I love reading about peoples first experiences in america, but lately there have been almost none. Seem like only people wanting to know about taxes and drivers licenses. Could some of you tell of your experiences and anything that shocked you when you first came here and give us something more interesting to read?

I wouldn't say I suffered a total culture shock, I pretty much have an idea of how things are in the US. There were temporary bouts of homesickness, but with a lot of distractions, I find myself quickly adapting to my new environment. My biggest concern was settling in - work, go back to school or both? I did the former for over a year and decided I should go back to school.

A few things that I raved about the first few weeks I was in the US was the efficiency of the postal system, online banking/shopping, mapquest, wide streets, houses with NO steel gates, well at least in NC - my PIL's house in LA has a tall gate. I'm sure there's a lot more but those are the few things that stood out.

It's the land of rush, rush, rush alright. I been here about 1 year and 4 months. Back home I started work at about 9am or so.. finished at 5, had a lunch hour in there as well. I had quite a lot of flexible time back home.. I worked freelance in between had a decent amount of contacts and jobs out there. The big difference here is I get up at 6am every morning, I start work at 8am finish at 5pm come home, make and eat dinner and say hello to the next day of doing the same. Contacts? other jobs? forget it no one trusts anyone here! Been here this long and only time I talked to my neighbours was to tell em to take their stupid truck off the sand box that is our lawn. I feel like an ant in a maze trapped doing the same thing, over and over again.

When I first got here we hit a deer, got screwed by the garage for a water pump. Then we ran out of cash so that delayed my AOS for a number of months. When we did apply for AOS USPS was nice enough to return my EAD. By the time USPS delivered by EAD again I almost had my GC in hand! Efficiency and Postal System do not apply to USPS here where I live. USPS here are idiots, I can't count how many packages they have left out on the STREET for us when they could open the portch? or that time they didn't try to deliver (we where in the house) they left a note in the mailbox saying.. we tried to deliver.. right and I'm the pope ...

When it came time to apply for jobs, I got ignored wholesale by just about everyone! I did however get lucky and found a very boring office job doing well.. somthing I could have stayed home and did if I was forest gump.

Don't get me wrong there are a lot of good things about the US, there are a lot of nice things. For us it's time to go home, this place just isn't it. Too isolated, hostile almost at times.

When my wife got here she was shocked at how big people are.

me too and i'm not a tiny thai person.

It was not size of people that amazes her, it's the size of food piled on the plate on buffet.

oh no....i'm barely 5 feet tall.....noooooooooooooo.........

I was worried about Claudeth's adjustment but she took to it like a duck to water. She says the only thing she really misses is going to the mall in Cagayan and having Filipino food. She is a bit scared to drive so we haven't really pursued that and I am kind of glad, she still remembers how the jeepneys go in traffic and that just wouldn't work here

I like what you said about doing the same thing day after day. It gets kind-of depressing, doesn't it? I'm dealing with that, too. But...I'm American and I've always been. I just don't like it. Maybe I should move to Ireland. Hehe.

I have to agree with Aidan on the "rush rush rush" thing! No time to do anything in peace and quiet! Even eating! A lot of it has to do with the long distances we have to overcome here. 40 minutes commute in the morning and in the evening, because hubby wants to live in the country. 20 minutes to get to the next (!) grocery store. 20 minutes to the recycling place, 25 minutes to the movie theatre etc.
In Germany, I was able to reach all these places within 15-20 minutes on the bicycle!

Then we go on holiday, and since one only has 15 days we tend to pack too much sightseeing into these days, and end up rushing from place to place there, too!

I only wonder, if all I do is run all day, why am I gaining weight?

I was thinking that too! I was like, wait, are you telling me that there are other places in the world where you don't get up, go do the same boring job, and then go home make dinner clean the house and go to bed?? Seriously if that is what working life is like in Ireland, I'm so in. Aidan where do we sign up for Irish immigration?

It's exactly like that in Ireland, only it's even more boring and with less money.

The only entertainment over there is the pub.

I know, Rey and I were talking about living there. I spent 3 months there and loved it, but it's all because all the Irish people are met were so much fun. I told him that he'd find a lot of friends right away and then probably have just about nothing to do every night with them except drink.

No offense meant to Ireland or Irish people in general. I was just struck by the fact that Minneapolis has infinitely more entertainment and cultural events every day compared to Dublin, and Minneapolis is not an international capital. We have bars too, but we have a lot more live music, more readings, more academic panels, and so on, and I was pretty shocked that an upper midwestern city of 2 million could beat out Dublin in that regard.

