Thursday 6 November 2014

LIFE: My First Days as a Expat

This time of year marks the memory of that flight to the USA. It's a funny coincidence that the first topic in November's expat revelations series (run by Holly) up about our first days as an expat, which comes as I mark three years as America being home - after landing in Detroit on November 8th, 2011. I wish I could tell you so many details of those first couple of days, of all the things we got up to and the places we went. Yet, so much of it is a blur. Perhaps it's because everything was all so new, it was such a big thing, there was so much to take in that it's all got a little lost in time. That and my memory is typically rubbish.

foodexpat
Green Latern pizza // Johnny Rockets // Astoria Bakery, Royal Oak // Sushi at Totoro, Ann Arbor

It's funny. The one thing I do remember, or at least remember the situations is when food was involved. Landing and getting through customs in the middle of the afternoon and with my body still on UK time, my first ever US meal was pizza. I mean, let's set off on the right footing here. It wasn't just any pizza mind, it was a rather well known (at least in these parts) pizza from Green Lantern. It has a bit of a reputation that it's so bad that it's good. I call it death pie because it makes my stomach hate me. It's greesey, but it's good all the same. Time was spent drinking all sorts of Mountain Dew flavors, driving up to the Great Lakes Malls for burgers in Johnny Rockets to sushi in Ann Arbor's Totoro to finding out about the horrors of canned cheese. But I knew from the off I could get use to all this food.

That weekend and we drove into Detroit for my first trip downtown. And to tell you the truth, I didn't really know what to expect. 
   RenCenDEtroit Woodward Geektown

I'd already seen the burnt out, abandoned buildings, the empty streets those can easily be seen from the freeways. I knew all the news stories, all the option pieces people have of the city, but I like to think i'm open minded. Driving around downtown I just remember thinking ow huge everything is, just how high the buildings reach up.  Now remember i'm a country lass and while I've lived in Newcastle and visited London, there's nothing to compare. As we visited Belle Isle, walked along the river front, stepped into the library I could see what the city has to offer, I could see it still had life in it. It's a shame people still write the place off so much.

Those first weeks where not only my first days as an expat but my first of ever being in America. It felt like a holiday and continued to do so for months. There was so much to take in. The difference in the small things that make up life - trying to constantly remember that a dime (10c) is smaller than a nickle (5c), that you have to look the other way crossing the road first, that sales tax isn't included in the price.

Those first couple of days only could show me a glimpse of what America had to offer.

21 comments:

  1. That pizza looks pretty good. And it's really a shame that all anyone outside of Detroit ever focuses on is the bad parts of Detroit. If you go to downtown Detroit on a weekday, you can see an actual thriving downtown...weekend not so much. Belle Isle is nice and I think it will be nicer in the near future.

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    1. Yeah, Friday night after work and everyone's heading to the pubs and restaurants it's like any old city. Saturday afternoons - pretty deserted. I think the improvements that are on going at Belle Isle are certainly a big step in the right direction!

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  2. How exciting! I always find your writing so beautiful and interesting! Happy American Anniversary!

    Stephanie
    http://missstephanieusher.blogspot.co.uk/
    http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/3436251
    xxxx

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  3. I've got a series of books called Three Girls and a . . by Rachel Schurig and i'm pretty sure they are based in Detroit. They are cheap on Amazon and very good so if you fancy a local read?!

    Amy at Amy & More

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    1. Oh I shall have to look those up - thanks for the recommendation.

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  4. Great to find out some more about how you ended up in the USA.

    Lizzie's Daily Blog

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  5. Oh wow that pizza - greasy unhealthy pizza is the best. That's why pizza-go-go (yes, really) is my fave haha.
    amber love

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  6. My first food as an expat was pizza too! Great choice...that one looks pretty darn delicious too! And nearly 2 years in and I still can't work out that pesky small change! I look like a tourist and feel like I have to justify myself with the line of 'you wouldn't think I'd lived here for nearly 2 years! Happy expat anniversary! X

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    1. It's a pretty decent pizza, although they have a tendency to make you ill a day or so afterwards, sadly lol. I can do fine with quarters, everything else nope, not a chance. I really think quarters are a great idea mind!

