Welcome to the United States! [en]

13 thoughts on “Welcome to the United States! [en]”

1. “an ATM which charges me $2 to withdraw money”

   Heu… ça fait quand-même quelques années que sur Suisse c’est pareil 😉
   (pour les distributeurs d’autres banques que la carte débitrice…)

   Pour le reste… belle analyse !…

2. How on earth do you find time to write such a comprehensive blog in between work, travel, jet lag and things with cinammon in? Also how about a picture of Bagha on your page please.

3. Stephanie – your comments about the roads and lack of walking is typical of Hillsboro. That area was just farmland when I moved to Oregon in 1984.

   Downtown Portland is more similar to European cities – more compact, more walkers / bike riders, more people taking mass transit, narrower streets, etc. For example, you can find several decent European bakeries within walking distance in downtown Portland, and I have yet to find a decent one out in Hillsboro.

   But Hillsboro is much like you would find in a modern industrial park in Europe. For example, visit SAP’s headquarters in Germany sometime, and you will find it almost the same as Hillsboro. 🙂

   Dave

4. Hi Delia! I’m not sure how I do it… I just write! You can see Bagha here: http://flickr.com/photos/bunny/sets/602244/

   Wait — I’ll try to add a photo here. We’ll see if it works:

   

5. It does 🙂

6. Whoa! I had forgotten half of those things since leaving the States 20 years ago.

7. It’s delightful to read your observations. And I commend you on your positive and uncritical attitude…!

   • friendly and helpful people (besides the cashier at Walgreen who couldn’t help me use the card payment system and was a tad grumpy)

   Well, you’ll find all kinds, but except in the northeast USA, people are generally friendly to people they don’t know. In many plades if you make eye contact with a total stranger they will greet you or start a conversation.

   • wide, wide roads; a normal road like Cornell in Hillsboro is roughly as wide as our motorways; a small residential lane is wide enough to fit 8 cars across it
     big, big cars, to go with the wide, wide roads; they’re not cars, they’re trucks! And yeah, maximum one person per vehicle, please…

   Western USA is generaly driver-friendly, but outside of center cities, very un-pedestrian friendly. In the East the roads are narrower and a pain in the neck.

   • some of the cars (quite a lot) have the orange turn signals lit up permanently (not blinking) instead of off

   There are a number of such things that are different from country to country. No real reason other than some engineer’s idea of how things should work.

   • in domestic airports, anybody can enter the luggage claim area

   Many domestic airports are much more like European train stations, with the security areas tacked on in recent years. I guess they did some sort of study that showed there is no real security problem with baggage claim areas.

   • security people have a “we take security seriously here” air about them

   Yes, and don’t even think about being disrespectful or disobeying. Last week they evacuated an entire terminal in an airport because somebody ran past a guard and didn’t stop.

   • breakfast seems to consist mainly of pastries

   This is highly variable, and regional also. You probably are observing the “continental” breakfast style. Most Americans eat a bowl of cereal and/or fried eggs for breakfast.

   • cubicles; saw the real ones, after being introduced to the concept by Dilbert; they’re far worse than I had imagined: huge, huge spaces lined with grey boxes — people must feel very lonely working in them

   The use of cubicles and the atmosphere varies considerably from company to company.

   • default mode of transportation seems to be the car; when I asked where I could get a sewing kit, I was sent about 500m/1km away, but the guy was a bit taken aback when he understood I was on foot, and then claimed it wasn’t walking distance

   Outside of center cities, I’m afraid this is the norm. Few people would think of walking 1/2 mile for something. Exercise is something you do as a separate activity from the rest of living.

   • many more large and extra-large people here than what I’m used to seeing

   I am always pleasantly surprised when I travel in Europe to find that obesity is rare there.

   • grown-ups wearing caps

   Especially for men, the current style is to dress very casually (jeans, t-shirts, jogging suits), and baseball caps are everywhere.

   • an ATM which charges me $2 to withdraw money

   Most ATM’s have fees if your bank (debit) card is not from the machine’s bank. That is one reason I use Bank of America — its ATM’s are nationwide.

   • tap water which tastes of chlorine and frog (I feel like I’m drinking swimming-pool water)

   Sorry about that. Most tap water is good. In areas of recent construction it may take a year or two for the taste to clear out. Chlorine is added to kill the germs if there is a risk in a particular location.

   • grid-like roads: very confusing when trying to figure out where I am on a map — all the intersections look the same

   Hah! Tell me it’s easy for a stranger to find their way around Lausanne (with map or without)! All the roads look different.

