Two of my interactions with a waiter at first seemed contradictory, but in the end showed me he doesn’t hold his reactions back and might even have a fantastic sense of humor.

On one of the first days, a group of us sat down for some coffee.  The waiter approached us to take our order and without hesitation, I could tell he knew we were Americans.

Jack started with, “un café?”  I ordered a cappuccino followed by a shy “per favore.”  As the waiter walked away he muttered “your welcome.”  Once we paid the bill, the waiter walked away asking for a tip.  I immediately put this experience under a category of  “Europeans hating Americans.”

Almost a week later, I went back to the café with my multi media team and our interpreter, Serena.  I leaned over to Serena and whispered, “ I had a rude experience with this guy.”  She laughed and said, “Well he’s a nice guy.”  Now I felt uneasy, as if I went too far with my assumption.

He came to take our order and as I stumbled over my words, I noticed a small smirk followed by a cover up in the form of a serious face.  Then he looked down and gave me a genuine smile.  My attitude towards the situation improved at this point.

Finally when I was on my way back from the restroom, I saw him once again.  He smiled, breathed in, and looked at the ground.  My attitude had changed and so had my mistrust of  first impressions.