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  7. Oh Detroit...the few times I've been there I always just feel so sorry for the little city that can't. Detroit used to be such a marvelous, booming city and what it has come to - the burned-down neighborhoods, the ruin, the broken windows - its heartbreaking. I just hope that with places like Greektown, Cheli's Chili Bar, the Joe Louis Arena, and the major stadiums, this city can hold its own and one day make a comeback!
    ~ Samantha

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    1. It'll be interesting actually because in 2017 the Joe Louis arena is going to be demolished after the Red Wings move to their new stadium. It's being demolished in part of a settlement deal with some of the creditors the city has. I think the city is seriously underrated, you only have to walk around Corktown to see all the houses being revamped, all the new businesses. It'll take time for it to pass out into the more depressed areas but I think if the community groups and businesses work together, there's hope.

      I think a lot of the change actually needs to some from the mindset of the suburbs - Oakland county's top guy is moaning about Detroit taking all the jobs already. People in the burbs need to stop being so scared about only passing south of 8 mile for sport games!

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  8. Your first meal in America was a pizza? Sounds like a pretty good choice to me haha it looks really good! Also, how weird is it that a dime is smaller than a nickel... I was so confused when I was in school learning about money. I was like, "but... If 10 is more than 5 why is it smaller????" Lol

    Jessica
    the.pyreflies.org

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    1. I don't know why the money confuses me so, because even in the UK the size of coins don't reflect their value - like the 2p being larger than the 5p and so on. The notes all being the same size is another issue lol.

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  9. I still have trouble crossing the road and I quite often try to get into the drivers side of the car when people give me a lift. The first time I travelled in a car over here with someone, I kept freaking out about being on the wrong side of the road.

    I tend not to deal with the money because it's all a gold colour and it's all the same, also the 1c coin is the smallest, most pointless waste of copper (or whatever material it is made out of). I just had people a 5 or 10 euro note and store the change up because I don't want to deal with it.

    Everything had a bit more of a little town feel here. Even in Brussels it's not like going to the city, even though it's a city. It took a while to get used to the 'village mentality' as I like to call it here. The staring at everything slightly different, the obsessive need to where white in summertime and the unwritten rule of only wearing two colours.. Tis a strange place this ol' Belgium.

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    1. Ah all the confusing simple things. American notes are all the same size but they are different colours - they all have different important historical Americans on them too but I can't ever remember which guy goes with which domination. We end up just storing all the change and end up taking it to those coinstar dump things, ends up being a lot simpler than trying to count it all in the supermarket lol .

      There's the whole thing in the US about not wearing white after Labour Day ... I don't really get that lol.

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  10. Sounds like moving to America was very exciting and quiet the culture shock. I've never been to a really big city and often wonder how I would react to the sky scrapers and concrete jungles of places like this! Sinead - Dreaming Again x

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  11. It must be such a crazy experience to move to a different country! I love hearing about your adventures in moving here. It has always weirded me out that dimes were the smallest coin but not the lowest value..

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  12. Ah, pizza what a perfect way to begin your American life! Haha. I can quite believe that living there just felt like a holiday for a while. When we first moved into our home I felt like I'd just gone to a holiday house somewhere as a lot of our furniture was hand-me-downs by family so it didn't feel like ours if you know what I mean.
    Debi x

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  13. A dime being smaller than a nickel catches me out EVERY time! I hate that.

    Also spent the first few days not understanding why everything got more expensive on the journey from the shelf to the till - how is anyone supposed to work out how much something costs?!

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  14. One thing I really don't miss from home (Canada) is the weird way the taxes work! I don't see why the taxes can't just be included in the price. Instead you have to be a mathematician to figure out what you're actually going to need to pay at the till!

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