I’m considering upping sticks from my country of birth and moving across the pond. Just for somewhere new, and a new start and challenge.
What is America really like to live in? Tell me about your town or city, what’s good and what’s bad about it. And if you’ve been to both the US and UK, and comparisons to make?
You know you can ask me anything you want, though I am a little biased.
You won’t have to pretend that you’re Canadian when you go on holiday to another country, though. Not unless you spontaneously lose your charming little accent.
this is a really REALLY hard question to answer…i have never been out of America so is there anything you want to know about it, hey how bout i ask you about the UK… is it true you dont have pizza delivery over there and that you drink alotta tea, oh and that you have a Pancake day(and dont have a 4th of july)
Please tell me you are joking by asking this question.
face palm
Glad to see you’re taking the first steps in planning your big OE. 
I can’t say I’ve experienced the US, or at least not properly… I’ve never been further than LA airport. There appeared to be a lot of smog over the city, but I wouldn’t judge the whole country on one city. The security was tight even just passing through, but the hospitality was good (lots of free food and drink).
This is the most epic post I’ve ever read.
But to answer your questions:
We have pizza delivery.
I drink a lot of tea.
We have a pancake day, yes.
No, we do not celebrate independance day. Because we lost that one.
The US is a pretty freaking large country, physically. Other than that I don’t know a good way to distinguish it from other countries. I suppose it really just depends where you are and what sort of folks are around you?
Our public transportation system is pretty crappy?
I live in a small town. As such it is tough to meet new people whom I can connect with. Our social activities generally include going two towns over to hang out where it is more developed. There are many apple orchards in my town (which is 102 square miles) but they pretty much only attract out-of-towners.
The general populace tends to favor greed over compassion towards immigrants, so watch out. Although coming from the UK you will probably be safe, hate crimes are on the rise against Spanish speaking folks. National healthcare does not exist so you need to find your own coverage (I know mine is practically worthless).
But I want out of this country personally and intend to go to Canada after getting a Master’s degree (of course first I need to enroll in a program at a school somewhere…). I dislike the fact that our government spies on everyone at all times. This is something which does distinguish the US from other countries (also our stance on torture, war, etc) but I confess that it does not make a huge difference on a day-to-day basis.
ROFL
I’m almost shocked at that Arcie! I thought the official attitude about your King’s gracious condescension to grant the US our little independence was along the lines of good riddance to bad rubbish?
Why wouldn’t you want to celebrate that?
But America may still, just barely, claim to be whatever you choose to make of it. It’s just that… that’s much more likely to hold true for unscrupulous bastards than for happy idealists now.
It’s been five years sine I was in America holidaying (or is that vacationing?) from my shitey wee town and I’ll put my experiences in blunt small wee points.
-Everything’s bigger.
-More fast food chains.
-More space, everything is geographically more sparse.
Scotland almost felt lika a third world country when I came back.
I could elaborate, but I have just participated in Scotland’s much loved bevvy and knife related activites. Wouldn’t catch me doing that in the US.
[quote=“Arcie”]
No, we do not celebrate independance day. Because we lost that one.[/quote]
Haha, oh the burn 
As for the US, well, I’ve traveled a lot of the world, and I personally think the world is a beautiful place in general. Don’t think I’d want to live in a 3rd world country, but I’m not an American that thinks the US is the only awesome place in the world.
That being said, the US is an awesome place to live 
At least, California is. Great weather (though we’re going through a little bit of a cold spell… and by cold, I mean 1~4 degrees C), proximity to beaches, mountains, wine country, etc. But if you’re going to live in California, live in SF. People talk about the cost of living, but it’s nearly just as expensive to live in LA as it is in SF, but it’s just better up here for many reasons. Better food, not as insanely sparse and spread out, awesome culture, tons of jobs (though that’s dwindling right now 
), and if you love wine, Napa Valley is only an hour and a half away.
There’s a lot of crazy people here, but it adds to the flavor. I don’t think it’s as exciting a town as, say, Tokyo or Paris, but it’s also a lot more laid back. You get the big city feel, without the rush.
Strangely enough, I’ve never even been to New York, but everyone who has says it’s one of the best cities in the world. Take that for what it’s worth
That being said, I can’t vouch for the more remote areas of the US. There are quite a few backwards areas in the US that are not entirely tolerant of outsiders, but there are just as many places in remote areas of the US where people are extremely pleasant. Suppose it’s the same way anywhere else in the world, really.
Never live in LA. You will feel ugly and hate yourself and the scenery is BROWN.
"No, we do not celebrate independance day. Because we lost that one."
LOL … what excuse do you have there to fire LOts of fireworks???