Claudeth is only 4'8" but believes she is dynamite in a small package

I agree with you 100%.

Where did you go in Dublin, Alex? Dublin has a great live music scene - although the nightclubs aren't as good as London (and few places are) I've never been stuck for a good night out there.

Although, I think you might be under-estimating how great Minneapolis is for a city stuck in the Midwest.

Is it rush rush rush here because we get more done or what? I'm trying to think of how we would get it all done and not rush.

Yeah, I saw quite a bit of live music in Dublin, but it doesn't compare to Minneapolis. And there are fewer venues, but I liked Whelan's. I think I remember being surprised at how often I went into a bar and there wasn't even a DJ. But the live music they are producing there in Dublin is really really great stuff, that is true.

I miss.... order!!! Especially on the roads.... People don't blink, speed or under-speed for no reason, I just always have the impression that all people here drive with a learner's permit without anybody showing them how to drive. I am also pretty much shocked how companies treat customers (phone companies, insurances): no service, hour-long waiting on hold, misinformation everywhere, rude people ("client associates").
I like the ice cream and the donuts here though....
First I lived in New York City and apart from the mentioned above points life is pretty much the same, just, I agree with some other posters, everything is in a rush. But well, it was NYC! After moving to NC I thought it would be different, but it's not. I am a very slow eater, even for Europeans. I don't like eating in a rush and frankly I can't eat fast (makes my stomach upset). Sometimes I am totally amazed how fast some people can eat. I taught my hubbie to eat slower, it's simply healthier. On the other side I met extremely health-and-food-aware people who won't eat anything but organic food. The country is full of extreme contrasts, as expected (a lot more people live here ). Life isn't very nice right now because I can't find an adequate job here, which means no friends, no work.... But that will change since we will move to the Bay Area. I must say I am quite used to work a lot, at least interns in Germany are totally exploited so nothing new to me (did quite a lot internships during college)!
I think almost everybody misses food from home. I spent quite some time in Italy and then I lived in Munich where are a lot of Italians, so I'm not very happy with the so-called Italian food here. I must admit though that it was available in New York, hopefully in every metropolitan area!!! I miss some products such as quark (curd cheese), real cream (yes, 32% of fat please), Milka chocolate and real Nutella (no peanut flavor). My family sends me the chocolate, the dairy products aren't allowed to be transported unfortunately (and it wouldn't make sense since it would go bad). I guess everybody has the food issue....

Although I wonder, what do we get done? I have to say, as an American living in the Caribbean. I wonder if all we get done is really necessary? I know, I know, there is a reason we are a fully developed country and I agree there are many many good things about the country. But maybe we need to take a cue from other countries. Efficiency is good, it is supposed to let us have more time to ourselves. Instead we use efficiency as a way to cram twice as much into our days. I think as Americans we derive meaning out of our lives by seeing what can we produce, not who we are.
I fully understand we live within our context and if we want to get by in the states we have to play the game with everyone else. But I know when I move back with my fiance I will understand his culture shock a lot better. Things are just different, it's not just the things in the grocery store or which side of the road we drive on, it's how we find value in ourselves.
I guess I could go on being philosophical but I doubt you all want to hear it.
Sue

My fiancee is from UA and they live a much less hectic life than we do here. More holidays off and getting time off is no big deal. (Although I do like the pay the doctor for a sick excuse idea we have used this more than once) It just seems to me that they take the time to enjoy life more than we do in the states. Most other countries have way more paid vacation time than we do. When you tell someone from europe for example that the average vaction days in the US is something like eleven days they just about fall over. (Currently in EU countries you start a job with six weeks paid vacation)

So we have made a decision to live a less "things" oriented life and a more love and laughter kind of life. One of the things that Lena said to me early in our relationship is "I don't want to live a gray life" Meaning that there were other things much more important to her than just getting up and going to work everyday, then repeat, repeat, repeat

When I first came to the US, I was shocked that not all apartment complexes here have a washer/dryer in the unit. Where we live, all the tenants share one laundry room. I loved having my own washer

I loved how easy the driving was and how polite the drivers were. I'm from Moscow, the Russian Federation, and you can't drive there without someone beeping at you all the time for no apparent reason

Silicon Valley may be hectic, but I'm so used to it, and I love it a lot! I'm one of those people who "rush, rush, rush and rush" and I can't stand laid back atmosphere. So, I guess, it worked out pretty well for me

I think people here are more open-minded and less racist than in my country. Well, at least here, in Northern California, I don't know about the rest of the U.S.

