They told me that if it weren't for extended family back home, they would emigrate. That was a bit surprising, since we only hear of the negative publicity we receive in other areas of the world. Nope, they actually like a lot of things about America:
1. Affordable housing (all said they spend about 80% of their income on housing....yikes!)
2. Size of housing, lots, etc. (We are spoiled here with full-size appliances and kitchens/bathrooms that you can turn around in)
3. Variety of restaurants and affordability of eating out
4. Best steaks in the world.......they all said this, which surprised me because I thought Brazilian restaurants were all about the meat?
5. Shorter commutes (obviously not talking about NYC or LA here). They said it takes them almost two hours each day to get to work.
6. The people, specifically Midwesterns. They think we are really nice (I like to think we are more genuine than nice)
The one thing they can't understand is our lackadaisical attitude about drunk driving (we all wonder about that!)
Well, there are many good things about the US, but I'm surprised they haven't noticed the downside - ruinously expensive healthcare, extremely cold winters, the huge number of guns, the Republicans etc. Their view sounds a bit rose-tinted to me. I would prefer to emigrate to Australia myself. I hate the cold.
ReplyDeleteWell, there are areas in the south and west that don't get cold here at all. There's a plus and minus to everything, including health care. Plenty of people are feeling their quality of care is being diminished, thanks to new national policies. Quality care is never going to be cheap.
DeleteOh, I forgot religious fundamentalists....
ReplyDeleteThat's an American thing???
DeleteNot at all, it's all over the globe. But it's something that would put me off living in the States. Though I have to say there's plenty of them in Northern Ireland as well....
DeleteSo much for my positive post of the week! 😱
ReplyDeleteWell, you know, it makes me feel bad when my very existence makes somebody's world a less happy place. . .
Delete;)
Bijoux, sorry, I didn't mean to be a party-pooper! But you're welcome to pick Northern Ireland and England to pieces if you want. There's no shortage of raw material!
DeleteThis makes me smile. Friends of ours have hosted students from Latin America who were aghast and deeply offended when told they would be expected to wash their own dishes and make their own beds. "You're treating me like a servant!" When told that the family's own children were subject to the same expectations, they said, "That is servant's work; why don't the servants do it?" When told that there were no servants, they were doubly aghast. Because, you see, all Americans are rich, and rich people have servants. . .
ReplyDeleteSo, you know, there's the perception, and then there's the reality. . .
;)
Funny that you mention this, as the Brazilians and others I know who have adopted children from South America said all middle class households have maids.
DeleteMaids over there.....not here!
DeleteIt also reminds me of the time we went to Tijuana. At one point, the road we were on ran along the border fence for a few miles, and every inch along the fence was crammed with folks just standing there, looking toward El Norte. Made me realize that, whatever my own less-than-optimal appraisals of our country, the fact that there are people - lots of them - willing to risk a lot just to have a shot at what I take for granted, was, shall we say, a bit of a paradigm-shifting moment. . .
ReplyDeleteSorry for using up so much of your comment-space. I'll be quiet and give others a chance now. . .
;)
Very true. I'm thankful my ancestors risked their lives to cross the ocean in the 1800's.
DeleteI've met and worked with plenty of folks from other countries both over the phone and in person. So far every one has been a similar experience to yours. Truth is the biggest down-side to this country is the folks who think that everyone needs to step in time to their personal preferences and that any who don't are somehow inferior.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the helpful perspective.
I'm not one for nationalism in most forms, but it is an eye opener to talk to others from a different perspective who've seen both sides of the fence.
DeleteIn my former job I worked with a number of foreign transplants looking to stay here. They came from various, mostly Asian, countries and made many of the observations you note.
DeleteThe worry was that several of them were convinced America was deeply flawed because it has different beliefs and morals than they had/have, particularly when it comes to women's rights. They are fairly certain our women are not under proper control ;-)
Oh brother! They should have been encouraged to stay out then!
DeleteFortunately that place is exceptionally derelict. So far they've messed up the working visas of at least 2 every year I worked there so some were sent packing. A couple others were starting to 'see the light' when I left particularly when they thought about how much less their wives would make if our system matched the 'moral society' they came from.
DeleteMoney talks!
There was an exchange student from Spain who was doing his best to stay here permanently last year. It seemed like everyone wanted him to stay too.
