British Guy Reacts to 5 Ways Living in the US Has Altered My Perception Of It (Lost in the Pond)

British Guy Reacts to 5 Ways Living in the US Has Altered My Perception Of It (Lost in the Pond)
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Original Video - • 5 Ways Living in the U...
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[@kathleenobrien3473]

We travel, it's just that we travel in the US. There are so many different kinds of climate and culture

[@JaneDoe-ze4uk]

Americans travel internationally, don't be an idiot!

[@Jason-ib4fk]

@@JaneDoe-ze4uk Some so, but not a large portion compared to many other 1st World nations.

[@Jason-ib4fk]

Well, and then too you don't have to deal with snooty foreign waiters! Lol! Unless it's a NYC one! (The above comment was a joke on stereotypes, lol!)

[@kathleenobrien3473]

@@JaneDoe-ze4uk ofcourse Americans travel Internationally! But fewer Americans have passports compared to citizens of other countries.

[@JaneDoe-ze4uk]

@@kathleenobrien3473 can you provide a reputable link?

[@kimm6589]

I think the best compliment that we can get as Americans is how surprised people from other countries are at how polite, loving, and generous we are. I'd like to say most of us would go out of our way to make people feel welcome here.

[@katehaynes5735]

Absolutely agreed!!! For example, last weekend I fell and hurt my ankle (turned out I sprained it) and while I was on the ground in shock / pain, three random people appeared out of no where and helped me stand up and get to my car. I didn't even think twice when I handed my phone and wallet to a woman to hold (no she didn't run away with them) while the man took both of my hands and pulled me up. Sure, you are going to find "bad" people everywhere, but people in general are mostly good. And separated by a common language? Oh yes! I did a semester abroad in London and one day in the kitchen, the lady of the house said to me, " kitchen roll... kitchen roll!.... KITCHEN ROLL!!" And then I learned what paper tolls are called in the U.K.

[@paigeharrison3909]

There's a saying: To Americans, 100 years is a long time. To Europeans, 100 miles is a long distance. Hell, I'm in Texas. It's 124 miles round trip to see my doctor.

[@graceskerp]

Houston to El Paso, about 2 days at Warp 5.

[@jennifercarter1265]

I take a day trip from Dallas to Abilene (180 miles each way) almost every Sunday to visit my mom. But you know what I’ve learned by road tripping? We ain’t got nothin’ on Ohio for sheer vastness of boring void. I drove to New Hampshire a few years ago and I didn’t think I was ever going to make it from Cincinnati to Cleveland.

[@supercolinblow]

I have a friend in College Park, MD, the suburb of DC where the U. of Maryland is located. It's about 50 to 60 miles round trip. I have several times driven to Virginia Beach. From my home, that's at least a couple hundred miles. It takes hours upon hours to get there.

[@ericfisher1360]

I am a "Hillbilly" from America who moved to the Netherlands 3 years ago. (No not Amsterdam I am in the middle of the Netherlands) My Dutch Wife and Father in Law were pleasantly surprised to find out that folk where I am from eat white gravy. Apparently Country food is country food.

[@JHNielson4851]

One thing he didn't mentioned about the Mississippi divide is that commercial radio & TV station's call signs. With very few exceptions stations east of the Mississippi begin with the letter 'W' while west of it they begin with 'K'

[@Cricket-zp6wi]

Except for stations in Pittsburg, PA: KDKA

[@SWLinPHX]

Or that east of the Mississippi it’s called Edy’s ice cream and Hellmann’s mayonnaise and Hardy’s fast food, but west of the Mississippi it’s Dreyers and Best Foods and Carls Jr.

[@GradyBroyles]

@@SWLinPHX what's funny is Carl Hardy is the name of the founder. Monster ego, that one.

[@randallcraft4071]

K-love affiliates mess with that. When I was working in Christian Rock I'd starting making assumptions on that and then find out they were a K-Love affiliate and the got special permission to be a K on the east side.

[@sallymount3979]

A lot of Americans don't realize the WKRQ and KORN

[@corvus1374]

A lot of products have instructions and ingredients in French in the US, because the products are also sold in Canada, and Canada requires French.

[@ArtsyMagic239]

A lot of public places and products in the South also have Spanish translations along with English.

[@jennifercarter1265]

I’ve literally wondered since I was 10 years old why shampoo bottles have instructions in French but not Spanish. I get including French but I don’t get not including Spanish

[@cherylvoutour2021]

I’m from a northern state, but most of our products are in English and Spanish. I think it just depends on what your population is. If we go to northern Maine, closer to Canada, you’ll see more french packaging, as well as distances in both miles and kilometers.

[@jennifercarter1265]

Lol. Texas. That’s why I wondered at age 10. And it’s just hair products

[@randallcraft4071]

All over the country you see signs in English and Spanish,, but the US is so randomly diverse weird ways. In Montana I saw randomly, signs in Russian. In a couple little places in Tennessee there are signs in Welsh Gaelic, down on the gulf you can see signs in French, like how as you get close to Canada you start seeing that too. But then in a lot of major cities you start seeing Chinese but that's usually in a small section of town.

[@gwgux]

Between Beesley, Lost in the Pond, and Lav Luka, I've learned there's a tremendous amount of stuff I don't know about the UK. I learn a lot when you talk about how things are surprising to you and why it's so surprising. Keep it up guys!

[@SherriLyle80s]

So true. I didn't know he lived in Jersey and didn't realize how close it was to France until I Googled it.

[@corvus1374]

And Kabir Considers, Mr. H and Friends, and The Dons Channel.

[@toi6158]

I don't get why people think that the "U.S" doesn't have a culture prior to colonization. I know the formation of the U.S. is only a few hundred years, but often you don't hear about other, newer countries, not having culture.

