12 ms·

From Europe to Silicon Valley - things I do/don't like about USA

68 points by evahenson 13y ago

nano111 13y ago
I wish I could down-vote...
- mmanfrin 13y ago
  Don't worry, I'll happily give you one for your pointless no-content snark.
  - nano111 13y ago
    thanks
fierycatnet 13y ago
As non American living in US, I can agree with most points.
kylec 13y ago
The USA is so vast and so diverse that it's very hard to make general statements that apply to all of it. While the author of this post claims to have seen quite a bit of America, a lot of what he says doesn't mesh with my experience on the east coast. I have never paid half price for food if I'm kept waiting, for example, and the weather here is humid and hot in the summer and bitter cold in the winter. Most roads are OK in urban areas but I've seen some truly dreadful roads in more rural areas. Most houses (excluding condos) here aren't glued together, either. Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining, but things aren't quite as rosy here as they are on the west coast, especially in the Valley.
- BlobbleBlab 13y ago
  Not true. Vast yes, but diverse, not so much, unless you're specifically referring to wildlife and not to people. Coast to coast you'll find the same language, the same religion, the same sports, chains, food, traditions, holidays, it's all the same. To you, the differences between a Texan and a New Yorker may be huge, but to outsiders they're the same thing. Travel the same distance in any direction in the old world and you'll find dozens or even hundreds of languages, completely unrelated cultures, cuisines, traditions.
hondje 13y ago
I wonder why Europeans feel physically unsafe here while simultaneously finding us extremely friendly. Is it just a normal reaction to being a stranger in a strange land?
- cclogg 13y ago
  Maybe they came from a smaller European town and then proceeded into a big city here in North America? I've been to many parts of Czech and a few parts of Germany, and it is very nice there. Never saw anything like we have here in Vancouver with the downtown east-side (ie SF Tenderloin), but maybe I just haven't seen everything.
- nikatwork 13y ago
  Ozzie here. It's not just being a stranger in a strange land, your country has some dangerous edges. My experience in California: * The police are like military. I saw a couple of incidents, and concluded that if the police pull you up, it's best to drop to the ground and obey. Pretty scary. * I didn't realise that nobody walks when I first arrived. It's pretty easy to end up in the wrong neighbourhood if you go for a long walk. Ie, packs of young rugged looking dudes eyeing you off. * Bums in San Fran. I've never seen first world poverty like that. Very confronting. * The missus visited LA, turned off one exit too early and ended up in Inglewood. Her descriptions of the neighbourhood were... colourful. On the plus side, the nightlife was really safe. In Australia I'm used to constant fistfights and violence around clubs/pubs. On the flipside, I got the feeling that everyone was being so polite and respectful because ya never know who's got a gun. That's not really a relaxing feeling.
  - dyno12345 13y ago
    I wouldn't worry about people carrying guns in bars... not something I've ever seen happen. I've spent a good deal of time in Oz and the bar brawling culture there is just not something we have here. It happens sometimes, but usually when it looks like something's going to break out a half dozen people spring up and try to diffuse the situation. 98% of the time it never gets past the shouting-of-threats stage. In Oz it always went from zero to bloodspray in short order.
jmduke 13y ago
I think one of the big points that this article misses (I love these kinds of posts, though) is that the United States are crazy diverse. The post talks about it a little with regards to safety on the streets, but I mean in a broader context: Silicon Valley is hardly a microcosm of the entire country. States, regions, and cities have broadly differing cultures and atmospheres, sometimes even to the same extent as going from one country to the other (especially when it comes to climate.) Given that the author said he had spent time in a great number of states, I was quite surprised by a lot of his points being seemingly so specific. I think that's one of the US's biggest advantages: five years in one city will leave you a different person than five years in another. (Also, if you think people are friendly in SF, spend a weekend in South Carolina. You'll forget how not to smile.)
- stephengillie 13y ago
