One thing I'd wish I'd known before going to the USA......

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Hey all you wonderful nurses who have made the journey across the pond, or are nearly there bar the flights! I thought it might be fun/interesting/helpful if you could post something along the lines of "One thing I wish I'd done/known when going to the USA....."

It could be funny/informative or both & could encompass learning to live in the USA or work or the immigration process: whatever you think..........

You never know, it might end up as the best sticky on the site :D

Of course I can start it off (although I don't actually qualify as I'm not there, or even nearly yet) by saying "I wish I'd known how long it was going to take!":)

Now over to y'all..................

Specializes in theatre, elderly, community, ICU.

I never thought I would feel so emotional and wanting to go home for 3 days after arrival. Today was day 4 and better than the rest. Anybody else felt the same. Doesn't help when you 17yr old son is saying the same thing constantly.:crying2:

Specializes in NICU.

I wish I'd known to bring some of my favorite foods.

I couldn't get a good cup of tea (bring tea/teabags). I know you can buy tea here, but it doesn't taste the same when you are homesick anyway.

Rich tea biscuits.

Mushy peas.

Cadbury's chocolate (not the Hershey version we have here)

Turkish Delight

Maltesers

Weetabix

You can find places that sell British food, I stock up when we go down south. My husband stocks up on Yorkie Bars and Mars Bars, and he's American!

Oh, Battenburg!

Care packages help, my mum sent lots of packages.

And we bought an electric kettle.

Welcome!

Specializes in med/surg.

Found good tea when on holiday - get it over intyernet from Cevalia - who we got our coffee machine from. Also you can find English Breakfast Tea from Twinings in the supermarkets.

Cadbury's is a problem guess you just have to save up & get the odd bar from an English store. Dove isn't too bad a substitute though. Also Russel Stover & Ghirardelli (? sp) are nice too!

Still say it's the bread that's the very worst thing!:lol2: Absoliutely going to get a machine!!

Cadbury's is a problem guess you just have to save up & get the odd bar from an English store. Dove isn't too bad a substitute though.

Things must be desperate when you eat soap instead of chocolate. Does Imperial Leather taste as good?

Cheers

OG

Specializes in renal,peritoneal dialysis, medicine.
Things must be desperate when you eat soap instead of chocolate. Does Imperial Leather taste as good?

Cheers

OG

dove lol

i have a confession to make, am bringing lots of tea with me, as its on offer at morrisons so ive been buying loads!

how sad am i ??

DOVE bars are a "quality" type chocolate. It isn't so much the tea tastes different, its the water that's different. Oh, and don't ever try to get a decent cup of tea in a coffee shop or restaurant. Most don't boil the water.

I notice the difference when we go south. But most of the UK brands are available in Canada, so if you're up north try cross border shopping. My Safeway carries Weetabix, Maltesers, all the tea varieties you could wish for, but Canadian Cadbury's is different from the UK import Cadbury's sold next to it. Battenburgs went when M&S left Canada, but there used to be a Scottish bakery in Vancouver that made it....

Specializes in ER.
I never thought I would feel so emotional and wanting to go home for 3 days after arrival. Today was day 4 and better than the rest. Anybody else felt the same. Doesn't help when you 17yr old son is saying the same thing constantly.:crying2:

I know. Not quite wanting to home but as lonely as ever.

Have not been here for that long either.´The freeway still terrifies me and am still doing my daily shopping after work, getting home to a quiet house and to my computer...

I wish I had known all the liberals that are here; I would have never come here to begin with.

:rotfl:

I wish I'd known about the germanic sense of humour. And that Americans do not spend a lot of time taking the michael out of one another. They just think you're being serious.

Ah, anyway that was a long time ago.

Specializes in Surgical, Breastcare, Minor ops, OPD.
:rotfl:

I wish I'd known about the germanic sense of humour. And that Americans do not spend a lot of time taking the michael out of one another. They just think you're being serious.

Ah, anyway that was a long time ago.

Oh dear my hubby is really sarcastic I guess he well end up getting thumped. Come to think of it we are all a bit sarci in our house, maybe it would be safer not to socialize :lol_hitti

The sense of humour (or lack of!) is hard to deal with, and then sometimes you get an American who gets our sense of humour and turns it on you, well I find myself thinking, did she really say that? wow! one of the few things that has been known to render me speechless. Not for long though :D

liptons english breakfast tea....YUK

its as much english as I am and I was born in scotland !

still using the safeway tea that we bought when we were back home.

bought an electric kettle as well, in K-Mart a nice black one that turns itself off, the only one in walmart doesnt.

the only nice tea that we have found is called red rose, looks like a cheap tea bag, but its made by typhoo and tastes most like tea from the uk.

when I mention tea in work the conversation turns to every flavour except what we are used to, or they offer me earl grey...I would rather drink a cup of estee lauder.

Specializes in ER.

This electric kettle seems to be an issue here. I really had to search for one, finally a friend told me to go to Rite-Aid. Never thought of that - and there it was. One kettle left on the shelf and looked like it had been there for a while, next to common cosmetics. Well, I could not find an iron in Target either. Our local Target is the size of Disneyland and I just gave up and left.

Pay no attention - I was thining of driving to LAX, parking my car and buying a ticket, just this morning... :(

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