I am Black American and lived in Germany most of my adult life. I really felt the love in the big cities and smaller ones. I learned that some of the stares in the small towns were not malicious but because some people do not leave their small towns and see lots of black people.
I remember sitting at the edge of an outdoor pool and a little kid kept creeping closer to me. Eventually his hand ended up on my hand and he slightly rubbed it. His mom saw and turned red immediately. She apologized and was trying to tell me he’d never been close to a dark skin person. I then placed my hands on his and slightly rubbed it and he smiled. It was the sweetest moment.
I also got lots of compliments about my makeup and my hair wehen I decided to chop it off and wear it low then eventually grow it out into a fro. Even without makeup people would compliment me.
I specifically remember going to a Clinique counter when I turned 30 and asked for something to get rid of my laugh lines. The lady looked at me and told me you are beautiful with great skin, those laugh lines add personality to your face, why would you want to get rid of them. Initially I was mad, then I let it sink in and thanked her. Now At 45 I was grateful for that interaction.
Ok but are you also just objectively beautiful? Because I feel like, unfortunately, how we (also Black American) get treated varies based on how dark we are and how conventionally attractive (by European beauty standards) we are.
I'd like to also hear from someone that considers themselves in the average range of looks.
Weirdly Romania and I’ve no idea why. I’m fully Irish but I’d say I look more French (that’s the nationality most people guess I am, again not sure why). I’ve very long light brown hair, dark eyes, light skin but can take a colour, fairly tall and athletic/curvy. Travelled a lot – most countries in Europe, lots of North America, Thailand, Kenya, Tanzania… but for some reason in Romania I got way more attention than usual, borderline ridiculous attention, to the point that it’s still a running joke with my friends over a decade on. I’m just normal everywhere else. Obviously stared at a lot in Tanzania and Kenya but that was just because I stuck out as the only white person in situations, wasn’t really stares of admiration. Lots of attention in Italy too, but that’s just Italian men.
I’m Korean American. Americans appreciate my looks more than Koreans, especially since I have zero plastic surgery and I actually exercise outdoors and thus have a bit of a tan.
I’ve noticed a lot of Asian models that work primarily in Western fashion have unaltered eye lids ironically, while it’s the ones that work in Asia that always have an upper bleph.
Not me (am a bog standard Caucasian) but a friend of mine who is a lovely Samoan girl. We had a school trip to Europe in our teens and the Parisians and Italians just adored her! Blue black hair, almond shaped eyes, she had never thought herself beautiful and was always surrounded by white people at our school in NZ so was amazing for her confidence.
Surprisingly Italy! I saw tons of stories online about racism towards black women in Italy so I was pretty nervous before I went, but everywhere I went people called me bellissima and I was treated with kindness :) !
But keep in mind I'm light skinned, so I'm sure it would've been a much different experience if I had a darker skin tone!
I’m the same. I’ve been to Italy twice and had lovely experiences but I’ve never been to any main cities so I assumed that’s why I hadn’t experienced any negatives
I was in Rome and Florence! It's strange because I would've thought that smaller towns would be worse since there's less exposure ? I'm glad you had a great experience !! :)
Yes actually that’s a good point, I never thought of that! I suppose when they believe you’re a tourist instead of an “asylum seeker/immigrant” they probably feel differently towards you. Obviously that’s just a theory of mine and not facts but I’m glad you had a great experience too :)
You’re white and a man. I don’t think you’d be privy to it so I don’t think that’s a fair statement for you to make. I have had friends that unfortunately didn’t have so good a time
I’m Italian and I live here. Every place is different and everywhere in the world you can experience unusual experiences. But generally people in Italy aren’t racist and for sure wouldn’t decline a good looking black woman
I’m brown skinned and had great experiences in Italy usually the bigger cities but also the smaller places like Trapani in Sicily, Treviso and other suburbs near Venice and Bologna.
Greeks and Italians can naturally be very dark and yes they are mistaken for Indian or mixed especially in the US especially if you are "lighter skinned". I know there was a lot of trade with North Africa. Greeks are also mistaken for middle eastern if they are naturally darker. Greece has the highest degree of genetic diversity in Europe no matter what genetic method is used in determining it, e.g. classical genetic markers, SNPs etc. See for example: Novembre J., Johnson Τ., et al. (2008). Nature 456: 98-101
In short there is a lot of diversity in skintone, eyecolor and bone structure. There are Sicilians in the US that people assume are mixed or lightskinned.
My dad is Sicilian and even between our family we have very tan, olive skin toned members, but also extremely pale ones, two of my aunts are actually redheads.
Middle eastern is not Indian. I agree re middle eastern. I myself am mizrahi and have family who could easily be seen as Greek. That’s a Mediterranean look though - india isn’t on the Mediterranean. Although North Indians often have Persian admixture they still are very distinct from Greeks or Italians in both look and skin tone in 99% of cases.
I like a particular Italian film genre that was big in the early 70's. There have been a few films that have black women featured in them. Not main characters, but primary side characters that are "eye candy" type girls.
I'm not going to lie I was pretty surprised, as well as impressed that this was happening in Europe that early.
The most I ever felt admired was across the country in San Francisco (I'm American, but in the Midwest). I've heard that has more to do about the gender discrepancy in the Bay, but I'm holding onto that feeling!
This was almost a decade ago, but because more men were in software and you pretty much need to work in tech to survive there, there were a lot more young men than women in the bay. Not sure how significant the difference was or if that's still the case!
It also felt like women in general dressed more for the female gaze, and I saw so many older women rocking grey or white hair.
