Every semester a fresh batch of Colonials heads overseas. Within no time the G-chats start to fly as those abroad report their sexcapades to their friends back home.

But despite all the hype, are foreign lovers all they are cracked up to be? Is there really a difference between a romantic rendezvous with an American or with a foreigner?

“Yes! There are differences between how cultures deal with sex,” explained my Spanish friend Jaime, a self-proclaimed “international sex expert.”

Reflecting on his international romantic exploits, Jaime saw that culture plays a major role in the bedroom. It seems that the farther north you go, the less passionate things become.

“The Germans are generally cold and non-responsive,” the sexpert explained. He gave Brazilians the gold medal.

Jaime is on to something. The British tabloid The Sun recently ran a headline proclaiming “Germans Sex Revealed as Wurst.” The paper ranked the Italians and the French as the best, and placed us Americans sadly near the bottom of the list.

But before you run out and dump your American lover, it seems that sex is sex whether you have it in D.C. or in Milan.

“Sex is pretty much the same in every culture. You can’t screw it up that badly,” said a female GW senior, who studied in Argentina.

Refusing to accept that we Americans have no hope of developing our passionate side, I asked Jaime – who has experience with Americans – what we can do in order to bring a little Latin spice into the boudoir.

He answered that Americans can be “superficial.”

“Passion means preliminary foreplay. It means kissing. Not just joining lips, but really kissing.”

Qué?

“Slow movements, looking into the eyes,” he said. “In Spain, feedback is very important. Show your partner what you like and don’t like.”

While something foreign always has a bit of added intrigue, different cultures regarding sex, create atmospheres where passion abounds.

As American journalist Harriet Welty Rochefort explains in her book, “French Toast,” we in the United States have a little trouble letting loose. “Probably the most obvious difference between the Americans and the French is the lack of prudishness with which the French talk about sex,” Rochefort explains.

In the States, sex is often a taboo topic. Growing up in Texas, we were instructed to avoid sex at all costs until marriage. That kind of stuff just doesn’t happen in Europe.

Americans aren’t entirely lost when it comes to good sex. A sex blog for The Spanish newspaper El Pais ranked Americans as being better in bed than both the French and the Italians, citing our amazing bodies.

But if your own rocking body just isn’t cutting it for you and you need a quick fix of Latin passion, a change of scenery may be just what the doctor ordered.

From an Italy-loving GW grad, some words of encouragement: “Don’t underestimate the power of hooking up with an American abroad. Just being surrounded by the ambiance of Europe can raise somebody’s appeal to the 10th power.”