As I was walking off the plane, ready to start my journey of living in Norway for six months, I became keenly aware that the idea of American exceptionalism shared by so many U.S. citizens isn’t a concept in Europe.

We think that America is the greatest country in the world and it isn’t. Americans live in a bubble of ignorance. Living in apartments shared by students from six continents, I’ve been made aware of the international view of the U.S. “So, you are from Boston?” someone said. “I love America, it’s like free entertainment for the rest of the world.” He wasn’t saying that maliciously, it was an honest statement.

One of my professors was giving a lecture on Vikings and their political culture which promoted violence. “It’s like America,” he began. “If you go there, then you better be carrying a gun.” As Citizens of a country which boasts freedom for everyone, Americans should feel pride for our fundamental values. Freedom isn’t granted everywhere.

That’s why my grandmother left her home country to come here. America is a land of bottomless opportunity. However, as it was pointed out to me, the USA isn’t as progressive as we want to think. In Norway, men are guaranteed paid paternity leave. Norwegians are shocked that this isn’t a privilege granted to every father.

Meanwhile, none of the police in Norway carry weapons. It’s estimated that 1.4 million people in Norway own guns (out of a population of over 5 million) and yet in 2005 only 5 homicides were committed with a gun. I was once asked, “Isn’t it true that the police shoot someone every day?” Granted, I was also once asked if Cowboys still existed, but these are the perceptions which Americans spread throughout the world.

It’s painful at times to see the way people see my country. I was sitting in my first law class and the professor talked extensively about a treaty created by the UN which focused extensively on creating a more equal world for women. Guess which countries didn’t ratify it? (Palau, which is an island in the Pacific, and the United States.)

I’ve been made keenly aware of this view that Americans believe other countries should cater to them. I once asked what the temperature was going to be, and someone responded with Celsius. They laughed and said “Oh, you are American, so of course you don’t understand Celsius. Your country just can’t ever join in with the rest of the world.”

I’ve never asked for the temperature again. In America, people get angry if someone doesn’t speak English. I admit, there have been times when I’ve even thought after an encounter with a foreigner, “Wow. I wish this person could speak English because my life would be a lot easier.” Yet, no one has ever asked me to speak Norwegian. There was that one time when my boyfriend and I went on a double date and everyone spoke mostly Norwegian. It made me feel like an idiot for expecting everyone to speak my language.

After all, I was in a foreign country where the only words I knew were coffee and toilet I should have prepared better. I know that if it had been the other way around the general sentiment would have been “If you are in America, speak English.” If there’s anything I’ve learned, it’s that people are weary of America. They don’t hate the people, but when I’ve asked Norwegians and international students who have been to America, many say they would never go back.

“Why do you feel that you have to be the World’s Police?” my friend asked. There’s a bar on campus where many of the Americans go to; “We don’t go there,” someone from Germany said. “You Americans just took over.”

I think that’s the most painful part, hearing the term “You Americans.”

“You Americans elected Trump. You Americans are terrified of Socialism. You Americans are obsessed with your guns.” I never go to that bar. I didn’t vote for Trump. I hate guns.

I know so many people who feel the same way I do, who don’t believe that America is the greatest country in the world without exception. Thinking that means that the U.S. will never change and will never reach her fullest potential. That’s dangerous.

I think that we have to foster a culture in the States where we all want to be Citizens of the World as well as Citizens of the United States. In a globalized world where everything is interconnected, we cannot have isolationist attitudes. America isn’t the greatest country in the world, but we can be.