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The privilege of living in a foreign country allows you to appreciate the nuances of a culture that, as a simple tourist, would not be able to perceive. More than two years in the United States have confirmed how much our life is affected by American superpower: from politics to economics, from cinema to technology.
At the same time, I realized that the collective imagination of the United States is linked to a few cities such as New York and San Francisco which are actually the most liberal and European. The United States is extremely varied, a melting pot of cultures, traditions, religions, landscapes that cannot be uniquely defined
My experience is centered in Houston, Texas, second of the 50 states by extension (the largest of France), preceded only by Alaska. Border State, separated from Mexico by the Rio Grande. Like all bordering countries, there are deep contradictions and at the same time the fascination created by the encounter of radically different cultures.
Despite being known for oil, it is the state that has invested more in renewable energy; famous is the Marfa area where enormous wind turbines arise for miles. Yes, huge, everything in Texas is giant, from portions at restaurants, to seven-lane highway, to the population that holds the sad record of 30 percent obese.Texas, like the other States in the south (such as Mississippi, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana), is part of the Bibble Belt, where the influence of the Christian religion is very strong, to the point where bigotry leads to the myriad of religious sects, more or less powerful, which unfortunately often distinguish different racial groups.
The Houstonians are very kind and ready to welcome you with a smile and a “Houdy” that in the cowboy jargon means “how are you?”. The Texans are very proud of their history, of the wars of independence against Spanish and Mexican domination; Fort Alamo, in San Antonio’s main square, is one of America’s most visited sites.
Texas flags waves everywhere and combative spirit and nationalism are synthesized by two sentences: “Do not mess with Texans” and the famous “You can all go to hell, I’ll go to Texas pronounced by David Crockett right during the Battle of Fort Alamo.Associated with a peasant economy and breeding, Texas is actually the US financial engine and Houston embodies this role: it is the fourth largest city in the United States, thanks to the oil industry, Nasa and the biggest US medical center. This range of opportunities attracts young professionals from all over the world and it is easy to meet people who have lived in at least three different continents. This mix makes it dynamic and intriguing despite the preservation of a relaxed and informal lifestyle that allows you to be comfortable in the most diverse environments. American order and schematic attitude are however overwhelmed by the massive presence of the Mexican and South American communities that have a profound influence on cooking and nightlife.
Young city, born just over a hundred years ago, after a tsunami destroyed the Galveston Coastal Community. It is not architecturally beautiful but is very green given the torrential rains that occasionally cause the rise of the Bayou, a small river along which the most luxurious residential area, the Upper Kirby winds up, with Hollywood style villas and secular oaks. Looking at the map, Houston has a shape of a three-circle concentric target. The economic and cultural life take action in the 610, a huge freeway running around downtown, the River Oak residential district, the prestigious Rice University and the Museum District.
Although morphologically flat, the “Lone Star State” can capture breathtaking scenery, particularly in the Big Bend National Park area where mountains, canyons, and mesas alternate, while at sunset they take on the shades of marvelous colors while, in the spring, wild flowers, with lively colors, give life to the immense desert that you have to cross to reach it. In this area, where up to just 20 years ago it was not possible to eat ice cream for the lack of electricity, there are towns of few thousand inhabitants, people who by choice have taken refuge from the stressful competition and the frenetic consumerism of the few big cities and they have dedicated to breeding and art.
Right here, in this border area, my reflections began …Festina Lente.
