[Closed] USA (well part of) - What a weird place....?

Agreed TT.

stopped at maccydees off the beaten track in some dust blown hole in Utah off one of the interstates. The girl behind the counter had difficulty with my accent. Her: 'where you from?' Me: 'Scotland', Her: 'Your english is good'... To be fair though I was probably the first Aberdonian she'd ever spoken to. Other than Moab the food I had in UT was gash.

Loved the bits of Colorado I saw though. Wish I could say the same of UT. I'd love to spend a longer time in CO (and also see California, I've a real 70's hippy streak in me, that and I wanna see half dome before I shuttle orf...).

If you read through this thread & ignore the BS written by some you will get a pretty good idea of what the US is like. It's too big, too vast, too varied to stereotype. Trying to classify the US under one simple banner is as Blackadder once said "pointless.." You only have to read the wildly varying descriptions & the differing geographical locations mentioned to realise that. It rather reminds me of another place not so far away.

As for the biking being nothing but buff trails? Well I don't mind that 😉 & trust me there's more than enough rocky sh!t to keep anybody happy..

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[url= http://sonic.net/~ckelly/Seekay/mtbwelcome.htm ][b]2retro4u[/b][/url]
Marin County, Cali

Obviously the USA is a big place, and there are places I hate as much as anyone from the UK could.

I spent a week at Fort William a couple of years ago. No one from Scotland has any right to complain about our food. Yes, I had the haggis. OTOH, single-malt scotch whisky beats Kentucky bourbon all hollow.

American beer used to be terrible, and mass produced beer (Coors, Budweiser, etc.) still is, but now there is a brewery in my town that caters to the MTB crowd, and another four or five small breweries within a few miles. As a previous post noted, you can buy beers imported from all over the world also.

I can choose from a dozen ethnic cuisines if I care to dine out. French, Italian, Mexican, Puerto Rican, and any number of specialty restaurants whose menus defy categorization. I have never seen any place advertise that they serve authentic English food, with the possible exception of prime rib with trimmings.

I don't drive to a MTB ride. I get on my bike at my house and hit dirt in minutes. Living just north of San Francisco, I ride in an area perhaps fifteen miles square and I don't get bored with the trails, but our space is limited compared to other areas. The entire Rocky Mountain part of the country is a vast expanse of mountain biking. If a UK mountain biker can't have fun there, give it up.

I rode with an English rider this weekend. He was here on business with one day to ride in California, and it was his dream to ride "Repack." He had contacted one of my friends online (on retrobike.co.uk), and my friend directed him to me as a local guide.

There is a reason why I use the handle I do. Former MTB champion Jacquie Phelan and I took him on the same ride Joe Breeze and I took Rob Penn on for his BBC programme, [url= http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FdFikise66I ]"It's All About the Bike."[/url] I think our guest left with a positive impression of Americans. Unfortunately, I couldn't understand a word he said.

I have family in the Bay area of SF and up in the hills above SF (Sonora?), I can't believe I've never been. I've travelled all over the world, always wanted to go to the USA, but never happened.

Yay, Jaquie Phelan! Haven't heard that name for a while. Does she still wear pearls and do WOMBATS?

[b]Some[/b] people are indeed slim and beautiful in California.

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[url= http://sonic.net/~ckelly/Seekay/mtbwelcome.htm ][b]2retro4u[/b][/url]
Marin County, Cali

Yay, Jaquie Phelan! Haven't heard that name for a while. Does she still wear pearls and do WOMBATS?

In honor of our English guest, we dialed up your sort of weather, a bit rainy and cold. Jacquie went with the tweed jacket.

If you want to catch her act, and boy does she have an act, she says she's going to the SSWC in Ireland.

[IMG] [/IMG]

Some really interesting observations on this thread, so cheers for the input.

I did heavily qualify my OP with the point that it is a big place with lots of variables. I've always fancied the idea of the north, Rockies, Pacific NW - well anywhere west of the Rockies. That still holds true.

