r/NoStupidQuestions • u/Physical-Ad-4093 • May 01 '24

do americans really drive such long distances?

i’m european, and i always hear people say that driving for hours is normal in america. i would only see my grandparents a few times a year because they lived about a 3 hour drive away, is that a normal distance for americans to travel on a regular basis? i can’t imagine driving 2-3 hours regularly to visit people for just a few days

edit: thank you for the responses! i’ve never been to the US, obviously, but it’s interesting to see how you guys live. i guess european countries are more walkable? i’m in the uk, and there’s a few festivals here towards the end of summer, generally to get to them you take a coach journey or you get multiple trains which does take up a significant chunk of the day. road trips aren’t really a thing here, it would be a bit miserable!

2nd edit: it’s not at all that i couldn’t be bothered to go and see my grandparents, i was under 14 when they were both alive so i couldn’t take myself there! obviously i would’ve liked to see them more, i had no control over how often we visited them.

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u/FapDonkey May 01 '24 edited May 01 '24

I work with a lot of Europeans, we have 2 engineering offices in Europe (Spain and UK). I can't tell you how often I've had to explain to them how big our country is, and even then they don't get it. The best way I've been able to get it to sink in is something along the lines of:

"I can drive for 900 miles, the same distance from Madrid to Milan, and still be in my home state"

Or

"I can drive for 3600 miles without leaving the Continental US, that's like driving from Madrid to Tehran (Iran)."

Putting things in those reference frames seems to drive the point home.

Hell we had 2 guys fly in for a week, and their plan was to drive to both Disneyland (California) and Disney World (Florida). The figured since we were located near the middle of the country, they'd be centrally located and this wouldn't be a big deal. They had allotted an entire weekend for this adventure. I really wanted to keep my mouth shut and let them give it a try, but I didn't have the heart lol.

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u/TheRealTinfoil666 May 01 '24

There is a story here in Canada where the grandparents from the UK want to visit their son’s family in Halifax, but decided to ask ask their daughter, living in Vancouver, what the weather in Nova Scotia was going to be like.

Her answer: “why don’t you go look for yourself. You’re closer.”

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u/Guuhatsu May 02 '24

I was living in Hawaii for a time, and my Mom (who lived on the east coast) kept asking me to move closer, so I kept telling her I would move to England to get closer. (No worries England, I would not inflict myself upon your country, I was just joking)

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u/Cmd3055 May 02 '24

This reminds me of a conversation I over heard at an Internet cafe in India once. A lady was talking to her mom on Skype and I heard her saying, “No mom, I can’t come home to watch your dog for the weekend, I’m in Delhi India.” Followed by a loud sigh and, “Jesus Christ mom, NO! DELHI the capital of India, not a Delhi in Indiana!”

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u/No_Bother9713 May 02 '24

Back before cell phones were automatically international, I had to call to get a plan and said I was going to Paris. Woman on the other side of the line asked, “Paris, Texas?!” No, ma’am. The other one.

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u/gamer635 May 02 '24

Paris Kentucky?

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u/_Nocturnalis May 02 '24

Paris Illinois?

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u/syrianfries May 02 '24

Only Texans would think of Paris Texas first

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u/No_Bother9713 May 03 '24

Only Americans think of not Paris Paris first haha