I’m amazed at the restaurant portions. When I go back to visit my parents, it’s impossible for me to finish any of the meals we have when we go out. They claim that they also can’t finish the restaurant sized-dishes, but then when they do the cooking themselves, I can’t finish the portions they serve, either. I weigh around 190 pounds right now. Had I stayed in America and continued with the eating habits I’d had, I’d easily be brushing against 300.
And I have been called a traitor for moving overseas, but the ones who did that aren’t that representative of the country as a whole (I hope). Once was from a guy who basically hated anyone who wasn’t white Catholic American (or who associated with people who weren’t), but had a special gripe against Japan in particular. The other time was when I was called a coward by someone who felt that, since everyone is free to do whatever they want in America, I had obviously surrendered my God-given freedoms for material gain by moving away from this great nation. And these were both before the Gulf W. War.
Sorry to continue this tangent… Just to clarify, I was not referring to traffic in Rio proper; I never drive there, just as I never drive in Manhattan – those streets are best left to taxi drivers. I find that downtown Rio looks pretty much like downtown NYC.
You are right that folks in the suburbs of Rio are more likely to use public transportation, but travelling by bus can cause something as simple as a one-hour dentist appointment to consume the entire afternoon. Many families have a single tiny car or borrow one when needed.
I think that (for the UK anyway) part of the problem there is that “jelly” to them is what we’d think of as Jello. Our jelly is what they’d call jam. Peanut butter and Jello sandwich does sound hideous. Peanut butter and jam sandwich? Yummmmmm.
Well, * I * did! After all, after I gave it a try I concluded that the fridge was the best place for it, since it usually holds all that stuff we only buy to try and we tend to keep for years later (with maybe a spoonful missing from each ).
I’m a Brit, love the US and would live there in a heartbeat. I visit the States as often as I can, and I find it easier to list ‘100 Things I Love About America’ than to point out weird stuff. But for weirdnesses from a British point of view…
The laws in and around LA about crossing the road, and everyone being so obedient! Even if the roads are utterly empty, like the Vanilla Sky sequence, people just stand there, meekly waiting for the little sign. Over here, there may be some guidance about when you can and cannot cross, but basically it’s up to you as an adult to think for yourself. If you make it to the other side, good for you.
The awful advertising. The relentless torrent of TV ads has already been mentioned, but what’s strange is that most of them are just banal, boring, irritating and shouty. Shouldn’t adverts be striving to be liked, as opposed to being more annoying than a wasp in your ear?
This genuine sign over a store in O’Farrell St in San Francisco: “Alex’s Gift Shop. Watches, Batteries, Housewares, Hardwares, Socks, Telephones, Tear Gas, Walkman & CD”.
The way religion encroaches on everyday life. If you want to be religious, that’s your right. But do you have to shove it in my face? I went into a florists to buy some flowers. Just as passing conversation between seller and customer, the florist felt moved to observe that love is a gift from god. Gee, thanks for assuming that I (a) share your out-moded medieval superstitious rantings about imaginary beings and (b) want to hear them. Likewise, I was having a pleasant enough chat with a young teacher while waiting in line at an airport, and when we went our separate ways she offered me ‘Peace and blessings upon you’. I know it was a nice sentiment, and she was being a nice person in her way, but if you don’t share the belief system it’s still just delusional claptrap. This kind of thing just doesn’t happen over here.
The fact that so many white collar ‘execs’ seem to live to work. Some of them are at their desks early Saturday morning, even though it takes 2 hours to drive in. They seem to think themselves lucky if their ‘weekend’ time means ‘most of Sunday’, and they put up with very little paid vacation per year (compared to us). On the one hand, I can admire the work ethic. On the other, we Brits think you’re all being horribly exploited and should stand up for yourselves more.
The maze of rules and regulations around booze. Yes, we have some stupid laws about when pubs can open. But my oh my, the States is one huge maze of neurotic anxieties when it comes to people purchasing or drinking alcohol. While I was in San Fran, it took me a while to realise that just to walk down the street with an alcoholic drink in my hand would be some sort of hanging offence. I was down in Ghiardelli Square for the July 4th fireworks. To see that huge big happy happy crowd of people, celebrating a major event, and not one of them with booze in hand, was just endlessly weird for a Brit.
The gun law thing. I’m not trying to start the old debate. But coming from Britain, where even the police don’t have guns, it just feels really, really weird to see how easy it is to get hold of one over there.
The antics of TV studio audiences. Why go screaming mental crazy crazy crazy, yahooing and hollering and cheering and screaming, when nothing much has happened or is going to. I’m all for being out-going, extrovert, uninhibited, alive to the joy of living etc… but it’s just silly when it’s taken to these extremes.
