Saudis are exporting Ugly Americans

[unbibium]

Fark.com linked to this story, with the caption "Local Arab media blames local Arab media for 8-0 loss against Germany", but one particular detail holds interest to me:

It is strange to see that our Saudi youth who are among the most widely traveled people on earth have failed miserably to learn from the people and places they have visited. This is why our youth lack both the experience and knowledge that qualify them to compete with others. Thousands of our young people have been to Manila, Paris or London and have returned knowing nothing of the Filipinos, the French or the British. All they do when traveling abroad is limit themselves to a few hotels plus one or two locations for a stay that may last as long as a month or two. Many have visited other countries more than ten times without learning a single word of the local language. Not only that, most of those visiting those countries never even try to acquire any idea or understanding of the people or their culture.

In other words, the "sheltered ethnocentric tourist" is not a strictly American export, as I once believed. But then I'm led to wonder, is there any country that generates tourists that do learn about the culture and history of a place when they travel somewhere?

Comments

It's not just the Americans or Saudis

[miwasatoshi.livejournal.com]

You can actually say that about most cultures. I know a few Filipinos who *live* here and know almost nothing about the United States.

But blaming the soccer team's loss on the media? Heck, the media could've probably played better soccer than the team on the field that day!