Well, I'm here sitting at my old familiar desk, sipping My Cinnamon Cream Swirl Green Mountain label coffee I brought back from the States and am having a time of reflection.
I've had a shower and three hours kip, and am starting to feel faiurly normal again. I don't whether it's just the fact of knowing I've had two of the best weeks of my life, or whether it's because I've got that "it's good to be home" feeling, or whether it's the jetlag; but I'm strangely reflective and thankful and upbeat.
There are lot's of things that stood out to me about America, and particularly the state of Maine, and here are some of them. (my apologies to those of my readers from other parts of the States or Canada, but as I didn't visit there, I can't comment on your "worlds", though I'm sure I'd have a great time there as well)
I have taken over 690 photos, (!) so it's taken me a while this afternoon to upload them to my computer and to sort through them, I promise I will post some, but obviously not all!! I'll gradually post them on here over the next week, but you'll have to be patient with me, as there's alot of them, and alot of background information I brought back so I can properly comment on them. (that was Meg's brilliant idea, to bring back leaflets and information on the variopus places we had visited)
She had the idea because she keeps things as keepsakes, to remind her of good memories, etc, but they'll also be useful for me in remembering the details when I post the pictures!!
So, back to my reflections on Maine...
It's oustandingly beautiful.
Whether you're talking about the endless examples of maple, birch, pine and countless other areas of forest, or the numerous lakes, or the grandeur of the many mountains, or the simple beauty of winding country lanes, the natural beauty can be seen everywhere. I'll post some pictures over the next few days as examples. They're mostly not from the area where meg lives, as we went driving to lot's of places, but they are all different areas of Maine. If I have the details and can comment, I will.
It's breathtakingly peaceful.
Although we did visit some of the main "cities" and towns away from where Meg lives, I did notice that although the cities were naturally busier, none of them were bustling as ours would be. I didn't come across any cities that seemed to be buzzing, more like a quiet"getting on with it". Even when we visited Portland, one of the main cities in Maine, with it's own small airport, I still didn't feel the tension and busyness I sense when I'm here in Liverpool. in that sense, most places I visited felt "countryfied" even if they were major cities. (sorry I didn't get any photos of Portland... we visited it on Friday but there was a heatwave, and a combination of the heat and not seeing anything that particularly caught my eye, meant that I was very unotivated to take pictures at all, even though I had my camera with me!!)
The people are friendly.
Whether i was talking to country bumpkins, (they call them "hicks" there!) city folks, or just people serving me in restaurants and cafes or shops, people seemed to be very polite and friendly towards me. maybe it was my accent, but I think very generally speaking, because of the history of the state and it's massive english influence, people tend to be more laid back and less emotional than other americans I had a stereotype of.
I guess partly it must be to do with the fact that alot of Maine is farmland and the agriculture industry is a big part of the economy there. If you have a state made up of a lot of farmers and dairy herders, etc you would have a state full of people who are patient, hard-working and used to long hours, etc and generally kind.
It's not as materialistic.
Ok, yes it has all the shops and retail brands that everywhere else in the states has, but generally alot of the people I noticed when they were shopping didnt tend to buy alot of luxury items or uneccesary things. It's not like Maine is backwards, they have all the starbucks and friendly's and wendy's and barnes and noble's, etc, it's just that they don't seem to be as busy as other places you see on ads about america on tv, and there's a more relaxed pace of life. It's not all about the hard sell. You buy something if it's useful and if it works, not because it looks good.
Well, those are some of my intial thoughts on Maine as I experienced it... any thoughts you americans out there? have I mis-represented the rest of you, or even mis-interpreted your own state? Please comment!!
i think you've been pretty accurate in your observations. i will say i think people from maine (and the north east in general) are emotional but we hide our emotions. in that sense we seem to be more laid back and quiet and not bothered--but we keep our passions and our pains and our deep feelings tight inside us until it's the right time to express them.
ReplyDeleteMaine is everything you've said it to be, but sadly not all the states are that way. Being from California, I speak on behalf of my own observations.
ReplyDeleteCalifornia is outstandingly beautiful, but not in a Maine-kind of way. It's much more rugged than Maine. I would even go so far as to call it an unforgiving landscape if it didn't sound so bad.
Parts of California are breathtakingly peaceful. The cities (generally speaking, Southern California and the Bay Area in Northern California) are not so peaceful. They're hubs of business, etc. Once you drive out to our country, though (again, this is different than Maine country), it's peaceful and quiet. People live in small towns and everyone knows everyone else. It's a great place, really. I think most strongly of Yosemite and the surrounding areas of Arnold, Mariposa and Copperopolis (all little towns around there).
The people are friendly wherever you go, generally speaking. Like any other place, there are nice people and mean people, so California isn't much different than Maine or Liverpool for that matter.
Again, in terms of materialism, the cities in California are very much into that sort of thing. Southern California is more prone to this flaw than most, so I suppose California isn't the same as Maine in that respect. Still, it depends greatly on who you know and the people they know.
Anyway, I'm SO happy to hear you had a good time with Meg!!! I love you both!!
I'm fairly certain that most of the world thinks that the US is comprised of Hollywood, Texas and New York City. That's it. Two gigantic (weird) cities with a horde of chaw-spitting cowboys between them.
ReplyDeleteKinda how a bunch of Americans thinks that everyone in England wears bowlers, all French wear berets and all Germans wear Lederhosen.