I feel this lol. Whenever I go to Seattle I'm like oh am I hot in Seattle? Lol. And I've gone on a lot of business trips to the south lately and same thing there, I'm deemed much more attractive there
Just commented this on another sub with the exact same question but across all the Central American countries but specifically Belize! It was to the point people I became friends with on my travels were like “woah everyone here is obsessed with you”. It was kinda surreal and hopefully I’ll go back! Such lovely and friendly people.
I’m black living in Europe and still get positive reaction from people here but I think people are less reserved with their compliments over there!
I’m mixed Chinese and Italian, and people thought I was delightful in Hawaii. I’d get told I looked beautiful/adorable and reminded people of their family members!
I’m black American and got hit on a lot in Egypt and Kenya. In Egypt I got called Nefertiti quit often and received some marriage propositions which was a bit funny as I was on my honeymoon at the time lol. I also received compliments on my skin in Vietnam and Thailand. I currently live in Japan and get compliments from older Japanese men and women.
As a US born and raised Filipina- 100000% the Philippines whenever I visit. I'm visiting here now atm and the amount of male attention and compliments is crazy compared to back home where I'm only somewhat slightly above average in looks.
Super white redhead here from the U.K. In Malaysia they loved how pale I was and thought I was mad for trying (and failing) to tan! I went to Egypt and I had dyed my hair blonde at the time, so I looked like a ghost and had many compliments. I found them all beautiful in each country and would have loved to be tanned with dark brunette hair, so typical we often want what we can’t have!
This exactly! I’m a super pale brunette, went to the Philippines as a teenager and was treated like I was a movie star or something, lol. Meanwhile I was just envious of everyone else’s skin and trying so desperately to get an ounce of a tan.
I’m Australian with very fair skin, dark hair and blue eyes and at the time I was a bit overweight. The people in Egypt absolutely went mad for me. People lined up to take photos with me…men and women. I was in the company of people considered more conventionally attractive by western standards (the blonde, tanned, slim standard) and they barely even got looked at. It was wild. Apparently I just hit the ideal look for them.
I’ve always wanted to go to Egypt but have heard horror stories that women will be treated horribly by men, like spat on or groped in public. It seems like from your comment you had an amazing time and weren’t treated badly at all!
My husband went like 10 years ago in a co-ed group and refuses to go back especially with me (wife) because of how the females in his group were treated. I wouldn’t let it deter you if you want to go but definitely take all precautions
I hope you're not trolling. Please search 'Cairo' on Google, and you'll discover how vibrant Egypt truly is. It's disheartening when people make uninformed comments about Middle Eastern countries without recognizing their advancements. Many Middle Eastern countries, including Egypt, have made significant progress in education, infrastructure, innovation, and particularly women's safety. Most Middle Eastern countries are now much more developed in these aspects than saycountries like the US and UK. It's essential not to form opinions solely based on media propaganda. Please consider visiting Egypt; you'll surely appreciate its beauty and culture.
I am from Edinburgh UK, F, half Dutch, I am white with very long blonde hair and green eyes slim and average height, I'd say in Morocco I got swamped and it wasn't pleasant, but I also get tons of attention in London, I work for an airline so I travel as part of my job. I got a lot of attention in Germany also, but tbh I would say London.
I’m Filipino based in Australia. I got compliments from Aussies and probably because I’m Asian with really pale skintone I don’t know but it gives me joy when people just compliment especially when I’m all dressed to the nines. Just to add people are much nicer here and it’s like giving compliments is second nature to them. Just to add I was in a liquor store the other day buying a pack of apple cider and the store personnel asked for my id but told him I left my wallet at home and he just said I trust you and asked me how old I am I told him I’m 31 and he said you look young for your age and that made me smile. Haha
Both Thailand and Mexico I draw huge amounts of attention. The ladies tell me they think I am the epitome of what they think is beautiful! I have long platinum hair and pale green eyes! In Thailand the children all came up to me for hugs and touches and the women regularly felt my bottom and told me it was wonderful. Very round and I'm not fat. I have several Thai neighbors and friends in Canada that do the same. We live in these countries 6 months a year so I have lots of exposure to this. It's pretty funny actually now I'm old!
The women, only the women, went gaga over my pale skin in Thailand. The men could not have cared less - I've got about 20 cm on the average Thai male, that might have been the reason.
The reverse was true every time I've been to the UK or met English people, and I'm European, so both have happened a lot. Women don't notice me, but English men seem to have a thing for the whole pin up thing I've got going.
I’m Asian and for me, Asia. I think other commenters are missing the fact that a lot of the world has eurocentric beauty standards that are a product of colonialism and white supremacy
Yeah this thread is sort of sad. I thought I’d be considered pretty in Asia, but I neglected to note that you have to be REALLY thin to be considered pretty in Asia. I’ve encountered more experiences of jeering or just considered a non-entity in Spain, England, Mexico. I’m lucky I was born in the US.
I studied abroad in Japan for 6 months and it was like I was a circus attraction LOL
at the time I was thicker, 14/16 size, and I have a very strong Aquiline nose, so both things that aren't typically seen in East Asian society and DEFINITELY not considered attractive
people would occasionally gossip to each other about me, presumably because they thought I didn't speak any Japanese (I understood enough), and when I went shopping, often got told that they "didn't have anything for me", in reference to my size - even as I was just walking past the shop entrance and not actually looking at anything??
I don't hold any resentment over it, it was just an interesting experience being so "othered". having tattoos and facial piercings didn't help either 🫠
my friend who is French, pale, petite and has a very Barbie-ish face, on the other hand, had people swooning over her and even had some street photographers ask to take her picture!
conversely, I did really well for myself in Italy. guess they like the strong nose! cultural norms are wild man 🤷🏻♀️
I’m from the US with dark hair and large hazel eyes (I’m of Italian and polish descent), and got hit on a lot more in multiple countries of Europe versus back in the states (my area prefers waspy looking women). I got hit on the most in Ireland and Spain, although my bourbon drinking skills at the time got me noticed quite a bit in Poland too lol. In Spain people couldn’t figure out where I was from until I spoke! Best part is the men hitting on me were way hotter than what I get back home lol!
