Wish we had more interesting ways of life here in the U.S. [Archive]

CathyA

2-23-11, 12:17pm

I've been to Europe twice, many years ago. I also like watching PBS travel shows and cooking shows like Lidia Bastianich's, and she takes us to many towns in Italy.
Does anyone else feel that the U.S. is incredibly culture devoid? Maybe its because its a new country, so to speak. But gosh I love the simple, beautiful style of so many other countries. So many other countries seem to have respect for the land, pride in their farms/small businesses. They allow nature to take a major position in their lives. They eat wonderful, basic, locally grown food. They grow tons of trees and flower, herbs. They have traditions.

They take care of their old buildings instead of bulldozing them down and putting up big box stores.

We (my family) try to live a good life here.........cooking from scratch, growing all sorts of trees, bushes, flowers that attract wildlife, having a garden and a water garden.........but I catch myself feeling that I should have been born in another country. Of course, there are alot of countries I'm glad I wasn't born in! But I wish we had more interesting culture here, and not just huge stores, and crap to buy everywhere. As the son goes "they paved paradise and put up a parking lot"........

I crave the richness that some of these older countries have, and I'm not talking about money.

razz

2-23-11, 12:51pm

Funny how our perspective changes... I was feeling some similar thoughts until I started to travel throughout Canada and some of the US. The structures are different. Instead of castles I found deserts and rock formations developed over centuries, wide open spaces on the plains. Have you gone swimming or boating in the Great lakes or one of the ocean sounds? Camping in the mountains in the snowline?

Other places offshore have horror stories that make me shudder at the injustices without recourse. North America has its horrors, of course, but there has been an individual overcoming of them.

Look at the immigration wave patterns and where these people settled and their impact

Have you examined the story and the places where the Acadians moved to? i read the story while waiting for a ferry and had tears streaming down my cheeks.

Have you explored the western desert and researched the dinosaurs and why they died?

Look at the aboiriginal history throughout North America to see survival skills and life styles.

My two goals are to explore the Arctic and Newfoundland which are so culturally unique.

I loved Europe and visiting the Mediterranean areas of Egypt. Greece and Turkey but there is something rarer in this part of the world that we take for granted.

Bastelmutti

2-23-11, 12:54pm

We have all of those things, and Europeans also have all of the negatives you assign to the United States. It's just a matter of perspective. I have lived in Europe (2 different countries) and in the United States, and I admire and respect different things about each. I do love European cities, which grew up so differently from our own, for their city centers and great public transportation - I never had a car in Europe. But I also like the international flair of a city like Chicago with all of our skyscrapers and ethnic neighborhoods - never boring! In Europe I like the general level of concern for the good of society over individualism and conversely don't love the individualism of the US. On the other hand, I love the freedom of self-expression and carving out your own path in life we have in the US that can be so stifled in Europe due to tradition and customs. Now for a place that combines the benefits of the two!

Mrs-M

2-23-11, 1:00pm

Originally posted by Bastelmutti.
We have all of those things, and Europeans also have all of the negatives you assign to the United States. It's just a matter of perspective.Well said.

bae

2-23-11, 1:14pm

I've not had trouble finding all sorts of interesting ways of life throughout the US, the trick is to get off the main highway/big-box corridor, and not to blow past at 75mph.

freein05

2-23-11, 1:31pm

Eggs and Shrubs

2-23-11, 1:33pm

It may come as a surprise to people but we in the UK have pretty much the same day to day life as you in the US. The McDonalds in my local town is packed with diners stuffing their faces with every additive known to man.

ApatheticNoMore

2-23-11, 1:40pm

I guess if your problem is the people, which it seems like a major part of it, I would probably phrase it is as: "find a subculture" :) You do realize not every one out there is all about the big box stores, shopping etc.. They may be what the media reflects back and back and back to you forever in their endless mirrors. But lots of people are very much tired of that life, desperately seeking substance, alternatives, etc..