ReplyDeleteI remember a number of exchange students from France and Belgium who wanted to stay here when we were in high school, but I think they just liked the malls and the jeans!
Delete"That was a bit surprising, since we only hear of the negative publicity we receive in other areas of the world. Nope, they actually like a lot of things about America."
ReplyDeleteAnd was equally as surprise while I was living in Japan for 2 1/2 months because so many of the Japanese were enthralled with the US and wanted to move here. And yet, I was so impressed with Japan, that I actually thought of moving there because I loved it!
I think it's as you shared, there's a plus and minus to everything. And sometimes the grass always seems greener.
Great post topic, my friend!
X
A friend of mine hosted a Japanese student a few years ago and then took the family to visit her in Japan last summer. It looked amazing and beautiful. What an enchanting land!
DeleteI can't imagine spending up to 80% for housing or that long commute! Guess I'm spoiled living in a house already paid for and no commute :)
ReplyDeleteInteresting perspectives they shared; glad you had the opportunity to spend some time with them and compare countries.
betty
Bonus was that they were quite charming. I enjoyed hearing about their kids and recreational activities as well.
DeleteIt's easy to hate on the US. Hell, I've done it myself. But there's lot of good about the country. The weather? Well, we have every sort of weather given the vast size of the country. Definitely we aren't limited to cold winters. And of course there are nasty religious fundies. As there are in many, many countries. I think you could do far worse than here.
ReplyDeleteIt is easy and I complain about it as well. I think the media spins so much negativity that we forget or don't realize how many people still want to be part of our melting pot.
DeleteI've been to the States several times and enjoyed myself immensely. I've been to New York, Boston, Chicago, Seattle, Portland and San Francisco. But I've seen the rough as well as the smooth. The number of transients and disturbed individuals roaming the SF streets was deeply shocking. No one seemed to care about them or even notice them.
ReplyDeleteI can't speak for what happens in SF specifically, but I doubt if the issue is people don't care and I don't think the US is the only country with homeless people.
DeleteThere are a lot of variables to what you see.....people assume that if someone is in need, they will go to a shelter or city mission.....some are jaded, having seen people in wheelchairs get up and walk over to their 2014 Escalade, parked around the corner......people are worried that if they give $', it will be spent on drugs and alcohol. As a woman, and one who usually has a child with me, I have to consider my own protection, so I am not going to make eye contact with any stranger on the street.
I think Americans are very generous. My church does a once a week meal drop at a shelter, and many give money, or spend time serving there. We also do a book bag project, where homeless individuals can receive a backpack with toothbrush, cleansing wipes, granola bars, bottled water , etc. I've also heard of people donating 911 cell phones for these projects.
Hope this gives some context.
It's nice to know that not everyone views us in a bad light. 80% on housing? Yikes!
ReplyDeleteI know...isn't that crazy?
DeleteWe really do have it made here in the US, it doesn't seem so at times but compared to other places I am happy that I live here.
ReplyDeleteYes, it's a good place to be.
DeleteThe reply button under your last comment isn't working so I'm replying here.
ReplyDeleteThanks for that detailed reply, that does indeed give some context. Clearly there are lots of things going on behind the scenes that I wasn't aware of, and that's good to know. Incidentally, Jenny and I donated to the LavaMae project that provides mobile showers for street people. A great idea.
:)
DeleteMy stepdad is from England (London) and the houses are EXTREMELY expensive over there. I don't know how anyone affords it. I think for the most part the amount of our income we spend on housing is the perfect amount.
ReplyDeleteI don't understand how they can afford it either. Even the tiniest apartment can run you $1200 a month. How does a single person afford that?
DeleteLOL, that and more is the price of a 1 bedroom apartment here in the San Diego area and that's just rent, not utilities or water.
Deletebetty
Yes, I know CA is the most expensive place to live and I'm guessing your taxes are high as well. I don't understand how a single earner affords that. Are wages higher?
DeleteI am sure there are plenty of pluses and minuses about living in any country, but I am still convinced we are so fortunate to live in one of the best countries in the world. We have problems, but we are just an adolescent country when you think about it.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was younger I had a very serious and long term relationship with a young man from Ethiopia. He struggled to be allowed to come and study here while he was in high school and then managed to stay here through college with the goal of staying permanently. He would get so frustrated with some of the complaints about our country. He always said we don't know how good we've got it.
