I have little experience traveling to Europe compared to many of my friends. I have some friends that have traveled all over the world. I have family and friends that live in Europe. Although my experience is small, I have had a great interest in where I came from and the history of the European countries. I wanted to travel EVERYWHERE in Europe this Summer, but I knew that I would not have as great an experience if I was constantly moving around the month that I spent there. In the end, I chose the countries where my grandparents and great grandparents immigrated to come to the USA. My Grandma Ctibor's father immigrated from Sweden. My Grandma Ctibor's mother came from a town in Germany (now Poland). My Grandpa Ctibor's grandpa immigrated from the Czech Republic. So, I chose the Scandinavian countries, Germany (mainly because Jonathan's family has lived in Berlin for centuries, probably forever), and the Czech Republic.
American "Beauty" is not Beautiful in Europe:
One big difference I noticed in each of the countries I visited is that the women are natural. When Jonathan came to the USA he would emphasize to Kendra and Kessa to not wear much makeup. He hates when girls wear eye makeup, he thinks it is lame to put any blush on, and he doesn't understand why anyone would goop their lips up with lip gloss or lip stick. Kendra put eye makeup on one day. Jonathan did not like it. Kendra told him that it is what she likes. Jonathan replied, "Fine, it is up to you if you want to look ugly or not." hahaha. For Christmas, Jonathan got an eye shadow compact, took all the eye shadow out of it, wrapped it up, and gave it to Kendra as a gift. He was making a point that girls should not wear eye shadow because it all looks ridiculous. It was actually hilarious. I see eye makeup in a whole new light now. I still put eye shadow on every once in awhile, but I try to make it not dark. I thought it was Jonathan's personal preferences when it came to girls, but it made more sense once I visited Germany, but also Scandinavia and the Czech Republic. I don't know how any makeup businesses last there!
Natural beauty is what is in there. My perception of beauty completely changed. The women do not use a ton of products, other than cleansing and taking care of their skin. It was amazing at how healthy and natural most of the women look. I saw no out-of-shape people in Sweden or the Czech Republic. There were a few in Berlin, but Berlin is a huge melting pot now and has people living there from all over the world. Munich, on the other hand, seemed like every boy belonged in a preppy boy band and the girls were all models. It is the stereotypical German. And yes, they all seemed to have blonde hair and blue eyes. Materialistic beauty is American where in the European countries I visited the beauty was natural. So, if someone doesn't have much natural beauty then too bad for them because putting makeup on and anything fake is considered even uglier. Materialism, when it comes to looks, is not emphasized anywhere close to what it is in the USA. I saw no one with fake eyelashes, Botox, boob jobs, extensions, colored hair or any type of fake anything on one's body. Jonathan knows no girl that colors her hair and the high school girls wear their hair very natural. No spending an hour before school on one's hair, straightening hair, or curling one's hair. Jonathan showed me pictures of girls from Germany when he stayed with us for a year. I remember thinking at first that the German girls were not as pretty as the American girls. Then I went to Europe and I was so wrong. The girls are very naturally beautiful. In America it would be considered plain where there it is actual beauty because it is natural. The American girls that are not naturally pretty and use anything fake makes them look like clowns to Europeans. I remember Jonathan being shocked that most blondes in the USA dye their hair. It bugged him because he didn't understand why the girls couldn't just wear their hair natural.
Jonathan also told me a few times that he thinks Swedish girls are the prettiest. It made sense when we visited Sweden. The girls are naturally beautiful. They have NATURAL blonde hair, flawless skin, piercing blue eyes, and are all in shape. They are beautiful and they don't even wear mascara. It is obvious that my genes came from Sweden. Okay, you don't have to laugh that hard!! Jonathan loves Kendra's freckles and thinks she is beautiful without a lick of makeup on. I remember thinking it was so weird since I would at least think she should put on some mascara. Once I went to Europe, I completely understood. It is amazing the perception of beauty people are fed. When my nephews go to Africa they get jungle fever. Their perception of beauty changes and the African women are beautiful to them.
(Swedish Girls in traditional costume for Mid Summers Eve)
What is sad to me is that the USA has such a superficial outlook on beauty. It is a false beauty. All the Hollywood stars are so made up, have plastic surgery galore, and heaven forbid the women in Hollywood have a wrinkle. NOOOO Hollywood star that is 50 years old and looks like she is 20-30 years old is "natural." Sorry to burst anyone's bubble. Why do we feel that we need to look 20 when we are actually 50? Europe embraces their age and does not feel embarrassed by wrinkles or saggy skin. It is what it is. I've always wished that women had to be more natural because I have never been one to do much when it comes to sprucing myself up. What you see is what you get.
(We all know who these girls are even if we are not fans. I, personally, look at them and feel sorry for them. It is just sad to me how superficial and fake and made up they are. They just represent most of Hollywood that the much of the population tries to emulate. Why? It isn't real, it's fake. It's not attractive.)
I was so impressed by the women in Europe that they were not ashamed about being older. What was the most impressive is that the men also see natural beauty as beautiful and the fake beauty of the USA is not attractive to them. We went to a lake while in Germany. I have this false sense of beauty and compare my body to what it was when I was 17. Not just 17, but even five years ago. I tend to only see my flaws and I want to hide them. Jonathan's brothers and sisters and my girls were the only children at the lake when we first got there. There were quite a few older couples that looked like they were in their 60's. All of them had swim suits on, including Jonathan's grandma, and none of them seemed ashamed or embarrassed in any way. When I go swimming, I stay covered up until right before I am getting in the water, and the moment I uncover myself, I jump in the water. After being there for awhile, a family with kids showed up. From what I remember, they had two or three children. I'll just put it this way - no one in the family would be on the cover of Vogue in this lifetime. None of them cared at all. I had read somewhere once that Europeans did not concentrate so much on flaws and did not judge others on beauty, or lack thereof. I witnessed this first hand and was very impressed. When we got back to the USA, I got into my swimsuit for the first time in 2 years and went swimming with my family. I decided to not worry about what I consider my flaws.
(European girls)
It is no wonder that Swedish people are the longest living on the Earth. They are the kindest people I have ever met. No joke! Every single person I came across was sooo friendly. It didn't matter if they were working or trying to get something done. They were helpful and so friendly. The kindest people I have ever, ever, ever been around. Not only that, but they are healthy. They don't bulk and look like He Man. They just look healthy. That is a different blog post I will have to write about health.
Don't worry, there are things that I like here in the USA better than Europe, but I did find the differences interesting. I love to learn about people and different cultures. Here are some of the things that I want to write about in the future when it comes to the differences that I experienced in Europe vs. USA:
- refugees
- religion
- politics
- health/food
- transportation
- morals
Obviously one could compare two different places in one country or state, so obviously these are my observations. The beauty observations I made are spot on though. I don't think anyone would argue with my views on the different outlooks on beauty in Europe. America - fake. Europe - natural. THE. END.
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