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I hate the chain link fences around the front yard that you see in some of the sleazier areas of SoCal. I always wondered why you see so much more of that there.
I once read a book about landscaping properties and the author mentioned building not a fence but a WALL in the front yard to gain privacy and maximize space. The author said something like, "your paying the taxes --- why leave your front yard as scenery for your neighbors and the street --- take back the front yard for yourself".
I remember shaking my head how horrible our towns and cities would look if everyone built a wall in front of their house!
We've got the "What shocked you about the US" for foreigners list on here. Since America is so big it's like being in a different country from one area to another I thought I'd start a thread for Americans about what surprised you when traveling to another part of the US.
I'll start. I'm a lifelong Kentuckian. When I went to South Carolina and SE Georgia for the first time I was shocked at why there were no farms on all that flat land - in Kentucky all flat land is cleared of forest and farmed, only creek beds and hillsides are left to forest. I actually asked someone at a restaurant if something was wrong with the land around there
When I went to Pennsylvania I was shocked that there were no name brand gas stations - everything was named "Wa Wa" or something else equally stupid. How do people up there know they're getting good name brand gas from Shell or Chevron and not lower quality stuff from Speedway or BP?
Regarding gas stations in Pennsylvania one thing you see alot of is normal sized gas station signs on top of very very tall posts (like a 4 story building). You see this in other states but it stands out in Pennsylvania for some reason.
Another thing that stands out for me is how scenic the interstates going through Maryland are. Maryland has done a nice job keeping woods along its highways, especially suprising around the crowded Baltimore-Washington DC. It also interesting how hilly I-95 is going through Maryland, even right after crossing into the state from Delaware.
I-95 is not exactly one of the most beautiful interstates there is, to say the least! But Maryland has done a good job and I would say the section of I-95 from north of Baltimore to the Delaware border is probably one of the most scenic.
I visited North Carolina for the first time last year. I was shocked at how much forest exists, even as you get into metro areas. (Certainly not a western-type forest, but green trees everywhere.) As I drove through Raleigh/Durham I was surprised at how little of the actual cities you see, mostly you see tree-lined freeways. I was also suprised how aggressive the drivers seemed to be..., much more so than the midwest. Maybe a NASCAR mindset?
My family was not expecting all the trees either when we relocated from the Silicon Valley in the 70s. The NW arc of I-440 in Raleigh is one of the prettiest urban Interstate stretches I have ever seen. (It's only about 3 miles from DT). When it was widened several years ago, it even won some sort of national quality award. I especially like the continuous raised planters that separate the opposite directions of traffic, the brick sound walls that protect the adjacent neighborhoods and the beautiful pedestrian bridge that connects the Art Museum property to the neighborhood on the other side of the highway. http://goodnightraleigh.com/uploaded_images/3.jpg
As for the agressive drivers, I'd attribute that more to the sheer number of people who have moved to the area from the Northeast (DC to Boston) than I would to Nascar.
[quote=xxmagex;9874692]I travel from Kentucky to South Carolina on a regular basis for work. Two things stand out.
1) In South Carolina, I encounter a fair number of people from areas other than the South at the same conference I am attending, they always seem surprised by Banana pudding.
2)South Carolina seems to have really not given up on the civil war. I always get the feeling that it is only half time with them.[/quote]
Why the surprise at banana pudding???
Church ladies make it all the time for gatherings....
The highlighted just made me chuckle. You feel this because SC is an ornery state in general...look at some of the governors we've had throughout history.
John C. Calhoun to Mark Sanford...cantankerous, and a tendency to be downright stubborn... every last one of them. And I happen to be one of its equally ornery citizens.
I once read a book about landscaping properties and the author mentioned building not a fence but a WALL in the front yard to gain privacy and maximize space. The author said something like, "your paying the taxes --- why leave your front yard as scenery for your neighbors and the street --- take back the front yard for yourself".
I remember shaking my head how horrible our towns and cities would look if everyone built a wall in front of their house!
Well, I think a fence in front of a yard looks pretty tacky.
One more thing that surprised me about Massachusetts- My mom and stepdad lived in a small town about 30 miles NW of Boston. They lived in a newer section, on the edge of town. All of the houses were custom built, in the last 20 years or so. Every one seemed to complain about the weather, and the snow, how hard it was on cars, i.e, rusting, etc. Yet in that whole part of town, my mom was the only one who had a garage. They had their house built in the mid- 80's and when they built the house, they had a garage built as well, which is a no-brainer to me. But NONE of their neighbors had a garage. I remember being there one Jan when it was snowing and 19 degrees out, and backing their car out of the garage, then driving down their street looking at all the neighbor cars buried under snow. Wtf?!?!
when I lived in Arlington, TX I was suprised by how many californians lived their, pleasant surprise to me because many of them knew what I was talking about when I talked about back home
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