[@xviper2k]

It's largely down to the fact that the natives didn't really record history, so people assume there wasn't any. They just magically popped up when the colonizers arrived, like NPCs in a video game. That and people tend to think of US history as literally beginning in 1776. Despite numerous old world countries, in their current forms, being founded more recently, they give these countries credit for the preceding history that occurred on their current territories, and the various cultures it spawned, but not the US.

[@aikhis]

true story, for example the Austria-Hungarian Emprie was almost a hundred years younger than the united states, when it was created. A major player in the world war one era only came into being in 1867. ( the same day the austria-hungarian empire was created, Tennessee voted in favour of secession from the Untied stated) The USA is older than the nation of Italy, and Germany, in fact most nations in Europe are much younger than the USA.

[@Razgriz85]

@@xviper2k The United States of America began around 1776, but the history of the American continent started long before that. Originally, people thought that the first people came here across the ice bridge between Russia and Alaska, but more studies have found that people came here across the ice bridge between Europe and the US long before that.

[@Jason-ib4fk]

It's just back to that European penchant for "gotta bag on the Americans," because since we have so much in so many ways they just have to one up us in some way! Lmao! 🤣

[@jdoe1988]

Sadly, there are people who believe that the U.S. doesn't have a culture even today.

[@rich7447]

Acoma Pueblo has been continuously inhabited for more than 2,000 years.

[@mandystory4275]

Sky city is in Acoma.and is a whole pueblo on top of a Mesa (flat rocky hill). It's and yes it's still inhabited today.

[@calichekid8897]

@@mandystory4275 And for those who care, its located in New Mexico in the north central portion of the state. And you can visit and tour portions of itand learn something about Native Americans!

[@garyco766]

@@calichekid8897 Specific Native Americans - not forgetting that there are/were hundreds of different tribes, each with it's own culture and some very different.

[@MarakMocam]

2.6 million cows in Montana - less than a million people so yes, the "cows come home" gig is accurate.

[@michaelwaller7365]

I live in Montana after escaping L.A. in 1994. Best decision ever. I think the number of cattle is the same for firearms. Gotta love the 2A.

[@DeusSalis]

Alberta, just north of Montana, had 6 million head of cattle and and 4.5 million people last I heard

[@graceskerp]

Vermont: 300,00 Cows Can't Be Wrong - unofficial motto

[@GradyBroyles]

@@michaelwaller7365 how to impress a Brit: brag about how great all the guns are in the US. LOL You don't know many Europeans, do you?

[@michaelwaller7365]

@@GradyBroyles I was actually born in Bremerhaven, W. Germany. So, yes I do know many Europeans. How do Brits impress anyone? That's right they don't.

[@babs3241]

You can break down the states, too. I grew up somewhere that had more cows than people... in New York State.

[@babs3241]

I lived in MA, too, and took the bus home from Boston one year. Big YUP to that. Woodsy wild in a lot of places. Heck, even if you take the commuter rail out to some of the coastal areas further out from Boston, it starts to look a bit more Maine-y.

[@daltonv5206]

Same. CNY

[@unnecessaryapostrophe4047]

I grew up in the town where Lorenzo went to the drive-in movie this summer. That's the same state as Chicago.

[@Vergilius314]

A quick note about "Florida Man." Although Florida is it's own kind of special weird, those news stories are so common not because Florida is *so* much more outlandish but because of Florida's public records laws, which make it very easy to access police reports.

[@19ScottMcRae85]

I've always said northern Florida is more like Florida. When you get south of Gainesville, FL your back in Michigan.

[@rogerscrogham3392]

As a 'Florida Man' since I became a man (40+ years) I find all of these references to 'Florida Man' a little offensive not to mention inaccurate. Florida does have its required ration of kooks but most of these people are from elsewhere. Natives (and long duration transplants) look upon these people with perhaps more disdain than anyone else. There used to be a bumper sticker that said 'Welcome to Florida now go home'.

[@19ScottMcRae85]

I go to Florida every week and majority of cars I see especially in the winter months have Michigan tags on them. I just tell it how I see it I don't care if it offends you or not.

[@vagabondwastrel2361]

@vergilius314 No, florida man is just crazy AND florida has very open public record laws.... My favorite story is about a man without arms or legs arrested for sexually assaulting an alligator.

[@joekenorer]

Arrest records in Florida are published publicly every day, they used to be printed in tabloid style papers every morning with headlines about the craziest ones. That's where Florida man comes from.

[@edh7071]

I Love "Lost in he Pond", but I'm equally enamored of your reactions to it/him. Keep up the good work!

[@trekkiexb5]

He said he didn't have a flying saucer, but he has a time machine on his shirt! '80's PBS in America has taught me men with long scarves and toothy grins are actually aliens with time machines...

[@Revelwoodie]

Besides, English history is also American history. I mean, that's where most of the people who founded our country came from. So a British person saying "America has no history" is a bit like meeting your long lost grandchild and telling them "you have no family."

[@Jason-ib4fk]

You know my premise!

[@davidburroughs2244]

Interesting way do put it.

[@belkyhernandez8281]

Saying America has no history assumes history started when Europeans got here as if the people who lived here before aren't human.

[@Revelwoodie]

@@belkyhernandez8281 Another excellent point!

[@cam4636]

@@belkyhernandez8281 I'm also not fond of the implication that American culture not only started but _ended_ with British colonists

[@sherievaughn6475]

I have to say that I’ve had two direct interactions with Brits. One was at a family wedding and the other was working for a British global company with a location in Illinois. Anyway, I tried to start a friendly conversation about whether they did some exploring while visiting and I received uncomfortable, short responses. Many Americans welcome internationals visiting and want to know more about you and your culture and whether you enjoyed visiting us. Please relax a little bit. It’s not like we want to be your new forever friend who’s looking to take advantage of you. Some of us are just trying to be friendly and welcoming. Oh! I have to relate one other incident. I was vacationing in San Diego many years ago and while we were having breakfast in the hotel restaurant, a British family with young children were seated nearby. We noticed one of the kids looking about and asking their parent where all the Americans were. I had to laugh because I wondered how different they expected us to be. 🤣

[@vbrewer5195]

I just think Americans are more open and friendly than many Europeans are or expect

[@emmef7970]

And some people think American's are uptight! lol.