I think I didn't have that much of a "culture shock" - just some little things I hadn't been aware fo before I got here

Well said!!!! I want to hear it

Thanks mawilson, I never thought Ireland was so “boring”… “with less money” and “the only entertainment is the pub”. I didn’t know you were an expert in Irish culture? If that’s the case then your telling me I want to go back home to be drunk, bored and skint? I think not… I work more, make less and am stressed a whole lot more in the US than I ever was back home. I think you have a typically backward, outdated vision of Ireland in mind. That or you’ve watched too many British soaps where they spend all day talking crap while drinking.. in the pub.


There is no order on the roads here, I’ve lost count how many cops I’ve seen fail to use their indicator, yield for pedestrians or completely stop at stop signs. I too was Very shocked at how outright hostile, stupid and cheeky some companies can be here like the stupid cable company. As far as competition is concerned in some areas (cable) there is none, it’s a capitalists wet dream. Treat the customer how you like, the way you like, pump up the prices when you like.. the only choice for TV they have is you! I too would also list insurance companies up there as well.. especially for misinformation and outright lies.

I agree, all that rushing is for what? Filing that extra report? Leaving 5 minutes early to beat “rush” hour? I agree there are many, many good things about the US, quite a few I’ll miss. This lifestyle and rush culture isn’t for me.

a dynamite in a small package... haha me likey!
mm.... does she ever feel tense around her neck for looking up all the time when she has to talk to americans? I should get shoes with 5 inches heels or something....haha....

It doesn't seem like it! I have the feeling I got quite a bit more done in my home country and still manage to have a little time to myself every day. I had a 40+ hour work day there, too, but it didn't take me the best part of an hour to get home. On Saturday mornings I got my groceries bought, packed and put in the refrigerator in an hour! Here, that's about the time I need to just get there and back (o.k., thats mostly because my husband is a very fussy eater ). Here, we don't even seem to have time for a decent, quiet and time-consuming breakfast since we (feel like) we need to get done so much.

Don't get me wrong, that's not meant to be a criticism and it's mostly due to our livestyle, anyway, the days are shorter in the US, trust me!

As to efficiency at the workplace, I dare say that sometimes the German way of management ("just do as I say and don't try to argue") is necessary and makes a company more efficient than the admittedly nice way of Americans to manage companies by asking everybody about their opinion and spending hours listening to people's ideas and whinings. It takes days to get some things decided here, or so it seems!

Depends on the company.... I worked for Infineon Technologies in Germany and they had the policy do your job, I won't control you, which I thought was kinda inefficient since some people used that to surf all day (online shopping, chatting...). I think what you said is right, I heard about companies being like that in the US. But it depends pretty much on which job - if it is a job that actually requires a college degree and comes with a decent pay the treatment is usually nice and friendly. When I recently mostly out of boredom did the part time job at the mall the treatment of us employees was like in a Gulag!! Something like that would never happen in the German version of the department store (something like Karstadt), I am pretty sure!!! It was really bad there, and most of us were college grads, just we don't get a job here, and still we were treated as if we were stupid, babies, inmates. I quit asap!

@ Adain: My sister did part of her residency in a hospital in Galway. She loved it there, my parents visited her for 4 weeks and drove all around Ireland. As far as I am concerned it is pretty modern and up-to-date in Ireland with good jobs and competitive salaries. Within the past 20 years things have changed (economically) dramatically there to the good! I wish I could have gone with them (hmmm exams at college back then). I mostly loved the Connamara (sorry for spelling) sheep. so cute!

@ Vacation issue: Hubbie and I agreed to take more time off (unpaid leave) to compensate for the small amount of vacation as soon as we earn enough to be able to afford it (we both just graduated a year ago from college). I happily renounce on some money for relaxation! I also found out depending on the job you can have lots of paid vacation days here. My sister in law used to work for a company in Palo Alto with 20 days vacation a year and a lot of sick days too....

You better believe I am. Drinking remains a HUGE part of Irish culture. Alcohol-related
problems cost Ireland more than €2 billion per year. Binge drinking is the norm for Irish men.
House prices are through the roof. If you made more money in Ireland, you must have had
a really good job. I'm sure you can find a better job here too.

Oh god of course you are, how stupid of me.. I only grew up there! Where did you grow up?..

Drinking is part of the culture (as it is in most of Europe) but socializing is more a part of it than drink. Having the “craic� is more important to the majority of people I know than drinking themselves stupid.

So if your figures are correct. It costs Ireland 2 Billion EURO to deal with alcohol related problems… then England and Wales must be really partying hard if it’s costing them 16.2 Billion POUNDS (or as quoted here 20 Billion) to deal with it. I worked for mainly myself in Ireland; I can’t do that here as no one trusts anyone in this place. House prices are going up but.. what about the over heated housing market in England? I could still buy a 4 bedroom house in Ireland for the price of a cardboard box in London.

