Americana
On my trip over there I had a fair few conversations
with Americans, whose political views varied from
right-wing to far right-wing.
Well, that's not completely accurate - the gay people
at Disney and the people I met who were working (rather
than travelling) seemed pretty middle-of-the-road,
and a social worker from St. Paul was an obvious liberal
(I gave her an interesting book on London boys with
dangerous lifestyles).
However, the family from Salt Lake City (complete with
gorgeous son) were constitutional fundamentalists,
the international arms dealer from Montana (who lived 100
miles from the Unabomber) was not exactly a fan of
big government (or any government come to think of it!),
the retired navy man was somewhat of a hawk, and the
former Oklahoma farmer not exactly white of neck
(although he was a very nice guy).
As you can see from the graffiti here I saw engraved in
the pavement next to International Drive in Orlando
(which says "Belsen was a gas" above a swastika)
there are certainly some elements of society there with even
more right-wing views.
My apologies to any German viewers who have just broken the
law by downloading that picture.
People there have a much more positive and can-do attitude
than I am used to, so I'll try to be brief in this
section of typical whinging.
A shop I saw in Orlando was selling all sorts of nasty
books and weapons and spying devices - protected under various
constitutional amendments in the US but surely banned or
hard-to-find in the UK.
People of various cultures seemed to be more assimilated
into the melting pot than they do in London. Whilst a New
Zealander and a Pakistani I saw there had managed to retain
some of their accent, two Jamaicans and an Indian had lost theirs
entirely, picking up regional US accents.
I think there may be great pressure to conform when you live
here. Also immigrants have less rights, not being able to vote
(even in local elections) and finding it more difficult to acquire
citizenship than in the UK.
And yet the shop assistant (R.J.) at the airport who I
spoke to gave me one of the most thoughtful conversations I had
had for a long time. The staff at all the places I shopped at
were very friendly without being obsequious.
The quality of service and entertainment was very high.
Although I never saw a policeperson during my stay I
never felt in danger, and had a very good time.
So in conclusion, I can say that Orlando deserves its
reputation as being one of the great tourist destinations
of the world, with the caveat that it requires a bit of time
and planning (and a love of queues) to appreciate fully.
So when do I start planning my return next year? :-)
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