[@NA-me6sh]

She didnt see any cowboy hats...

[@IvIidnight]

Fun fact: The version of English that is the closest to the common version of English whilst the U.S. was being colonized is spoken in the New England (the Northeastern part) of the U.S. The English spoken in Britain today is closer to High English spoken by the royals and nobles and such.

[@steeljawX]

I've heard that Bostonian is fairly close to "original British English" which is kinda wild. However, technically the Texan accent is also "original British English" as it was a bit of a thing amidst the British Calvary that kind of stuck and migrated to one region, or so I've heard. Texan and Bostonian being some of the "closest" OG English today. . . . . Isn't life crazy?

[@carolburnett2926]

The Appalachian English is the closest to Elizabethan English. We also use a lot of words that came over from Scotland. The theory is that the Appalachian mountains were so isolated from the rest of “civilization” that they never adopted the other languages and accents that settled on the coast and flatter parts of the states.

[@footnotedrummer]

I REALLY love the fact that he focuses on Native American history at the beginning. Too many people fail to give credit to the tribes that populated this land.

[@vagabondwastrel2361]

I used to go to lectures at a reservation college, it was a real culture shock. They are really, lets say honest about the natives. So what I hate is how many people pretend that all indians were peaceful hippies. The waves of migration was in fact waves of genocide and slavery. Also they loved that American teams honored them as mascots and team names.

[@tfoxabides]

In my state Nevada 90% of the population is in just 2 cities (Las Vegas and Reno). Also it's a good 8 hour drive between the two towns. Nevada is just sage brush, desert, mountains, gambling and brothels lol.

[@ronsaunchegrow7418]

I live 10 minutes from Cahokia Mounds. It is totally worth a visit if you are near St. Louis, MO.

[@rrussell9731]

I agree. They're much bigger than I expected. Also, and my memory could be wrong, you can see them from the top of the St. Louis Arch.

[@johndeeregreen4592]

I live 15 miles from Mounds State Park in Indiana... any of the mounds in the Midwest are worth a visit. I will have to come over to Illinois and checkout Cahokia Mounds.

[@unnecessaryapostrophe4047]

I took the wrong exit and ended up in East St Louis. That was quite possibly the worst place I've ever seen, and I grew up in the Cleveland and Chicago areas.

[@ronsaunchegrow7418]

@@unnecessaryapostrophe4047 ya, E. St. Louis is no joke. California stops at every stop sign. Strange to think at one time E. St. Louis was considered a desirable place to live and work. In 1959 it was named an All-America City by the National Civic League. If you think E. St. Louis is bad then you should look into Cairo, IL.

[@danbaker300]

There's an old joke that the difference between British and American people is that Americans think 100 years is a long time and the British think 100 miles is a long distance. Most non-Americans I've talked to are just blown away by, for instance, how casually we'll talk about doing road trips that take multiple days. For me, going to Scotland and visiting castles that were built centuries before the American colonies even existed was similarly fascinating.

[@donna9121]

I'm from the Midwest U.S. When I moved to California, friends pointed out my "drawl". They said I elongated certain sounds. I found myself tripping over my words as I was speeding up my words to keep up with their rate of speech. In the south, people there speak even slower and as for Cajun speech, I can't understand what they're saying even though they're speaking English. .

[@kimdye4609]

I totally disagree! I was born in North Carolina live in South Carolina and I speak very fast I always have and most of my friends too as well! Actually hardly know anybody that speaks slowly!

[@Jason-ib4fk]

Well, Californians talk funnier than anyone lol!

[@Imissnormal]

My sister-in- law from Sacremento said that when she moved to Ohio.

[@ironcity4182]

@@kimdye4609 well when I lived in southern Georgia 2 years on the coast, (I’m from Pittsburgh), I heard different types of southern cause it was mixed. There was old southern from people inland born, raised with long generations. Next was faster southern on the coast, seem mix of northern n southern. I honestly think one reason the southern draw happened back in the day caz the heat n humidity. God it’s horrible!!! When I was working out there in the middle of summer, it’s brutal, sucks the energy out of you, which talking even does, just to save energy talking slower helps to get through working. Sounds crazy but working in that thick humidity at heat index of 123 degrees, it sure helps.

[@insideoutsideupsidedown2218]

Sorry you had to move to Cali….really really sorry. Anything we can do?

[@doghair5403]

America has more languages than English and Spanish, there is French Creole and all of the languages of the native American tribes. WWII the military used Navajo speakers for radio messages so the enemy could not translate them. As people migrated here from around the world they have brought there languages with them and in some cases like that of Pennsylvania Dutch it has evolved into a distinct language of it's own.

[@auapplemac1976]

The Navajo radio operators were called "Wind Talkers" and there was a film about them a few years ago.

[@sukie584]

The Pennsylvania Dutch are actually German. Deutsch became Dutch

[@doghair5403]

@@sukie584 The Pennsylvania Dutch are Pennsylvania Dutch. They have their very own detinct culture. But, the language did start out as German though now the languages have changed so much a German would have trouble understanding much of what they say.

[@RLKmedic0315]

Old saying "In the US 100 years is a long time, in Europe 100 miles is a long way"

[@Heegaherger]

And very true.

[@joekenorer]

Very poignant.

