Americans Abroad

The only two European countries I've visited are Sweden and the Netherlands. Both were very nice countries. I hope to get back to Europe to see a large part of it someday.

In contrast from Europe, I can tell you that I have visited many Asian countries and seen a variety of different situations.

Japan by far was the best (though I was only in Osaka for the day). I wasn't there enough to form an opinion other than it is clean and the pollution is very low.

South Korea where I live is probably the middle ground. People are taken care of for the most part, but the social safety net is not the best. There is a lot of pollution, litter, and spitting (oh that drives me nuts). We have a great healthcare system and things for the most part are kept nice. The transportation system is great, but it is getting expensive.

In my opinion China was a bit different. I lived there 10 months (an academic year) teaching and there was a lot of pollution. The transportation system where I lived was just buses. Lots of pollution and litter. Things are maintained at a minimum level. Insurance was a problem and the hospital I went to scared the living crap out of me.

I've visited the Philippines quite a few times. It is very dirty, very polluted, and the transportation system is not good. Too many cars on the road and most of them drive crazy. Health care is a concern. I did injure myself on one trip and had to go to the hospital. They took good care of me. Blackouts seem to be a problem and that delayed getting an x-ray. Their health insurance seems to be inadequate. Corruption is a large problem. Lots of homeless children who beg for money on the streets. Very sad....