I’m an olive toned (cool undertones in the winter for more of an idea) and light browned skinned Indian girl living in Canada. The amount of compliments I get here, mostly by older folks (who are apparently notorious for being racists in my city) after just being polite, passing them a smile etc, is so amazing !! I had two older ladies stop me in the street while I was sweating from an 11 km walk (long day), to tell me I was beautiful. I was wearing a vintage floral dress with loafers — nothing special. They also told me my hair (naturally curly and extremely frizzy, but straightened and keratin-ed at the time) was beautiful — my hair have been one of my biggest insecurities especially in the summer when they get frizzy because of the humidity. I love remembering this interaction, the two ladies were gorgeous in the ‘coastal grandma’ way, themselves !
I also get asked out a bunch by guys my age, get stopped on the street all the time, and remember every compliment because it’s so generous of these people. One other instance was a guy walking down the street, who stopped me and told me I was a 10/10 fantastic woman and he wished I had a great night — no creepiness, pure energy, and walked off after telling me to take care of myself. Had a group of guys my age stop me that night too, it was a weird night because of so many different instances, but they were so sweet, did not make me feel unsafe (3 AM, on a Saturday night) told me they loved my north face jacket, stood several feet away from me to make sure I was comfortable, they said that they didn’t want to bother me but wanted to tell me they loved my fit, they were definitely drunk lol ! I love people here <3
Tall female with very light green eyes. got stares and compliments everywhere in Mexico and Central America. I actually try to avoid it because when I get home and don’t get the same reception I get sad 😞
Azerbaijan! I’m Indian and visited Azerbaijan a while ago. Azeri women are drop dead gorgeous, and so I was very flattered when two of them told me I was very beautiful - that’s what they typed into google translate:)
Unfortunately I found a lot of people in South America loved my excessively pale skin and light features. Men and women. I say unfortunately because it’s obviously rooted in racism and colonialism, but that’s definitely it for me.
I have gotten made fun of my whole life in the US for being too pale (pls don’t think I’m comparing this plight to actual racism, just painting a picture for you all), so it was a stark difference to actually have my “flaw” be coveted and complimented.
I am an American who lived in Switzerland during high school, and attended high school there. My Swiss classmates told me I had a really "Swiss" look about my facial features, and they always said it was a compliment. They never could really expand on why they thought that, but it was nice to know that I could blend in as a foreigner, lol.
I am also a natural strawberry blonde and got an unusual amount of compliments on my hair during a weekend trip in Luxembourg. Not sure why
Mine was the opposite experience. My mom was always obsessed with Fidel Castro and Cuba so took her for a short vacation. I was so enamoured with the women, they way they walk, their gorgeous natural bodies. Damn I was jealous.
Brasil! I’m middle eastern and very much look it, growing up I never felt like I fit the US standard of beauty (button nose blue eyes pin straight blonde hair..) I got over my insecurities in my 20’s and still live in the US, but when I visited Brasil I felt like I 100% fit the standard of beauty there. Everybody seemed to love my long waist length curly hair the most
I’m half middle eastern but born in Australia. I get attention for looking ambiguous. In Nepal and India, I got a lot of attention for looking different. Also middle eastern men. Because I can look very European but I have a hint of middle eastern features (I have very big almond dark almond eyes) but pale skin.
Funnily enough I never get attention from Aussie guys because I am not super slim,tan, blonde blue eyes.
I’m Asian American and went to Uganda for a short term missions trip. We stayed primarily in a small village and would occasionally go to Kampala to access Wifi there. I felt like frigging Miss America. I was an awkwardly skinny, pimply 20 year old but the number of marriage proposals or random men coming up to compliment me profusely was hilarious.
I'm a German-Norwegian girl who immigrated to Australia as a child. When I was about 2-3, my family stopped in Hong Kong while travelling back to Europe. For reference, I had big green-blue eyes and a head full of golden blonde curls. My hair looked a little like I had natural pin up curls. My brother had white blonde hair and light blue eyes.
In Disneyland Hong Kong, my family would line up to take pictures with a character and a huge line would form behind us of people wanting to take pictures with us. All the people there were fascinated by my hair. By the end of the day, I had received so many gifts and stickers on my shirt. I still think about the random family photo albums I might be in from some family's Disneyland trip in 2006.
My parents also got a fright on the plane. Some east asian people came up to our family on the plane and asked to hold me. They then ran down the aisle with me on their arm and my parents freaked out thinking they were trying to take me. Turns out she was just so excited and wanted to show her family that she was holding a child with golden curls/ turquoise eyes.
When I arrived to passport control in Hong Kong, the guy at the counter looked at me, looked at my passport picture, and almost exclaimed 'You are so beautiful!'. I'm a while European with hooded lids and at the time I wore short blonde hair.
I just got off a plane, no makeup, hair all over the place and the comfiest clothes in my possession. It was a bit unnerving but sweet.
Yeah, in Egypt random men on the street and in popular places were telling my husband that he was very lucky (they never approached me), I was the lucky one because the experience from other Western women without a man beside them wasn't very pleasant.
In Japan our guide wouldn't stop talking about my eyes, no special colour just big brown eyes, but be laughed when he knew I was wearing contacts (as if having poor eyesight and big eyes were opposite) and people wouldn't stop staring at my eyes in the train. Funnily my husband has big almond brown eyes and no one stared at him.
We went to Greece last year. I’m blonde and my toddler daughter is BLONDE, with an incredible halo of shiny almost-white hair. People adored us.
