What did you notice the first time you came to the US.

[Anonymous]

Bread sucked, people were fatter and needed "personal space" no one understood my
sarcasm but the streets were a lot cleaner.

[Anonymous]

I came when I was 13. I noticed the huge selection in supermarkets, the huge cars, the wide roads and the terrible construction of the houses (I moved to California). I also noticed how much older the middle-school and high-school kids looked and how much make-up the girls wore. I also noticed how straight people's teeth were!

[Anonymous]

Funny thread. Fascinating to hear the different responses. PP, I'm American and I remember living in Europe and thinking everyone was always up my a** in line. I came back here several years later and couldn't figure out why people stood so far away from each other. I must have cut in front of 10 people in line the first month not realizing they were in line because of how much space they left.

[Anonymous]

I'm American but lived overseas for many years and whenever I came back to the US, I noticed how much taller and fatter people were here. And louder. Things here were very overstimulating- too much traffic noise, too much everything. When I moved back here from the Middle East, I must have said "Everything is so green here!" about a million times. There is just so much more here- more money, more stuff, more choices in the stores. It was pretty overwhelming for a while.

[Anonymous]

I am american but grew up in S Korea. I remember coming here in the 70's and it was the first tme I saw a mall. Or houses without walls around them. It seemed so weird to see sidewalks and a green expanse of lawn to the house where any one could walk up to.

[Anonymous]

Former Soviet Union. Came to NYC in early 90's in my late teens. First obese person I ever saw in my life shocked me, I remember thinking, so it's true, they exist.

Smell of the subway. Fist disgusted me, now gives me nostalgia.

Young kids saying "Excuse me" while passing you by.

Disabled people on the streets, ramps and buses equipped for them.

[Anonymous]

I'm from US, 1st generation, but just want to say I love this thread. My immigrant family still constantly talks about the odyssey to the US and their first impressions even though it was 50 yrs ago. Their first impression: where is the gold the streets are supposed to be lined with? (Seriously, this is what they thought...)

[Anonymous]

I'm an American but lived in Germany for 8 years (from age 11 to age 18... from 1981-88). I would come back to the states in the summer every year or so. What I would be rabid for is to watch MTV. German TV sucked... either "snow or cheese" like Chevy Chase said in European vacation.

Also the malls... wanted so badly to be left alone in the mall to shop for HOURS. Told my parents to go away and pick me up like seven hours later.

Came back to the US for college and was FLOORED by my inability to obtain alcohol legally. This sucked especially. My fellow Army brats and I had been drinking legally on the German economy since age 14!

[Anonymous]

1981-1988... don't know how that smiley face got there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm from US, 1st generation, but just want to say I love this thread. My immigrant family still constantly talks about the odyssey to the US and their first impressions even though it was 50 yrs ago. Their first impression: where is the gold the streets are supposed to be lined with? (Seriously, this is what they thought...)

Me too! My Oma & Opa were Ukrainian and German (Black Forest area). My mother was born in Derby, England. I LOVE listening to stories from when they lived in Germany and England. The funniest thing is they came into Baltimore on the QE2. Moved to Port Tabacco where my Opa farmed. Then they moved out to Chicago where they settled down. Now I am back out here. I once took my Opa out to the farm he worked on in Port Tabacco on a trip he took out here to visit years ago. It was so bittersweet and special.

I have to say I grew up in an very ethnic household. I didn't realize how European we were until I went to college and saw real American kids. Our neighborhood in Chicago was even full of Germans! I miss my Oma and wish she were here to teach my kids all about her homeland. I wear her Edelweiss locket on my neck.

[Anonymous]

I was born here but lived in Africa for a while and when i returned here I was overwhelmed by the highways and how serious and scary they were.

[Anonymous]

I was born in Brazil, and moved to London when I was 10. Came to the US (Boston) at 18 for college. I was absolutely amazed at the size of the malls, would go shopping ALL the time, especially since the British currency was so strong. I was also slightly annoyed by the inability to get alcohol legally, as well as confused why everyone wore jeans. I loved the supermarkets and drugstores, and was also a bit floored by the number of overweight people.

Lastly, I was amazed at the size of the American bikini/bathing suit. I wore my Brazilian bikinis all throughout college and after, until I got pregnant and felt a bit indecent.

[Anonymous]

That buildings were really big (DC was actually the first place in the US I ever saw).

[Anonymous]

I was surprised that little girls wore bathing suit tops. We lived on the Mediterranean, spent a lot of time at the beach and we just wore bathing suit bottoms. A few weeks after we arrived we were invited to a pool party and showed up in our bathing suits (sans tops) and were sent home. I was 5

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was surprised that little girls wore bathing suit tops. We lived on the Mediterranean, spent a lot of time at the beach and we just wore bathing suit bottoms. A few weeks after we arrived we were invited to a pool party and showed up in our bathing suits (sans tops) and were sent home. I was 5

8:31 poster here. I was surprised at that too! I think I wore bottoms only until I was 6 or something!