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The USA is huge. "Where to start?" is one question you might ask when you consider visiting the USA. Not only is the country huge physically but it also contains a huge variation in geography from desert and mountain and wide open ranges to dense highly populated cities. There are very rich areas and very poor areas. There are attractive areas and ugly areas. There are areas of advanced technology and factories and areas of no technology, agricultural and river areas. The list goes on and on. You really need to sit down and think it over and decide what you want to do and see. And determine how much time and money and health you need to do it.
There are racial tensions in the USA with some areas being almost entirely Black or Hispanic or white or whatever. It can be a bit unnerving to realize that you are suddenly in an area where you are the only person of your race. That has happened to me in the USA and I must say it is an eerie feeling although nothing bad happened the radar sure snapped on and the people around me seemed as surprised as I was to suddenly be there. This is not something that gets talked about a lot in the media or in guidebooks but it is a fact of life in the USA and something to be aware of. Another factor like many other countries is crime and at times it is racially related. Almost every country has high crime areas that are best avoided especially at certain times of the day. This applies to countries such as Canada too.
My experience with the people in the USA is that they were very pleasant, hard working, decent types. After several trips to the USA over the years I have never had any problems so have a very positive view of the USA and Americans. I remember once having a breakdown with our motor home in California and being towed to the local garage by this huge old tow truck by a fellow who looked very tough. Turned out the garage was operated by a family and they put their best mechanic on our head gasket job even thought the temperature was hovering around 100 degrees and not only did they do an excellent job but they gave us a plug in for the evening and the bill was very fair too. We sort of lived at the garage for a couple of days and you couldn't ask for nicer people. This is not an isolated incident rather a typical experience in the USA. People in business are very service oriented and quality work is expected and given. Yes there are the odd rascals operating there just like here but we managed to avoid them somehow.
Do keep in mind that a lot of Americans have fire arms. It would not be wise to allow road rage to get the better of you and give somebody the finger because who knows -maybe they have a glock with a full magazine under the seat and would cheerfully shoot your finger or head off. Something to think about. And do NOT fly your countries flag while down in the USA. They are VERY sensitive to that -something that Canadians don't seem to understand but learn the hard way when they run up the maple leaf flag up the motor home or trailer while parked in an American trailer park. Its probably not wise to get into politics or military matters when you visit the USA. You never really know what the other person's opinions are and it's best to just shut up about certain things.
One thing you will notice is that when you enter the USA most foreign news including Canadian news suddenly disappears. Its like a curtain of silence is drawn and other situations just don't exist. It might take a few days to notice it but if you are a news junkie or just interested in world events you will marvel at how little makes it's way into American homes. It seems that any news is always from an American point of view. Again you will notice the difference in news reporting -it may be a bit subtle at first but after a while you will notice it.
Oh there is one more thing. It's a bit annoying. But you need to look at all their good points too and balance things out. Americans believe that they are the greatest nation on the planet and the leaders of the entire world and better than anybody else. Strange as it sounds people from the UK and France also believe the same things about their country. They honestly believe this because this is how they were raised and many have never ventured outside the country. There are certain power words that are continually repeated ; Freedom, American, FBI, Eagle, President, Congress, Republican, Democrat, US Marines, All American City, Baseball, Free Enterprise, 401K, Stars and Stripes, Chevrolet, Ford, American Dream, Britney Spears, Hollywood, Paris Hilton, things like that. Once you recognize the pattern it gets slightly annoying but that is the way it is down there. Deal with it. And for many people it is the American Dream and apple pie and Budweiser beer and the Beach Boys and hot rods and guns and so on. It can be a very very good life. The USA is probably the only country of it's type in the world where you can start with two cents in your pocket, work hard and make a fortune and live the good life. As an example a lot of Canadians have gone south and done much better than they ever could have done in Canada. I think for most Canadians the USA is their favorite country next to Canada of course and we really get a kick out of the fact we can still beat them and Russia in Hockey which is the Canadian Game! Americans are the world's best neighbors and we get along very well. Just don't get into an argument about the military, politics or religion or race and you should be fine. It works like that in Canada too. And in the UK and France and most other places on the planet!
Final point if you are from Canada don't brag about our "free healthcare". First of all we pay a huge amount of taxes to pay for it so it is not free and your healthcare card won't work down there anyway! Better visit our travel medical link!
That is our introduction to the USA -just to get you thinking. As time permits we will add information and useful links to the page to assist you with your travels in the USA.
Lets start off with some good books on the USA:
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