  I wish the weather were so nice, and the people so friendly in Seattle. And only beer snobs are concerned about the head on their beers, as most people are drinking domestics and cheap microbrews directly from can or bottle. I used to think it rude of baristas or burger clerks to check their phone while prepping my order, but instead now I check my phone at the same time. I think the key to it not being rude is to synchronize, so we all pop in and out of the conversation at the same time.
  - cesarbs 13y ago
    I've been living on the Eastside for almost half a year now, and I find people in the area extremely friendly. Also in Seattle. I guess it's a matter of what we're comparing to. Compared to most southern Brazilian people, Seattleites are very, very friendly.
- dfc 13y ago
  "Given that the author said he had spent time in a great number of states" After reading some of the items I could not help but think that "spent time in a lot of states" was an exaggeration. That being said the problem with making generalizations about the US is one of my favorite things about the US; remarkable diversity of environment/culture/weather/architecture/etc. > Everybody talks to everybody, people are very friendly to each other... Dont get me wrong I like NYC but you cant spend much time in Manhattan and continue to hold this belief. > It is almost always sunny. You don't need any forecast, it will be sunny and between 20-25 degrees Celsius. Every day. Great! I live in Syracuse, NY, we compete with Seattle for least amount of sunny days in the continental US. The big difference from Seattle is that instead of rain we usually get 100+ inches of snow in winter. I want to move because of the weather in Syracuse. > Can somebody explain to me why most of the houses are almost glued together so that I can reach my neighbour's wall? Never visited the suburbs or any city in the midwest. > Even local side roads look like our highways. All other roads are in great condition. Traffic is fluent, drivers are more respectful and chilled out. Road condition: Never drove/rode on a highway in Pennsylvania or West Virginia. Traffic: Never drove in Boston or Manhattan or inside the beltway.
mturmon 13y ago
Europeans often comment on flimsy US house construction. Perhaps it's because of the relative newness of most US housing stock. And also the propensity of Americans to tear it down and start over. There's less reason to build for forever in this case. Another factor is seismic conditions (the OP was clearly most influenced by the Bay Area). Masonry or stone construction is incompatible with earthquakes.
- deleted 13y ago
  [deleted]
- anigbrowl 13y ago
  Masonry or stone construction is incompatible with earthquakes There's more to quality construction than building out of brick (although I think brick houses will ride out an earthquake a lot better than you imagine, as some of the oldest houses around the Bay Area are made out of brick). It's other things like the fact that you build houses with Tyvek instead of insulating them properly, crappy aliminum windows, and so on. People here tend to tear their houses down and start over because a lot of houses are so poorly built that they're not worth repairing, rather than out of any aesthetic impulse.
- dyno12345 13y ago
  Many houses in the Bay Area are about as well insulated as a wooden shed, frankly. People seem comfortable to let it get 50° inside.
  - vacri 13y ago
    I once asked a Scot if they had any wooden houses back in his homeland. He replied "Yes, we keep our lawnmowers in them"...
    - snogglethorpe 13y ago
      Scottish house construction is definitely quite a bit flimsier now than it was 150-200 years ago though... I lived in Edinburgh for a few years, and most of the apartments I lived in were built in the 19th century (maybe the 18th; I forget the details, but there were several major housing booms in Edinburgh back then). They all had walls made of stone blocks like half a meter thick, and that was typical for buildings from that era, which account for a huge proportion of the city-center housing stock. New suburban houses I saw, on the other hand, seemed liked they'd blow over in a stiff wind (something there was a plentiful supply of), and of course were ugly to boot... [OTOH, it turned out that in one of the places I lived, the drinking-water tank was made of lead...! >< So if my comments seem kinda dumb... TT ]
TempleOS 13y ago
