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General Information |
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| Capital : |
Washington (D.C.) |
| Government : |
federal republic |
| Currency : |
US dollar (USD) |
| Area : |
3,755,241 miles2 (9,631,418 km2) |
| Population : |
300,000,000 (October 2006 est.) |
| Language : |
English, Spanish (also spoken by a sizable minority), Hawaiian (in Hawaii), Creole (in Louisiana), various indigenous languages |
| Religion : |
Christian 78% (Protestant 52%, Roman Catholic 24% Mormon 2%) other 10%, none 9%, Jewish 2%, Muslim 1% (2002) |
| Electricity : |
120V / 60Hz |
| Calling Code : |
+1 |
| Internet TLD : |
.us, .edu, .gov, .mil (most sites use .com, .net, .org) |
| Time Zone : |
UTC -4 to UTC -10 |
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U.S.A. |
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| The United States of America ("USA," "US," "United States," "America," or simply "the States") is a large country in central and north-western North America. The U.S. also includes several Pacific islands (primarily represented by the state of Hawaii) and an unincorporated Caribbean territory (the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico). |
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Climate |
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The overall climate is temperate, with notable exceptions. Alaska has Arctic tundra, while Hawaii and Florida are tropical. The Great Plains are dry, flat and grassy, turning into arid desert in the far West. |
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Talk |
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The U.S. has no official language at the federal level, but English is by far the standard for everyday use. Several states have declared their official state language as English. Some states have declared Spanish an official language as well, providing services in both languages. Visitors from Commonwealth countries may get some funny looks when using certain expressions peculiar to their dialect, and may themselves be surprised by certain American English expressions, but they should otherwise get along fine. A degree of romance is attached to the accents of non-North-American anglophones, and people may be friendlier to you because of yours.
Americans seldom speak languages other than English, unless they are from an immigrant community; visitors are generally expected to speak and understand English. Even popular tourist sites might have signs and information only available in English, or perhaps one or two other languages, though this is improving as international tourism increases. |
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Costs |
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| Unless you live in Europe or Japan, the United States is generally expensive, but there are ways to limit the damage. A barebones budget for camping, hostels, and cooking your food could be $30-50/day, and you can double that if you stay at motels and eat at cheap cafes. Add on a rental car and hotel accommodation and you'll be looking at $150/day and up. There are regional variations too: large cities like New York and Los Angeles are expensive, while prices go down in the countryside. |
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Eat |
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| The variety of restaurants throughout the US is remarkable. One thing that a traveler from Europe or Latin America will notice is that many restaurants do not serve alcohol. Another is the sheer number and variety of fast food and chain restaurants. Most open early in the morning and stay open late at night; a few are open 24 hours a day. A third remarkable fact is the size of the portions generally served by U.S. restaurants. Although the trend has moderated in recent years, portions have grown surprisingly large over the past two or three decades. |
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