[@mopar546]

lol,very true, i think most from the UK and Europe how large it is. If this were Europe we'd be 40 different countries.

[@jennifercarter1265]

But that’s a very Euro-centric point of view. If I were going to quibble, the UK is only 220 years old, but of course there was something there before 1801. The Union of Scotland and England was in 1707, but that isn’t when history began. England and Wales weren’t united until the time of Henry VIII. Hopping over to the continent, Germany unified in 1875, as did Italy. So when a European claims America has no history, they’re picking what to acknowledge as history.

[@RLKmedic0315]

@@jennifercarter1265 it's just a tongue in cheek saying that highlights the depth of history in Europe while pointing out that the US is significantly larger than European countries, and it does so to highlight what that difference in perspective often manifests as.

[@yowyo2006]

As a Wyomingite, we love having the most space per citizen and more cows than people!

[@Jason-ib4fk]

In the Lower 48 you have the most space, lol. Oddly enough Alaska has a slightly larger population, which is pretty surprising, but as far as space there's no comparison. Not too many cows though. But, I'm sure that there's more bears than the population of Wyoming up here of all 3 kinds! 🤪

[@yowyo2006]

@@Jason-ib4fk Anchorage has more than twice the population of the state of Wyoming, haha! I can guarantee you have more bears there than we have people....we have more of almost any animal than we do people in the state, lol!

[@crs7937]

I have my English friends over in California a lot. When at a train crossing, they like to count the cars...amazed once they get over 100 and 3 engines ...on both ends! Push/Pull in our mountainous terrain!

[@victorhopper6774]

small train. must be the hills.

[@crs7937]

@@victorhopper6774 yeah, going over the little Sierra's are Reno!!

[@johnterpack3940]

When I was growing up in Pennsylvania in the '70s there were more whitetail deer than people.

[@donkeyslayer4661]

The Pennsylvania Fish and Game pretty much culled that herd down, a few years ago.

[@TheBensmith5]

As a Maryland resident, it is said “Mare-a-Lin “

[@tanyamckinnon5376]

My so lives there and it's true.

[@dshank536]

I say mare-a-Lin and mare-Lin

[@cyancey76]

Californians would be close to the same. "Mare-uh-lind"

[@johndeeregreen4592]

I am a Midwesterner and pronounce it like that, as well, Benjamin.

[@YuniX2]

I lived in MD from ages 0 to 28. I dunno what part of MD you're from, but just outside of DC we say Mare-uh-lind.

[@markmitera4521]

I live in the state of Iowa (just West of the Mississippi) with a population of approximately 3.5 million people and 3.6 million cows. Iowa is known as the pork state, though. We have approximately 23.8 million pigs. 92% of Iowa is farm land. You will see mostly 4 types of farm land; cattle, pigs, corn, and beans. We also have extreme weather, with Summer reaching 110 F (43.33 C) and humidity in the 80% range. Winter wind chills can get down to -30 F (-34 C).

[@kevingouldrup9265]

North America also considers European settlements to be part of our history which led to the formation of our country. Vikings Spaniards English settlements are all part of our history as well dating back hundreds of years before the United States was formed.

[@timesthree5757]

We even consider European history as part of our history.

[@2009mechanic]

And in all my travels in Europe I have been told that my midwestern American accent is one of the easiest ones for foreigners to underdtand for them. Yes , American accents are regional with various strong influeces from other languages. FRENCH has a strong influence in the American vocabulary. It is interesting to study the root origins of the American word vocabularies.

[@FibonacciChick666]

US American who visited London. Stayed in Shepherd's Bush. I must say, it was much filthier than I thought it would be. It was also difficult to find native English speakers. I found the parks really awesome and was shocked how many people actually went to them though! Finally, the tube although smelly was nice for transport. Oyster cards were very easy to use!

[@pats4700]

Ive watched stuff from Laurence but still like rewatching with beesley

[@rebeccafoust2963]

Absolutely. Also catch Laurence on Mr H and friends.

[@Mrhandfriends]

Beesley has an awesome channel !!

[@WhatDayIsItTrumpDay]

Yes as Gordie mentioned, the way to pronounce Maryland is think of it as Merrel - Land, and to say it fast, but kinda leave the D off the end. So you get Merrelan.

[@xviper2k]

I've never heard anyone leave off the D at the end. You're just saying Marilyn at that point.

[@WhatDayIsItTrumpDay]

@@xviper2k well, it's more of a soft D, rather than a hard D if you know what I mean. It's the same as not putting a "g" sound at the end of words with the -ing suffix.

[@glockman9c]

It is so hard to really understand America without traveling to all parts of it. We are so big and so free that we are so different from each other. Alaska, Hawaii, California, Colorado, Texas, Michigan, New York, Washington DC, North Carolina, Alabama, Florida are so different from each other they might as well be their own countries.

[@garycamara9955]

California would have the 6th largest economy in the world.

[@Razgriz85]

Fun fact: new studies have found that European tribes moved to the US via the Atlantic ice bridge that came long before the Russian/Alaskan ice bridge.

[@NicoleDaley1221]

Be careful with that line of logic. Most sources have discredited those theories and it is only really popular now with white supremacist groups.

[@garycamara9955]

The bridge from Russia to Alaska was a land bridge across the Bering strait.

[@randyranderson690]

I went to Mexico once back in 1981. Perception met. Great food, LOTS of flying dust and dirt, friendly people. A guy who went in our group, drank the water after I told him not to. He learned why. All night.

[@3DJapan]

A lot of packaging will also have French for the French Canadians who either live here or just get the same product over there.

[@tanyamckinnon5376]

We just took a motorcycle ride through northern California and it was 1,000 miles in 2 days

[@GradyBroyles]

I know how that feels. Did you get to meet a Sequoia or 2? Like up close and personal? If you did, you know what I'm talking about. If you try to explain it to someone who's not done that.. it sounds like mystical woo woo.