The linguistic poverty, even among the well-educated. On my last visit, I met a very bright, intelligent young man, currently studying higher maths stuff at MIT, who was also very knowledgeable about art, politics, psychology, engineering etc. I swear he only knew one expression to denote approval: ‘awesome’. That was the full extent of his capacity to express approval or the notion of being favourably impressed. I could give many similar examples.
The political system. Only two parties, both pretty much the same (when viewed from anywhere else in the world). Caucuses. The electoral college. 'Nuff said.
Spoken like a true man. Or someone who commutes door-to-door with nary a thought of ever having to actually walk somewhere.
Yes, there are a lot of comfy heels that can be worn to work. What there are NOT a lot of are comfy heels that can be worn to drive or walk to the train, on the subway, through several changes, then 10 blocks to the office. In fact, I’d say there are no heels that are comfy to walk numerous blocks in, up and down stairs, through hundreds of yards of subway interchange, while carrying a purse and maybe a laptop and gym bag.
Comfort aside, walking on sidewalks will wear the plastic heel tip down to a nub in a matter of weeks. They are expensive to keep replacing. That’s why women wear sneakers with their business suits.
curly chick, the wierd liquor laws can be very confusing for people moving from state to state as well.
In North Carolina, you can purchase wine or beer at the grocery store (but not before noon on Sundays :rolleyes: ), but hard liquor is only sold at ABC (Alcoholic Beverage Control) stores. When my mom moved up here from Texas, she saw all these ABC stores, with their signs in big block letters, and somehow assumed they were a chain of toy stores. A co-worker finally enlightened her after my mom mentioned that she wanted to pick up a gift from the ABC store for a friend’s baby shower.
Although I am not really a baseball fan, I feel familiar enough with the game to point out that in baseball, the games themselves are a minor aspect of the sport. They exist only to generate statistics, the discussion of which is the real game.
I’m surprised that no one has mentioned ice cubes in soft drinks (at restaurants)… when I went to Ireland I noticed that my soft drinks never had ice. My Irish friend seemed to think it was a rather odd request.
I’m a transplant from Britain, and fairly recently I moved in with new roommates at college… when I pulled my electric kettle (which I had to have my brother buy and send to me a few years ago, then rewire it for US sockets/outlets) from my box o’ kitchen stuff they were stunned. They actually asked how the plastic didn’t melt when you put it on the stove…
You can buy electric kettles here, I’ve since learned- Wal-Mart carries them- but you can’t get one with an on/off switch for love nor money, and since US power outlets don’t have switches on them, you have to unplug the damn thing every time you want to actually pour out some water. And it WHISTLES. Yes, really.
A whistling kettle in the 21st century… the US equivalent of the Japanese still pooping in little holes in the floor, I suppose.
> Sterling is the most valuable currency there is and that has been the
> case for a long time and they have different coloured and sized notes.
I would think the most valuable currency (in numerical terms only) would be Bahraini which is about 1 Dinar = US$2.64 (Oman is a close second). The least valuable (numerically) is probaly Turkish ($1 = 1.6 million lira).
I have a tea kettle and I use it all the time. I don’t heat water in the microwave.
And yes, the liquor laws vary from state to state. Quite confusing. Here in Maryland, you can’t buy liquor in the grocery stores at all, only in liquor stores, which aren’t open on Sundays. Some bars have attached stores which sell package goods (and are allowed to sell booze on Sundays), but they must have a separate entrance.
I drink sooo much tea and I have a litle Rival electric kettle. It doesn’t whistle, but it also doesn’t have an on-off switch. Oh well. It was only about $12 and I see them all over the place.
Our Australian friends (in the 80s) were convinced that the huge amounts of ice in their sodas were an attempt to cheat them out of their rightfully purchased soda.
It took them a while to become convinced that most Americans really wanted a lot of ice in their soda and that McDonalds would happily go easy on the ice if you asked.
Note on the liquor issue: I’m always amazed when I’m visiting family in Ohio, walk into a grocery store, and you can buy wine and beer there. In NJ, nothing more alcoholic than mouthwash is sold outside of liquor stores (AFAIK, all privately owned.) It was totally surreal to walk into a gas station in Kentucky once and see they were selling Budweiser by the case.
Kettles: You don’t use stove-top kettles? And if they don’t whistle, how do you know the water’s boiling?
Random question: I live in one of two states in which you cannot pump your own gas at a gas station. Hows this work elsewhere: is it generally pull up and let the ‘experts’ handle it, do it yourself, or a mix? (I just found out that some people see it as a major conveniance to go to a full-service station. Same over there?
You’d have a heartattack in California then, Ninjachick. You can buy any type of alcohol you want in grocery stores…hard liquor, beer, wine, whatever. That’s the weirdest thing I found out here in the DC area…not much booze in the grocery stores.
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