Do yourself a favor, stop being so negative, stop with the anti Ireland crap and if you’re going to quote figures do some research first.

When did I ever suggest I was anti-Ireland? *scratching head*

I think you're the one who's being negative with all the anti America crap.

I love Ireland. That doesn't change the fact that there's not much to do there besides drinking *ahem* socialising.

Also, I never said the UK didn't have the same problems but let's compare apples to apples, shall we?

1) 16.2 Billion POUNDS for a country of 50 million people vs 2.4 Billion EUROS for 3 million people?

Do the maths.

2) Can you buy a 4 bedroom house in *Dublin* for the price of a cardboard box in *London*? I seriously doubt it.

I Quote!

“It's exactly like that in Ireland, only it's even more boring and with less money. The only entertainment over there is the pub.”

If that isn’t anti Ireland, what is? I’d really love to know!

If you loved anything other than your own arrogant, outdated and racist opinions then why would you talk the crap you’re talking? Because like most racists out there you don't know any better do you?

Applies to apples.. alright.. 16.2 Billion POUNDS is a lot more “apples” than 2 Billion EURO (where do you quote your figures from.. the air??). The “math” speaks for its self does it not? The total population in the south would be a wee bit over 4 Million (July 2006) not quite 3 million as you suggest. The North last time I checked had about 1.7 Million people in it.. oh my that total would be what.. 5.6 Million!

Did I say Dublin? No I didn’t I said Ireland.. the whole country even.. the old forgotten north. Anyway you could still get better house in Dublin with less crime that you would in London. You could get a better house with less chance of being robbed in Belfast

You’re attacking me, my country for what reason? What is the purpose; I’d really love to know because so far you’ve avoided most of the questions and attacked the smallest of things. I think you’ve a problem with Ireland or the Irish maybe you should be decent enough to just spit it out.

Dude, I was born in Ireland. My father is Irish. I have family in Cork.

Trust me when I say I don't have a problem with Ireland or the Irish.

Happy St Patrick's, by the way!

Where you claim to have been born or where you say you have family isn’t relevant, if it was you wouldn’t talk down about your own. I doubt you are anything other than a negative minded troll, with nothing to add to this message board other than random negative and critical comments directed at everyone and everything. From the start your comments have been at the very least offensive, racist in nature and immature.

I wouldn’t believe nor trust a word that comes out of your hole. Your as about as Irish as I am American “dude”.

Like I said before, you avoid the subject and pick at the small things.

I pretty much knew what to expect. We have so much of the american culture in Brazil, tv shows, clothing, movies, music, etc.

I was amazed at some of the things against the law in Brazil and that are not here. For example: driving motorcycles without a helmet and smoking or talking on the cell phone while driving. I still think it should be against the law, the chances of dying or suffering terrible injures if you are in an accident while riding a motorcycle without a helmet are greatly bigger than while wearing it. And lighting a cigarette, or talking on the phone, dialing, answering etc is a distraction, plus doesn't the law say somewhere you should have both hands on the wheel, err how can you do that while smoking or talking on the phone?

Other things are different but understandable...
Like tips, in Brazil we rarely tip people, only cab drivers, room service people, and ocasionally other people, but it's not something you have to do everywhere you go to everybody.
Taxes, in Brazil they're included in products, so if it says 23.99 when you go pay that's what you pay, 23.99 not 25.67...
The size of the food, everything here is bigger, the Doritos packages, the chocolates, the pizza slices, and they cost cheaper. In Brazil everything comes in small portions or sizes and are more expensive.
The houses are not made of bricks;
The cars, trucks, motos are bigger;
Closets, it's built in the bedroom, in Brazil we have to buy wardrobes, they are not part of the house.

Some not that understandable...
The speed limits changes every 100 meters...
Tattoos are for sluts and criminals - I have a few and I'm none... it's very common to have a tattoo in Brazil, and we are respected not judged...

Well I guess that's all that comes to mind right now.

Ah, I get it now. You just don't like me. You should have just said so right from the start and
saved me the trouble of trying to explain my point of view.

I'm not going to stoop down to your level of insult and question your honesty or intelligence,
but just for the record, I didn't "attack" anyone or anything. Yes, I said that life in Ireland was
boring, but you chose to take it completely out of context:


just so you can take a jab at it and attack me on a personal level.

