Americans = Prudes?

Well, en rapport à ( in facing ) my latest French experience, I can only conclude that Americans are body-shy prudes.

Let's backtrack, shall we? for my carte de sejour (a legal document I have to have to live here for a year) I had to have a rendez-vous chez le medcin (a doctor's appointment). I go to the doctors yesterday morning and the nurse does the usual heightweighteyecheckareyouhealthy? runthrough. I'm then sent to another room to wait for a bit...then I get to have pulmonary x-rays! oh boy! so I walk into the x-ray room and the x-ray technician tells me to go put my stuff in the little adjoining room and strip from the waist up and then come back out for the x-ray. I walk into the little room, expecting to find that nice paper shirt for modesty purposes...nope. nothing. the room was empty. I guess the french just aren't nearly as awkward about nudity when it comes to medical visits...I was just confused. I'm so used to the American manner of covering yourself when at the doctors as much as is possible by the nature of the visit. and then of course the technician (thank GOD it was a woman...) was just standing there talking to me when I came back out as I'm awkwardly trying to figure out whether I should just stand there as is...or attempt the glaringly obvious arms-crossed-over-my-chest-for-modesty pose. It was hilarious, in a slightly uncomfortable way! Toto, I have a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore...