So, what are the things that stand out to me when I first return?
The first - flags are everywhere here.
Maybe it was because we were in rural East Coast small towns. Maybe these towns are holding onto their unbridled colonial enthusiasm.
Every house has a flag. Every store, every post office. We would sometimes drive down roads that had a flag on every phone pole.
In Europe, the only place that I know that loves their flag as much is England, which has used its flag as a design for pillows, pants, even the paint jobs for cars. In continental Europe, not so much. The only times an abundance of flags are seen is during the World Cup or other football matches. Some have hypothesized that an overabundance of flags can illustrate overwhelming nationalism, something that partially led to the tragedies of WWII. In any case, I think I saw the flag for the US or the UK more often than I saw any other flag, even the flags of the countries I lived in.
