I am not talking today about Hawaii, Florida, the keys, San Diego or any of the TripAdvisor top beaches in the USA. Let’s talk about my tiny experience of the few Virginian and North Carolina beaches I have been to. Focus please. Let's dig a bit The beach design The beaches in Virginia and North Carolina are huge. Basically it starts at Virginia Beach and it stops… in Florida ? Depending on where you go, the beach will be more or less flat and large, the water more or less da

Go shopping and you will see : yoga pants / leggings with sneakers everywhere. This commitment to yoga impressed me… until I found out. Let's dig a bit From Levi’s and PJ’s to ‘athleisure’ Guess what piece of clothes is on the podium of consumption in the US ? Bye bye denim : welcome yoga pants ! 200 millions of pair have been imported to the US in 2016. Almost 2 by women… Why so much success ? Because it is as comfortable as a pajama (PJ) but you look sporty and active with

It is no secret that Americans have a sharp business instinct and they are unbeatable when it comes to understanding customer needs. So no surprise that drive-thrus are invented in the USA : efficiency, convenience and personal privacy are embedded in the society’s DNA. Let's dig a bit The original sin A drive-thru is a facility through which you drive to be served without leaving your car. It’s a simple, but powerful concept. Drive-thrus were invented in 1947 by a California

When my husband came to the USA, he did not want to rent a car. As a true European, he thought that he could walk from the hotel to the grocery shop, from the movie theater to the restaurant. It took him only two weeks to surrender : when one lives in the suburbs, one has no choice but to get a car. Let's dig a bit Buying a car is an experience by itself. Car salespeople generally have a very low salary and get paid with commissions when they sell a car. So they do everything

Nobody beats the US at the soda game. It's their battlefield and they master all its aspects; from size, to variety and from pricing to its service, drinks and sodas in particular have fascinated me since we moved to the US in 2015. Let’s dig a bit More is better One of the first things you will notice in the US is the size of the drinks. Go to a fast food restaurant and you will easily spot costumers holding a classic 30 oz cup full of soda. That is 887 ml to be exact. Yes,

The weather forecast announced 30 degrees Celsius* that day so I choose a light summer dress to go to work. Big mistake. Really big mistake. Hopefully I had a leftover scarf and winter jacket in my office to fight the indoor blizzard. Insights on the extent of the air-conditioning market. *All degrees in Celsius in that article Let’s dig a bit Freezing everywhere The USA spend 6% of their electricity for air-conditioning - apparently way higher than any other developed countr

The week before my arrival in the USA, everything already packed and in the container. I watched a TV report about Virginia, my future home. And what I saw freaked me out : all the ladies had guns in their purses, as common as wearing lipstick. After a few months in the USA, I had to go to the courthouse with our HR manager. He parked his car on the parking lot and told me to leave my guns and phones in the car. He opened his glove box to store his phone and a gun fell on my

I am sure you have seen all these people going out of their cars with the gigantic Starbucks coffee right ? Key question : how do they do to not spill their drinks everywhere in the cars ? One answer : the cup holders. Not 1, not 2 but loooots of cup holders in the cars. So much to say about it. Let’s dig a bit Up to 19 in car… yes 19 cup holders You might not believe me and you think that I am exaggerating or that this is only in cars modified by die hard cup holders fans ?

I think I have never heard anyone hesitating or trying to find their words while speaking in front of a room full of people either at school, at work, in small meetings or conferences. And when it comes to professional leaders in corporation, musicians, politicians or artists, well, whatever they say, this is captivating and empowering. Why ? but why ? Let's dig a bit Early start. My kid was barely speaking (3yo) when he started doing ‘show and share’ in front of all his ‘fri