If your problem is that U.S. cities are not as beautiful as some European cities, yes, they're probably never going to be. I guess you could get involved in various things to beautify them, but realistically they aren't going to be at that very high level: they perfected urbanism.

If it's U.S. politics and economics you have a problem with (locally grown food bullied about by the likes of Monsanto whenever it has a chance., puny vacation time, service based economy etc.), well I can't help you there. I mean I would say get involved in movements working toward what you want and put your energy into that and make what difference you can, but overall the U.S. political situation is what it is.

treehugger

2-23-11, 1:42pm

Many Europeans come to the US every year to enjoy the natural beauty here. I do enjoy visiting Europe and spending time in the old cities there. The public transportation is great in Europe but for the most part in the western US it is impracticable.

Agree with all of the above. Check out Ken Burns' multi-part documentary about our National Parks to feel really good about something the U.S. has actually done right.

mira

2-23-11, 1:49pm

We have all of those things, and Europeans also have all of the negatives you assign to the United States. It's just a matter of perspective.
I agree. I've lived on both continents and, well, it's just a matter of what sort of place you're in - rural vs urban, remote vs well connected, slow-paced vs rushed, etc. All of these aspects exist throughout both places.

I've also lived in Spain. Although the way of life in large Spanish towns and cities is comparable to daily life in any other western town/city, they do maintain traditions without commercialising them and the majority of shops (I would say) are still independent small businesses. It's not like that everywhere in Europe though. Travel channels like to show an idealised version of the countries they report on.

CathyA

2-23-11, 2:19pm

Mira.....you're probably right that the travel channels show idealized versions.........but I've been to Europe twice, and not just to big places, and it has a richness that I haven't found here. Agreed.....we have some beautiful natural places.......but I'm talking about towns and how most people live in them........and how nature is much more an integral part of things. Maybe its because I'm living in a fairly boring area. I'm sure alot has to do with the fact that our culture only started a couple hundred years ago, rather than a thousand. We seem to be the big-box, fast-food culture, which doesn't have much personality or texture.

Bastelmutti

2-23-11, 5:22pm

So, by culture I really think you mean "lifestyle"? Culture-wise, I don't think we're slobs - even smaller cities in the US have art museums, concerts, etc. just like in Europe. I agree with the comment about finding a sub-culture. You can find people here who live the way you want to and share your values. Maybe you won't find the independents in your town - check out Etsy, Lehman's (Amish goods) and the like online & vote with your cash.

About the city life - In Germany at least, a lot of the little stores in the town centers are chains, too. My bakery made amazing rolls, but it was a chain. My dept. store was a chain, but carried different stuff than US dept. stores (and I liked it better). Some of that stuff is pervasive. I do love the cities that grew up around a large church or cathedral, have a town square and market, etc. It's very charming and pleasant. I loved shopping in my neighborhood, just going down the row of shops, chain or not, hopping on the train to take a trip, etc. Europe is just geographically different. Then again, I live in a first-ring suburb, have a bunch of locally owned stores that I frequent just down the street along with my post office and newsstand, am within spitting distance of a bus and commuter train, etc. We even have a farmer's market in the summer. So really not that different. Maybe your area is, though.

Eggs and Shrubs - Funny comment about the Mickey D's! I totally agree. We Americans tend to idealize European life, but having lived there, I found the cons as well as the pros. I still love both places - the US and Germany/Austria.

Wildflower

2-23-11, 5:33pm

I think it is easy to romanticize Europe. I find myself doing it often. But I wouldn't live anyplace but here in the good ole USA. I've been all over this country and seen the most beautiful scenery I've ever seen anywhere, and met wonderful people along the way. Sure we have good and bad here, and I hate the big box stores, etc., but I know that I am free to think and say what I want here. That is not an option in many other countries....

flowerseverywhere

2-23-11, 7:52pm

I love the US. We have been to 47 states and each has unique qualities. Many towns have beautiful churches and we have outstanding art. Last year we went to the Barnes collection, an unbelievable group of impressionist and other paintings. The year before the Clark Institute, and at least once a year visit the Met, smithsonian or Boston Museums. The art we have seen less than a days drive from home has been world class, and we have been able to go to the West coast to the Getty, another gem.

