 minutes after meeting the guy, he asks: "we don't like black culture here, do you ?". Hem. Run.
NYC America: "Why you French people smoke all the time" followed by a street monologue on the 2 countries. A long one.
Anywhere America: "we saved your ass in WW2" as a point if you disagree about anything whatsoever.
etc...
My point for the turist is: don't talk about these subjects, *especially* if an American asks you about it.
(Of course it works both ways, I met American turists in Paris who met someone willing to rant about G W Bush in front of them... every day ! Pity.)
问题是美国人也会有好奇心，有的人会不断向我们这些陌生人提出很多这样的问题...而且这些人往往心里已经为每个题目都设定了一个正确和错误的答案。
举例来说。
美国红脖子，在见到一个人5分钟后，他问道："我们不喜欢这里的黑人文化，你呢？"。嗯......跑吧。
住在纽约的美国人："为什么你们法国人总是抽烟"，然后就是一段对两个国家的自我独白。很长的一段。
任何地方的美国人："我们在二战中救了你们的命"，如果你对任何事情有异议，他们就会用这句话回你。
等等。
我给游客的观点是：不要谈论这些话题，*尤其是*在美国人问你的时候。
(当然这也是双向的，我在巴黎就遇到过美国的游客，他们遇到有人愿意在他们面前大谈特谈乔治布什如何如何......天天如此! 真同情他们。)