Joy and Austin: Pikes Peak or Bust?

[ItsMeY'all]

4 hours ago, divadivine said:

We were in Detroit two years ago and decided to drive over to Windsor for dinner. Going across the bridge to Canada was no big deal.  Coming back... different story. 

This is my crossing that I'm bitching about! Every single time it is like this. From reading the other posts I'm really thinking that must just be the worst entrance point between the two countries. Sorry you had to go through this but take comfort in knowing it wasn't just you.

[NanisBlessing]

14 hours ago, HarleyQuinn said:

I was only in Switzerland briefly but I thought it looked gorgeous. However if they wanted to go hiking in a European country, I'm surprised they didn't go with Iceland. 

Iceland ? Way too liberal and open minded for their mindset 

[SorenaJ]

5 minutes ago, NanisBlessing said:

Iceland ? Way too liberal and open minded for their mindset 

0.0 % of young Icelanders are creationists. Wouldn't work for the Duggars. 

[VeryNikeSeamstress]

Plus there's the Museum of Witchcraft and Sorcery in Iceland, where they have necropants on display (more like NIKEpants).

[MadeItOut]

9 hours ago, BlessaYourHeart said:

 

In Northern Ireland I'm no more than 2 hours away from everywhere in the country . I find a 4 hour drive to Dublin annoying 

Have you tried the new expressway? I did that the other week for a work thing - so nippy! Only a couple hours. It was great.

[Marly]

10 hours ago, SapphireSlytherin said:

My in-laws (well, the ones we see the most) are 40 miles outside of London. They never go to the city because it's "too far." My 16-year-old nephew just went to London for the first time in his life, last month. 

Our friend has a cottage that he let us use a couple of years ago during a family celebration. It's about 10 miles from my in-laws' town. They were horrified we were staying so far away. 

And here in the USA, Mr. Slytherin and I frequently drive 1,000+ miles in a day. For example, from the Jersey Shore to Kansas City. Fun times in the right car.

I'm from the Netherlands, and it's the same here. When people have to travel by car for more than 20 minutes, it becomes a day trip that will be planned in advance.
However, you do also have to take into account the costs for gas and public transportation here, which is a lot more expensive than in the US. 6 years ago I went to the Seattle area for a month, and I was shocked by the how cheap the gas and public transportation were. I went on a busride for 1,5 hours, and it cost me 1 dollar. When I went to Groningen by train two months ago (2 hours by train -  only the paris train is really fast, all the others are slow, so the paris train is not a good indicator) it cost me 30 euro's.
So cost is a big travel inhibitor here as well, especially in western europe.

[BlessaYourHeart]

3 minutes ago, MadeItOut said:

Have you tried the new expressway? I did that the other week for a work thing - so nippy! Only a couple hours. It was great.

No I haven't but I must!

I usually go down through Aughnacloy into Monaghan, stop in Drogheda for a break and then on to the toll road to Dublin. Traffic is usually a nightmare on the Londonderry-Strabane-Omagh part of the journey which is supper annoying 

[MadeItOut]

Totally agree on the if you're American, be American abroad too. It really does make a difference when folks get to understand at firsthand that the vast majority of Americans are really lovely people. ...and heck, if you're worried about the animated orange, come to the British Isles - we have Leo Vradka and whatever sticking splatter measure May can pick up if anyone will bring themselves to hold hands with her, so we can't talk.

2 hours ago, VeryNikeSeamstress said:

Plus there's the Museum of Witchcraft and Sorcery in Iceland, where they have necropants on display (more like NIKEpants).

I have a huge soft spot for the Cornish museum of witchcraft. They used to have a piece of my ancestor's knitting.

6 minutes ago, BlessaYourHeart said:

No I haven't but I must!

I usually go down through Aughnacloy into Monaghan, stop in Drogheda for a break and then on to the toll road to Dublin. Traffic is usually a nightmare on the Londonderry-Strabane-Omagh part of the journey which is supper annoying 

Nice drive. I'd take a paddle in Bettystown. We're about an hour cross-country from Ardee, so we hit junction 13 & head up usually. That day the other week there was Dublin job stuff in Dublin and NI job training in Belfast - the expressway was awesome for that.

[Iokaste]

22 hours ago, mpheels said:

This is great explanation of US reasons for (not) traveling abroad. To add more perspective, I wonder how many EU citizens have only traveled abroad within the EU? Travel within the EU is somewhat analogous to travel within the US. 

Eurostar from London to Paris is comparable to Amtrak from Washington DC to Philadelphia, both in terms of travel time and cost. For the European, that's technically visiting another country. For the American, it means cross through several states within the same country.