"There’s a lot of crazy people here"
what do you mean by a lot, everyones crazy here(some of us are just really good at hiding it. (actually i think that might be true for everyone…)though im not T_T)
i know about the remote areas(i drove through there a few times) theres ALOT of farms which gets boring, near the Dakotas there no almost farms/trees, but there are the best/worst tourist traps EVER ^_^(anyone been to wall drug, or the Corn Palace(or…Cosmos Mystery AreaO_O).
[quote=“link1987”]"No, we do not celebrate independance day. Because we lost that one."
LOL … what excuse do you have there to fire LOts of fireworks???[/quote]
Guy Fawkes Night!!!
[quote=“Arcie”]
[quote=“link1987”]"No, we do not celebrate independance day. Because we lost that one."
LOL … what excuse do you have there to fire LOts of fireworks???[/quote]
Guy Fawkes Night!!![/quote]
Guy Fawkes a lot more than just Night!!!
Although, Snow Girl, he will still have to pretend he is Canadian.
Most countries hate the English, also (and rightly so!).
If you’re Scottish it’s ok though!
Let them hate us all they want. We’re made of much sterner stuff than most.
IMO, the best reason to move to the states is the culture. I don’t want to believe in nothing but self-interest and self-indulgence like the “progressives” do. It’s hollow dead weight dragging everyone down into pointlessness.
The culture in the states is pretty divided at the moment, though, but there’s still a strong sense of meritocracy and faith in a greater good prevailing there, which as always, others seek to unravel as if it were the enemy of progress.
Move to Brazil or the Balkans if you want to live in a multi-cultural paradise with different ethnic groups constantly at war with one another. Let’s import that here, yeah? How anyone can call that unifying is beyond me.
BRB!
I can’t help but think you’ve been overexposed to our right wing’s rhetoric, though I suppose it’s mostly in line with your own right wing there. The pundits do a wonderful job of conflating things like the gay lifestyle “choice” and other non-traditional (and essentially moral) outlooks such as socialism gasp with indulgence. Yet fail to see the dissonance with the ‘greed is a virtue’ status quo of the corporatocracy, that their supposed moral authorities are in intimate collusion with.
It has only recently come to my attention how calculated the shifting of the battlefront against “liberals” to “progressives” is right now. After so successfully demonizing the liberal label, and forcing those with any alternative inclinations to find a new refuge, now that it’s impolitic to be outright against liberalism they are manufacturing a new version of the same old divisiveness as a way to continue demonizing policies that may rock their boat.
Tbh, you’d feel the same way if people were attempting to dismantle your faith, too.
If anything is to blame, it’s the polarization of these opposites through the media. Too many extremes are in control of telling us what to believe.
And right now they are telling us that we should embrace an amoral lawless culture ashamed of its heritage and faith just so people can feel justifed in having lots of group sex.
Or am I being too overboard?
I’m pretty conservative myself and even a bit socialistic (I believe in helping people help themselves and thereby improve over time rather than outright jettisoning “dead weight” when it comes to people when almost any problem can be fixed, unlike most who embrace a more Darwinistic approach), and don’t want to see what has been, by and large, a stabalizing force, torn to shreds. And that will happen if you do not defend it, because that’s convenient for the short term.
Doesn’t that eagle need both wings to fly?
Oh come now, Geoffrey. Nobody is asking anyone to compromise their faith. Laws and faith are completely separate issues. And since when did gay rights = group sex? I have plenty of gay friends, and within the same circle, plenty of Christian friends who have no issues with that. I have no problems with folks with religious leanings… it’s when that religion is used as a means of moral oppression that I start to kick back. Hell, my grandmother is Christian and I attend Church with her on Sundays when I am in Japan (though I am not particularly religious myself - I enjoy her company and her friends at Church are wonderful). That, my friend, is what is called acceptance.
That being said, the diversity here is one of the greatest things America has to offer. At least, that’s true for the coastal cities. My circle of friends consists of people from all areas of the world, all sexual orientations, all sorts of socio-economic backgrounds, and many different religious leanings… and we all get along just fine. We all believe in the acceptance of our differences, and that we are unified in our desire to chainsaw each other in half in a good game of Gears of War
As for the crazies - San Francisco has the US’s biggest homeless population. Berkeley is also famous for its many crazy regulars (strange folks that hang around campus), and right/left wing nuts of all shapes and colors. But, it adds to the variety. San Francisco is one of the most mentally, socially, economically, and spiritually stimulating places I have ever been to But, it can be a bit intense, so there are many people who don’t like it here…
Oh, and by the way, I don’t think anyone has anything against the English here. At least, not that I’ve seen.
My point is the U.S. is still a very religious country, and people aim to change that. I feel it would do more harm than good. You cannot “grow up” when it comes to faith and it’s here to stay. Maybe it’s the same for certain other things and maybe those things need to be accepted too. Time will tell.
Without a common ground everyone ends up standing on thin air.