[@thattexan8602]

According to the Texas Department of Agriculture, Texas has more cows than 43 states have people.

[@monkey-bananas2890]

Hell yeah brother!

[@Montweezy]

I-40 from Wilmington,N.C to Los Angeles is about 2950 miles long...it's one interstate that goes all the way from the East coast to the West Coast...literally form the Atlantic to the Pacific. You can do it in 36-38 hours if you only stop for gas and no sleep...

[@reginakeith8187]

I-40 doesn't quite make it to the beach in CA, ending instead in Barstow. I-10, I-80 and I-90 all run from coast to coast though. So there are more options!

[@Montweezy]

@@reginakeith8187 I didn't realize that! Thanks for letting me know! Yeah it's another hour and 45 minutes from Barstow to LA

[@danbaker300]

I-90's actually the longest interstate, going from Seattle to Boston. It's the longest in part because New England sticks out so much further east.

[@celticlord88]

@@reginakeith8187 I-10 was well known to me growing up in San Antonio

[@SWLinPHX]

@@reginakeith8187 Phoenix Arizona was the very last place to finish connecting Jacksonville, Florida with Santa Monica, California via interstate 10. Not until the mid-1980s could you drive straight through even though the interstate system was built in the 1950s

[@timmyb3491]

I did live across the pond for a couple of years, near Eastbourne in England. I found, to my delight, that not every single person over there thinks that the US is so backward in their valuing their rights to own firearms, and (gasp) that some of the people in Great Britain prefer the right of the government to execute murderers. I found that the British tend to look at the ground in front of them while walking, while most Americans tend to level their gaze. My girlfriend even commented that I had the most perfect way of pronouncing words, without an accent (a lot of Americans DO have their regional accents). I really did enjoy my time in England, and with a few exceptions, I found that the Brits were gracious people, in their own way. I wasn't the brash tourist, as some of my fellow countrymen tend to be.

[@jabreck1934]

Played on a soccer team from California that toured England one summer. I played on a pitch that I sensed was like hallowed ground. There was a cathedral or castle a few hundred yards away. The pitch seemed 1000 years old but every blade of grass was perfect. I’ve never felt so connected to the past.

[@SuperBigblue19]

If you want a jam packed history tour of the US go to Virginia & Wa DC. The major monuments, Government , Natural History & Flight museums , Revolutionary & Civil War battlefields, Colonial History Native American history all within short distances.

[@auapplemac1976]

Smithsonian Institute has all these museums.

[@lizzygraham748]

Visit the Amish communities in Iowa and the Black Hills in South Dakota. The western states have less trees because they have so much arid desert land and very little rain.

[@auapplemac1976]

Large communities of Amish in PA not far from Philly. Lancaster County is the hub. Towns like Bird in the Hand, Lititz, and Intercourse, Fertility and Mount Joy are in the area.It's beautiful country and also not to far from Hershey were the chocolate is made and there's also the Hershey Amusement Park.

[@sallymount3979]

Much of our language, practices, nuances, even food is based on who settled where. Louisiana is French, Florida Spaniards looking for the Fountain of Youth. Here in Cincinnati, we continue to have a thick German feel. You can identify Cincinnati and alone for the German words we have changed. We also make a lot of beer

[@adamdonovan4071]

You can drive through Maryland in about 5 minutes on RT 522. Its just one small town and a bridge; and a gypsum mine if I recall.

[@HarborKat]

Love how you touched on Florida. I live in Southern California and a local radio show does a segment “what’s wrong with Florida?” . The truth is stranger than fiction

[@dalemoore8582]

That’s funny. In the rest of the country we all wonder “what’s wrong with California” ;)

[@HarborKat]

@@dalemoore8582 It's all granola; If you're not a fruit or a nut you're a flake

[@gordieparenteau6555]

The key to pronouncing "Maryland" correctly is to remember the actress Marilyn Monroe.

[@peterhineinlegen4672]

The funny thing is, if you say it wrong, everyone will know what you mean. It's not close to sounding like somewhere else, they'll just know you're saying it wrong.

[@joshbeezley4234]

Or the actress Marilyn Manson

[@projectc.j.j3310]

@@joshbeezley4234 I thought Marilyn Manson was a singer

[@joshbeezley4234]

@@projectc.j.j3310 no, you're thinking of Charles Manson

[@GodaiNoBaka]

Depends on where in the state you are. Closer to DC, you tend to hear it similar to "Marilyn" but with a D at the end. Closer to Baltimore and you're more likely get two syllables, like the fish (marlin). Off in the panhandle or on the Eastern Shore, you can get any of a variety of local pronunciations.

[@popcola1462]

Lawrence is a great dude. Been following him for a couple years it seems

[@TheFeesh30]

I truly hate that people don’t think Americans travel. There’s a large majority that DO. It’s international travel, that’s the term

[@juniorjohnson9509]

What is really amazing is just how little Europeans know about the size of this country compared to theirs, and how much further south it is compared to Europe.

[@vagabondwastrel2361]

@@juniorjohnson9509 some of my favorite videos are from euro youtubers saying they are going to drive across America over a weekend. They end up driving two states and make the "oh shit, America is huge" video.

[@juniorjohnson9509]

@@vagabondwastrel2361 : Had some Brit friends come over here once years ago. Flew into Indianapolis. After visiting the Indianapolis Speedway, they decided that they wanted to visit Chicago the next morning, then drive out to Yellowstone for the afternoon. Needless to say, they didn't make it! Have a Kiwi friend who organize month-long motorcycle group tours over here every summer. His toughest job is getting his fellow Kiwis to understand that they will get to see only a very tiny fraction of the country in those 30 days!