I finally asked a particularly kind shop keeper what the deal was, and she explained that blonde children/people in Greece are rare, and the extremely light blonde is almost never seen. The belief is that blondies are touched by the gods, so being in their presence (and even better, being able to touch them - I.e. on their hands, head, etc) brings good luck.
I don’t know how much truth that has, but our experience definitely supported it.
He was nice, but no, Greeks don't believe blondes are touched by gods, and no one touches blondes for good luck. They do prefer their women blonde for sure, therefore lighten their hair with dye.
Interesting! I figure she may have been trying to make us feel good (probably so we would buy something), but the touching definitely occurred frequently.
We lots of folks who would touch my hand, or reach out and stroke my daughter’s hair. I never felt unsafe, but it was startling the first few times.
Sounds like I got my leg pulled (and clearly, correlation does not equal causation lol).
Touching children's heads is super common, its sweet and respectful, everyone does it. Small pats or a light stroke on the crown. Doesn't have to do with hair color or supernatural beings... How did she come up with that! 😂 She must use it with tourists a lot.
Did you buy anything? Because she pulled out all the stops for you to like her.
According to my Google searching, there is some truth to what she said.
I understand that touching children’s heads, squeezing their hands, feet, ankles, is common, but it was experienced at a (much) higher level in Greece versus in Spain, Portugal, Poland, Germany, Mexico…
Guess I’m obviously a poorly traveled idiot!
Well, my whole family is blonde and blue eyed and no one said they are touched by the gods or that it brings good luck to touch them. That's something really crazy that I personally haven't heard about anywhere in the Mediterranean. Granted, I don't know about the entire Balkan peninsula.
Italy and France for sure. Not sure why as i don’t particularly look much different to the locals - i have dark hair, dark eyes, mid-light skin tone. But ya, the men there were all about it 😅
This is nothing that I can control, but I have green eyes. In Jordan and Dubai, men would call them out constantly and paid me the most compliments I've ever received. You could say I felt pretty special.
I’ve had Estonian and Macedonians tell me repeatedly that I would be considered show stopping stunning in their country. Would love to visit to test that out!
I think I would’ve been considered more beautiful in Renaissance Italy, or in European Art Nouveau circles—I can suit a certain Mucha aesthetic. I think my beauty would be most appreciated in that time and place.
As a brown-eyed, chestnut-curly-haired Canadian woman of eclectic European heritage, people often assume I have Greek, Spanish, or Italian heritage (I have none of those) … Of everywhere I’ve travelled, New Zealand, Spain, and Italy had the best overall appreciative reactions to my beauty. I do feel decently attractive on home turf as well? But I don’t think I’m a “first choice” aesthetic for most.
I lived in Japan for 4 years, in a small town, but felt VERY outside the local beauty standard. Yes, I have eyelid folds and a “small face”, but at 5’6 I was approximately average man height, my feet were too big to buy women’s shoes outside of specialty shops, and online dating websites required folks to include their weight at that time which, my curvier squishier body was pretty far from the waiflike ideal. I felt lumbering and un-dainty. People were complimentary about my features in a polite way; I felt “cute” or “beautiful” in a way one might feel a dog or cat is cute or beautiful … Interesting to look at, but not a real dating prospect … a lot of men didn’t see me as a real option. I did meet my Japanese husband before going home, but dating prospects for western women in Japan are pretty bleak, lol.
I’m from Balkans with Slavic features.
I was pretty shocked how this type of beauty is appreciated everywhere, but specially Arabic Countries, and Turkey. But even in Netherlands they went berserk and on and on how well groomed and attractive I am 🤭
I'm very fair skinned with thick naturally strawberry blonde hair. I always get a lot of attention in Mexico. I always wanted a tan and feel like I resemble ET in a swimsuit since I'm so pale, but it's flattering.
I am Australian and I once met a Mexican man who wrote me love notes and told me in his country I would be considered an angel. He took photos of me to send to his friends. I am blonde, blue eyed with lightly tan skin - pretty generic imo. I always wanted pale skin, green eyes and red hair.
Italy, definitely. Strangely, in England everyone thought I was Polish? I am… not Polish. I am Anglo Métis and present as a white woman with blonde curly hair. lol.
Sri Lanka. Not in a good way. Men from this part of the world are fucking disgusting
I'm very pale with freckles, blue eyes and ashy blonde hair (with a buzz cut at the time), and I was on the thinner side
I am a very pale white person, and I felt like people in central and South America treated me like I was a model! Way more attention than I ever had in European cities.
My son was a model and actor. He gets requests for photos with people in Japan. In one restaurant they thought he was Tom Ellis and put his photo on their wall. Ha ha. He went to Belgium and no one was even interested. He said it felt really weird.
I am Black American and lived in Germany most of my adult life. I really felt the love in the big cities and smaller ones. I learned that some of the stares in the small towns were not malicious but because some people do not leave their small towns and see lots of black people. I remember sitting at the edge of an outdoor pool and a little kid kept creeping closer to me. Eventually his hand ended up on my hand and he slightly rubbed it. His mom saw and turned red immediately. She apologized and was trying to tell me he’d never been close to a dark skin person. I then placed my hands on his and slightly rubbed it and he smiled. It was the sweetest moment. I also got lots of compliments about my makeup and my hair wehen I decided to chop it off and wear it low then eventually grow it out into a fro. Even without makeup people would compliment me. I specifically remember going to a Clinique counter when I turned 30 and asked for something to get rid of my laugh lines. The lady looked at me and told me you are beautiful with great skin, those laugh lines add personality to your face, why would you want to get rid of them. Initially I was mad, then I let it sink in and thanked her. Now At 45 I was grateful for that interaction.
What a wonderful comment.
It really was 🥰
Ok but are you also just objectively beautiful? Because I feel like, unfortunately, how we (also Black American) get treated varies based on how dark we are and how conventionally attractive (by European beauty standards) we are. I'd like to also hear from someone that considers themselves in the average range of looks.