Except it's really not. Yes, you don't need a passport when crossing the internal borders and the distances corresponds to inter-state travelling, but other than that I don't see a lot of similarities.
In the US, how ever much the scenery changes you are still in a relatively homogenous culture throughout the country. You can find the same products, restaurants, stores, brands, etc. The houses look mostly the same, people dress the same, watch the same TV and movies, eat the same and people speak the same language, maybe not as 1st language, but still as a "used everyday language". 
Americans love to point out the "huge" differences between different regions, and yes, there are of course different regional nuances, but all in all, those are just that: nuances of the same mainstream culture.
I'm not an anthropology professor, but I have travelled extensively all over the US every year for more than 10 years and mainly stayed with local people.

In Europe, in spite of American culture imperialisme (gosh, this all sounds like I hate the US, I don't! I love travelling in the US!), there is still a huge cultural and practical everyday difference between countries, regions and cultures. It's everything from official politics to what, how and when we eat, our school systems, how we dress, decorate our houses, values in regards to childrearing, religion, etc.

I'm not saying all those things don't differ within the US, but there they are more based on cultural or ethnic groupings than geographical ones.

On top of that most of Europe is accessible by some sort of public transportation, which is definitely not the case in the US. 

I'd be interested too to know how many Europeans have never left Europe. I can't think of anyone I know who hasn't been to Africa, Russia, Asia or the US, but then again, other continents are closer to most Europeans than to most Americans. 

[Seren Ann]

I don't know how many there are, but I'm a European and I've never left Europe. I just don't have the finances. So far we've only been able to afford to go to places we can drive to. If I could leave Europe, I'd love to go to Iceland or Japan. 

And travelling in Europe as a European, you don't need a passport unless you leave the Schengen zone. You only need your ID card from your country but you're supposed to have that with you at all times anyway.

I grew up in France, now I'm studying in Belgium (strange to think Joy is so near where I live right now !). I find what some people have said upthread amusing because it's true.  I now live about 5 1/2 hours away from my parents (when the traffic is good). It seems like a huge distance for me ! It's a very long boring drive that really tires me out. I only visit them about 3 or 4 times a year. Then I see posts from Americans who say "oh yeah, my son left for a college that's just at the right distance, not too near, not too far, he feels like he's really left home but he can visit us easily, it's only 10 hours away". My mind is blown 

 

[mpheels]

5 hours ago, Iokaste said:

Except it's really not. Yes, you don't need a passport when crossing the internal borders and the distances corresponds to inter-state travelling, but other than that I don't see a lot of similarities.

I was referring to the practicalities of travel - when it comes to distances, cost, and ease of border crossing, travel within the US is analogous to travel within the EU.

[wandering woman]

I'm not looking forward to the upcoming season of Counting On being devoted to Joy's wedding planning as well as the actual blessed event.  Perhaps there will be some episodes about Jinger and Jeremy. I was struck by the bars on all the windows in the apartment. They must be living in a rough area.  Laredo is nothing like good old Arkansas.

 

[LurkerOverThePond]

1 hour ago, Iokaste said:

I'd be interested too to know how many Europeans have never left Europe. I can't think of anyone I know who hasn't been to Africa, Russia, Asia or the US, but then again, other continents are closer to most Europeans than to most Americans. 

I know many people who have never left Europe. They are mostly older people, but many younger ones, too. Maybe it's because we live quite far away from Central and Western Europe (in Finland, that is), going to places like the Mediterranean or British Isles is really going "abroad". I've been to North America four times, and would love to see other continents as well, especially South America, but travelling far away is pretty damn expensive, and as a heathen who could not buy her home debt-free I have a big mortgage to pay now, too. 

[allthegoodnamesrgone]

1 hour ago, Iokaste said:

In Europe, in spite of American culture imperialisme (gosh, this all sounds like I hate the US, I don't! I love travelling in the US!), there is still a huge cultural and practical everyday difference between countries, regions and cultures. It's everything from official politics to what, how and when we eat, our school systems, how we dress, decorate our houses, values in regards to childrearing, religion, etc.

I'm not saying all those things don't differ within the US, but there they are more based on cultural or ethnic groupings than geographical ones.

I wouldn't say that, it is most definitely geographical here as well. if/when you travel to different regions of the US you will really see it.  I haven't been to the deep south since I was a very young child, being in the Midwest with minimal vacation time & funds  you are limited in where you can go. I have been to Portland OR & DC several times and I can promise you that the two worlds are as vastly different as what I imagine life in England vs the Italian country side is. DC is fast past aggressive, cultured almost cut throat and Portland is full of laid back, free spirits who are masters of you do you.  Yes I'm over generalizing but the vibes are very different and so are the people. There are TV shows about moonshiners down south and bush people in Alaska then in TX you have that fuck you I'm my own boss ain't no gubmint gonna tell me what to do (but these people are scattered about rural areas all around the US).  So yes it is as geographical here as it is in Europe. 

[singsingsing]

8 hours ago, ItsMeY'all said:

This is my crossing that I'm bitching about! Every single time it is like this. From reading the other posts I'm really thinking that must just be the worst entrance point between the two countries. Sorry you had to go through this but take comfort in knowing it wasn't just you.

