Do Americans have it better? - Page 9

Ea · 07-28-2009, 01:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DixieGal

In the US, our richest live in over-the-top mansions that are poor imitations of what Europeans have had for centuries. Many towns in Europe have churches that date from before Columbus, heck, before even the Vikings came here. Our government buildings are imitations of those buildings. Our oldest and most cherished traditions are only a couple hundred years old. Visitors from Europe aren't impressed with our historical sites, but just take them to Huntsville, Houston, or Cape Canaveral to see the space age, and they go ga-ga. The only thing we can bring to the world is NEW! IMPROVED! WOW!

That the age of USA's historical sites doesn't go back so far as Europe's (or Asia's, Africa's and the native Indian cultures in the Americas), doesn't mean it's less interesting. But people often travel to experience that which they can't at home, and I think USA/North America's biggest draw is the nature. The vastness of it and the size and the variety. It's amazing! And Cape Canaveral! Disneyland! Las Vegas and LA! Movie stars!

And frank LLoyd Wright architecture. There's lot of cool stuff in USA.

It just struck me that perhaps you notice the age (and the difference) more that for example I would. I don't think so much about if something is 100 or 200 or 400 years old. Except if I had live i it...

"In USA 100 years is a long time. In Europe 100 miles is a long distance"

Quote:

Originally Posted by DixieGal

I've said it before, and I still stand by this: Our poor are wealthy compared to the poor of other nations. They get housing, food, educations, and health care for free. The problem is that some are addicts or mentally ill and unable to manage their lives, regardless of the institutions put into place to help them. The resources are already there for them, but they have to ask for them.

I'd say this is the same for most Western nations. Perhaps especially, apart from USA and Canada, north and west Europe.

yvanleterrible · 07-28-2009, 02:51 PM

Sometimes north America looks like an uninterrupted string of shopping malls...

kazbates · 07-28-2009, 03:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by yvanleterrible

Sometimes north America looks like an uninterrupted string of shopping malls...

Thank God!!!

ahammer · 07-28-2009, 04:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kazbates

Thank God!!!

so what you are saying it should go like

"from the star bucks to the shoping malls and to the other star bucks. this land was made for you and me"

kazbates · 07-28-2009, 06:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ahammer

so what you are saying it should go like

"from the star bucks to the shoping malls and to the other star bucks. this land was made for you and me"

And your point is?!?!

Amalthia · 07-28-2009, 07:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

Yes, having worked in the USA for a while, there is certainly the potential for a much higher standard of living there; the problem is that you don't get the chance to enjoy it! When I tell my American friends that it's normal in the UK (and the rest of Europe) to get 6 or 7 weeks a year off work, they find it amazing; it's entirely normal in the US to get as little as two weeks holiday a year.

Try 10 days or none depending on your job.

Sweetpea · 07-29-2009, 02:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ea

That the age of USA's historical sites doesn't go back so far as Europe's (or Asia's, Africa's and the native Indian cultures in the Americas), doesn't mean it's less interesting. But people often travel to experience that which they can't at home, and I think USA/North America's biggest draw is the nature. The vastness of it and the size and the variety. It's amazing! And Cape Canaveral! Disneyland! Las Vegas and LA! Movie stars!

And frank LLoyd Wright architecture. There's lot of cool stuff in USA.

It just struck me that perhaps you notice the age (and the difference) more that for example I would. I don't think so much about if something is 100 or 200 or 400 years old. Except if I had live i it...

"In USA 100 years is a long time. In Europe 100 miles is a long distance"

Couldn't have said it better! Coming from a country where the longest axis is about 400-500km...

Ea · 07-29-2009, 05:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sweetpea

Couldn't have said it better! Coming from a country where the longest axis is about 400-500km...

You can drive from one end of my country to the other in less than a day

montsnmags · 07-29-2009, 09:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ea

You can drive from one end of my country to the other in less than a day

Just curious...what does "less than a day" work out to in driving hours and road kilometres?

Cheers,
Marc

Sweetpea · 07-29-2009, 09:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by montsnmags

Just curious...what does "less than a day" work out to in driving hours and road kilometres?

Cheers,
Marc

You can cross the Netherlands from north-east to south-west (which is about the longest route), in 5 hours.