Architecture? just go look around. My small city closeby has a lot of art Noveau as well as some stunning churches. A church with Tiffany windows is less than 50 miles from me. I have seen stunning examples of Frank Lloyd Wrights work. Winthertur, Mount Vernon, Biltmore Estate all are spectacular.

I will say the most spectacular trip I ever took was to Florence and Rome but I love Michaelangelo and the Italian Renaissance . I wouldn't want to live there although most of the people were quite nice.

But the number one attraction in the US is our National Park System. Yellowstone in May was full of animals. Mesa Verde, Yosemite, Bryce, Petrified forest, Grand Canyon, Glacier, Acadia, Smoky Mountains... I could go on and on of the wonder we have seen right here in the US. We travel in Sept and May to see the National Parks and it is like having the world to yourself.

Alan

2-23-11, 8:33pm

But the number one attraction in the US is our National Park System. Yellowstone in May was full of animals. Mesa Verde, Yosemite, Bryce, Petrified forest, Grand Canyon, Glacier, Acadia, Smoky Mountains... I could go on and on of the wonder we have seen right here in the US. We travel in Sept and May to see the National Parks and it is like having the world to yourself.

We do the same. We went through a period of travelling to Europe every 18 months or so and had great experiences in England, France, Austria, Germany, Belgium, etc.

But then we discovered the wonders right under our noses when we did a weekend trip to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Before you knew it, we let our passports expire, bought a motorhome and now spend every available moment exploring our National Parks and some of the wonderful state parks nestled in between.

In the past 4 years we've visited 32 states and completely filled our new passport, the National Parks passport. Maybe we'll travel outside the country again someday, but probably not until we've completed exploring every nook and cranny in our own. There's wonder around every corner.

peggy

2-23-11, 8:35pm

I used to think like this until I lived overseas for 7 years straight. 3 in Japan, Tokyo, and 4 in rural Germany. Coming home really impressed on me what a unique place the US is. It really does have it's own culture but maybe we don't see it because we live it.
Tokyo was, well, Tokyo. completely unable to describe the feel, smell and life of that city if you've never been there. What a great experience, but one I wouldn't want to live my entire life in. Germany was more to my liking, but then I was well into my 40's and that lifestyle appealed to me. But the young people, the young Germans, wanted to escape that to Cologne, or Frankfurt, or the US. Me, I just loved the little towns where nothing changed, I mean nothing, for hundreds of years. You may not have a gas station in your town, but there is one in the town over so who needs one in your town. Or a grocery store. You have the butcher and the baker, what else do you need!
If you want that sort of feel, try some of the little towns in New England. They are quite charming, and if my entire family didn't live in the mid-west, I'd be in New England for sure.

Rosemary

2-23-11, 9:39pm

Last time I was in Germany, I made some notes about the things that made life what it is there - and found that most of them related to simple living. I think previous posters on this thread are right - you can find the same things in the U.S., but you have to turn off the TV and stay out of the stores.

Bastelmutti

2-23-11, 10:05pm

PS I didn't feel nature was very integrated into my life in Germany, although I lived near the Rhine (seen one barge, seen them all). Germany is extremely densely populated - much more so than the US. We have just as much natural space along Lake Michigan as we had along the Rhine. Nice in an urban area, but it's still "urban nature" KWIM? Now, Austria was another story - that might be the spot for you, Cathy! Hills, mountains and castles as far as the eye can see :-)

iris lily

2-23-11, 10:18pm

speak for yourself. I live in a Victorian village where we honor historic architecture though granted, it's not centuries old. There are plenty of cultural tings to do in this city, that's why I live in the heart of the city and not out in the hinterlands. I would HATE driving all of the time to go to plays and dance and to gather in little restaurants, etc.