Fucken nigger. God says "DAMAGES fig-tree goods do_you_know_what_time_it_is touch rage delights portions rudiments SAINT upward valued seducers shrink INCLUDING still-standing how_do_I_put_this sceptre unlearned pant Lord's covenant occurred daemon-worshippers off_the_record beneath avenues foretold framers flying suppress stretched apparel bold-faced holy-days awaited honourable lie constellations downer restlessly multiplying serene cursing echo peril didst created envenomed lament avert appetite protesting Greenland gainsay One_finger_salute bestow economy feverishness learner hadst Gaza_Strip days falls Unity troubles wretched fragrant pander marvel hearer impure suspicions cowardice dominion destroying creatures guardianship invited penal forethink abyss help traces departest divided debated Prodigality augmenting classics refrain pines potent cedars thirsteth still attentive marriage omnipotency appeared Only Ruler blasts perplexed reinvolved ends narrowly manfully touch "
mcrider 13y ago
Not sure why you'd want head on your beer, thats just wasted space...
- agilebyte 13y ago
  :) It dissipates after a while and some of it turns into liquid so if done properly you should get the "liquid amount" ordered up to the little needle mark on the glass. A different culture. Here in the UK I always get an ale that spills on my fingers when I carry it as it is 100% full...
- killermonkeys 13y ago
  Amount of head on lager varies from country to country but it is hard to argue with a Czech given that they invented Pilsen lager. A good head has a different taste and adds a different texture to the beer and makes the carbonation (high in a lager) more smooth and less bitter.
gcb0 13y ago
Wow, if he likes the corn tasting steaks from usa... I'm sorry for the cows in Europe.
- hackerboos 13y ago
  Steak is great in Europe it's just expensive.
- nnq 13y ago
  In central and eastern Europe (I mean outside France, Germany, UK) beef tastes like shit, no matter how the steak is prepared, unless you're happy to end up in a place with "american (style) steaks" (that are usually made from beef imported from UK or USA) or good French cuisine. It's basically a whole different animal, not a metaphor: the cattle are never the famous and tasty american Back Angus or anything similar, their meat has a totally different texture and flavor, and by different I mean horrible (usually... I'm sure a French cook can make a dead rotten rat taste divine with all those marinading and sauces, but that's a different story...). ...now about lamb and pork steaks, it's different story, but beef steak in any "non beef loving country" is always crap.
  - vetinari 13y ago
    The cattle in Central and Eastern Europe is grown for the milk, not for the meat. That is the reason, why it tastes like shit. If you want a good steak there, get an Argentinian. Of course, there are exceptions. In Prague, you can have good Czech-grown steak from cattle-frown-for-meat (go to Cestr).
vacri 13y ago
I am able to accept that there might be wolves in woods but not that I will be robed on street. Some typos are too good to pass up.
ww520 13y ago
Weather - always sunny. I think OP spending too much time in the SF Bay Area. Bay Area is among a few places in the world that has the best weather year round.
rvschuilenburg 13y ago
This has always been confusing to me: "I have to drink my beer from a paper bag, so there is nothing to be seen. What do you think everybody drinks from their paper bags? Coca-cola?"
- Gormo 13y ago
  That's another thing that varies from state to state. In some states, like Nevada and Louisiana, public consumption of alcohol is quite legal, and often commonplace.
ixacto 13y ago
So you are a straight European dude in your 20s-30s in one of the most lucrative and in-demand industries in the USA in SV/SF. This might give you a slight case of rose colored glasses. You might have seen in your travels to other parts of the country that many Americans do not have this standard of living. To be blunt, it is likely that minority women in the deep south would have a slightly different expierence. The realitiy of living in the USA is : 1. Don't get sick. We don't want to pay for you to go see the doctor, even if it would save $millions in medical bills for diabetes/cancer/chronic disease. There is the legal obligation for any emergency room to stabilize you, but then they kick you out if you can't pay. 2. Don't have kids. Kids cost a fuckton, and the governmnet doesn't really want to pay for it, but they partially do through a clusterfuck of programs (WIC/CHIP et al). There is no legally-mandated Parental leave or anything, that is for those lazy Frenchmen. 3. Don't be a woman. People will make rape jokes about you all the time (hello microsoft, E3) and that would be just the start of it. Never mind access to affordible healthcare like cancer screening and abortion. 4. Be christian, or if that isn't possible be Jewish. Just don't be Athiest/Muslim/Hindu/Bhuddist/.... If you aren't Protestat Christian there is no chance you will be president, JFK excepted. 5. Belive that USA = #1. Keep that flag flying and that coolaid flowing. Disclaimer: I'm just a white guy trying to get a PHD/marketable skills so I can leave this country and move 140 miles north to Vancouver. Yes I know Vancouver has a bit of a heroin/prostitution/housing problem, but it's better than the current situation.