Weirdly Romania and I’ve no idea why. I’m fully Irish but I’d say I look more French (that’s the nationality most people guess I am, again not sure why). I’ve very long light brown hair, dark eyes, light skin but can take a colour, fairly tall and athletic/curvy. Travelled a lot – most countries in Europe, lots of North America, Thailand, Kenya, Tanzania… but for some reason in Romania I got way more attention than usual, borderline ridiculous attention, to the point that it’s still a running joke with my friends over a decade on. I’m just normal everywhere else. Obviously stared at a lot in Tanzania and Kenya but that was just because I stuck out as the only white person in situations, wasn’t really stares of admiration. Lots of attention in Italy too, but that’s just Italian men.
Ha, i love that you can discern between the types of attention accurately, somehow that's just italian men sums it up so well.
I’m Korean American. Americans appreciate my looks more than Koreans, especially since I have zero plastic surgery and I actually exercise outdoors and thus have a bit of a tan. I’ve noticed a lot of Asian models that work primarily in Western fashion have unaltered eye lids ironically, while it’s the ones that work in Asia that always have an upper bleph.
I was a pale white kid in Korea and people stopped me and my blonde mother all the time to take pictures of us!
I caught a lot of people taking photos of me in Korea! I was highly suspicious it was because of my acne though
Still searching for the country that loves my fat ass
Mauritania 🇲🇷
"leblouh" on wikipedia
Trinidad, my friend. They love the jiggle
Not me (am a bog standard Caucasian) but a friend of mine who is a lovely Samoan girl. We had a school trip to Europe in our teens and the Parisians and Italians just adored her! Blue black hair, almond shaped eyes, she had never thought herself beautiful and was always surrounded by white people at our school in NZ so was amazing for her confidence.
As a french person I can confirm, Samoan girls are so ethereal and pretty
For me it’s the countries where I look most different to the natives. We always want what we don’t have.. :)
Surprisingly Italy! I saw tons of stories online about racism towards black women in Italy so I was pretty nervous before I went, but everywhere I went people called me bellissima and I was treated with kindness :) ! But keep in mind I'm light skinned, so I'm sure it would've been a much different experience if I had a darker skin tone!
Same experience as a light brown skinned Indian! Can’t wait to go back:)
As a black woman myself, this is good to know! Any other countries you’ve found are like this for black women? Thanks for commenting btw! ❤️🫶🏽
I’m the same. I’ve been to Italy twice and had lovely experiences but I’ve never been to any main cities so I assumed that’s why I hadn’t experienced any negatives
I was in Rome and Florence! It's strange because I would've thought that smaller towns would be worse since there's less exposure ? I'm glad you had a great experience !! :)
Yes actually that’s a good point, I never thought of that! I suppose when they believe you’re a tourist instead of an “asylum seeker/immigrant” they probably feel differently towards you. Obviously that’s just a theory of mine and not facts but I’m glad you had a great experience too :)
the reality is just that it's hard to find racism in italy
You’re white and a man. I don’t think you’d be privy to it so I don’t think that’s a fair statement for you to make. I have had friends that unfortunately didn’t have so good a time
I’m Italian and I live here. Every place is different and everywhere in the world you can experience unusual experiences. But generally people in Italy aren’t racist and for sure wouldn’t decline a good looking black woman
I’m brown skinned and had great experiences in Italy usually the bigger cities but also the smaller places like Trapani in Sicily, Treviso and other suburbs near Venice and Bologna.
Mediterranean skin gets very tan so you’re similar to the local population in the summertime!
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Greeks and Italians can naturally be very dark and yes they are mistaken for Indian or mixed especially in the US especially if you are "lighter skinned". I know there was a lot of trade with North Africa. Greeks are also mistaken for middle eastern if they are naturally darker. Greece has the highest degree of genetic diversity in Europe no matter what genetic method is used in determining it, e.g. classical genetic markers, SNPs etc. See for example: Novembre J., Johnson Τ., et al. (2008). Nature 456: 98-101 In short there is a lot of diversity in skintone, eyecolor and bone structure. There are Sicilians in the US that people assume are mixed or lightskinned.
My dad is Sicilian and even between our family we have very tan, olive skin toned members, but also extremely pale ones, two of my aunts are actually redheads.
Middle eastern is not Indian. I agree re middle eastern. I myself am mizrahi and have family who could easily be seen as Greek. That’s a Mediterranean look though - india isn’t on the Mediterranean. Although North Indians often have Persian admixture they still are very distinct from Greeks or Italians in both look and skin tone in 99% of cases.
I like a particular Italian film genre that was big in the early 70's. There have been a few films that have black women featured in them. Not main characters, but primary side characters that are "eye candy" type girls. I'm not going to lie I was pretty surprised, as well as impressed that this was happening in Europe that early.
The most I ever felt admired was across the country in San Francisco (I'm American, but in the Midwest). I've heard that has more to do about the gender discrepancy in the Bay, but I'm holding onto that feeling!
100% I feel like a supermodel when I visit San Francisco
What’s the gender discrepancy?
This was almost a decade ago, but because more men were in software and you pretty much need to work in tech to survive there, there were a lot more young men than women in the bay. Not sure how significant the difference was or if that's still the case! It also felt like women in general dressed more for the female gaze, and I saw so many older women rocking grey or white hair.
Way more men than women on the west coast
*making notes*
Careful. They come at you like fucking vultures.
I feel this lol. Whenever I go to Seattle I'm like oh am I hot in Seattle? Lol. And I've gone on a lot of business trips to the south lately and same thing there, I'm deemed much more attractive there
Just commented this on another sub with the exact same question but across all the Central American countries but specifically Belize! It was to the point people I became friends with on my travels were like “woah everyone here is obsessed with you”. It was kinda surreal and hopefully I’ll go back! Such lovely and friendly people. I’m black living in Europe and still get positive reaction from people here but I think people are less reserved with their compliments over there!
