When I was in college we talked a lot about globalization and how US culture is everywhere. I won’t argue that point, but I’ve come to understand that being everywhere and being understood everywhere are different things.

Myth 1: The US is only city.

The thought that the US is only city has a lot to do with movies. Most of the movies that make it to Paraguay about the US are set in a city. Actually, most of the movies I watched in the US are set in the city. I guess the city is more exciting. Being from the rural US myself, this myth was fun to dispel.

Myth 2: People in the US wear their clothes once and then throw them out.

The person who asked me about this heard it from someone who visited the US. I think the root of the confusion might have been that it seemed like people wore their clothes only once because people in the US tend to have more clothes than Paraguayans. In Paraguay most people I’ve known have a handful (more or less) of each clothing item. It’s common and fine to wear the same shirt (or outfit) multiple times a week as long as it’s clean. To ensure they always have clean clothes, many Paraguayans do laundry several times a week.