Anyhow, I still stand by my opinion which could be right or wrong but is truthfully based on
my own experience. I always had a great time in Ireland but at the same time I consider
myself lucky to have survived the non-stop drinking binge. I also said that people make
less money in general and it's a fact.

If either statement strikes a chord with you, I apologise.

Nessa: the size of the food packages is why Americans are often overweight! I wish that the packages were smaller!

And not everyone thinks tattoos are just for sluts and criminals! Looks like you live in the Midwest, maybe that's why.

True, servings are huge! Before I came to the US, I was a size 0-2, now I'm wearing 4-6! My slowing metabolism may have a lot to do with it, but the big servings in restaurants and almost sedentary lifestyle contributed to the weight gain as well.

My wife will probably be shocked too. Her weight is approximately 100 lbs. This is normal for a native Cambodian. She says I'm fat. I'm no way near fat in the US. Based on my height, the B.M.I indicated I'm normal. She says I'm fat.

Not only weight will be an issue here because of the dietary habits of the society, the weather too. Over in Cambodia, an average temperature in the afternoon can reach to 90 degrees Fahrenheit or more. I remembered one day the temperature was just underneath 80, and she said to me " it's so cold. " Now, I live in the Northeast region of the US which is very cold during the winter, and autumn season. I can imagine her being stuck inside during those times. And, the high standards of environmental up keeping compared to Phnom Penh such as trash collection, etc...will cause a major relief in her. I'm looking forward for her to arrive.

Some not that understandable...
The speed limits changes every 100 meters...
Tattoos are for sluts and criminals - I have a few and I'm none... it's very common to have a tattoo in Brazil, and we are respected not judged...

Nessa.......

whoever thinks that tattoos are for sluts and criminals must be a complete idiot. My fiance and I are both completely tattooed up..... we're not sluts, and we're certailnly no criminals. In fact, we both have MAs, him in graphic design and me in Literature (from UCLA no less), are property owners...)and let me tell you, owning beachfront property in southern california is no small feat)...the list goes on.

There's nothing wrong with your body artwork, don't let anyone else make you feel otherwise.

saludos y it's a pleasure to have people like you in the country!

What I miss about my country is the little corner snack places, with the fruits hanging down from the ceiling, where you can have a healthy snack on the rush. One in every corner beats all the fast food I see here. Btw, I have the impression that even our McD's and other fast food joints look more comfy as opposed to how they look impersonal here.

I miss the fact online banking is an everyday thing and I don't EVER have to go to the bank to do anything.

I miss the fact food is not so costy and that I could take home tons of fresh food when here if I want to shop cheap I should stick to these canned crap.

I miss the warmth of people although puertoricans are very warm it's different than my brazilian people.

Well I'm very proud of my tattoos, and I'd like to think I can show them off without having to worry about what people think. I was never worried in Brazi, I won't say that there's no people that might be prejudice when it comes to tattoos, but it's way more acceptable I believe. Here I am worried. Specially after someone told me people that have tattoos like one of mine (i won't get in details) are usually sluts. That really hurt me and it really got me worried. Because when you're in your country and you know people, their reactions and you know what to expect is different. I am not completely familiar with the way people think in here.

Laura, I agree with everything you said, specially about the food being so expensive. I would pay like R$ 8.00 (about US$ 3.5 ) for 4 papayas, here I pay US$ 5.00 for 2. It's absurd!

Well..... it's not THAT absurd. After all, papayas do not grow in Kansas

I think the reason that binge drinking might be such a problem is that if a doctor over in ireland diagnosis you as an alcoholic, the government gives you money every week just to buy alcohol. I was shocked when i first heard this, but its true.

Mawilson, we have fruits and veggies that are not "brazilian" and they still cost a lot less.
Nessa talked about how portions are bigger and cheaper but I have to sort of disagree. At least here in Puerto Rico eating out is very expensive and although we have very expensive places in Brazil we also have a lot of not so fancy places with very good food quality and honest prices.

lol. my husband was ready for the large.

hubby doesn't like that you have to drive everywhere if you want to go somewhere. he hates that he has to depend on me to take him everywhere. with that in mind, we got him a moped that goes less than 30mph (you don't have to have a license to ride it) so that he can get himself places. after all the complaining he's only used it once!!!! MEN!

I hate when I get stuck behind someone on a moped.

That is all.

The one week I spent in Dublin last summer made me leave wondering where all the Irish people were. Besides that I really liked the city. I wasn't too fond of the bus system as I'm more of a subway person. Otherwise beautiful place. I loved how green and full of trees it was.

hehe I hate when I get suck behind someone on a moped too that's why I showed him the back way through our neighborhood so he would never have to go on a main road to get to places like the grocery store