Soooo, its November. Its cold where I am at the moment (Mid West USA)....how cold? Minus 4. Yup.....snowmen could have a fiesta outside its that cold.
I travel back to the UK in a days time......and thought before I leave I should ponder on my first trip here to the States.
Things I have learned on this (my first) trip to America....
1. The lovely folks over here like things big....when I say big I mean HUUUUGE!!! I have eaten more in the few days that I have been here than I ever thought possible. Some things they do really well....Meat for example..some things they don't (I had a bad eggs Benedict experience on my first day).
2. Thanksgiving can be somewhat of a let down if you've only ever seen it in a movie....
3. I now say movie and not film.....(irritating)
4. When you are in a non tourist area in the USA, as a Brit, YOU are inevitably the entertainment. From a bank clerk getting super animated, asking "do you know the princess"(yeah lady...because every person is a second cousin of royalty in the UK) to every single person that has served me food or drinks either doing a double take or out and out asking me where I am from (because clearly the accent doesn't give it away at all) to the nicest people just striking up a conversation over dinner one evening who then become friends.......,my whole trip has been filled with these encounters.
5. The day after Thanksgiving (Black Friday) can only be described as........OMG!!!!!
Never in my life before this event have stayed awake until 3am in order to go SHOPPING! It is a bizarre tradition the the States that sees people doing daft things just to get a "bargain". From camping out in snow and wind to charging the doors of somewhere called "Best Buy" at midnight (yes, midnight) to get a TV.....it both baffled and fascinated me in equal measure.
I'm glad I got to see it....would I do it again? Probably not...but only because I like sleep.
I've experienced 2 seasons in the space of a week...warm Spring and now Winter. I've crossed the Mississippi River more times than I care to count, had random bouts of laughter for the silliest of reasons, eaten 6 burgers in 10 days, been to a wine store in a cave, seen a car sail across a river , had beer and cheese soup and tried something called "milk duds".
My first trip to the USA has been what I would call EPIC...... I cant wait to come back and do it all over again with someone very special.
Much Love
UG
xx