   • nice food! Indian, Thai, burger, fish-food… yum; I’m definitely not having light meals to help with my jetlag

   Though I’ve not been to Portland, I think it has a reputation for cultural foods. Enjoy!

   • at Portland baggage claim, a surprising number of very young mothers (or very well-preserved mothers)

   I forget — is there a military installation near Portland? That’s probably the reason.

   • way too much choice when it comes to medicines

   You can save a bundle if you select the generic or house-brand for non-prescription drugs.

   • toilet bowls full of water by default (I thought the first one I encountered was blocked)

   Actually I’ve thought about doing a documentary study of toilets around the world. It’s truly remarkable to see the differences from country to country.

   signs telling people to wash their hands!

   There is a health law that employees who handle food must wash their hands after using the toilet. The signs are for their benefit — not for the customers…

   • bathtubs encountered are wide but really short and shallow

   Same comment as regarding toilets.

   way too much ice in drinks

   On the other hand many/most places you get free refills and can fill up again before leaving and take your cup with you. (At least this is true in southeast US).

   • woman next to me on the plane who gave me a rather blank look when I said “Switzerland”

   Unfortunately there is very little geography taught in school, and few Americans are aware of the rest of the world beyond what they see in the news media.

   • pedestrian lights in Hillsboro stay green for two seconds and then transform into a big red flashing hand; now what’s the logic behind training people to walk across the road with a big red hand flashing at them? in civilised countries like Switzerland, the light at least stays green long enough to allow you to cross the road while it’s green…

   1) the green just means it’s ok to start crossing. 2) few traffic engineers seem to know what they are doing when they install those things. 3) there is a trend to new signals that have a count-down timer that tells you how many seconds you have before you must be across.

   Hope I didn’t bore you all with this. Hope the remainder of your experience is good.

8. It's delightful to read your observations. And I commend you on your positive and uncritical attitude…!

   <ul>
   <li>friendly and helpful people (besides the cashier at Walgreen who couldn’t help me use the card payment system and was a tad grumpy)</li>
   </ul>

   Well, you'll find all kinds, but except in the northeast USA, people are generally friendly to people they don't know. In many plades if you make eye contact with a total stranger they will greet you or start a conversation.

   <ul>
   <li>wide, wide roads; a normal road like Cornell in Hillsboro is roughly as wide as our motorways; a small residential lane is wide enough to fit 8 cars across it
   big, big cars, to go with the wide, wide roads; they’re not cars, they’re trucks! And yeah, maximum one person per vehicle, please…</li>
   </ul>

   Western USA is generaly driver-friendly, but outside of center cities, very un-pedestrian friendly. In the East the roads are narrower and a pain in the neck.

   <ul>
   <li>some of the cars (quite a lot) have the orange turn signals lit up permanently (not blinking) instead of off</li>
   </ul>

   There are a number of such things that are different from country to country. No real reason other than some engineer's idea of how things should work.

   <ul>
   <li>in domestic airports, anybody can enter the luggage claim area</li>
   </ul>

   Many domestic airports are much more like European train stations, with the security areas tacked on in recent years. I guess they did some sort of study that showed there is no real security problem with baggage claim areas.

   <ul>
   <li>security people have a “we take security seriously here” air about them</li>
   </ul>

   Yes, and don't even think about being disrespectful or disobeying. Last week they evacuated an entire terminal in an airport because somebody ran past a guard and didn't stop.

   <ul>
   <li>breakfast seems to consist mainly of pastries</li>
   </ul>

   This is highly variable, and regional also. You probably are observing the “continental” breakfast style. Most Americans eat a bowl of cereal and/or fried eggs for breakfast.

   <ul>
   <li>cubicles; saw the real ones, after being introduced to the concept by Dilbert; they’re far worse than I had imagined: huge, huge spaces lined with grey boxes — people must feel very lonely working in them</li>
   </ul>

   The use of cubicles and the atmosphere varies considerably from company to company.

   <ul>
   <li>default mode of transportation seems to be the car; when I asked where I could get a sewing kit, I was sent about 500m/1km away, but the guy was a bit taken aback when he understood I was on foot, and then claimed it wasn’t walking distance</li>
   </ul>

   Outside of center cities, I'm afraid this is the norm. Few people would think of walking 1/2 mile for something. Exercise is something you do as a separate activity from the rest of living.

