Any first timer to the US is bound to have a few stories to tell. With my intentions to do a management degree and all in the future, I find it the best time and place to learn my Organizational behavior, hands on!
And here, I have my audience. :-o)
Plastic money wins pants down. I have had a wallet full of credit cards when I was in India. But, never ever I could venture out without the real cash on my pocket. It is exactly the opposite here. In my month and half, I have never really had the need to carry Cash. But, you need a lot of nickels. If you want anything right from newspapers to colas to chocolates to beer out of the vending machine, you need em.
Courtesy. The American culture is over hyped for all the wrong reasons in India. But, the fact of the matter is, the people here are more courteous and respectful than us.
Tell me, How often do you ask an utter stranger how he is and wish him/her a good day? How often do you find people opening the door and holding it for you to pass by?
Just do it. No, this is not about Nike. Anything here has a price attached to it, unless you do it yourself. Yep, labor is costlier than what you can ever dream of. That FedEx delivery guy might actually earn more that you. And, No job is mean here.
Myth : This is the tidiest place on earth. I have to agree to that to some extent. But, you gotta see the crowded places to get the actual feel. IMHO, it basically trickles down to the fact that this country has one tenth of the population density as India.
Myth : Everyone follows the traffic rules in the US.To alien eyes, everything looks just perfect. Smooth flowing traffic. No unusual honking. People stopping when the traffic lights are red, even when there is no cop around. But, hey! Such things do happen here. There is an occasional brat who drives past even when the red signal is on. As a matter of fact, it is surprising to watch people "pumbifying" when there is a cop around. All said, the frequency is not as alarming as in our country.
Hold back on to your free advice. Many a time, we Indians - Okay, no generalizations here - I give free advice. Be it buying recommendations or whatever, I have my own say on what is good and what is bad. But, many a time there might be mismatches in the taste and someone might end up in a soup. The biggest lesson that I learnt from the ones here is how to be non committal and at the same time convey your opinions. "If I were you..."!
Brands. Honey, the world has truly shrunk. One visit to the neighborhood Walmart and you find that most of our day to day brands are recognizable. And, I never knew, that Cheetos is an American brand. There were more surprises on this front, obviously!
Killing with Options : The normal neighborhood Walmart / publix is atleast ten times bigger than the so called supermarkets that you find in India. If you have been a close follower of the retail revolution in India with the advent of Big Bazaar and Reliance, one striking difference that you would note is how spacious it is and how many options you get. Selecting any product, be it as simple as Onions to the freakiest of the gadgets involves too much decision making especially for we Indians who thrive on deals.
The Internet Rocks! What more can I say after getting used to the so called Broadband Internet in India. Period.
More musings on the way...!
