Adapting to life in the United States

On the 14th September, I officially celebrated 6 months of living in the United States!

In celebration, I thought I’d write a post about how I've settled into my new environment and the changes I have faced since moving to Colorado.

Disclaimer: Please excuse me if I label things as "American" or "in the US" when they are distinctive to Colorado. I still may not know which aspects are nationwide or statewide.

As usual, you may want to make a cup of tea and grab a snack…

Prior to moving to the United States, I would often visit – I would say on average, twice a year. I didn’t really consider that I might struggle to settle in the United States because from visiting multiple times, I thought I was already pretty comfortable. However, I soon learnt that visiting and living here is completely different!

For the first couple of months, living in the US still felt foreign and honestly, I felt nervous to walk outside alone. It felt like I was still only visiting and that I didn’t belong. I felt as though I stuck out like a sore thumb, when in reality, by looks alone people would assume I’m American. Therefore, unless I spoke, they wouldn’t know I’m from England. I understand that in America, as an immigrant this is a privilege, but I still felt very uneasy about how people would react to me and if I’m honest, I didn’t want any attention; even if it was good.

Admittedly, it was hard to get used to my new environment. There are many things that I took for granted living in England. One of the biggest culture shocks was the discovery that I have to pay to have a bank account, which is still completely absurd to me. You have to shop around for banks that offer good deals. Sometimes they even offer you money to open a bank account, or to have it free for a certain period of time; which is the case for me. The States is extremely behind when it comes to banking, they still swipe cards and have only just introduced chip and pin and contactless payment options (I currently haven’t found anywhere that accepts contactless yet, but I have it available on my card). Depending on your bank, you may also have to pay to use online banking; nothing is free.

Tipping is also a ridiculous notion; in my opinion, employers should be paying their staff a decent wage, and they should be receiving a tip whenever they go above and beyond for their customers. This makes me miss eating out in the UK, and how much cheaper it would be and less awkward. Not to mention, who wants to do maths when going out for a meal? NOT ME!

In stores, VAT is not included in the sale price, it’s added after which kind of drives me up the wall. However, this is because tax rates vary from state to state so, it’s understandable. It just feels annoying to not always know what the total amount will be on your groceries. Again, who wants to be doing maths when out grocery shopping?! NOT ME!

People in the states also file their own taxes. Luckily, I will be filing with my husband and he obviously knows what to do! However, in the UK it’s all done for you and so, I’ve never had to think about taxes too much, other than making sure I’m on the correct tax code. We all know about American health insurance but fortunately, my husband has very good insurance which also covers me so, I’m not too concerned about that. However, it is shocking to learn how much medical attention really costs. Let’s just say, people in the UK are extremely lucky.

Public transport is almost non-existent in Colorado, and the nearest store is at least a 30-minute walk away or more. Everyone here drives, even if it’s a very short commute. Which caused me to feel weirdly self-conscious when walking to work; especially when I needed to cross a road – which was also terrifying at first. Not to mention that pavements are not always available like they are in the UK.

In Colorado, cars can turn right on a red light and so, when first crossing a road, I didn’t understand why a car was trying to pass me; when the traffic light had a pedestrian walk signal.

Speaking of crossing the road, I still get confused about which direction the cars are driving and I naturally turn my head to the right first when preparing to cross. I am trying to correct this however, my head naturally wants to turn right and so I probably look like a crazy person, constantly turning my head left and right before crossing a one-way road.

Another thing I had to adjust to was the weather. In England, we have a very mild climate and it’s cloudy most of the time. We get a lot of rain and maybe a couple of weeks of really hot weather (although that appears to be changing). However, in Colorado, it is sunny almost all year round (whether cold or hot) and during the summertime, the temperature can rise to 38c or more. I know what you’re thinking… “Oh my gosh, lovely sunny weather, aren’t you lucky?” Yes and no. Colorado is a mile above sea level, meaning the altitude is higher, therefore, closer to the sun. I am fair skinned and was rarely exposed to the sun on a daily basis when living in the UK. Since living in Colorado, I’ve tanned to the point where I barely recognise my hands and arms. I know, many people in the UK dream of being “lovely and tanned” but actually, I prefer looking like Wednesday Addams so, I’m not that happy about it.

I have to apply sun lotion with an SPF of at least 70 every day, and if I don’t, I get a weird rash. According to my good friend named Google, I may have a sun allergy but then again, Google is not a doctor.

Then there’s the snow. Colorado gets snow like England gets rain, and I’m not just talking a tiny amount but like 13+ inches. I don’t mind, I love snow and have grown to love the cold. In terms of snow, the main thing I have to get used to is wearing snow gear such as snow-boots and snow-trousers and the fact that nothing closes, even when there’s heaps of snow, schools and workplaces remain open.

Some of this sounds very negative, but actually, even though some things are still strange to me, I’ve really gotten used to it here. Starting at my new job has really helped in that respect, I’m comfortable walking to work, I’m comfortable going into stores and I love the area I live in. I’ve managed to meet a few people and have even hung out with one of them a couple of times. I’m no longer afraid of speaking or feeling as though I stick out. I actually walked into my local supermarket wearing an England football shirt (It was 'sports jersey day' at work) which I wouldn’t have done a few months ago. I guess having a working routine has really helped me to see Colorado as “home”. The mountains are breath-taking, and I am so grateful to live in such a beautiful and progressive state, and everyone I’ve met so far has been super friendly and kind. Overall, I feel very settled and happy here, it may not be home, but it’s a good home away from home.

Thanks for reading everyone,

I shall leave you all with this...

- Kerry