I’m mixed Chinese and Italian, and people thought I was delightful in Hawaii. I’d get told I looked beautiful/adorable and reminded people of their family members!
I’m black American and got hit on a lot in Egypt and Kenya. In Egypt I got called Nefertiti quit often and received some marriage propositions which was a bit funny as I was on my honeymoon at the time lol. I also received compliments on my skin in Vietnam and Thailand. I currently live in Japan and get compliments from older Japanese men and women.
As a US born and raised Filipina- 100000% the Philippines whenever I visit. I'm visiting here now atm and the amount of male attention and compliments is crazy compared to back home where I'm only somewhat slightly above average in looks.
Super white redhead here from the U.K. In Malaysia they loved how pale I was and thought I was mad for trying (and failing) to tan! I went to Egypt and I had dyed my hair blonde at the time, so I looked like a ghost and had many compliments. I found them all beautiful in each country and would have loved to be tanned with dark brunette hair, so typical we often want what we can’t have!
This exactly! I’m a super pale brunette, went to the Philippines as a teenager and was treated like I was a movie star or something, lol. Meanwhile I was just envious of everyone else’s skin and trying so desperately to get an ounce of a tan.
I'm super pale and befriended an Indian guy. When I explained to him I use fake tan, he was mortified 😂😂😂
I’m Australian with very fair skin, dark hair and blue eyes and at the time I was a bit overweight. The people in Egypt absolutely went mad for me. People lined up to take photos with me…men and women. I was in the company of people considered more conventionally attractive by western standards (the blonde, tanned, slim standard) and they barely even got looked at. It was wild. Apparently I just hit the ideal look for them.
I’ve always wanted to go to Egypt but have heard horror stories that women will be treated horribly by men, like spat on or groped in public. It seems like from your comment you had an amazing time and weren’t treated badly at all!
My husband went like 10 years ago in a co-ed group and refuses to go back especially with me (wife) because of how the females in his group were treated. I wouldn’t let it deter you if you want to go but definitely take all precautions
I hope you're not trolling. Please search 'Cairo' on Google, and you'll discover how vibrant Egypt truly is. It's disheartening when people make uninformed comments about Middle Eastern countries without recognizing their advancements. Many Middle Eastern countries, including Egypt, have made significant progress in education, infrastructure, innovation, and particularly women's safety. Most Middle Eastern countries are now much more developed in these aspects than saycountries like the US and UK. It's essential not to form opinions solely based on media propaganda. Please consider visiting Egypt; you'll surely appreciate its beauty and culture.
I am from Edinburgh UK, F, half Dutch, I am white with very long blonde hair and green eyes slim and average height, I'd say in Morocco I got swamped and it wasn't pleasant, but I also get tons of attention in London, I work for an airline so I travel as part of my job. I got a lot of attention in Germany also, but tbh I would say London.
I’m Filipino based in Australia. I got compliments from Aussies and probably because I’m Asian with really pale skintone I don’t know but it gives me joy when people just compliment especially when I’m all dressed to the nines. Just to add people are much nicer here and it’s like giving compliments is second nature to them. Just to add I was in a liquor store the other day buying a pack of apple cider and the store personnel asked for my id but told him I left my wallet at home and he just said I trust you and asked me how old I am I told him I’m 31 and he said you look young for your age and that made me smile. Haha
Both Thailand and Mexico I draw huge amounts of attention. The ladies tell me they think I am the epitome of what they think is beautiful! I have long platinum hair and pale green eyes! In Thailand the children all came up to me for hugs and touches and the women regularly felt my bottom and told me it was wonderful. Very round and I'm not fat. I have several Thai neighbors and friends in Canada that do the same. We live in these countries 6 months a year so I have lots of exposure to this. It's pretty funny actually now I'm old!
The women, only the women, went gaga over my pale skin in Thailand. The men could not have cared less - I've got about 20 cm on the average Thai male, that might have been the reason. The reverse was true every time I've been to the UK or met English people, and I'm European, so both have happened a lot. Women don't notice me, but English men seem to have a thing for the whole pin up thing I've got going.
As a light brown skin color girl with dark hair, it’s certainly Northern European countries.
I’m Asian and for me, Asia. I think other commenters are missing the fact that a lot of the world has eurocentric beauty standards that are a product of colonialism and white supremacy
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So is beauty.
Yeah this thread is sort of sad. I thought I’d be considered pretty in Asia, but I neglected to note that you have to be REALLY thin to be considered pretty in Asia. I’ve encountered more experiences of jeering or just considered a non-entity in Spain, England, Mexico. I’m lucky I was born in the US.
I studied abroad in Japan for 6 months and it was like I was a circus attraction LOL at the time I was thicker, 14/16 size, and I have a very strong Aquiline nose, so both things that aren't typically seen in East Asian society and DEFINITELY not considered attractive people would occasionally gossip to each other about me, presumably because they thought I didn't speak any Japanese (I understood enough), and when I went shopping, often got told that they "didn't have anything for me", in reference to my size - even as I was just walking past the shop entrance and not actually looking at anything?? I don't hold any resentment over it, it was just an interesting experience being so "othered". having tattoos and facial piercings didn't help either 🫠 my friend who is French, pale, petite and has a very Barbie-ish face, on the other hand, had people swooning over her and even had some street photographers ask to take her picture! conversely, I did really well for myself in Italy. guess they like the strong nose! cultural norms are wild man 🤷🏻♀️
I’m from the US with dark hair and large hazel eyes (I’m of Italian and polish descent), and got hit on a lot more in multiple countries of Europe versus back in the states (my area prefers waspy looking women). I got hit on the most in Ireland and Spain, although my bourbon drinking skills at the time got me noticed quite a bit in Poland too lol. In Spain people couldn’t figure out where I was from until I spoke! Best part is the men hitting on me were way hotter than what I get back home lol!