Bootsie

2-23-11, 10:20pm

freein05

2-23-11, 11:41pm

We are spending the month of February in the Mother Lode of California along highway 49 and below the snow line of the Sierras. It is a 45 min drive to our place at the 5,000 foot elevation in the Sierras. Our place in the Sierras is under 5 feet of snow. It is spring in the Mother lode. The tress and daffodils are blooming and the grass on the hillsides is green. The towns in the Mother Lode are not as old as European towns but many are over 150 years old. We are exploring as many as we can and going to the little museums in these small towns.

As Allen said we have some of the most beautiful National Parks in the world. We are going to Yosemite the first of March. I volunteer at Calaveras Big Trees State park and I am still amazed at how many European visitors fly to California to see the big trees and Yosemite. We are very fortunate to live in a country with such beauty.

loosechickens

2-24-11, 12:44am

Ah....I don't know.....I loved Europe, I loved living in Mexico and Central American countries, and I love living in the U.S. Every place has it's good points and bad points.

I loved wandering around the countryside and little towns in France, the tremendous food, the happy cows standing belly deep in grass and buttercups......but I love the natural beauty of the American West in a visceral, almost spiritual way........

I agree, although if you drive the interstates and shop in chain, big box stores, the U.S. seems homogenous and sterile, but you can also seek out the byways, travel through Texas on Rt. 90 instead of I-10, camping in little roadside rest picnic areas awash in wildflowers, and enjoying stops in little towns at the local fireman's pancake breakfast, and wonder where that world of big box stores even is........

it's all good.......

RosieTR

2-24-11, 8:19am

I agree that the natural beauty and open spaces of the USA are treasures!

I've also heard from foreigners that they feel the freedom and openness of our culture. Perhaps we Americans take that part of our culture for granted. We don't understand that other people aren't used to being open to new ideas, making a new identity for themselves, believing everyone is capable of innovation and movement within society ...even being friendly and upbeat are seen as American traits by outsiders. We are a BIG culture not only in our super-sized soft drinks and fast food, but in our land and attitude as well. Other countries have their special qualities to admire and enjoy, but we should value our own qualities too. It's fashionable to criticize the USA, but this is a great place to be.

(And yes, I know we have plenty of big faults to go along with our big good qualities.)

I've heard that, too. I asked a friend from England why she wanted to stay in the US and she explained that Americans just seem so much more optimistic than Brits (in her opinion). I hadn't really thought of that before. There are definitely differences in culture even across states in the US. So maybe you would be happier in a place with a long(er) history and denser cities which are mostly along the eastern seaboard. There are traditions, influenced by initial immigrants, even in the US: lobster fisherman, artisan cheesemakers, wineries, orchards, small pockets of specific religious groups (Amish, Mormons, etc) if you look but yes, not as common as in parts of Europe.

CathyA

2-24-11, 9:17am

I think that perhaps I didn't express myself very well in my initial post. Yes, there are tons of beautiful natural places in this country. And as far as our freedoms, its one of the best places to live. RosieTR, you expressed what I was trying to say about traditions. I think places on the east coast are great examples, where they've kept some of the old ways of doing things (and also the pacific northwest area).

I'm sure there is a ton of variation out there. I believe I'm living in an area that just isn't that creative. This area would rather sell off beautiful land to build row after row of cheap houses with people in them who eat fast food all the time and spend most of their time at a mall, the movies, etc.

