This is going to be an open collection of observations ... It has been many years since I last lived in the US .. and since then I have been coming back for 3 trips and 1 layover ... and this time I noticed:
- No more free plastic bags. They actually ask you if you need a plastic bag at the supermarket and if you say yes, it will cost you 5c per bag .. in terms of plastic trash and carbon footprint I welcome this step ... too well I recall the days of free 'double bagging'
- Getting carded. 10 years ago I was highly amused when a cashier lady somewhere in the heartland asked to see my ID .. on this trip .. I have to show my ID all the time .. no matter how old I look.
- No smoking. Seems that people have given up on that. Cigarettes are 7.50$ and you hardly see anyone smoke in the streets ... I wonder WHERE they smoke .. can't smoke in bars / restaurants anymore .. even close to the entrance is often forbidden ..
- Free wi-fi. I find it incredible to see how many restaurants have a big 'free wi-fi' sign in the window ... and you can see that a bazillion people in there have their laptops open on the table ... it is like 'if I cannot be online here, I do not eat here' .. it seems friends go to cafes together with their laptops, sitting across from each other .. and instead of talking verbally, maybe they text-chat .. who knows. It is similar with mobile phones / texting .. half the people you pass seem to be talking to themselves (no, they have a bluetooth earplug) or they are manically typing a message.
- Hooters is still awesome .. more on that later
Oh, I didn't noticed that the plastic bags are no longer free! Maybe it's only DC (not in New York)? Glad you enjoyed Hooters!
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