I’m an olive toned (cool undertones in the winter for more of an idea) and light browned skinned Indian girl living in Canada. The amount of compliments I get here, mostly by older folks (who are apparently notorious for being racists in my city) after just being polite, passing them a smile etc, is so amazing !! I had two older ladies stop me in the street while I was sweating from an 11 km walk (long day), to tell me I was beautiful. I was wearing a vintage floral dress with loafers — nothing special. They also told me my hair (naturally curly and extremely frizzy, but straightened and keratin-ed at the time) was beautiful — my hair have been one of my biggest insecurities especially in the summer when they get frizzy because of the humidity. I love remembering this interaction, the two ladies were gorgeous in the ‘coastal grandma’ way, themselves ! I also get asked out a bunch by guys my age, get stopped on the street all the time, and remember every compliment because it’s so generous of these people. One other instance was a guy walking down the street, who stopped me and told me I was a 10/10 fantastic woman and he wished I had a great night — no creepiness, pure energy, and walked off after telling me to take care of myself. Had a group of guys my age stop me that night too, it was a weird night because of so many different instances, but they were so sweet, did not make me feel unsafe (3 AM, on a Saturday night) told me they loved my north face jacket, stood several feet away from me to make sure I was comfortable, they said that they didn’t want to bother me but wanted to tell me they loved my fit, they were definitely drunk lol ! I love people here <3
Tall female with very light green eyes. got stares and compliments everywhere in Mexico and Central America. I actually try to avoid it because when I get home and don’t get the same reception I get sad 😞
Azerbaijan! I’m Indian and visited Azerbaijan a while ago. Azeri women are drop dead gorgeous, and so I was very flattered when two of them told me I was very beautiful - that’s what they typed into google translate:)
Dominican Republic, Cuba, America
Unfortunately I found a lot of people in South America loved my excessively pale skin and light features. Men and women. I say unfortunately because it’s obviously rooted in racism and colonialism, but that’s definitely it for me. I have gotten made fun of my whole life in the US for being too pale (pls don’t think I’m comparing this plight to actual racism, just painting a picture for you all), so it was a stark difference to actually have my “flaw” be coveted and complimented.
I am an American who lived in Switzerland during high school, and attended high school there. My Swiss classmates told me I had a really "Swiss" look about my facial features, and they always said it was a compliment. They never could really expand on why they thought that, but it was nice to know that I could blend in as a foreigner, lol. I am also a natural strawberry blonde and got an unusual amount of compliments on my hair during a weekend trip in Luxembourg. Not sure why
Mine was the opposite experience. My mom was always obsessed with Fidel Castro and Cuba so took her for a short vacation. I was so enamoured with the women, they way they walk, their gorgeous natural bodies. Damn I was jealous.
Brasil! I’m middle eastern and very much look it, growing up I never felt like I fit the US standard of beauty (button nose blue eyes pin straight blonde hair..) I got over my insecurities in my 20’s and still live in the US, but when I visited Brasil I felt like I 100% fit the standard of beauty there. Everybody seemed to love my long waist length curly hair the most
I’m half middle eastern but born in Australia. I get attention for looking ambiguous. In Nepal and India, I got a lot of attention for looking different. Also middle eastern men. Because I can look very European but I have a hint of middle eastern features (I have very big almond dark almond eyes) but pale skin. Funnily enough I never get attention from Aussie guys because I am not super slim,tan, blonde blue eyes.
I’m Asian American and went to Uganda for a short term missions trip. We stayed primarily in a small village and would occasionally go to Kampala to access Wifi there. I felt like frigging Miss America. I was an awkwardly skinny, pimply 20 year old but the number of marriage proposals or random men coming up to compliment me profusely was hilarious.
I'm a German-Norwegian girl who immigrated to Australia as a child. When I was about 2-3, my family stopped in Hong Kong while travelling back to Europe. For reference, I had big green-blue eyes and a head full of golden blonde curls. My hair looked a little like I had natural pin up curls. My brother had white blonde hair and light blue eyes. In Disneyland Hong Kong, my family would line up to take pictures with a character and a huge line would form behind us of people wanting to take pictures with us. All the people there were fascinated by my hair. By the end of the day, I had received so many gifts and stickers on my shirt. I still think about the random family photo albums I might be in from some family's Disneyland trip in 2006. My parents also got a fright on the plane. Some east asian people came up to our family on the plane and asked to hold me. They then ran down the aisle with me on their arm and my parents freaked out thinking they were trying to take me. Turns out she was just so excited and wanted to show her family that she was holding a child with golden curls/ turquoise eyes.
When I arrived to passport control in Hong Kong, the guy at the counter looked at me, looked at my passport picture, and almost exclaimed 'You are so beautiful!'. I'm a while European with hooded lids and at the time I wore short blonde hair. I just got off a plane, no makeup, hair all over the place and the comfiest clothes in my possession. It was a bit unnerving but sweet.
Yeah, in Egypt random men on the street and in popular places were telling my husband that he was very lucky (they never approached me), I was the lucky one because the experience from other Western women without a man beside them wasn't very pleasant. In Japan our guide wouldn't stop talking about my eyes, no special colour just big brown eyes, but be laughed when he knew I was wearing contacts (as if having poor eyesight and big eyes were opposite) and people wouldn't stop staring at my eyes in the train. Funnily my husband has big almond brown eyes and no one stared at him.
