Living in the USA

The first two weeks of our trip are up. If we were on a normal holiday we would be back in the UK now sat at our desks with our fast-fading tans, watching the drizzle and reminiscing about the good times we'd had in the Florida sun. Instead we're still here and it's started to sink in we're going to be living in the US for the next 3 months (well 2 and a half now). 

With that comes the realisation not every day is going to be all highs, there will be moments when we miss home, miss our friends, feel a little tired or grumpy - not that we've had time to feel even remotely home sick yet.

We have a lot of places to visit, an abundance to see, and with that comes plenty of time on the road, a variety of experiences, some exhaustion, but most importantly a hell of a lot of fun! Tonight we plan on reliving our Uni (or should I say college) days by gatecrashing a Frat party at our new friends' in Tallahassee.

The four of us are already like a little family. And I have a sneaky feeling we're going to love living in the USA.

A journey of surprises

We're still very much in the early stages of our trip, but already there have been several things and places that have really surprised me on our journey. And I don't just mean the prices of the drinks in the clubs in Miami or that iHop is open and serves it's full menu 24 hours a day (this is us there at 2am)

I have learnt things about myself, my friends and the US I never knew or expected - and I'm certain I'll learn a lot more over the next 4 and a half months.

I've been surprised by how much I felt at home in Miami after 5 days; how much I enjoy going out diving on my own; how non-slimy dolphins are; how quickly we all began pining for a washing machine and clean clothes; how brainwashed some Americans are (the views of our friend Thomas in Naples shocked us all); how quickly we could learn the state nicknames and capitals (we thought it would take weeks rather than a day); how our state knowledge is now better than a lot of Americans; how fun it is being out on the road - ok, I did kind of anticipate that, but the sense of freedom and contentment you get is absolutely something else.

But the real surprise for me so far has been Tampa. A big city, known for little more than business, Busch Gardens and being the home town of Channing Tatum and his seedy 'Magic Mike' strip club. Not the sort of place you'd want to visit, right? Wrong. The cute streets in the historic district of Ybor City, the lively strip of bars, the drink prices ($1 a drink - could you ask for more?), the friendly people. I loved Tampa. Admittedly, with a long day at Busch Gardens followed by a drive to Orlando the next day, making the most of the city may not have been the wisest decision we've ever made (for Chloe at least) but I'm certainly glad that we did.