I should have done this as I went along, but this is what I'm left with

[wwidsith]

Random memories of the honeymoon, in no order:

*Stopping at a tiny railroad town in southern Tennessee and going to a proper old soda fountain, where the waitress thought we were French because we said we lived in Paris

*The Grand Ole Opry on our last night in Nashville - sheer genius. Although I remember the adverts best

*The lush cottage in the

Comments

[ruakh]

I'm glad you had such a good time. I think the U.S. is great, but I always read furr'ner accounts with trepidation. "What will they think of us?" :-)

> I'm telling you, everyone is driving around in tanks over there. They must think Europe looks like Noddyland.

Yup. When my mother and I visited Paris a few years back, we spent the whole time amused by your adorably tiny cars there. I drive a fairly small car by U.S. standards (a recent Camry), and at the time I drove a much smaller one (an older Corolla), but I'm pretty sure that if I drove the latter in Paris, your roads would buckle, to say nothing of your bridges. Pont Neuf would have to be replaced by an even neuf-er pont. Something from the 1700s, maybe.

> Being a whisky snob I have always been very dismissive of bourbon, […]

Wow, shocking. In my area, bourbon snobbery is the snobbiest form of whiskey snobbery. The name "bourbon" is the most tightly regulated among American alcohol types; it's almost un-American, really.

> […] something called Rita's (the slogan is ICE - CUSTARD - HAPPINESS, which leaves me with no idea what they are selling) […]

Italian ice, frozen custard, and happiness. What's not to get? :-)

[muckefuck]

I grew up below the Bourbon Belt, but my Michigan-born California-reared boyfriend would sooner drink paint than touch the stuff. Last time we were shopping for booze, the salesman was trying to push Caol Ila and he had to firmly inform the man that he only liked Islays from the south side of the island because the ones from the north side of Islay "have no character".

[wwidsith]

Haha, now THAT is my kind of whiskey consumer...it's Laphroiag and Ardbeg all the way. Although to be fair, I always think Caol Ila tastes like a southern-Islay malt too.

[wwidsith]

Well, I have never had anything other than a wonderful time in the States. On the other hand, I'm always kind of nervous about criticising it, what with patriotism being more or less the state religion over there!

I think part of my shock at the car thing comes from the fact that we both sold our cars when we moved to France, so I haven't really been near a car for almost a year. Which has been really nice.

So they do ice with custard?? What a weird idea. I want to try some now

[ruakh]

No, the Italian ice and the frozen custard are two separate things. Or do you mean, you don't have frozen custard over there? In that case, I should say that it's quite similar to ice cream, so while I do think you should try it the next time you're somewhere that has it, it's not a big deal.

[muckefuck]

"Frozen custard" isn't even universal in the States, IME. And I disagree about it being no big deal, but maybe that's just because I had the good fortune to grow up with Ted Drewes.

Also, it's worth noting that in Britain, "custard" often refers to a kind of eggless instant desert similar to Jell-O pudding (whereas "pudding" refers to...wait, let's not get into this).

[ruakh]

> "Frozen custard" isn't even universal in the States, IME.

I didn't know that. Though it's only in the last fifteen years or so that it's become popular in my part of the Midwest, so I guess it's not surprising that some areas still don't have it.

> And I disagree about it being no big deal, but maybe that's just because I had the good fortune to grow up with Ted Drewes.

I like frozen custard a lot, I just mean, it's not some absolutely unique thing. It's like gelato - definitely worth trying, but not some sort of strange and foreign experience, in the way that grits are or a diner breakfast might be.

> Also, it's worth noting that in Britain, "custard" often refers to a kind of eggless instant desert similar to Jell-O pudding […]

Thanks, I didn't know that. That's kind of shocking. :-)

[muckefuck]

A lot of British food is kind of shocking!

Personally, I find it damn funny that grits are being treated as some exotic foodstuff you have to cross the ocean to find when all they really are is polenta made from maize that's been treated with lye.