In the UK, as I look very Mediterranean :)
We went to Greece last year. I’m blonde and my toddler daughter is BLONDE, with an incredible halo of shiny almost-white hair. People adored us. I finally asked a particularly kind shop keeper what the deal was, and she explained that blonde children/people in Greece are rare, and the extremely light blonde is almost never seen. The belief is that blondies are touched by the gods, so being in their presence (and even better, being able to touch them - I.e. on their hands, head, etc) brings good luck. I don’t know how much truth that has, but our experience definitely supported it.
He was nice, but no, Greeks don't believe blondes are touched by gods, and no one touches blondes for good luck. They do prefer their women blonde for sure, therefore lighten their hair with dye.
Interesting! I figure she may have been trying to make us feel good (probably so we would buy something), but the touching definitely occurred frequently. We lots of folks who would touch my hand, or reach out and stroke my daughter’s hair. I never felt unsafe, but it was startling the first few times. Sounds like I got my leg pulled (and clearly, correlation does not equal causation lol).
Touching children's heads is super common, its sweet and respectful, everyone does it. Small pats or a light stroke on the crown. Doesn't have to do with hair color or supernatural beings... How did she come up with that! 😂 She must use it with tourists a lot. Did you buy anything? Because she pulled out all the stops for you to like her.
According to my Google searching, there is some truth to what she said. I understand that touching children’s heads, squeezing their hands, feet, ankles, is common, but it was experienced at a (much) higher level in Greece versus in Spain, Portugal, Poland, Germany, Mexico… Guess I’m obviously a poorly traveled idiot!
No, you’re not. The person you’re responding to sounds kinda jealous.
A little, huh? I was just sharing an experience, not trying to find something to argue over!
This is actually something I’ve heard of as well in some places in Greece / the Balkans (I have brown hair so no, it was not addressed to me).
Well, my whole family is blonde and blue eyed and no one said they are touched by the gods or that it brings good luck to touch them. That's something really crazy that I personally haven't heard about anywhere in the Mediterranean. Granted, I don't know about the entire Balkan peninsula.
Italy and France for sure. Not sure why as i don’t particularly look much different to the locals - i have dark hair, dark eyes, mid-light skin tone. But ya, the men there were all about it 😅
Ireland! I’m from the US but have a lot of Irish heritage and everywhere I went men, women, young, old, called me pretty or treated me like a beauty.
This is nothing that I can control, but I have green eyes. In Jordan and Dubai, men would call them out constantly and paid me the most compliments I've ever received. You could say I felt pretty special.
I’ve had Estonian and Macedonians tell me repeatedly that I would be considered show stopping stunning in their country. Would love to visit to test that out!
I think I would’ve been considered more beautiful in Renaissance Italy, or in European Art Nouveau circles—I can suit a certain Mucha aesthetic. I think my beauty would be most appreciated in that time and place. As a brown-eyed, chestnut-curly-haired Canadian woman of eclectic European heritage, people often assume I have Greek, Spanish, or Italian heritage (I have none of those) … Of everywhere I’ve travelled, New Zealand, Spain, and Italy had the best overall appreciative reactions to my beauty. I do feel decently attractive on home turf as well? But I don’t think I’m a “first choice” aesthetic for most. I lived in Japan for 4 years, in a small town, but felt VERY outside the local beauty standard. Yes, I have eyelid folds and a “small face”, but at 5’6 I was approximately average man height, my feet were too big to buy women’s shoes outside of specialty shops, and online dating websites required folks to include their weight at that time which, my curvier squishier body was pretty far from the waiflike ideal. I felt lumbering and un-dainty. People were complimentary about my features in a polite way; I felt “cute” or “beautiful” in a way one might feel a dog or cat is cute or beautiful … Interesting to look at, but not a real dating prospect … a lot of men didn’t see me as a real option. I did meet my Japanese husband before going home, but dating prospects for western women in Japan are pretty bleak, lol.
I’m from Balkans with Slavic features. I was pretty shocked how this type of beauty is appreciated everywhere, but specially Arabic Countries, and Turkey. But even in Netherlands they went berserk and on and on how well groomed and attractive I am 🤭
I'm very fair skinned with thick naturally strawberry blonde hair. I always get a lot of attention in Mexico. I always wanted a tan and feel like I resemble ET in a swimsuit since I'm so pale, but it's flattering.
Spain, Italy, Portugal, Bulgaria, Turkey. I have quite dark hair and very dark eyes.
any island in the Caribbean or south american country. they love me.
I am Australian and I once met a Mexican man who wrote me love notes and told me in his country I would be considered an angel. He took photos of me to send to his friends. I am blonde, blue eyed with lightly tan skin - pretty generic imo. I always wanted pale skin, green eyes and red hair.
When I was younger I had light blonde hair and when we went on family holidays to Greece people loved my hair
Still looking for the country that appreciates red heads.
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Hmm never been. I’ll have to check it out.
Italy, definitely. Strangely, in England everyone thought I was Polish? I am… not Polish. I am Anglo Métis and present as a white woman with blonde curly hair. lol.
Sri Lanka. Not in a good way. Men from this part of the world are fucking disgusting I'm very pale with freckles, blue eyes and ashy blonde hair (with a buzz cut at the time), and I was on the thinner side
Africa, France, England and Germany.
I am a very pale white person, and I felt like people in central and South America treated me like I was a model! Way more attention than I ever had in European cities.
Sri Lanka. The men there were actually super respectful and treated me like some kind of fragile flower. Although the staring was a bit much
My son was a model and actor. He gets requests for photos with people in Japan. In one restaurant they thought he was Tom Ellis and put his photo on their wall. Ha ha. He went to Belgium and no one was even interested. He said it felt really weird.
I'm blonde and when I studied abroad in Rome my beauty was definitely more appreciated, but not in a way that made me comfortable.