I'm talking about the quality of day-to-day living.......of appreciating the circle of life in your own natural yard, of growing some of your own food, of appreciating food that you've made from scratch, of sitting around with a group of friends, talking, watching the night sky, of spending a lazy day fishing or making pasta, growing your own herbs, making wine, etc., etc., etc. Most of the time people (at least around me) are pretty superficial, in a hurry, and are out of touch with slow, deliberate, down-to-earth living, eating.
I'm saying, that at least in my area, people aren't taking advantage of all the incredible possibilities around them. I'm talking about the richness you can get out of life without a ton of money, and living a life that always has nature all around you. I would love to see more of that in the U.S.

pinkytoe

2-24-11, 10:58am

Cathy, I get the gist of your original post and I would feel that way too if I lived in the exurbs or close-in rural where subdivisions and chains pop up overnight. I find that living in the middle of the city and getting involved in my neighborhood association lets me see that many around me crave a lifestyle that is culturally rich, traditional and yet innovative. too. In my little hood, we have a locally based cinema, farmer's markets, restaurants and cafes of many ethnicities, mom and pop stores, chickens in many backyards, library, parks, bicycle lanes, churches of all persuasions, skating rink. It feels like a community of caring citizens. It we had mass transit, it would be almost idyllic. Conversely, we also have an urban Walmart which the neighborhood fought voraciously along with some other smaller versions of national chains. Though I would love having more space and nature around me, I don't ever want to live out in the burbs again.

Bootsie

2-24-11, 11:51am

I actually understood your original post. While I admire old-world traditions and taking the time to appreciate things like slow meals eaten together with locally-grown food made in ways handed down by grandparents, I'm also saying that as an American, we might eventually find that restricting. On the other hand, we DO have the option of creating that kind of life within our own lives. That might be easier for me to say here on the east coast, but I really don't think location in this country hinders someone so much they can't create what they want. Want tradition? Then bring tradition in your life. Want old-world architecture, well, incorporate some touches in your home and yard and meals and clothes, etc. I know my answers frustrate you....but it's not because I don't agree with you about the great aspects of small towns in Europe. You can take some of it home with you... while people who live it might wish they could shed some of the restrictions and just go to the dang mall once in awhile.

CathyA

2-24-11, 11:59am

Thanks pinkytoe and Bootsie. I do try to live that way, but wish I didn't have to leave it all behind when I pull out of my lane.
I live out in the country. When I was younger, I lived in town and enjoyed walking places and taking the bus. I loved walking by the old stone apartment houses that had rot iron fences in front, with tons of flowers and pots of flowers on their steps. You could see in some of the windows and there would be interesting things (no, I wasn't a voyeur...haha) Like I said, I think it makes a huge difference in where a person lives.
Where I live is not known for its vitality and openness. We have children and family and a business here, so we don't really want to move.
I wasn't trying to dis the U.S.........just wishing some of the old ways were more important than some of the new, cheap, superficial ways.

freein05

2-24-11, 1:08pm

JaneV2.0

2-24-11, 2:59pm

I do spend time in Europe mostly in Germany. We are spending the month of May in Munich. I like the cultural diversity here. In California you can hear Spanish, Vietnamese, Chinese and many other languages when you are eating in a restaurant or walking on the street. I like that and feel that diversity is what makes America an interesting country.

And potentially a hugely creative one! I'm not much of a U.S. booster, but this is something I love about living here, too. I grew up in places that were almost completely non-diverse and one-dimensional, and I'm glad that kind of sterility is long gone--at least in Western cities. I do love the natural grandeur of this continent, as well. I can't drive to the grocery store without encountering a forest, a stream, a lake, a view of mountains...

As far as creating what you might call a "village culture," that probably requires a little planning and perseverence, but I know people who carry it off--who trade eggs for flowers, grow their own vegetables, volunteer in their community, walk and bicycle around their neighborhood, and still visit over the back fence.

bae

2-24-11, 3:24pm

Villages are tricky things. I live quite near a wonderful one, and there are several other small villages and hamlets on my wee island. The associated culture is one of the main reasons I moved here.

However, modern planning and development codes here essentially make it impossible to build new villages of the style we all find attractive, or to expand existing ones. My state, like many others, is trying to address the issue of " sprawl" by creating only two types of land use - rural and urban. No middle ground. No more villages.

Cruelly, the arguments for doing so are based on a Disney-like view of European land use patterns and regulation.