Women looking for love in Europe, lend me your eyes! (And ears. Or both.) When a copy of Katherine Chloe Cahoon’s The Single Girl’s Guide To Meeting European Men landed in my hands, I was prepared to be entertained — but I wound up a little educated, too.
Part self-help book, part travel guide, Cahoon’s book is an actual field guide filled with tried-and-true tips for catching male attention in Belgium, Germany, England — anywhere within the confines of Europe. Written from the perspective of an American woman abroad, Cahoon discusses U.S. social conventions and flips them to explain the ways many international men think, operate and want to woo a woman.
And, you know. You could be that woman.
Her advice stems from personal experience. Cahoon explains,
This book is for single girls wanting to meet desirable European men who are into them and pass by those who are not — without regret. It arose out of several semesters that my girlfriends and I spent studying in Europe. I toured more museums and was tested on more scholarly material than I can ever remember, but one of the most meaningful parts of my international major — which was not included in the official course work — was my in-depth study of and practical exams on how to meet exciting local males.
And exciting they were.
Now, full disclosure: though I’m getting ready to make a trip to the UK, I’m in no way looking to entice a man into buying me a drink — or an engagement ring. Happily in love stateside, I accepted this one for review from the author because the premise is just too good to miss.
Who doesn’t love daydreaming about guys with awesome accents?
Having a wonderful (American) boyfriend, I read Cahoon’s guide for the travel tips more than ways to flirt — but there are forty of them, and they seemed pretty logical to me. Dress to impress. Look confident and happy. Don’t be deterred by jerks. Always, always be safe — and use your head, not your heart.
Solid advice.
But The Single Girl’s Guide . . . shines for me when Cahoon breaks gentlemen down country by country, giving us a little background on the flirting and romance customs inherit in each place. For women taking a college semester to study abroad, I can see how this would be the perfect companion to your travels. “Real-life” stories about meeting men in many of the locations are included, too, along with further suggestions of where to meet certain types of guys (like, say, artsy men).
Because it’s my favorite place in the world, shall we take a peek at England?
“In some other European countries, you could ask a man for directions at a stoplight and he could invite you to dinner,” Cahoon writes. “In England, the most you will probably get is a polite answer with a charming accent.”
Oh, the charming accent.
