the_gneech: (Drezzer cool)
the_gneech ([personal profile] the_gneech) wrote2004-12-05 10:45 am

Hey, Yankee Anglophiles! (Or Anglo Yankophiles, For That Matter...)

[livejournal.com profile] tr_wolf asks...

Gneech, my boyfriend and I are going to Florida on holiday/vacation next October, and Im trying to find a guide to American customs etc that UK Tourists might want to know before visiting etc, any ideas where I could find one? Or any advice yourself? :)


You can see my answer below, but if anyone else out there has input, feel free to jump in!

My first suggestion on where to find a guide would be W.H. Smith's, or amazon.co.uk. ;) Does Britain have public libraries? (Something I've never heard, actually ... does it?)

For my own tips, let's see...

First, don't get anywhere near Miami. (Actually, I would suggest avoiding Florida all together; there are lots of much nicer places to go in the U.S. But I'm probably biased. I've been there many times when I didn't have a choice -- now that I have a choice, I'm not going back again.)

Hmm, what else?

For the most part, Yanks love Brits, and even any faux pas you make will be seen as adorable. Especially in the south ... the cliché is that every woman in the south believes herself to be secretly descended from Mary, Queen of Scots. All you need to do is speak poetic nonsense at most people and they'll be eating out of your hand.

However, there are the occasional yahoos who think anyone who speaks with a British accent (even if it's one that would be "dead common" back home) is some kind of snob, and will get all huffy about you putting on airs. Alas, there's nothing that can be done about said yahoos, except to avoid them if at all possible.

Yanks who are not anglophiles don't know the subtleties of "British" vs. "English" vs. "the U.K." so don't get stroppy about them. (I don't know if you would, but I've met a few who did.) FWIW, in Florida, you might get similar grief about "Yank" vs. "American," although that's a lot less common than it used to be. (In the south, "yankee" referred to Union types during the Civil War, and there are extremely small pockets in the south where they're still trying to fight it.)

Drive on the right side of the road. ;) Watch speed limits -- they tend to be slower here than they are there, and they can be vigorously enforced. Also, if you're renting a car, you'll probably get an automatic rather than a stick unless you specifically ask for one.

Remember that everything in the U.S. is Very Far Away from everything else in the U.S. You won't be making any day trips to see the Grand Canyon, for instance. ;)

Don't snigger when somebody asks you if you like their pants. ;)

You'll have a tough time finding any decent tea, but if you can cultivate a taste for iced tea with sugar and lemon, you'll be in great shape.

Keep your eyes open and ask lots of questions, particularly of hotel concierges and restaurant managers. If you have any local friends, pump them for information. :) If you get what seems like a condescending tone in response, don't take it personally -- when explaining the everyday business of life, most people revert to "teach a child" mode out of habit. They don't think you're stupid, they're just trying to keep things simple.

I can't think of anything else off the top of my head, but if you have any more specific questions, I'll be glad to answer 'em as best I can!

-The Gneech

[identity profile] the-mcp.livejournal.com 2004-12-05 09:22 pm (UTC)(link)
mammallamadevil's pretty much correct -- the only way you might obtain a stick-shift rental vehicle is if you're willing to rent a truck (that's "lorry" to you Brits :) ). A disconcertingly large proportion of the U.S. populace, particularly those younger than, say, 40 years of age, has never learned how to drive a manual-transmission vehicle -- many of them may not even have seen one! -- and so the car-rental outfits like Enterprise, Hertz, etc. simply don't keep any in the rental pool.

re: tipping -- I'd always been under the impression that it was Australia, not the U.K., where tipping is not expected...

But yes, tipping customs are probably somewhat different here than over there, so here's some basic rules of thumb to get you by:

Dining: In most full-service restaraunts, a 15% tip is considered the standard. A gratuity of 20% or more is a good way to express thanks for exceptionally fine service, while leaving 10% or less indicates that you found the service below par. (If the place is really bad, leave a single coin such as a nickel or a penny on the table to express your displeasure, or they may just assume you forgot to tip them at all.) Note that if you're dining with a large party, the restaraunt may automatically add that 15% to your bill -- this sort of practice is usually mentioned on the menu somewhere, so check to make sure.

