The Broad Nation with Tall Buildings: Our visit to the USA (Oct 2022)

The USA is a country with a ‘chhappan inch ka seena’ (literally meaning a 56 inch chest: a sign of courage and generosity in contemporary Indian jargon). You will see on the world map that it is a massive piece of land. It has the diversity that can only be matched by the continent of Europe or the subcontinent of India.

What we just visited was not a country, it was the concrete form of an idea that was formed around 300 years ago and realised by the people who came to this land. Liberty, the idea of setting man free from society and giving each man full responsibility and freedom to be himself and decide his own fate. These people resolved to ensure liberty to every individual. Each person here is recognised as a separate, sacred entity to be respected. The people here know that this unit (an individual) makes a society and not the other way.

Seldom in history there comes a 'movement', when man learns from the past but also is not stuck in it and charts out a new journey with modern values. America is such an affair. A country with not much past, is busy building the present and the future. A land where the pursuit of happiness is not associated with guilt. It is a demonstration of how prosperous mankind can become when let free to rise and achieve. Nature also did not hold itself back, it provided enormous space and resources and Americans grabbed it with both hands.

It is a value based society i.e. the exchange of value and goods is very explicit and in prime focus. It is probably due to this, that a waiter expects a tip as a percentage of the bill and he knows it may be denied if the service is not professional. We did not ever see a waiter at a restaurant or a boy at a shop lacking in awareness. Clarity, efficiency and individuality are the qualities in-grained in every person. People have the strange way of bracing the uniqueness and differences of others and at the same time remembering the self-identity. They are aware of what they know and what they don't know and are very clear in expressing it.

The society does not have fascination for the divine provider and the poor receiver arrangement, it has traders instead. As heartless as it sounds, trade can happen only between equals in exchange for value to value. I am talking about the ethos and values of the general American and not about the government policies that propound ‘You are your brother’s keeper’. Not 'submit and surrender', people of the US admire their heroes to emulate and become like them.

Even at the Airbnb we stayed, everything was well thought and well appointed. Every room of every house in the US is full of things of utility. Frugality is not such a great virtue. And sometimes even at the cost of excess, providing to every need at every time is considered essential. The food portions at restaurants and groceries are huge. Probably a good idea as it avoids another trip to the shop in a land where distances are so large. I could not help but humorously remember the famous scene from the Hindi classic movie ‘Jaane bhi do Yaaro’ where the American journalist says to his Indian friends – Thora Khao, Thora Pheko, bahut mazaa aata hai!

With nature and cities, we also observe people and their attitude on any tour. General warmth and prudent behaviour is seen all across the US. But here too, we saw each city has its personality and attitude (although globalization has taken out some of the distinctness of each place).

New York is a city we fell in love with. My friend immediately reminded me that I am the Mumbaikar type as opposed to Punekar (or a Dilli Wala. Read a delectable piece by Marathi author Pu La Deshpande to fully understand what I am referring to).

It is truly a city that is a functioning model of human collaboration. Everyone’s utmost contribution is presumed and demanded. The best of the best come here. New York’s monuments are the towering & functioning places of business & commerce. The skyline of New York is not a result of a Pradhan Mantri Skyline Yojana. They are built by private people in pursuit of excellence who were left free to do so. New York City  has the buzz of a marriage banquet hall. People are scooting from here to there. They want the work to be done quickly and they don't have time to waste. They are aware that they are part of something big and in a great time in history.  It seemed that New York had the trade of London, the art of Paris, the food of Italy and the rush of Tokyo. We walked and walked the streets of New York in awe of what I call the greatest show on earth!

Denver is a land locked town in the middle of the US and as we entered it via the 100 year old Union Station, we saw a board that read ‘No Ocean, No Worries’. Here we got a glimpse of nature’s bounty that America is blessed with. It has springs, beautiful mountains with white ‘Aspen’ trees and a fully functional gold mine. It is a town with an old world charm. People are more friendly and it feels like they are blessed with more time to appreciate nature, like it usually is in tier 2 cities.

Washington DC with its national monuments and government chambers has the air of state control and it doesn't feel like being in the most capitalist country. The city brings back memories of the wars the country has fought. Los Angeles (translates to ‘The city of Angels’), is a dreamland and the land of Hollywood. The sea-side, the sunset and the Hollywood boulevard is magical! It is a warm city that is the home of many studios. San-Francisco, the large colourful city built on sea-side slopes, is the ‘Silicon Valley’ of the world with a golden gate. Indians can be especially proud of being a key part of running things around here!

The only place in the US we visited purely for nature was the Niagara Falls! Three-million litres of water crushing on earth each second! It is another symbol of the humongous abundance of nature.

In all of this, a piece of our own home was provided by our family members in the US! It gave us the sense of belonging to that land. Where travel between places is so hard, our family members were eager to take us places and show us things! Prasad Vaze, Prajakta and Anish in Richmond, Praveen Sachdeva, Sonika, Anushka and Arnav in Los Angeles, Mandar Kunte, Apurva and Neel in San Jose were our amazing hosts who lived the wonderful moments with us again and made it a memorable trip for us! It was also evident that they are carrying a piece of India in their hearts!

We returned to the comfortable weather of Bangalore and as we entered our home saw that our maid had cleaned our home, our cook had kept the food ready. We realised again how each society has its way of achieving convenience and creating a world around itself.

The persona of the free, open, confident and happy American will always remain with us and inspire us to live life to the fullest!

Amrut and Preeti

October 2022