[@menwithven8114]

@@vagabondwastrel2361 as Americans we get used to it though. I just drove from Chicago to Orlando in one day then a week later drove from Orlando to Chicago no problem. That would be close to traveling across most of Europe in a day lol

[@vagabondwastrel2361]

@@menwithven8114 remember you were probably not trying to see the sights other than gas stations and bathrooms. Figure 4 hours of country driving and the rest of the day to explore. That is the mindset they tend to have.

[@moreanimals6889]

What he didn't mention in the video, regarding Spanish; is that entire parts of The United States used to be part of Mexico and before that Spain. The amount of people who use that language isn't just because of immigration patterns.

[@emmef7970]

Yes, I was surprised that wasn't mentioned in Laurence's video.

[@dansaint2249]

if you make it to Illinois (even if you're just visiting Chicago), I highly recommend taking the 3 hour trip south to Springfield for the Lincoln sites. The museum, the tomb, his home, New Salem (where he spent a lot of his early adult hood-just outside of Springfield). Also, for food, I highly recommend the horseshoe (either from D'Arcy's Pint or Dublin Pub in Springfield). The meal originated and was created in Springfield. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horseshoe_sandwich

[@erindizmo]

Springfield native here who lives out of state now, and man I miss horseshoes.

[@corihulet739]

I live in Montana and my county is the largest in the state by area. It's around the same size as Connecticut but still a bit larger than that state. According to the source I'm looking at, having a population of ~9,500 (think about that...9,500 people in an area larger than Connecticut) and also being a major cattle producing county, our human population density per square mile is 1.7 and our cattle population per square mile is 27.6. We aren't even one of the most sparsely populated counties. We rank 25 out of 56 counties for population density. As a state we are 4th largest in area and 48th in population density.

[@manxkin]

I've been to the U.K. three times, well four actually but that was just a lay over at Heathrow on my way home to the U.S. from France. Love the U.K. I have lots of ancestors from the U.K. so I felt right at home even if they left England nearly 400 years ago!

[@leslie3765]

In Seattle the signs are in Chinese, even the airport. I live in Kennewick, which is Indian name, Washington, which is by the Columbia River where Lewis and Clark traveled to the west coast. Today it's 114 degrees.

[@19ScottMcRae85]

I've always said the best way to see America is trucking. I drive roughly 7,000 miles in a month and cover a lot of ground. in the 16 years I've been in this industry I've been to every state except for Alaska and Hawaii and even been to some parts in Canada.

[@thudthud5423]

I think you can drive your truck to Hawaii, if you try hard enough.

[@19ScottMcRae85]

@@thudthud5423 Lol.....it barely gets thru Louisiana roads when they flood.

[@msdarby515]

I grew up in South Dakota where the population is around 850,000, but SoDak has 3.5 million cows which is the highest cow to human ratio in the US (never expected to use the phrase "cow to human ratio"). I once heard it said, and now often repeat it without being able to site the source, that "Land settlement in the US was an experiment that we still aren't sure how it turned out." That's because most of the states, like South Dakota, that were settled by people staking claims, have lost population in every census since the first one. But that also has a lot to do with families being smaller. So a farmer used to need two or three sons to run his operation. Now my cousin farms six times the land my father did in the 70' and 80's and has farm equipment that replaces human hands. So he has two sons and one might be interested in taking over the farm someday, but it's not a big enough operation for both of them to support families.

[@xtrabiggg13]

Subscribed. From Detroit. Enjoy your takes and outlook. There is so much to see and do (and eat!) In America, and so many people from around the world. I look forward to more of your videos. Carry on.

[@SuperDrLisa]

Thanks for the shout out for Rhode Island Lawrence. We are always used for size differential. We also make Jonny or Journey cakes fried cornmeal used to eat during traveling. 🙂

[@147salsa]

When my dad went to India, the area he was taught punglish and the people who attended the "english" school were very proud of their seckundry school... not secondary! Wild seeing how even simple pronunciation can change! They thought he was silly for saying it secondary

[@fraustpunk]

My best friend was actually pretty disappointed when he went to Ireland, as far as food is concerned. He said they made good stew, but everything else was pretty bland and they didn't provide salt or ketchup. On the other hand, the best oatmeal I ever had in my life was made by a British army cook.

[@jcarlovitch]

We Americans spell color, harbor, flavor and humor much more efficiently without that British obsession with justifying the existence of that pretentious Mr. U.

[@AngelusBrady]

And spelling words that end with "er" instead of "re" which makes a lot more sense since the E is used.

[@RannonSi]

More efficient, yes. Until you want to know anything about the history of the word. Besides, when you start changing things, consistence can become a problem: E.G. Defense vs Fence, they might have the same roots and a similar (enough) meaning or maybe they're entirely unconnected and the modern similarity in meaning is might be pure happenstance, who knows? ;) When there's a u, we can be pretty sure there's a connection to wine, cheese and snails! :p Besides, without a 'u' the 'err' sound doesn't make sense! :D

[@DocStrangelyStrange]

The reason those letters are left out is because the first printers in the US used to charge by the letter. So people cut out letters that “they didn’t need”; so in a word: CAPITALISM!

[@Delgen1951]

@@DocStrangelyStrange due to the war of 1812, when the changes were made and taught, in a effort to be not British, and in time it worked. The idea was to keep the Royal Prate core ie navy, from kidnaping US sailors. In that it failed but in the end it made us not British.

[@TheEarthScienceTeacher]

I am from Iowa (in the middle of the country, we are know for farming). We have 7 pigs per every person. I don’t know the exact number of chickens or cows per person, but it is similar. Also, Iowa is probably midsized, and it takes more than 4 hours to cross my state.

[@garycamara9955]

I can cross California in 2 hours. 10 hours lengthwise.

