Meet our latest ex-pat, Shane, originally from Boston but now living in Springvale, Maine in the USA. In his first diary entry, he tells us about his job and the changing weather...

Its been quite a hectic time just lately, I just got a new job in a nuclear power plant here in Maine. The plant is decommissioning and there is all manner of things going on.

To get to my job I have to travel some 80 miles or so to get there at a cost in petrol of about $9 a day, about 6 UK pounds or so. That is one of the major differences I have found living here in the USA. The price of petrol is cheap compared to back home. The locals here tend to complain if the price rises too much but I tell them at least you are not living in the UK! they pay a lot more for their gas than they do here. I get quite a few raised eyebrows at that comment too.

Another thing I get a lot of questions here about is, The National Health Service. Quite a few of the locals were unaware that the UK had socialised medicine here and its quite a big thing here. Most people have very little health insurance here and what they do tend to have is just covering doctors visits and prescriptions because here you have to pay retail for your medicine. Some people actually compare what the UK has to what Canada has and I think that's a good idea, It amazes me even after all this time that a country the size of the USA and the population it has doesn't have socialised medicine like the NHS. There are a couple of programs like medicare and medicaid but they are really for people on welfare and low incomes.

Whilst I have been here I have found the Americans some of the most friendly and polite people that I have ever come across in my travels around the world.

Here in the State of Maine there is some startling weather contrasts. In the summer months there was temperatures at 105 degrees and temps down the -20 in the winter. Brr!

That's all for now but I hope to be able to write more in the coming weeks of a Lincolnshire Boy living in Maine USA.

Don't forget you can keep up with the latest from the other ex-pats on the ex-pats index here >>

See also | ex-pat index