- Splotzenbobble 13y ago
  As another piece of Eurotrash who has seen (much) more of the USA than the average American, I have some objections to your ehm, objections. 1. Don't get sick - probably true, but apparently they're working on it. I've found the level of health care mediocre compared to back home, but the prices absolutely insane. Think 10 to 100 times higher for the exact same treatments in some cases. Prices are so out of sync with the rest of the world that my insurance explicitly covers full healthcare costs in the entire world except the USA. 2. Don't have that in my home country either, except for the right to take a certain number of weeks of unpaid leave without losing your job (mothers only). Tbh, I don't think it's unreasonable not to get paid for time you don't spend working. 3. If you think this is better outside the US, you're in for a shock. Cultural sensitivities you take for granted will be different or completely absent, and others that make no sense to you will be in place. Simple math will show you that cancer screening of asymptomatic people is completely pointless by the way, but that's a bit off topic. 4. The only one from that list you really don't want to be in the USA is openly atheist. Just say you're not into organized religion instead, and you'll be fine. That said, I've never set foot in a place where being part of a religious minority was considered a good thing. Americans are less likely to openly say what they _really_ think about your kind than Euros. 5. Probably true. In most Euro countries, waving the flag outside the context of international sports may be associated with wingnuts on the extreme right
wybo 13y ago
I'd like to add a few points from my own experience: Cars: In America/Golden Gate Park, people take their car into the park! They even park it right there, right next to where they have their picnic. Odd but understandable. In Europe cars are antithetical to nature and relaxation, something industrial you hide out of sight, while in the US they are (apparently) integral to it. Hours. In the US/SF people 'like' to be in the office. It is practically their home when they are not commuting or sleeping. While on the weekends they go on trips to be away from home/the office (I could not imagine raising, rather than merely producing, a family in the US). (all you say about the weather is true, unless you live in West SF. National parks are fabulous indeed!) Poverty. Without being a Republican who believes the poor / racial minorities are to blame for their own d*mned fate, it is not possible to enjoy central San Francisco. Never seen so many homeless people in such horrible states of existence (and I am not a Republican but a social democrat, so I was not comfortable with US society...). (the US is this odd mix between rich and modern and a 3rd world country... also with regard to infrastructure) Traffic lights (and a lot of traffic) at almost every corner in the city. Perhaps nice if you are driving, but very annoying when you want to enjoy an uninterrupted walk. Grid-pattern (mostly responsible for the former). Cities look like they were built on a chess-board. Nice if you want to go straight, but not good when you want to go diagonal (in Paris they solved this with diagonal avenues). And forget building diversity or atmosphere, especially in the suburbs (which are 97% of the city). Houses are indeed quite flimsy. But in East SF there are at least some lovely pre-war houses that have atmosphere (I lived in a room in one, loved it...). Business / startup opportunities; indeed, nothing beats California (never seen so many things bordering on the silly, fully funded...). On balance, after a year in the US, I chose to go back to the old world when a great opportunity came up there. I'm a European again :)
- Gormo 13y ago
  How do traffic lights hinder your walk?
  - wybo 13y ago
    By being red at least 50% of the time (and making cars drive past fast & and making it an offence to cross the street even if there is no traffic (so in addition to watching the traffic one needs to scan the street for police...)). Also, in many older (& also modern Dutch & UK inner cities) we have a thing called Woonerf (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woonerf http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woonerf), which means a ~15 miles per hour maximum speed off the main roads inside residential areas, so pedestrians and kids can actually enjoy/play on the roads...

