Growing up in the United States, you constantly hear how pathetic the US is compared to Europe in the areas of food, health care, public transportation, open-mindedness, and generally everything. This makes one long to experience Europe, feeling always like you are missing out on a level of experience that could be richer and somehow more "real."
Now that I have spent a little time in Europe (Greece, Germany, Spain, England, Denmark, and Sweden) and have lived in the UAE, which is heavily influenced by European food and customs due to the number of Europeans who make up the expat culture here, I have formed the opinion that Europe is not better than the United States. In some ways perhaps it never was better, but in some ways the U.S. has recently changed to match Europe's quality in food and lifestyle. Below are the ways in which the United States has come to match Europe
chocolate - I grew up hearing people complain that American chocolate is too sweet. Now chocolate that has a high cocoa content is ubiquitous, and you can find dark, good quality chocolate as easily as you can find sweet or milk chocolate in any grocery store.
beer - You can buy good beer and brew your own even in Mississippi now, which had a law against beer above 5% until recently. Massachusetts even has the U.S.'s first Trappist brewery. There are other excellent breweries such as Fat Tire and Abita all across the country.
coffee - Thanks to Starbucks, Americans now know what espresso is. We have even learned enough about good coffee to realize that Starbucks isn't.
bread/pastries - With good bakeries in Whole Foods and equivalent epicurean markets in big cities all over America, you can find just about any type of bread, croissant, and pastry that you could want.
public transportation - Public transportation in big European cities is excellent. In rural European cities, not so much. It's basically the same in the U.S. The only problem is that since we're so much bigger, we have a lot more rural areas; thus, we have more places that don't have reliable public transportation that those that do, unlike Europe, which has many metropolitan areas relatively close together.
open-mindedness - In the U.S. I felt like I was surrounded by people with a conservative world-view. I always assumed that people in Europe were more open-minded. By open-minded, I suppose I mean more accepting of all people and lifestyles. However, this is not true. In Greece we were virtually stared out of a restaurant by local fisherman by simply walking through the door. In Munich the conversation turned uncomfortable when I mentioned that I was visiting my friend and his husband, and the stares we got in public were much more frequent and hostile than I ever experienced with the same friend in Mississippi (which is one of the more conservative states).
healthcare - Europe still triumphs in the area of subsidized healthcare. If the Republicans and Democrats in the U.S. could learn to work together instead of against each other, I think America could be on the right track to (insert your preferred adjective here) subsidized/socialized/universal medicine.
The following are ways in which the U.S. is definitely hands-down, better than Europe, any day of the week:
beds - European mattresses are hard and thin. It's just the way it is. I have not slept on a comfortable mattress since we left the U.S. Every home and hotel I've been in in any European country I've been in (including the Middle East) has had quite hard mattresses.
bathrooms - One can get spoiled by the size and lushness of American bathrooms. In Europe they are small and minimalistic. Most of the time, you're lucky to have a shower nozzle above the toilet, which leaves the floor wet for hours.
the legal use of marijuana - Recently more and more states are legalizing and decriminalizing the use and possession of marijuana. And Europe thinks it's so great because it has Amsterdam.
More importantly, the United States is young, optimistic, and full of potential. We also have a plethora of wide-open spaces, clean air, and drinkable water. Americans are lucky. Visiting Europe has helped me realize that.
Now that I have spent a little time in Europe (Greece, Germany, Spain, England, Denmark, and Sweden) and have lived in the UAE, which is heavily influenced by European food and customs due to the number of Europeans who make up the expat culture here, I have formed the opinion that Europe is not better than the United States. In some ways perhaps it never was better, but in some ways the U.S. has recently changed to match Europe's quality in food and lifestyle. Below are the ways in which the United States has come to match Europe
chocolate - I grew up hearing people complain that American chocolate is too sweet. Now chocolate that has a high cocoa content is ubiquitous, and you can find dark, good quality chocolate as easily as you can find sweet or milk chocolate in any grocery store.
beer - You can buy good beer and brew your own even in Mississippi now, which had a law against beer above 5% until recently. Massachusetts even has the U.S.'s first Trappist brewery. There are other excellent breweries such as Fat Tire and Abita all across the country.
coffee - Thanks to Starbucks, Americans now know what espresso is. We have even learned enough about good coffee to realize that Starbucks isn't.
bread/pastries - With good bakeries in Whole Foods and equivalent epicurean markets in big cities all over America, you can find just about any type of bread, croissant, and pastry that you could want.
public transportation - Public transportation in big European cities is excellent. In rural European cities, not so much. It's basically the same in the U.S. The only problem is that since we're so much bigger, we have a lot more rural areas; thus, we have more places that don't have reliable public transportation that those that do, unlike Europe, which has many metropolitan areas relatively close together.
open-mindedness - In the U.S. I felt like I was surrounded by people with a conservative world-view. I always assumed that people in Europe were more open-minded. By open-minded, I suppose I mean more accepting of all people and lifestyles. However, this is not true. In Greece we were virtually stared out of a restaurant by local fisherman by simply walking through the door. In Munich the conversation turned uncomfortable when I mentioned that I was visiting my friend and his husband, and the stares we got in public were much more frequent and hostile than I ever experienced with the same friend in Mississippi (which is one of the more conservative states).
healthcare - Europe still triumphs in the area of subsidized healthcare. If the Republicans and Democrats in the U.S. could learn to work together instead of against each other, I think America could be on the right track to (insert your preferred adjective here) subsidized/socialized/universal medicine.
The following are ways in which the U.S. is definitely hands-down, better than Europe, any day of the week:
beds - European mattresses are hard and thin. It's just the way it is. I have not slept on a comfortable mattress since we left the U.S. Every home and hotel I've been in in any European country I've been in (including the Middle East) has had quite hard mattresses.
bathrooms - One can get spoiled by the size and lushness of American bathrooms. In Europe they are small and minimalistic. Most of the time, you're lucky to have a shower nozzle above the toilet, which leaves the floor wet for hours.
the legal use of marijuana - Recently more and more states are legalizing and decriminalizing the use and possession of marijuana. And Europe thinks it's so great because it has Amsterdam.
More importantly, the United States is young, optimistic, and full of potential. We also have a plethora of wide-open spaces, clean air, and drinkable water. Americans are lucky. Visiting Europe has helped me realize that.
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