Oh dear. I suppose if you are from Ethiopia, we are all just a bunch of crying babies about our lives! First world problems indeed!
DeleteI always love a good cultural conversation and, like you, would be astonished to find they'd rather live here. I'm always braced for talk about our love of guns and McDonald's...
ReplyDeleteYes, it was nice to hear they know about and appreciate our real restaurants.
DeleteThere was an interesting article in the Guardian on Saturday by two brothers about the growing inequality in New York City. One brother is doing well, the other has had a very hard time and was homeless for a while. Inequality in NYC is said to be as bad now as during the Great Depression. That's still better than the UK though, where inequality now resembles the Victorian era.
ReplyDeleteI can only hope that homeless meant he didn't have a permanent home and not that he was on the streets, with a well-off brother in the same city.
DeleteUnfortunately yes he was on the streets despite his well-off-brother, who explains in the article why he refused to take him in. He was roundly condemned in most of the comments. http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/oct/24/tale-of-two-cities-new-york-inequality-john-tim-freeman
DeleteI think if these same workers visited boston they might have a different attitude. They certainly visited the right place in America!
ReplyDeleteLOL........well, we do have some benefits to living here, but it's still the Rust Belt!
DeleteThat's intriguing, Bijoux. I've often thought about living overseas, at least for a little while. But people have been wanting to live in America since Columbus landed here.
ReplyDeleteIf anyone wanted to support me living in Tuscany, I don't think I'd object!
Deletemost countries in the world would look up to America - that is mostly the case in Australia, and certainly the way i have been bought up.
ReplyDeleteall Americans i have me have been really nice decent people.
the main negatives we hear about America are the gun laws/abundance of guns, and trivial litigation suits chasing big dollars.....unfortunately one never really gets to hear in the media what the average Joe American thinks about such things.
i think i would be scared to come and live in America because i feel that you are on a level of sophistication that is way above us - i guess like an inferiority complex or something. (also the population thing scares me - there are 23million people in all of Australia - i can't imagine what 315million would be like)
I'm a little perplexed by the perception that Americans are all gun-crazy. I have friends who are hunters, but other than that, I would never even see a gun in my day-to-day life, for the most part. But then, I read about stuff like road-rage incidents, where one guy pulls a gun and shoots the other one, and I wonder what the hell is going on. . .
DeleteI chuckle at the notion that we're such 'sophisticates'. Partly because Europeans think we're all a bunch of rubes, and partly because of the people I know, most of whom are decidedly NOT sophisticated. For what it's worth, I've known several Aussies who've come to America and fit right in. Something about the whole 'getting out of England' thing in our historical DNA (and Americans LOVE the Ozzie accent). . .
;)
----------
And Bijoux - 50+ comments! Woohoo!
Well, Craig, half the comments are mine, so not that impressive ;)
DeleteThere are definitely dumb lawsuits and too many guns, but honestly, I have never even seen a gun in real life because no one I know personally is a hunter, and I've never been a victim of a crime. There are pockets of the country where guns are more popular than here.
ReplyDeleteNew York City, Chicago and LA are crowded, but most of the population is spread out......and it is a big country! My suburb has a population of 14,000 if that helps you compare to your town.
I have no idea why we'd be labeled as sophisticated? As a side note, my daughter's former college roommate is visiting your country right now. I'm enjoying her photos of dingos, kangaroos, Vegemite and the Great Barrier Reef.
It's nice to see an outsider's perspective...especially when they recognize all the good things about our country. We recently saw Last Comic Standing on tour in Salem, and Lachlan was talking about how the "problems" in America amount to things like above-ground vs. in-ground swimming pools. Really put things into perspective.
ReplyDeleteHahaha.....so true! I love those first world problem memes.
DeleteSounds like an interesting discussion! I often watch shows like 'House Hunters International' and wonder how I might like living abroad. I'm mostly drawn to Italy. Maybe Switzerland. Occasionally France. Probably should include Germany just for ancestry. lol Since it's not likely that we'll even get the chance to vacation in any those places, I'm sure we won't be moving. Even though we certainly do have problems here, the USA is so beautiful, so full of anything and everything imaginable. It's a great place to live. :)
ReplyDeleteAmen! And I watch that show too......the prices are shocking!
Delete