68 points by evahenson 13y ago

nano111 13y ago

I wish I could down-vote...

mmanfrin 13y ago
Don't worry, I'll happily give you one for your pointless no-content snark.
- nano111 13y ago
  thanks

fierycatnet 13y ago

As non American living in US, I can agree with most points.

kylec 13y ago

The USA is so vast and so diverse that it's very hard to make general statements that apply to all of it. While the author of this post claims to have seen quite a bit of America, a lot of what he says doesn't mesh with my experience on the east coast. I have never paid half price for food if I'm kept waiting, for example, and the weather here is humid and hot in the summer and bitter cold in the winter. Most roads are OK in urban areas but I've seen some truly dreadful roads in more rural areas. Most houses (excluding condos) here aren't glued together, either. Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining, but things aren't quite as rosy here as they are on the west coast, especially in the Valley.

BlobbleBlab 13y ago
Not true. Vast yes, but diverse, not so much, unless you're specifically referring to wildlife and not to people. Coast to coast you'll find the same language, the same religion, the same sports, chains, food, traditions, holidays, it's all the same. To you, the differences between a Texan and a New Yorker may be huge, but to outsiders they're the same thing. Travel the same distance in any direction in the old world and you'll find dozens or even hundreds of languages, completely unrelated cultures, cuisines, traditions.

hondje 13y ago

I wonder why Europeans feel physically unsafe here while simultaneously finding us extremely friendly. Is it just a normal reaction to being a stranger in a strange land?

cclogg 13y ago
Maybe they came from a smaller European town and then proceeded into a big city here in North America? I've been to many parts of Czech and a few parts of Germany, and it is very nice there. Never saw anything like we have here in Vancouver with the downtown east-side (ie SF Tenderloin), but maybe I just haven't seen everything.
nikatwork 13y ago
Ozzie here. It's not just being a stranger in a strange land, your country has some dangerous edges. My experience in California: * The police are like military. I saw a couple of incidents, and concluded that if the police pull you up, it's best to drop to the ground and obey. Pretty scary. * I didn't realise that nobody walks when I first arrived. It's pretty easy to end up in the wrong neighbourhood if you go for a long walk. Ie, packs of young rugged looking dudes eyeing you off. * Bums in San Fran. I've never seen first world poverty like that. Very confronting. * The missus visited LA, turned off one exit too early and ended up in Inglewood. Her descriptions of the neighbourhood were... colourful. On the plus side, the nightlife was really safe. In Australia I'm used to constant fistfights and violence around clubs/pubs. On the flipside, I got the feeling that everyone was being so polite and respectful because ya never know who's got a gun. That's not really a relaxing feeling.
- dyno12345 13y ago
  I wouldn't worry about people carrying guns in bars... not something I've ever seen happen. I've spent a good deal of time in Oz and the bar brawling culture there is just not something we have here. It happens sometimes, but usually when it looks like something's going to break out a half dozen people spring up and try to diffuse the situation. 98% of the time it never gets past the shouting-of-threats stage. In Oz it always went from zero to bloodspray in short order.

jmduke 13y ago

I think one of the big points that this article misses (I love these kinds of posts, though) is that the United States are crazy diverse. The post talks about it a little with regards to safety on the streets, but I mean in a broader context: Silicon Valley is hardly a microcosm of the entire country. States, regions, and cities have broadly differing cultures and atmospheres, sometimes even to the same extent as going from one country to the other (especially when it comes to climate.) Given that the author said he had spent time in a great number of states, I was quite surprised by a lot of his points being seemingly so specific. I think that's one of the US's biggest advantages: five years in one city will leave you a different person than five years in another. (Also, if you think people are friendly in SF, spend a weekend in South Carolina. You'll forget how not to smile.)