Baggage handling: Hotel bellhops and airport baggage handlers ("skycaps") are generally tipped $1 per bag for helping you with your luggage, although if you have a lot of bags or your luggage is exceptionally heavy you might consider adding a couple of dollars on top of that.

Taxicab drivers: 15% of the total fare is generally considered standard.

Hotel housekeeping staff: Opinions vary on this; some people suggest $1 - $2 per person staying in the room, per day, for the length of your stay, others say a flat $5/day, some prefer to leave each day's tips somewhere visible, others say you should leave it on the last day of your stay.

I, personally, prefer the daily method, especially when staying at a hotel over a furry-convention weekend, just because I'm not sure you can always count on the same person coming by the room each morning and I'd hate for one staff member to end up collecting the fruits of someone else's work. :) Since housekeeping staff sometimes be a bit wary of simply assuming that any unattended money found in the room is meant for them (and understandably so), I suggest putting the tip in a highly visible place where it would be unlikely for money to have been left by accident, such as on top of the coffee-maker or on the little tray full of hotel-provided soaps and shampoos.

Hotel concierge: Depends on the nature of the service provided. If you just ask him for the name of a good restaraunt nearby, a tip really isn't necessary unless you're feeling generous (or unless his recommedation turns out to be really, extraordinarily first-rate, in which case you might slip him a dollar or two the next time you see him) -- but if he manages to get you front-section concert or theater tickets to a "hot" show and a table reservation for you at a first-class restaraunt afterwards, $20 or more wouldn't be out of line.

One rather annoying practice that seems to be on the rise here is the presence of "tip jars" next to the cash registers at self-serve buffets and fast-food establishments. Do not let the presence of such jars fool you into thinking that a tip is required of you. I, personally, am of the opinion that if I have to order my own food, pick it up at the counter and take it to the table myself, get my own drink refills from the soda fountain, then clear away my own trash when I'm finished, and all you've done is punch buttons on a cash register and hand me my change, then you really haven't done anything tip-worthy for me...

[identity profile] tr-wolf.livejournal.com 2004-12-06 11:07 am (UTC)(link)
Thanks for that :)

We have tipping sorted.

We have to pay taxis a tip? Uh okay...

Housekeeping, yeah after the 2 weeks, we're gonna leave her 40 bucks or so.

[identity profile] the-mcp.livejournal.com 2004-12-06 11:26 pm (UTC)(link)
We have to pay taxis a tip? Uh okay...

Well, I suppose technically, you don't have to, no... but not tipping will increase the likelihood that the driver in question might pretend not to see you the next time you're trying to flag him down for a ride. :)

Housekeeping, yeah after the 2 weeks, we're gonna leave her 40 bucks or so.

Hm... for an extended stay, I really recommend that you leave a daily tip instead. Housekeeping staff often rotate shifts every few days, and the girl who cleans your room your first morning there might not be the same one who will be cleaning it by the end of your stay... and hotels vary as to whether the staff are required to pool the days tips together and split them evenly, or whether each housekeeper is entitled to keep whatever she happens to find on her assigned floor that day.

[identity profile] tr-wolf.livejournal.com 2004-12-06 11:28 pm (UTC)(link)
Ah, you reckon? Okay, but where should I leave the tip? Im not used to tipping like that. Should I leave it with a piece of paper saying "Housekeeper Tip!" ? :)

[identity profile] the-mcp.livejournal.com 2004-12-07 12:15 am (UTC)(link)
Well, like I said, I generally leave it on top of the coffee-maker, or on the little tray of complimentary soaps and shampoo bottles in the bathroom. Since it's not the sort of place most people would leave money by accident, the housekeepers feel safe in assuming that it's meant for them. (Money left on the nightstand or the desk might just have been absent-mindedly forgotten by the room's occupant, which could lead to problems if he suddenly remembers it and comes back to his room to find it gone.)