I liked lots of what I saw in NC. Loved the amount of green. Didn't have any problems with Americans, just found lots of aspects of their lifestyle puzzling, frustrating, and sometimes quite worrying!!!

As for the biking being nothing but buff trails? Well I don't mind that & trust me there's more than enough rocky sh!t to keep anybody happy

Yeah not in Wisconsin though, unfortunately 🙂

And that's another issue with subtle implications, I reckon. If you are somewhere, it's generally a really really long way to somewhere else different.

Tried to edit my previous post, but frustrated by phone interface and timed out....

Anyway, molgrips' previous points are pretty spot on based on my limited, localised, expereince.

Our hosts were pretty comfortable about the healthcare setup. Good job / career and good insurance etc. But they were less comfortable when I asked what happens after they retire and are likely to need more, rather than less, healthcare provision...

Also, on the education system - pledging allegiance to the flag - everyday???? What the hell is that all about??? I don't mind understated, dogged patriotism, but that amounts to child indoctrination, which I find very worrying. Combined with the previously discused disdain for the questioning of any sort of authority and you start to get close to the sort of outlook I've read about in books on early 1930s Germany.... 🙁

Like I said above, my more negative observations are focused on their system / collective outlook and not on an individual level. As others have posted, I felt very much more of a European when in the States - and of course, that is what I am - but we tend to regard ourselves as somewhere spanning the gap (geographically, commercially and culturally) between Europe and the US. Not so sure about this. I think the UK has moved a long way further towards our European neighbours over the last 20-30 years than we realise.

I think the UK has moved a long way further towards our European neighbours over the last 20-30 years than we realise

It depends on the area. Economically we are much more like the US. Culturally we are more like the rest of Europe. We have lots of ties to other countries. Take our national sporting obsessions for instance - our teams are full of Europeans and people from all over, and we play clubs from all over too. The outlook is just a little bit more global.

Sport is a good point actually.

US Americans i've found generally have little time for the sports they don't play or watch. US-style football, baseball and ice hockey are so big they really don't need to bother with real football or rugby etc.
To my mind i think its a pity they don't get the sense of occasion from a European cup comp for example, but when i pointed this out they gently reminded me they think its a pity we don't have a Superbowl!
Sport is a great leveller and something we share with our European neighbours, by contrast Europeans and US Americans tend to look at each other somewhat blankly when each talks about the merits of their various sports.

It was one of the things that struck me as really different when talking to US Americans.

*NB using the term US Americans as pretty much all Central and South Americans are bonkers about football.

I remember reading an article on some US newsy website that went along the lines of "Did you know there's a sporting event bigger than the super bowl? Watched on TV by a billion people?" and so on. They were talking about the World Cup of course.

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[url= http://sonic.net/~ckelly/Seekay/mtbwelcome.htm ][b]2retro4u[/b][/url]
Marin County, Cali

The World Cup and the Tour are all over American TV these days. The Giro doesn't get quite the play, but it's still shown. European professional football matches are seen here.

As an American baseball fan I once read that the hardest act in all of sport is to hit a baseball thrown by a major league pitcher. The SECOND hardest act in all of sport is to throw a baseball past a major league hitter.

Baseball is played all over the world, and the best players in the world migrate to the American major leagues. All of Latin America and much of Eastern Asia are crazy for baseball. How much American baseball is seen in Europe?

Also, if left to the European cyclists (and the UCI), off-road racing would still be on 'cross bikes. Thank us for that.

Baseball is played all over the world

Not as widely as other sports tho, you have to admit.

I've lived in various places in Europe and I've never seen a single baseball game being played or shown on telly.