stephengillie 13y ago
I wish the weather were so nice, and the people so friendly in Seattle. And only beer snobs are concerned about the head on their beers, as most people are drinking domestics and cheap microbrews directly from can or bottle. I used to think it rude of baristas or burger clerks to check their phone while prepping my order, but instead now I check my phone at the same time. I think the key to it not being rude is to synchronize, so we all pop in and out of the conversation at the same time.
- cesarbs 13y ago
  I've been living on the Eastside for almost half a year now, and I find people in the area extremely friendly. Also in Seattle. I guess it's a matter of what we're comparing to. Compared to most southern Brazilian people, Seattleites are very, very friendly.
dfc 13y ago
"Given that the author said he had spent time in a great number of states" After reading some of the items I could not help but think that "spent time in a lot of states" was an exaggeration. That being said the problem with making generalizations about the US is one of my favorite things about the US; remarkable diversity of environment/culture/weather/architecture/etc. > Everybody talks to everybody, people are very friendly to each other... Dont get me wrong I like NYC but you cant spend much time in Manhattan and continue to hold this belief. > It is almost always sunny. You don't need any forecast, it will be sunny and between 20-25 degrees Celsius. Every day. Great! I live in Syracuse, NY, we compete with Seattle for least amount of sunny days in the continental US. The big difference from Seattle is that instead of rain we usually get 100+ inches of snow in winter. I want to move because of the weather in Syracuse. > Can somebody explain to me why most of the houses are almost glued together so that I can reach my neighbour's wall? Never visited the suburbs or any city in the midwest. > Even local side roads look like our highways. All other roads are in great condition. Traffic is fluent, drivers are more respectful and chilled out. Road condition: Never drove/rode on a highway in Pennsylvania or West Virginia. Traffic: Never drove in Boston or Manhattan or inside the beltway.

mturmon 13y ago

Europeans often comment on flimsy US house construction. Perhaps it's because of the relative newness of most US housing stock. And also the propensity of Americans to tear it down and start over. There's less reason to build for forever in this case. Another factor is seismic conditions (the OP was clearly most influenced by the Bay Area). Masonry or stone construction is incompatible with earthquakes.

deleted 13y ago
[deleted]
anigbrowl 13y ago
Masonry or stone construction is incompatible with earthquakes There's more to quality construction than building out of brick (although I think brick houses will ride out an earthquake a lot better than you imagine, as some of the oldest houses around the Bay Area are made out of brick). It's other things like the fact that you build houses with Tyvek instead of insulating them properly, crappy aliminum windows, and so on. People here tend to tear their houses down and start over because a lot of houses are so poorly built that they're not worth repairing, rather than out of any aesthetic impulse.
dyno12345 13y ago
Many houses in the Bay Area are about as well insulated as a wooden shed, frankly. People seem comfortable to let it get 50° inside.
- vacri 13y ago
  I once asked a Scot if they had any wooden houses back in his homeland. He replied "Yes, we keep our lawnmowers in them"...
  - snogglethorpe 13y ago
    Scottish house construction is definitely quite a bit flimsier now than it was 150-200 years ago though... I lived in Edinburgh for a few years, and most of the apartments I lived in were built in the 19th century (maybe the 18th; I forget the details, but there were several major housing booms in Edinburgh back then). They all had walls made of stone blocks like half a meter thick, and that was typical for buildings from that era, which account for a huge proportion of the city-center housing stock. New suburban houses I saw, on the other hand, seemed liked they'd blow over in a stiff wind (something there was a plentiful supply of), and of course were ugly to boot... [OTOH, it turned out that in one of the places I lived, the drinking-water tank was made of lead...! >< So if my comments seem kinda dumb... TT ]