   <ul>
   <li>many more large and extra-large people here than what I’m used to seeing</li>
   </ul>

   I am always pleasantly surprised when I travel in Europe to find that obesity is rare there.

   <ul>
   <li>grown-ups wearing caps</li>
   </ul>

   Especially for men, the current style is to dress very casually (jeans, t-shirts, jogging suits), and baseball caps are everywhere.

   <ul>
   <li>an ATM which charges me $2 to withdraw money</li>
   </ul>

   Most ATM's have fees if your bank (debit) card is not from the machine's bank. That is one reason I use Bank of America — its ATM's are nationwide.

   <ul>
   <li>tap water which tastes of chlorine and frog (I feel like I’m drinking swimming-pool water)</li>
   </ul>

   Sorry about that. Most tap water is good. In areas of recent construction it may take a year or two for the taste to clear out. Chlorine is added to kill the germs if there is a risk in a particular location.

   <ul>
   <li>grid-like roads: very confusing when trying to figure out where I am on a map — all the intersections look the same</li>
   </ul>

   Hah! Tell me it's easy for a stranger to find their way around Lausanne (with map or without)! All the roads look different.

   <ul>
   <li>nice food! Indian, Thai, burger, fish-food… yum; I’m definitely not having light meals to help with my jetlag</li>
   </ul>

   Though I've not been to Portland, I think it has a reputation for cultural foods. Enjoy!

   <ul>
   <li>at Portland baggage claim, a surprising number of very young mothers (or very well-preserved mothers)</li>
   </ul>

   I forget — is there a military installation near Portland? That's probably the reason.

   <ul>
   <li>way too much choice when it comes to medicines</li>
   </ul>

   You can save a bundle if you select the generic or house-brand for non-prescription drugs.

   <ul>
   <li>toilet bowls full of water by default (I thought the first one I encountered was blocked)</li>
   </ul>

   Actually I've thought about doing a documentary study of toilets around the world. It's truly remarkable to see the differences from country to country.

   signs telling people to wash their hands!

   There is a health law that employees who handle food must wash their hands after using the toilet. The signs are for their benefit — not for the customers…

   <ul>
   <li>bathtubs encountered are wide but really short and shallow</li>
   </ul>

   Same comment as regarding toilets.

   way too much ice in drinks

   On the other hand many/most places you get free refills and can fill up again before leaving and take your cup with you. (At least this is true in southeast US).

   <ul>
   <li>woman next to me on the plane who gave me a rather blank look when I said “Switzerland”</li>
   </ul>

   Unfortunately there is very little geography taught in school, and few Americans are aware of the rest of the world beyond what they see in the news media.

   <ul>
   <li>pedestrian lights in Hillsboro stay green for two seconds and then transform into a big red flashing hand; now what’s the logic behind training people to walk across the road with a big red hand flashing at them? in civilised countries like Switzerland, the light at least stays green long enough to allow you to cross the road while it’s green…</li>
   </ul>

   1) the green just means it's ok to start crossing. 2) few traffic engineers seem to know what they are doing when they install those things. 3) there is a trend to new signals that have a count-down timer that tells you how many seconds you have before you must be across.

   Hope I didn't bore you all with this. Hope the remainder of your experience is good.

9. Well, this summer I went to USA for holidays (I traveled from San Francisco to Seattle, pretty much the same places you went for now…), and I met someone from Switzerland, he was half Spanish, and traveled a lot to the states. He said he always preferred to say that he was Spanish, because they often didn’t know at all that Switzerland did exist…

10. When you get back, buy yourself one of those cheap Silva compasses in Manor. Then you should not be confused about which way to walk – it takes up almost no room in your bag. I always carry one in cities I am not familiar with.

11. Hey, that compass idea is great. I must remember that.

    You can most likely thank your Swiss bank for the $2 ATM charge. My nice – Danish – bank charges more like $4 for withdrawals in the US.

    Oh, and the toilet bowls freaked me out when I discovered them too. A lot.

12. Pingback: North American Observations → The Jim Whimpey Weblog

13. Great Post! Our walk signs mean absolutely nothing to us. Pedestrians walk across the streets whenever the hell they want (or whenever they feel safe…). It was weird for me when I visited Sweden, they actually pay attention to their cross walk signs! I could hardly keep myself from just walking in front of traffic. Drivers were surprised and I was surprised that people weren’t crossing with me!

    Apparently we want to give our youngsters as much opportunity as possible to help the elderly across the street because to make it across before traffic starts, you have to speed walk.