We are travelling to Denver CO, USA from England at the end of May and in the light
of earlier posts about hassles in Europe we are wondering what to expect in the
States. Any help would be appreciated. BobS
--
robert@suggitt1438.*REMOVE*fsnet.co.uk *REMOVE* the obvious to send.

BobS wrote:

    >We are travelling to Denver CO, USA from England at the end of May and in the
    >light of earlier posts about hassles in Europe we are wondering what to expect in
    >the States.

As you will most probably always be wearing bowler hat and umbrella, everybody will
ask you if you're from England. If you would like to confuse them a bit, I could
borrow you a pair of lederhosen for your trip.

Jens (Munich)

BobS wrote:

    > We are travelling to Denver CO, USA from England at the end of May and in the light
    > of earlier posts about hassles in Europe we are wondering what to expect in the
    > States. Any help would be appreciated. BobS
    > --
    > robert@suggitt1438.*REMOVE*fsnet.co.uk *REMOVE* the obvious to send.

The obvious problem you will encounter is when you try to communicate. Although these
cute little foreigners purport to use the same language as the civilized world, there
will be frequent occasions when communications will break down totally. This will
occur especially when you expect some degree of mental agility and lateral thinking
processes to be employed by the person with whom you are conversing. It is best to
use the step by step method, confirming comprehension at every stage.

Seriously though, if you intend visiting hot areas, make sure you have PLENTY of
water. Dehydration is a definite danger, especially in the West, where, due to the
dry atmosphere, you won't feel yourself sweating at all, but rest assured, you will
be losing plenty of water. Every petrol station sells it in big bottles, as well as
most other ordinary shops so make sure you buy plenty every day.

IPF
--
Thicken up runny low-fat yoghurt by stirring in a spoonful of lard.

This post represents the views of the author and does not necessarily accurately
represent the views of my employer.

"BobS" <robert@suggitt1438.*REMOVE*fsnet.co.uk> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > We are travelling to Denver CO, USA from England at the end of May and in the light
    > of earlier posts about hassles in Europe we are wondering what
to
    > expect in the States. Any help would be appreciated. BobS

Bob - if you are speaking about travel hassles, in general you can expect more
thorough baggage and carry-on searches. You'll see as you travel within the States
that the atmosphere has returned to the "norm," so to speak, along with the
good-natured friendliness towards travelers that Americans tend to have.

Have a great trip!

Mia


    > --
    > robert@suggitt1438.*REMOVE*fsnet.co.uk *REMOVE* the obvious to send.

On Tue, 19 Mar 2002 11:34:01 -0000, "BobS"
<robert@suggitt1438.*REMOVE*fsnet.co.uk> wrote:

    >We are travelling to Denver CO, USA from England at the end of May and in the light
    >of earlier posts about hassles in Europe we are wondering what to expect in the
    >States. Any help would be appreciated. BobS

You may receive some comments on your English "accent", which some Americans consider
most interesting, but other than that you will be in the most hospitable Wild West
and should have a fine time

Rita wrote:
    >
    > On Tue, 19 Mar 2002 11:34:01 -0000, "BobS"
    > <robert@suggitt1438.*REMOVE*fsnet.co.uk> wrote:
    >
    > >We are travelling to Denver CO, USA from England at the end of May and in the
    > >light of earlier posts about hassles in Europe we are wondering what to expect in
    > >the States. Any help would be appreciated. BobS
    >
    > You may receive some comments on your English "accent", which some Americans
    > consider most interesting, but other than that you will be in the most hospitable
    > Wild West and should have a fine time

Avoid the smog if you can. 40 years ago Denver had blue skies. 20 years ago it had
brown skies above the horizon. Is it still that bad?

In article <[email protected]>, "BobS"
<robert@suggitt1438.*REMOVE*fsnet.co.uk> wrote:

    > We are travelling to Denver CO, USA from England at the end of May and in the light
    > of earlier posts about hassles in Europe we are wondering what to expect in the
    > States. Any help would be appreciated. BobS

I am sure you are pulling our leg, but

There aren't a lot of international tourists in most of the US -- I can't imagine you
finding anything but occasional curiosity. The US is generally pretty anglophile --
with the right accent you will be viewed as pretty cool -- and even without it, as
pretty interesting. Of course as tourists anywhere, you are also likely to be ignored
pretty much.

Denver is in a lovely area. Try to arrange to get into the mountains and to get down
to the 4 corners area and visit Mesa Verde. Estes Park would be a good mountain
destination -- although there are many beautiful places. Mesa Verde is just
fascinating -- rent a room in the park itself [it is about 50 miles just getting in
on the access road.] They are very basic rooms with no TV or phone or whatever and a
small balcony where you have that great 50 mile view. We had drinks on the roof of
the small restaurant and enjoyed the sunset and stars. visiting the ruins is pretty
amazing -- plan a full day there. Return to Denver via the silverton highway. There
is also a great train ride this way -- but you probably want a car for the mountains
and trip to Mesa Verde. [Mesa Verde itself will be full of international tourists --
it is the one place where I ran into French, German, Spanish etc tourists regularly]

"I. P. Freely" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    >
    > The obvious problem you will encounter is when you try to communicate. Although
    > these cute little foreigners purport to use the same language as
the
    > civilized world, there will be frequent occasions when communications will break
    > down totally. This will occur especially when you expect some degree
of
    > mental agility and lateral thinking processes to be employed by the person
with
    > whom you are conversing. It is best to use the step by step method,
confirming
    > comprehension at every stage.