TempleOS 13y ago

Fucken nigger. God says "DAMAGES fig-tree goods do_you_know_what_time_it_is touch rage delights portions rudiments SAINT upward valued seducers shrink INCLUDING still-standing how_do_I_put_this sceptre unlearned pant Lord's covenant occurred daemon-worshippers off_the_record beneath avenues foretold framers flying suppress stretched apparel bold-faced holy-days awaited honourable lie constellations downer restlessly multiplying serene cursing echo peril didst created envenomed lament avert appetite protesting Greenland gainsay One_finger_salute bestow economy feverishness learner hadst Gaza_Strip days falls Unity troubles wretched fragrant pander marvel hearer impure suspicions cowardice dominion destroying creatures guardianship invited penal forethink abyss help traces departest divided debated Prodigality augmenting classics refrain pines potent cedars thirsteth still attentive marriage omnipotency appeared Only Ruler blasts perplexed reinvolved ends narrowly manfully touch "

mcrider 13y ago

Not sure why you'd want head on your beer, thats just wasted space...

agilebyte 13y ago
:) It dissipates after a while and some of it turns into liquid so if done properly you should get the "liquid amount" ordered up to the little needle mark on the glass. A different culture. Here in the UK I always get an ale that spills on my fingers when I carry it as it is 100% full...
killermonkeys 13y ago
Amount of head on lager varies from country to country but it is hard to argue with a Czech given that they invented Pilsen lager. A good head has a different taste and adds a different texture to the beer and makes the carbonation (high in a lager) more smooth and less bitter.

gcb0 13y ago

Wow, if he likes the corn tasting steaks from usa... I'm sorry for the cows in Europe.

hackerboos 13y ago
Steak is great in Europe it's just expensive.
nnq 13y ago
In central and eastern Europe (I mean outside France, Germany, UK) beef tastes like shit, no matter how the steak is prepared, unless you're happy to end up in a place with "american (style) steaks" (that are usually made from beef imported from UK or USA) or good French cuisine. It's basically a whole different animal, not a metaphor: the cattle are never the famous and tasty american Back Angus or anything similar, their meat has a totally different texture and flavor, and by different I mean horrible (usually... I'm sure a French cook can make a dead rotten rat taste divine with all those marinading and sauces, but that's a different story...). ...now about lamb and pork steaks, it's different story, but beef steak in any "non beef loving country" is always crap.
- vetinari 13y ago
  The cattle in Central and Eastern Europe is grown for the milk, not for the meat. That is the reason, why it tastes like shit. If you want a good steak there, get an Argentinian. Of course, there are exceptions. In Prague, you can have good Czech-grown steak from cattle-frown-for-meat (go to Cestr).

vacri 13y ago

I am able to accept that there might be wolves in woods but not that I will be robed on street. Some typos are too good to pass up.

ww520 13y ago

Weather - always sunny. I think OP spending too much time in the SF Bay Area. Bay Area is among a few places in the world that has the best weather year round.

rvschuilenburg 13y ago

This has always been confusing to me: "I have to drink my beer from a paper bag, so there is nothing to be seen. What do you think everybody drinks from their paper bags? Coca-cola?"

Gormo 13y ago
That's another thing that varies from state to state. In some states, like Nevada and Louisiana, public consumption of alcohol is quite legal, and often commonplace.

ixacto 13y ago

So you are a straight European dude in your 20s-30s in one of the most lucrative and in-demand industries in the USA in SV/SF. This might give you a slight case of rose colored glasses. You might have seen in your travels to other parts of the country that many Americans do not have this standard of living. To be blunt, it is likely that minority women in the deep south would have a slightly different expierence. The realitiy of living in the USA is : 1. Don't get sick. We don't want to pay for you to go see the doctor, even if it would save $millions in medical bills for diabetes/cancer/chronic disease. There is the legal obligation for any emergency room to stabilize you, but then they kick you out if you can't pay. 2. Don't have kids. Kids cost a fuckton, and the governmnet doesn't really want to pay for it, but they partially do through a clusterfuck of programs (WIC/CHIP et al). There is no legally-mandated Parental leave or anything, that is for those lazy Frenchmen. 3. Don't be a woman. People will make rape jokes about you all the time (hello microsoft, E3) and that would be just the start of it. Never mind access to affordible healthcare like cancer screening and abortion. 4. Be christian, or if that isn't possible be Jewish. Just don't be Athiest/Muslim/Hindu/Bhuddist/.... If you aren't Protestat Christian there is no chance you will be president, JFK excepted. 5. Belive that USA = #1. Keep that flag flying and that coolaid flowing. Disclaimer: I'm just a white guy trying to get a PHD/marketable skills so I can leave this country and move 140 miles north to Vancouver. Yes I know Vancouver has a bit of a heroin/prostitution/housing problem, but it's better than the current situation.