It's the busiest border crossing in North America, so that probably accounts for some of it. I have to say, I've never experienced anything ridiculous crossing into Detroit, and I've had ruder border agents crossing back into Canada, on the whole. I can't recall anyone else I know having experienced anything particularly grueling, either. And I've definitely never had to wait hours to cross the border. The worst experience was once when we were backed up in the tunnel for maybe an hour. That was fun (not). Maybe I've just been lucky!

I wonder if it's somewhat a matter of perspective, though. A lot of people seem to be shocked by all the questions, for example. But getting hit with a bunch of questions like, "Where are you going? Why? Why didn't you stay over night? How long have you known this person you're going to see? Where did you meet? Where do you work? I'll need to look inside your vehicle" Etc. all seems perfectly normal to me. They're just doing their job. They're looking for inconsistencies, red flags, and so on. There are a lot of people smuggling stuff in/out, trying to come live in either country illegally, and so on. 

That's not to say that crazy shit doesn't go down at the border. It does. I'm not denying that. I've never personally experienced it (random rude border agents and the sort of questions I mentioned above don't strike me as crazy, though). I haven't crossed the border since Donald Trump was elected, and I don't intend to if I don't have to. I've heard stories of people being asked what they think about Trump, told to hand over their phones, social media passwords, etc. People I know who cross all the time think I'm overreacting, and I probably am, but I'm still paranoid! 

[ItsMeY'all]

5 minutes ago, singsingsing said:

It's the busiest border crossing in North America, so that probably accounts for some of it. 

Wow, I didn't realize this. Explains a lot. In general I expect the questions and can appreciate them but then they toss in "What is your license plate number?" and I start to get nervous.  Am I supposed to know that?  They also just always seem so angry. Crossing from Mexico when we lived in Texas or California seems like such a different experience. 

[Mela99]

8 hours ago, NanisBlessing said:

Iceland ? Way too liberal and open minded for their mindset 

Don't forget the Penis Museum! http://phallus.is/en/ 

[Fluffy14]

4 hours ago, Seren Ann said:

it's only 10 hours away". My mind is blown 

I live in Canada. My husband and I think nothing of driving 3 hrs to get lunch, turn around and go home. The drive is along the ocean and beautiful.  Or driving 2 hours to see our kids and turning around and going home later that day. We recently went on a garden tour that was an hour drive and a ferry ride....we love driving. 

[Irishy]

Thoughts on American tourists... I live in Ireland (Dublin) and worked at the airport years ago. Yes, I agree that American tourists are easy to spot, at least they were when I was a kid. I remember lots of plaid trousers, baseball hats and big cameras. It's been a long time since I spotted plaid trousers though... But I've almost always found them to be completely lovely. Always extremely polite and grateful for help or advice. And always up for a chat, and absolutely delighted that you'd take the time to talk to them. Irish people love a chat. Life's too short not to have a chat. That's the accepted wisdom I find. From strangers in doctors waiting rooms to taxi drivers. To the point where silence can actually be weird 

 

English people, I find not so friendly. Painting with a very broad brush here I know, and I've got English friends I adore... but I just don't love their reserve. For example I stopped a guy at a train station in London recently (staff!) and he was completely horrified that a stranger was asking for directions. Whereas in Ireland people just love to talk for any reason. I was so bemused by the poor guy. Huge sweeping generalisation I know, but I feel it.

[MadeItOut]

It's there for sure. I never understand why folks have the perception that Brits are good at customer service. Having worked as a customer complaint specialist I can say we're reasonably good at fixing stuff when it's gone wrong and we're not too shy to say when something's wrong, but that's a different kettle of fish.

[VelociRapture]

@IrishyAw! Thanks for the America love. My grandparents have traveled to Ireland multiple times and they've always had the most lovely things to say about the Irish.

[Carm_88]

To drive from one end of the province to the other is about 14 hours. That's going straight though, to get to the ferry. You're not even seeing the good bits. Mostly highway!  

[Four is Enough]

This American hates being stuck in a car for hours on end. So if I'm going to my hometown, 90 miles away, it had better be for at least one night's stay. Luckily, I have a bed at my sister's.

The furthest we got in our RV was about 700 miles. I nearly killed Four, the Four, and their little dawg, too!

[Lilipad]

13 hours ago, ItsMeY'all said:

This is my crossing that I'm bitching about! Every single time it is like this. From reading the other posts I'm really thinking that must just be the worst entrance point between the two countries. Sorry you had to go through this but take comfort in knowing it wasn't just you.

+1 from me on this ...English isnt my first language and I get really nervous at the Detroit crossing and sometimes don't get what is being asked, or sometimes forget to reply in English, .... which, of course,  just makes it all worse. Its really embarrassing

 We try and route through Sarnia/Port Huron as much as we can.. quieter and better experience. And many times even faster!

[Jana814]

I hate driving long distance. I don't go on highways and have not in over a year. I am a dog sitter/walker. But I only go to towns that are easy for me to get to.