Top Four Things You Need To Know About America
Before I left New Zealand the good people at Fulbright gave us some handy hints about American life. Amongst the worthy advice on navigating different academic systems and the crazy quilt that is American health care, were four things it was good to know right off the plane. And they're still useful points of advice. I relate them here in the interests of cultural exchange.
- Don't say toilet. Say bathroom.
- The banking system is backward. You can't use plastic everywhere.
- Don't swear so much. Except in New York City.
- Tip 15% and a dollar for drinks.
Good advice, except that last one.
- True. Americans don't say toilet. They say bathroom. This is because (1) the toilet is not in a separate room, and (2) people are less frank about these things here. In New Zealand people will excuse themselves by saying "I'm going to take a pee," not "I'm going to the bathroom."
- True. It has improved (in Minnesota) since 2000, but that's not saying much.
- In New Zealand you can pay with plastic just about everywhere. The pizza delivery people and the taxis have mobile units that allow you to swipe your card, enter your PIN, and be done with it.
- What's with the continued use of signatures as the security mechanism when you use a credit/debit card away from an ATM?! In a country as advanced as the United States you'd think it would be possible to secure credit and debit card transations with PIN entry.
- Why can't recurring inter-bank transfers between personal accounts be set up? In New Zealand, I banked with Bank A, my landlord with Bank B. I sent them no check. I paid them no cash. Every fortnight [=two weeks] the money was transferred from my account to his.
Just after I'd signed the lease on the first apartment here in Minneapolis, I asked the landlord if he could tell me his bank account details, and he looked at me like I was crazy. When I explained he expressed heartfelt enthusiasm for such an idea. As you would if you had to endorse 40 rent checks every month.
- True. People don't swear so much here. Pretty amazing in a climate that cries out for the phrase "it's f***ing cold/humid today" to be socially acceptable in all settings three quarters of the time.
- Not so true. And they repeated this out-dated information at the UMN international student orientation. Thus I went through my first 18 months here tipping 15% on the pre-tax bill. And getting good service from bartenders. That's right, I interpreted it as $1 for each drink.
Posted by robe0419 at October 18, 2004 5:52 PM