Splotzenbobble 13y ago
As another piece of Eurotrash who has seen (much) more of the USA than the average American, I have some objections to your ehm, objections. 1. Don't get sick - probably true, but apparently they're working on it. I've found the level of health care mediocre compared to back home, but the prices absolutely insane. Think 10 to 100 times higher for the exact same treatments in some cases. Prices are so out of sync with the rest of the world that my insurance explicitly covers full healthcare costs in the entire world except the USA. 2. Don't have that in my home country either, except for the right to take a certain number of weeks of unpaid leave without losing your job (mothers only). Tbh, I don't think it's unreasonable not to get paid for time you don't spend working. 3. If you think this is better outside the US, you're in for a shock. Cultural sensitivities you take for granted will be different or completely absent, and others that make no sense to you will be in place. Simple math will show you that cancer screening of asymptomatic people is completely pointless by the way, but that's a bit off topic. 4. The only one from that list you really don't want to be in the USA is openly atheist. Just say you're not into organized religion instead, and you'll be fine. That said, I've never set foot in a place where being part of a religious minority was considered a good thing. Americans are less likely to openly say what they _really_ think about your kind than Euros. 5. Probably true. In most Euro countries, waving the flag outside the context of international sports may be associated with wingnuts on the extreme right

wybo 13y ago

I'd like to add a few points from my own experience: Cars: In America/Golden Gate Park, people take their car into the park! They even park it right there, right next to where they have their picnic. Odd but understandable. In Europe cars are antithetical to nature and relaxation, something industrial you hide out of sight, while in the US they are (apparently) integral to it. Hours. In the US/SF people 'like' to be in the office. It is practically their home when they are not commuting or sleeping. While on the weekends they go on trips to be away from home/the office (I could not imagine raising, rather than merely producing, a family in the US). (all you say about the weather is true, unless you live in West SF. National parks are fabulous indeed!) Poverty. Without being a Republican who believes the poor / racial minorities are to blame for their own d*mned fate, it is not possible to enjoy central San Francisco. Never seen so many homeless people in such horrible states of existence (and I am not a Republican but a social democrat, so I was not comfortable with US society...). (the US is this odd mix between rich and modern and a 3rd world country... also with regard to infrastructure) Traffic lights (and a lot of traffic) at almost every corner in the city. Perhaps nice if you are driving, but very annoying when you want to enjoy an uninterrupted walk. Grid-pattern (mostly responsible for the former). Cities look like they were built on a chess-board. Nice if you want to go straight, but not good when you want to go diagonal (in Paris they solved this with diagonal avenues). And forget building diversity or atmosphere, especially in the suburbs (which are 97% of the city). Houses are indeed quite flimsy. But in East SF there are at least some lovely pre-war houses that have atmosphere (I lived in a room in one, loved it...). Business / startup opportunities; indeed, nothing beats California (never seen so many things bordering on the silly, fully funded...). On balance, after a year in the US, I chose to go back to the old world when a great opportunity came up there. I'm a European again :)

Gormo 13y ago
How do traffic lights hinder your walk?
- wybo 13y ago
  By being red at least 50% of the time (and making cars drive past fast & and making it an offence to cross the street even if there is no traffic (so in addition to watching the traffic one needs to scan the street for police...)). Also, in many older (& also modern Dutch & UK inner cities) we have a thing called Woonerf (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woonerf http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woonerf), which means a ~15 miles per hour maximum speed off the main roads inside residential areas, so pedestrians and kids can actually enjoy/play on the roads...