[@loriroth2070]

I lived in the Midwest for many years. We moved to northern Arizona and their kindness blew me away. You can talk to anybody, and everyone waves if you pass them. Crime is so low, especially compared to Chicago. I once asked a man towing a horse trailer if I could take a picture of his horse to send my daughter. He got out of his truck and told me all about his horse.

[@halicarnassus834]

Pause at 12:10. I come from Michigan, and even until this day I am bewildered why people as North as Wisconsin use the term Soda as Flanking Minnesota and Michigan use Pop.

[@mopar546]

I'm at 4:25 into the vid. Luckily for us Napoleon ran out of money and we got a great deal on a shitload of land.

[@danspragens4935]

Slight correction, Wyoming is the least populous, but not the largest state by area (that would be Alaska). If memory serves (I grew up there), it is the 6th largest by area. I can't recall the prior five in order, but apart from Alaska, there's Texas and California (and probably Montana).

[@anthonysmith5838]

I live in Texas, central Texas to be more specific. To speak of the size of Texas, for years I had traveled mostly north and south here. Then I went to visit my best friend in New Mexico, (heading west). It really took me by surprise when it took 9 and half hours of driving just to reach the border of New Mexico, and a mere hour and few minutes to reach my destination after that. After that most of my travel took me west of Texas. Then one day I headed to Tennessee ( east). I was stunned by how many states I went through before reaching my destination. What surprised me even more was that it took about the same amount of time that it had taken just to get out of Texas when traveling west. I got my own geography lesson.

[@Glittersword]

My dad grew up in Cincinnati's East End and pronounced the word Chimney as Chim-Ley. A purely small regional affectation.

[@mattalford3932]

We have florida man because of a law in florida that gives the public more information about arrests than most other states. Plus people in florida are crazy lol.

[@krisbrixon]

Heat and 100% humidity eventually wears your sanity away.

[@chuckrowland8362]

Im enjoying the lost in the pond vids. That dude is a natural comedian.

[@halicarnassus834]

10:33, " Two Peoples separated by a Common Tongue". The Atlantic is a cruel yet loving mother.

[@kristina__marie]

I absolutely love (some) British ppl trying to say "Maryland." It's kind of like (some) Americans trying to say "Thames." 😉✌

[@Jason-ib4fk]

Especially funny since it was named for their queen! Lol!

[@CAPNMAC82]

It's a big joint. The distance from Chicago to Texarkana is right at 800 miles. Texas is 800 miles north-to south. The distance from Los Angles to El Paso is 800 miles, less than the 821 miles from El Paso to Beaumount on the Louisiana border.

[@kinardoutdoortv873]

I’m from Southern Georgia and the south definitely has its own dialect lol. That being said I went to Uruguay two years ago and it was different than I thought it would be. I knew it wouldn’t be rainforest as it’s too far south but I didn’t expect it to look like Texas to an extent .

[@ConcededSpatula]

I'm in a good place to visit alot. I'm in Covington Va. Within a 6 hour drive I can get to Ohio, PA, NJ, MD, NC,SC,KY, WV, and maybe Georgia and Indianapolis

[@rodneygriffin7666]

Great guy, or bloke as you would call him. He's a impressive person, or chap as you would call him.

[@rodneygriffin7666]

Brilliant.

[@rodneygriffin7666]

I am a Connecticutian living in South Carolina. So that makes me Carolinian- Connecticutian. Connecticut has weird shit as a state. So does all 50. We don't need to travel abroad so much as we have so much to discover in our own vast country. Still like to visit the UK for a second time but, is it England or Scotland or is it somewhere else in the UK? Same with the US.

[@rodneygriffin7666]

Puerto Rico is a US territory after all.

[@spacemanduke3404]

There was a show on (I think) the Discovery Channel titled "How the States got their Shapes". The first season was VERY interesting

[@mikekarsted5383]

Back in the day, bars - at least in the West - had two prices for beer: Eastern and Western. The dividing line of course was the Mississippi.

[@kristend344]

To us westerners - the east coast Appalachians are foothills. Even Mt. Mitchell at approaching 6,700ft - is a foothill to those of us western states with multiple peaks >14,000 WA, CA, CO. (then there's Alaska) Of course, ,even Mt. Mitchell towers over Ben Nevis (4,400+ft)

[@mikelmcknight72]

I grew up in the South, but I have lived in the Pacific Northwest for over two decades. The cultural differences are very noticeable. There are a lot of things I miss from the South, including a lot of the Southern charm and manners. However, the weather and landscape in the Pacific Northwest is distinctly better. Within 3-4 hours drive, I could be in the high desert, at the Pacific Ocean, looking into the crater of Mt St Helens, or any number of other things.

[@david-1775]

The drive from South Padre, Texas (on the coast near Mexico) to Texhoma, Texas (city on the Texas Oklahoma border) will take about 13 and a half hours with no stops. The stretch of road from Ft. Stockton to El Paso is very sparsely populated. It is about 240 miles and there are two tiny towns along the route. Thankfully the speed limit is 80mph but if you are the only car on the road it feels like you are crawling along. Some guy filmed the entire drive, watch it if you are bored, want to fall asleep or see what it is like to drive in very rural parts of the US. Do this late at night to freak yourself out. Still this is an interstate highway so other cars are on the road most times. State and County roads will feel all but deserted in some parts of the country. kzbin.info/www/bejne/qZLRl6xrlJKJbc0

[@copper1539]

Did Lawerence just write the American version of We Didn’t Start the Fire?

[@jamus1340]

Always a great video Beesly...We have a lot of history. Long before my ancestors arrived from England there were people here. It's just mind blowing. I have a friend that is a doctor of archaeology and he works for the department of transportation often. This department has University professors and their students dig up areas before laying roads. He has lots of native artifacts, not just the average arrowhead but shards of pottery 10,000 years old. I was allowed to hold some of these shards and I was so nervous I might drop it. I didn't drop it not worth saying. There are stone age axes and bits of stone they used for "flint knapping." He works for the University so assume these items are donated to the museum. I am a member of Lost In The Pond and he has a fantastic podcast every Sunday.