The obvious response to this advice from a cute little civilized advisor is that
he/she needs to get off of his/her "holier-than-thou" high horse. Dismount Tonto!

    > Seriously though, if you intend visiting hot areas, make sure you have
PLENTY
    > of water. Dehydration is a definite danger, especially in the West, where,
due
    > to the dry atmosphere, you won't feel yourself sweating at all, but rest assured,
    > you will be losing plenty of water. Every petrol station sells it
in
    > big bottles, as well as most other ordinary shops so make sure you buy
plenty
    > every day.

The serious response to this particular advice is that it is good advice. Water is
VERY important, particularly in western areas with high altitudes (such as Colorado).
The hot sun and aridity is significant on its own. So, drink water and wear sunscreen
and/or hats. However, when you add high elevation to the equation, the effect is
synergistic....which can lead to dehydration and high altitude sickness. Start
drinking a lot of water when you arrive....and keep it up throughout your visit. If
you do any physical exertion in the high country (e.g., hiking), make sure you bring
plenty of water. The high altitude and aridity will bring on a headache (or something
more severe) very fast if you don't have plenty of water. Denver's elevation isn't
bad (approx. 5,200 ft. or 1,600 m), so hot sun and/or aridity will be the most
noticeable issue. However, the Rockies just west of Denver get to over 14,000 ft
(4,300 m.)....where low oxygen will affect your system.

"R J Carpenter" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
    > Rita wrote: Avoid the smog if you can. 40 years ago Denver had blue skies. 20 years
    > ago it had brown skies above the horizon. Is it still that bad?

No. Objectively speaking, the air quality in the Front Range of Colorado (ie,
Denver metro region) is the cleanest it's been in 30 years (as per EPA studies).
However, that doesn't mean that it's fully clean....i.e., there's still a long way
to go. The atmospheric inversion along the east slope of the Rockies is most severe
in winter (ie, the lower air doesn't mix, or invert, with the upper air, resulting
in pollutants to be "locked" in along the surface). However, the rest of the year,
it's not bad.

In comparison, the actual air pollution is really not much different than many large
European centers. The inversion phenomenon is what makes it appear different.

In article <[email protected]>, [email protected] wrote:

    > Rita wrote:
    > >
    > > On Tue, 19 Mar 2002 11:34:01 -0000, "BobS"
    > > <robert@suggitt1438.*REMOVE*fsnet.co.uk> wrote:
    > >
    > > >We are travelling to Denver CO, USA from England at the end of May and in the
    > > >light of earlier posts about hassles in Europe we are wondering what to expect
    > > >in the States. Any help would be appreciated. BobS
    > >
    > > You may receive some comments on your English "accent", which some Americans
    > > consider most interesting, but other than that you will be in the most hospitable
    > > Wild West and should have a fine time
    >
    > Avoid the smog if you can. 40 years ago Denver had blue skies. 20 years ago it had
    > brown skies above the horizon. Is it still that bad?

it is not as bad as Toronto, Mexico City or LA, but there are bad days.

In article <[email protected]>, Jens Arne Maennig <[email protected]> wrote:

    > BobS wrote:
    >
    > >We are travelling to Denver CO, USA from England at the end of May and in the
    > >light of earlier posts about hassles in Europe we are wondering what to expect in
    > >the States.
    >
    > As you will most probably always be wearing bowler hat and umbrella, everybody will
    > ask you if you're from England. If you would like to confuse them a bit, I could
    > borrow you a pair of lederhosen for your trip.
    >
    > Jens (Munich)

excellent idea

On Tue, 19 Mar 2002 11:34:01 -0000, "BobS"
<robert@suggitt1438.*REMOVE*fsnet.co.uk> wrote:

    >We are travelling to Denver CO, USA from England at the end of May and in the light
    >of earlier posts about hassles in Europe we are wondering what to expect in the
    >States. Any help would be appreciated. BobS