It takes about 4 hours to go from the top of Denmark to the German border. (somewhere between 400 and 450km, depending on where on the German border)

montsnmags · 07-29-2009, 10:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sweetpea

You can cross the Netherlands from north-east to south-west (which is about the longest route), in 5 hours.

It takes about 4 hours to go from the top of Denmark to the German border. (somewhere between 400 and 450km, depending on where on the German border)

Thanks. We tend to work out the hours in 100km lots too when traveling long (100km=1 hour), though our national highways are not as good as yours ( I don't know what the national highways are like there - I'm assuming because ours are notoriously bad

).

It is something that has always amazed/impressed me - that in a few hours you could drive to another country. It takes me that long to drive to one of my brothers, and he's just on the other side of the closest state border (and I'm close to that border, relatively speaking).

Cheers,
Marc

Sweetpea · 07-29-2009, 10:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by montsnmags

Thanks. We tend to work out the hours in 100km lots too when traveling long (100km=1 hour), though our national highways are not as good as yours ( I don't know what the national highways are like there - I'm assuming because ours are notoriously bad

).

It is something that has always amazed/impressed me - that in a few hours you could drive to another country. It takes me that long to drive to one of my brothers, and he's just on the other side of the closest state border (and I'm close to that border, relatively speaking).

Cheers,
Marc

I noticed that the average speed is 100km/h, even if you do most by highways (with a maximum of over 100km/h). It takes about 15 hours to get to my mother (who lives about 1500km away), even though most of the journey takes place in Germany (without an official speed limit on large parts of the trip, and 120/130 on most others).

Just playing around with GoogleMaps... It looks like the longest trip (crossing a country) would be from the Italian-Swiss border to the left-most shore of Sicily (1700km)

(oh, and I live about 40 minutes away from the German border, by car)

DixieGal · 07-29-2009, 10:23 AM

We drove 760 miles one-way and then 760 back over the weekend, just to go to a wedding. It was more difficult than when we were younger, but it was done. We could have crossed your country round-trip twice!

But we passed lots and lots of straight hiway between cornfields where you set the cruise control to 85 and try not to fall asleep behind the wheel. You would pass lovely antique villages from the days of shipping empires and such driving across your country. We would slow down and enjoy that ride!

Sweetpea · 07-29-2009, 10:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DixieGal

We drove 760 miles one-way and then 760 back over the weekend, just to go to a wedding. It was more difficult than when we were younger, but it was done. We could have crossed your country round-trip twice!

But we passed lots and lots of straight hiway between cornfields where you set the cruise control to 85 and try not to fall asleep behind the wheel. You would pass lovely antique villages from the days of shipping empires and such driving across your country. We would slow down and enjoy that ride!

Actually, you won't... Those highways are made to avoid those places

DixieGal · 07-29-2009, 10:33 AM

Oh, well, that's a drag. And now that you mention it, I remember seeing shows about all of the new bridges and such between the countries, and the terrific highway system to match.

In answer to the OP: Yes.

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07-28-2009, 02:51 PM	#122
yvanleterrible Reborn Paper User Posts: 8,616 Karma: 15446734 Join Date: May 2006 Location: Que Nada Device: iPhone8, iPad Air	Sometimes north America looks like an uninterrupted string of shopping malls...

07-29-2009, 10:23 AM	#133
DixieGal Hi There! Posts: 7,473 Karma: 2930523 Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Ft Lauderdale Device: iPad	We drove 760 miles one-way and then 760 back over the weekend, just to go to a wedding. It was more difficult than when we were younger, but it was done. We could have crossed your country round-trip twice! But we passed lots and lots of straight hiway between cornfields where you set the cruise control to 85 and try not to fall asleep behind the wheel. You would pass lovely antique villages from the days of shipping empires and such driving across your country. We would slow down and enjoy that ride!

07-29-2009, 10:33 AM	#135
DixieGal Hi There! Posts: 7,473 Karma: 2930523 Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Ft Lauderdale Device: iPad	Oh, well, that's a drag. And now that you mention it, I remember seeing shows about all of the new bridges and such between the countries, and the terrific highway system to match. In answer to the OP: Yes.