[@williamjones7163]

As far as the Mississippi river dividing the country, all commercial TV and radio stations east of the Mississippi call letters start with W. West of the Mississippi start with a K. For example, it is WGN in Chicago. Its sister station in Denver is KWGN. Now, these are a special case. Not all stations have a corresponding sister station. But the format stands. WHO in the East, KTVQ in the west. Now back to our program.

[@cac9089]

I lived in Germany for about a year and a half. They won't speak English to you unless you attempt to speak German to them. I thought it was a little funny at the time. I did learn that they took two years of English in school but it is high English like the British speak. Americans speak low English for the most part. I learned this from two of my German babysitters. They were kind of funny. One of them was still in high school. I did learn a lot while there and did speak some German because I took a year of German in high school myself. It was fascinating to say the least.

[@billbored8277]

I've had this conversation with some Australians, who dont quite understand how big and unbelievably varied, the US is. From culture, geography, food, people, ethnicities, weather, languages..... its like 100's of countries smooshed together under 1 name and flag.

[@mariflame1821]

I live in Florida and love visiting St Augustine because of the history.

[@lewis9702]

I live in Maryland, and we pretty much pronounce it "MAYR-a-lend.

[@jeanabeana8818]

In Iowa, pigs outnumber people 25 to 1. Indeed...they're Bacon Central! I live in the Dairy State of Wisconsin in the northern half. We're also known as The Tundra up here...and Cheeseheads. Yup. Cheeseheads. Some of us even wear foam cheese wedge hats to football games. That's right, we have no shame LOL As for traveling, I grew up in the U.S. Air Force and spent the first 16 years of my life moving all over the lower 48 and parts of Europe. My Dad spent time on TDY in South Korea and a training mission in Alaska back in the day. He was in for 20-years by the time he retired. I'm proud of his service, and am grateful for the exposure to different cultures and people!

[@supercolinblow]

I went to France in 1998. They were super-nice. Hitherto, I had been told (or assumed) they were rude to foreigners in Paris, particularly Americans. I went to Italy in 1994. I had believed that they would drive insane on those Vespas. The Italians did not disappoint me. There were several close calls. But most of the People were nice (until you ask a waiter for ice).

[@tammycosby4495]

Americans do travel. It’s just within the US. There are 3.931m sq miles in the whole of Europe. There are 3.797m sq miles in the US. That means traveling around our country is very similar to traveling around Europe as far as space is concerned. Also, it’s a 7 hour flight from NY to London and a 11 hour flight from LA to Tokyo. That means a LOT of air time when there’s so much to see here. Alaska is inside the Arctic Circle. Several states in the SE is subtropical. The Rocky Mountains include 77 peaks above 12,000 ft. New Orleans is below sea level. Death Valley is the hottest place on Earth. We have open plains with nothing but grass for miles. We have Hollywood, NYC, the Statue of Liberty, Disney Land & Disney World, beaches on both coasts, 423 national parks, way more things than I could possibly list here. Also, because of our population diversity due to immigration from around the world, we have almost any culture you could want to see or experience. It would take a person years to see everything here, without the hassle of passports or customs or any of that. Just because we don’t travel between countries doesn’t mean we don’t travel.

[@oteroair]

Try Zion National Park, Rocky Mountain NP, and Glacier National Park.. for perspective.... and those are our new mountains.

[@gv3793]

I have live in California and Arizona, different cities in those states. It’s night and day sometimes moving just miles in the states. Moving from the hot Phoenix temp to snowy Flagstaff or the pack LA life to tranquility of Sausalito. It’ll take a lifetime to see all of the country.

[@k.gspianoworldjourneyschan437]

I'm new here, love these videos! Thank u 💓

[@garycamara9955]

Spanish is also spoken here. There are many places with spanish names, San Jose, San Francisco, Santa Rosa, San Dimas.

[@GilaMonster971]

Crater Lake is amazing! I live in Oregon and have been there a few times..

[@Delgen1951]

Maryland is pounced as one word not two. Yes it was because after the revaluation the language changed its pronunciation and spelling to differentiate US English form British English, and to teach it to student's, which is were the pronunciation is you say all of the syllables came form.

[@carolw24]

It is people from California that don't travel. Some never visit the ocean even though they live 5 miles away. I always thought many Californians were strange. Even stranger now. My family and friends have traveled all over the US. But when I worked in California, I found those people had strange ideas about the rest of the US. They would say, why leave California, it has everything. No! No it doesn't. Grand Canyon, Mount Rushmore, Jackson Hole, Wyoming and white sandy beaches of Navarre, FL. Ugh.

[@Jason-ib4fk]

100% ! Same experience!

[@garycamara9955]

I had been in most western states by the time I was 3. Traveling with my grandparents. I have since been from San Diego to northern Vancouver Canada, and east to Colorado and Wyoming. There is alot of empty land. I live 30 miles from the Pacific, I go there often. I prefer Clearlake though.

[@mirandaroney3751]

​@amandacanfield7937 I agree. Californians get a bad rep as being liberal and close minded. I, personally, come from California. Both sides of my family were born 15:21 and bred there. I have loads still there but to hear people say we're ignorant to the rest of our country and world and refuse to leave because "everything is there"is ridiculous. Yes, we all share the same laid back approach to life, but we're all very open minded and curious enough to venture out. I may miss the atmosphere, weather, and amazing mexican food but I would never trade it back for the financial situation and just general safety I feel with my children where I am now. So many friends and family memebers I know feel the same where they are with their kids