Depends partly on your port of entry--I'm afraid this is often a very tiresome part
of travelling to the states. I've always found travelling to european airports (my
favorite--Frankfurt) much better--train station in the bottom of the airport, things
arranged better, very efficient, and so on. US airports tend to be terribly
overcrowded, and, in summer, often hot (they're air conditioned, but in the customs
halls I've been in, things have often been so packed it's very hot). New York
city--JFK is just terrible, in my opinion. Heavily overcrowded and slow. I've found
the people nasty, and I've come to avoid it in recent years. Unfortunately, the other
airport that will work for me--Logan in Boston--is very bad too, although perhaps not
quite as bad. The luggage hall for international travelers, where, if you're coming
in on a sizeable plane like a 747, you will be for an hour or two or more to pick up
your luggage, is just awful. It's roughly one third the size it should be, and nearly
always very densely packed with very tired (and, in summer, very overheated) people
in various shades of bad humor. The luggage off-loading is slow, very slow. The real
problem are the luggage belts, which are of a laughable length--they're tiny. They
would be hard-put to handle a half-loaded DC9, but they're utterly lost with a
747. I've watched the luggae handlers through the plastic strips at the ends of the
belt and much of the time, they're simply standing and waiting to put luggage on
because there's no more room. People have to stand three or four deep around the
belt simply because there are so many more people than there is luggage belt.
(The problem has gone on for years and is a disgrace.) There's only one way out
of the area, and we've waited half an hour simply to enter customs. Outside,
perpetual construction has made the area practically a war zone. Wading through
people and concrete chunks and long temporary barriers and finding a place to
wait a long time for a taxi that triple parks--slinging your luggage around
while policemen yell at the driver to move on--to pick you up makes tops the
experience off. Everyone seems in a bad humor. [Now I'm trying to find something
good to say to end this on a positive note, but just can't seem to! How about:
the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania airport is a very good one. Ah well--bon voyage!]

I have traveled between Frankfurt and JFK roughly 12 times in the past two years.
International arrivals/departures at JFK has been remodeled -- it is open and airy,
with large windows and plants and places to purchase food. I've never found it any
more crowded, or slower, than any other airports. I also have to say that calling
everyone nasty is a severe overgeneralization. When I've had questions, people were
pleasant; I've also helped people who did not have an extensive working English
knowledge. That seemed to be the general atmosphere to me, at least, in recent years.

"grey" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > On Tue, 19 Mar 2002 11:34:01 -0000, "BobS"
    > <robert@suggitt1438.*REMOVE*fsnet.co.uk> wrote:
    >
    > >We are travelling to Denver CO, USA from England at the end of May and in the
    > >light of earlier posts about hassles in Europe we are wondering what
to
    > >expect in the States. Any help would be appreciated. BobS
    >
    > Depends partly on your port of entry--I'm afraid this is often a very tiresome part
    > of travelling to the states. I've always found travelling to european airports (my
    > favorite--Frankfurt) much better--train station in the bottom of the airport,
    > things arranged better, very efficient, and so on. US airports tend to be terribly
    > overcrowded, and, in summer, often hot (they're air conditioned, but in the customs
    > halls I've been in, things have often been so packed it's very hot). New York
    > city--JFK is just terrible, in my opinion. Heavily overcrowded and slow. I've found
    > the people nasty, and I've come to avoid it in recent years. Unfortunately, the
    > other airport that will work for me--Logan in Boston--is very bad too, although
    > perhaps not quite as bad. The luggage hall for international travelers, where, if
    > you're coming in on a sizeable plane like a 747, you will be for an hour or two or
    > more to pick up your luggage, is just awful. It's roughly one third the size it
    > should be, and nearly always very densely packed with very tired (and, in summer,
    > very overheated) people in various shades of bad humor. The luggage off-loading is
    > slow, very slow. The real problem are the luggage belts, which are of a laughable
    > length--they're tiny. They would be hard-put to handle a half-loaded DC9, but
    > they're utterly lost with a
    > 747. I've watched the luggae handlers through the plastic strips at the ends of the
    > belt and much of the time, they're simply standing and waiting to put luggage
    > on because there's no more room. People have to stand three or four deep
    > around the belt simply because there are so many more people than there is
    > luggage belt. (The problem has gone on for years and is a disgrace.) There's
    > only one way out of the area, and we've waited half an hour simply to enter
    > customs. Outside, perpetual construction has made the area practically a war
    > zone. Wading through people and concrete chunks and long temporary barriers
    > and finding a place to wait a long time for a taxi that triple parks--slinging
    > your luggage around while policemen yell at the driver to move on--to pick you
    > up makes tops the experience off. Everyone seems in a bad humor. [Now I'm
    > trying to find something good to say to end this on a positive note, but just
    > can't seem to! How about: the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania airport is a very good
    > one. Ah well--bon voyage!]

Re: Water. By all means, drink lots. BTW, tap water just as good as the bottled
variety, and a lot less expensive.

Thanks for all your valued comments, especially the water. My reference to hassles in
the USA was a little tongue in cheek but reading these NGs Americans always seem to
have a funny idea about Europe. I thought a little balance was needed. BobS
--
robert@suggitt1438.*REMOVE*fsnet.co.uk *REMOVE* the obvious to send.

"Bobnyari" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > Re: Water. By all means, drink lots. BTW, tap water just as good as the bottled
variety,
    > and a lot less expensive.