As an American baseball fan I once read that the hardest act in all of sport is to hit a baseball thrown by a major league pitcher. The SECOND hardest act in all of sport is to throw a baseball past a major league hitter

Was that in an American publication perhaps? 🙂

I'm not wishing to denigrate American sport in any way, seriously. Being married to a Wisconsin girl I've obviously learned to take a keen interest in American Football 🙂 But you have to admit that on the whole most team sports that are big in the US are more US-centered than in other parts of the world.

NFL for instance is obviously a big deal - when was the last time you saw an international American Football match?

Repack - the rest of the world has cricket to be bored by.

US Americans i've found generally have little time for the sports they don't play or watch. US-style football, baseball and ice hockey are so big they really don't need to bother with real football or rugby etc.

How is this any different to:

The British i've found generally have little time for the sports they don't play or watch. UK-style football, rugby and cricket are so big they really don't need to bother with real football or baseball etc.

?

Iran with Big Macs

(bits of it anyway)

I was going to say that. You say you like baseball over here and people roll their eyes and gibber about rounders.

My last trip was a month travelling around Arizona, Nevada and California by Greyhound and Amtrak.
Loved it all, apart from Vegas, which really depressed me.

I found most people extremely friendly, very proud of their country and happy to show people around.
Existed mainy on wonderful seafood, pizza and locally brewed beers, which were very good indeed.

Could happly live in San Francisco, which seemed very European, San Diego or Monterey.

Met some lovely people, saw some amazing places and would love to go back.

Riding the buses was a real eye opener - you meet a really diverse crew, some real characters - highly recommended if you're not in a rush.

I was going to say that. You say you like baseball over here and people roll their eyes and gibber about rounders.

Most people are the same with cricket in this country. Funny how it's considered cool to watch people kicking a ball about, but deeply uncool to watch people hitting a ball with a bat.

"No one from Scotland has any right to complain about our food."
Charlie, if thats directed at me as a Scot I know when I've been given shit food. Believe me 🙂 If you can direct me to a qaulity eatery in St George, UT I'll know for the next time! Co was great, even the little places like Leadville and (especially) CB.

Yeah strangely enough you are well catered for in SF. If you had also visited a major metropolitan area in scotland (e.g. Glasgow) you could have eaten much better.

Re American beer, I was seriously impressed. I'm a fan of central european beer but one of the finest wheat beers I've ever had was Mothership Wit. Pity about the pissly little pint measures though...

And yeah our whiskey is much better. but, hey, we've been at it for centuries.

think the only time i felt uncomfortable in the states was when i was having a conversation with a bunch of company men who were asking if id shot a gun.

a couple of them went off on a tangent with each other about how no one would ever invade the us and if they did they would barracade their street and fight to the death.

bearing in mind the conversation prior to this was regards taking me down the range to fire at a couple of targets - which i wasnt really interested in and they couldnt understand that !

And yeah our whiskey is much better. but, hey, we've been at it for centuries.

And yet you still don't know how to spell it. 😛

jeez grum, you are like my boss, always wanting things spelled the same way every time...

I've only been to the States once. To be honest, I was expecting the Yanks to annoy me - "Have a nice day" etc. But I was wrong. Now, I accept that people are different in different areas, but in Arizona, Colorado and Utah I was happily proved wrong by their friendliness, scincerity and manners. One guy got annoyed when Mrs PP was trying to explain the bus routes in Durango to him and his buddies and asked me in a sarky tone if I was struggling to drive on the 'correct side of the road' and discovered that no, I wasn't, becasue I had driven round Europe a lot. No matter.
IMO the Yanks do some of the best breakfasts and sandwiches I've ever experienced. Super stuff.
As for dinner, well, what is [u]American[/u] food? None of it is their own that I can work out, but that doesn't make it bad.
And there are some great beers, but JEEZ! They need to actually put some ALCOHOL in it!
On the whole (as in 99.9% of the time) I had a great time in the US and I will go back again to see some more. It's a fantastic place for travelling round and the diversity is amazing.
Could I live there? Yup. No worries, for a few years, but I couldn't leave home for ever, I wouldn't swap England for any county in the world. 🙂

Cougar, the difference is that football, rugby and cricket are played to a high International level by many other countries - obviously more so in the case of football. US sports on the whole aren't played to a high level much outside the US sphere of influence. US sport doesn't IMO have the same cross-cultural connection that the more global sports give us, I wonder how many US football fans can name a British American Football player for example?

