Foreigners are Hot!!! How to get treated like Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie while on the road…
Let’s face it, when traveling on a budget, it is key that you meet new people who can help you out. Whether their help be through site-specific tips, reduced rates, cultural insight, or simply companionship, you can’t do it all alone. I think most would agree that the majority of budget travelers are extremely friendly, sociable, and easy to get along with, which is great for getting to know new people. However, one advantage that I rarely see budget travelers take advantage of is:
Their Looks!
You know it back home, that exotic girl or guy from Brazil, Thailand, or the South Pacific. There’s just something about those striking features, mysterious eyes, and tanned skin that makes them extremely attractive.
Well, believe it or not, the same principal works reverse. When traveling through South Asia, Africa, or Latin America, our pale skin, rosy cheeks, and freckles are actually attractive! Crazy I know, but true!
This is something that I see many budget travelers have a hard time realizing. And usually once they realize it, they simply think of it as an annoyance. The hoots and hollers walking down the street, unwanted attention, etc… However, as the world’s super models, actors, and actresses can tell you, beauty can be an incredible asset, if you know how to use it.
The following are three tips to help you get what you want while on the road, by using your looks:
- Be confident: Even if you don’t think you are especially attractive, I guarantee the Argentine across the table does. Accept it, and use it to your advantage. Act like you are Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie, and people will treat you that way.
- Use it: I usually just hear travelers complain about being perceived as attractive in foreign cultures. You can get frustrated about the extra attention, but you’ll never change an entire society on your own. Why not use it to your advantage? Ask people of the opposite sex to do things for you, and they will usually comply! Looking for a discount? Ask and you shall receive!
- Accept it: The last problem I see budget travelers have in using their looks to their advantage, is they often feel like they are taking advantage of others. I understand this sentiment, and sometimes feel this way myself, but like it or not, that’s simply how the world works. You might as well use it to your advantage when you can, or get started planning a revolution against attractive people…
Photo: www.scienceandsupermodels.com
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Why do you assume that all travelers are white?
Hi Erika,
Thank you for your comment, however I think you may have misread the intentions of this post. I wrote this article to show another side of a common complaint I hear travelers make, that they receive too much “unwanted attention” when traveling through areas such as Latin America, Africa, and Asia. I was trying to show that this is not necessarily a bad thing, and that such attention doesn’t need to be avoided (consequentially neither do these areas).
You are very right that the ideas and tips presented in this post are targeted towards the pale skinned population of travelers. This is certainly not to say that all travelers, or even most travelers, are white. That was simply the audience most pertinent to this particular post.
I do, however, thank you for voicing your concerns and will work to include future posts that are more relevant to other populations of travelers.
I am a Filipina expatriate in Europe. Yes, being “exotic” has its advantages. My husband (who is Caucasian) receives the same treatment that you had whenever we are in Asia.
That’s how it really is
Thanks for your comment Melissa. I agree, that’s how it really is. In my opinion, you can either let the extra attention bother you and get on your nerves (which is what happens to a lot of travelers), or you can accept it and try to use it to your advantage!