Ten years ago, on Thanksgiving, I arrived in the US. I underestimated the importance of the holiday and found myself stranded at Janelia research campus. Security was supposed to leave me a key, but there was nobody to be found. It was kinda cold and I got a bit desperate..1/n
Given that you find people working on Xmas or basically all year round, I was a bit perplexed. Was there some emergency evacuation? I walked to the housing complex, but found no bells on the door and I had no key. I yelled but no reply and it looked like nobody around... 2/n
I called my PI. He was at some thanksgiving dinner away and could not help. I eventually found out that the houses were not locked, you could just walk inside. I then also found my roommates. They handed me a drink, which was helpful, as I was a bit frozen ( even for a Swiss).3/n
I e-mailed my lab mates, asking where they are. I think it was Lin, a bit perplexed, who answered something along the lines of “ which part of Thanksgiving do you not understand?!” 4/n
The next day, I wanted to get all stuff settled. First a bank account. On the map, it was only a mile away. I tried to walk there, but realized that you had to cross a highway to get there, with no provisions for pedestrians. That is odd, how do you walk to the town then? 5/n
Even after getting somehow over the highway, the town did not have any sidewalks. Kinda strange, people don’t walk here to close by stores? I then bought a bicycle, since it seemed you should not walk. Strangely, cars were honking at me and making gesture when I rode it. 6/n
I learned later that people were not used to seeing bicycles on the street, they did not consider them a means of transportation. It is a thing you put in your trunk, drive to some track, take it out, ride it there, and put it back. I grew up in a family with no car... 7/n
Some ten years later, I laugh at those early experiences, I seem to have come to the US kinda naive, unaware of its culture and norms.
I get it now, and I like the most important holidays ( Thanksgiving and Super Bowl) :).
Happy Thanksgiving everyone! n/n
I get it now, and I like the most important holidays ( Thanksgiving and Super Bowl) :).
Happy Thanksgiving everyone! n/n