Nothing wrong with preferring your own, native-grown sports (IIRC baseball was unvented in England?) but it does tend towards that slight attitude of insularity that others have mentioned.

As for beer, i noticed that US tastes are more towards the Germanic style of 'lager beers' than bitter/mild/stout etc. IPA's seem to be popular but there again, i found them much more towards lager than what i personally would consider an IPA.

It's a vast place and not really one country so any attempt to classify it is doomed as much as any American attempt to culturally lump all of Europe together.

NASCAR NASCAR NASCAR .....

how ever the drag racing was cool once you understood it

i was in bakersfield over the march meets weekend which was cool

I'm loathe to get drawn into this as I'm not a big fan of spectator sports generally, but,

the difference is that football, rugby and cricket are played to a high International level by many other countries - obviously more so in the case of football.

Fair enough. That wasn't really clear from your earlier post; you were comparing America to Europe.

I wonder how many US football fans can name a British American Football player for example?

I'm not sure I exactly follow where you're going with this TBH?

There are British American Football players in the NFL certainly. Off the top of my head there's a couple of Scots who are Kickers, one for the Redskins and one for, ah, the Chiefs I think. There's at least one English guy too, Denver drafted an English-born black guy a few years ago. Names, however, who knows. I expect that most American US football fans would know, certainly within the team they support, just as our lot would know the names of our soccer-playing Americans.

Thinking about it, I suspect that if you were to ask an average British soccer fan to name half a dozen US Football teams, and asked an average American US football fan to name half a dozen British soccer teams, the Brit would fare a lot better.

I'm not sure where I'm going with this either, other than I guess that whilst we might play nicely with others, we've still no room to talk as far as "insular" goes. We love our mainstream sports, but most other things don't get a look in. "Sports news" on the radio might as well be renamed "football news," you're knackered if you're hoping for the results of say the cycling or the ice hockey.

I suspect that if you were to ask an average British soccer fan to name half a dozen US Football teams, and asked an average American US football fan to name half a dozen British soccer teams, the Brit would fare a lot better

What's more interesting is what happens when you try and use British vocabulary in America compared to what happens if you use American words here. The former results in a lot of confusion, whereas the latter causes no problem at all.

We're far more exposed to other Anglophone cultures here than they are there. There are lots of reasons for this of course.

ha - asking for a whisky gained mass confusion at a bar ......- asked for it by the name on the bottle (which i could see) - similar confusion .....

urm - a scotch ..... oh why didnt you say so !

There are lots of reasons for this of course.

Hollywood being a major one.

I'm relatively au fait with liguistical gotchas between the two countries, having had an American girlfriend for a couple of years and an Internet connection for a lot longer. Every now and again though, I still get legged up. For every "bumming a fag" there's a counterpoint "fanny pack."

It's mostly the size of the market and hence the industry meaning that they can produce far more than anyone else. Plus the fact that ever since WWII they have always been cooler than us 🙂

asking for a whisky gained mass confusion at a bar

I've had similar blank looks asking for a 'pint'. Turns out I meant a 'large.'

Someone at a bus station asked me to where I was going. I said 'Birmingham', they had no idea what I was talking about and asked me to write it down. 'Oooh, you mean Birming HAM!'

Now I appreciate there's a different in accents but really! I was only about an hour away and it was the major city in the area!

I've concluded that different people in different parts of the world process langauge slightly differently, even if it's the same language.

they do bureaucracy / petty rules in a way that would drive Europeans to distraction.

Probably best not go to Canada then - ****ers