Foggy goodbye

This is backblipped due to overdue delivery of my suitcase :-)

So here it is, the end of this almost 3 week long fabulous roadtrip through the Eastern US. We had a late morning, cozy slow breakfast, packed our backs and drove to Cape Cod and strolled around Sandwich. I absolutely adore those cute houses there. We had a relaxed lunch at a place rather popular with the older ladies (but hey, isn´t the whole part of Massachusetts popular for them?) at a place called Dennis.
And then we headed to the airport...

I had some time now, to let it all sink in (and let the jetlag sink out) and to look back. My clichees of the country (or most of them) are gone and been replaced by a very positive although worried impression of this huge country. 
What hit me most in the beginning, was how green and lush it was - having had the clichee of those open, sandy, never-ending stretches of plains in my head. Beginning in Boston, on a Sunday none the less, gave me also a feeling for the big cities, but at a very gentle pace. 
The other thing that certainly made in impression are the people. Almost everybody I met, was rather outspoken (if I ask for it or not) and curious. I perceived the Americans as polite mostly, except when those rather out-of-nowhere comments came unexpected for an European introvert who minds her own business. People tend to say what they think the moment they think it, it seems to me. So was this lady at the tiny coffee shop in Rockport who loudly told us a "funny" story about her always swimming to the big yachts to ask the people there to adopt her - she is in her early 50´s. Or the waitress in Harrisburg, insisting on knowing our itinerary because "maybe I know some of the cities you´re visting". Worst was, I´m sorry to say, one ghastly man in West Virginia. While getting gas for the car he drove right up to us, hollering "Are you from Massachusetts?" - our license plate on the car said so. Hearing us talk made it clear we were foreigners, so he calmed down right away, but had to made a point of saying that were we from "there" we should sure as hell get our asses back there. "We like Europeans, but we hate Yankees" was his parting comment. We had a little warning about going south with those license plates, and kept to the Interstate and bigger cities in Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana just to make sure, and thankfully there were no incidences. But we saw of course all the Trump signs and the big southern flags and the bumper stickers that were worrying. 
When talking to people it seems that America is divided and very deeply so. One example made a rather big impression on me. When talking about our health care with over a year of paid sick days, a year of paid maternity leave, being taken care of in case of unemployment, 5 weeks of vacation and so on, everybody was saying the same thing "I want that, why can´t we have that?". But just a second after, another sentence gave the paradox away: "Well, Trump will save this country." I don´t want to get involved in the politics and standards of how people think and live their lifes, but it became clear that education is a big issue, and a lot of people know that it is not what it is supposed to be. Knowing the difference between fake news and real news, between hoax and truth, between science and belief and most of all, how to think like a sceptic and ask the big questions (and even the little ones), comes all from education and learning to evaluate sources and making up your own mind.
I also met those Americans who were upset with their country, and its divided state. A lot of people know that they have to resist and vocalize more, standing up for their beliefs. And that seems to be a good thing, that people are more political, care about bigger issues than just where the next paycheck comes from. And who have seen this country at a time where it really was the land of the free.
Enough of the politics, I really like the Americans. They are curious, eager to talk to you, and listening to what you say. I remember the cute older lady at the counter of the Gettysburg Museum asking me if this is my first time in the US, and shaking my hand saying "Welcome to my country, I really hope you enjoy your self". And then of course all the people that were connected to Lars from his exchange year in Bainbridge were so nice, welcoming and asked a lot of questions. And of course, everybody had to have a picture :-).

Another thing is the driving - long distances don´t scare me, I lived in Northern Norway where a four hour drive to visit a friend for a coffee is considered normal. The gas prices though are crazy- it cost a fourth of what we see as normal. We would chuckle when a friend of Lars told us to fill the tank here rather than the next town because it was 20 cents per gallon cheaper. Driving in the cities, although nervewrecking, is fine - I´m surprised that there was very little honking. But the driving on those big Interstates - people just don´t know the word safety-distance. I got a bit scared here and there and I´m a patient driver with lots of tolerance. 

When it comes to food, there are more than two sides to this country. You have those huge supermarkeds and lots and lots of fast food and all is cheap and buy bigger means buy cheaper. But then you got those cute restaurants with fabulous dishes and coffee shops with good coffee. You´ve got the all natural-ecological food stores and fresh vegetable stands along the small roads. I´m glad to say, I gained very little weight despite my indulgence in the local cuisine. What Americans absolutely are masters in are meat. Never have I tasted so tender, so well.flavoured and juicy meat dishes than here.

What hit me a lot where those great landscapes at the Skydrive in the Shenandoah National Park and Blue Ridge Parkway. I loved those dazzling white beaches in Florida (although it was overrun by people) and I fell in love with those huge old trees in the south. I adore Charleston and Cape Cod for those cozy old buildings. But my heart goes to New Orleans and the French Quarter. There were so many highlights, but it is so easy to pick my favourite. It may be because of my dreaming of this place since I was 14, but it was just gorgeous. The flair, the fragrances and those laid back people combined with the beads hanging from the balconies and the spicy food just took me head over heels. 

Well, this was a long write-up, and I´m certain, that given some time (and sorting of the photos) I could write ten times the amount over. 
But I have a hungry Dane sitting on the sofa wondering when I will cross over to the kitchen to prepare the all-healthy dinner I promised today.