Alcohol and Drugs

Buying alcohol in America is a very different experience than in Australia, not so much as in the type of alcohol you can buy, but where to buy it. Other items such as cigarettes and medicinal-type drugs have similar differences. See the following tips.

• Alcohol is much cheaper to buy in America than in Australia.
• Drive-through bottle-shops are mostly non-existent in America.
• Beer and wine can be bought nearly anywhere; supermarkets, gas-stations, grocery stores, and even drug-stores.
• Any other alcohol, such as spirits, is bought in "Liquor Stores". Some supermarkets will have a separate "Liquor Store" beside the supermarket.
• Some states and counties are "dry" - which means you can't buy alcohol at all, or maybe only beer and wine. In these areas you won't find any Liquor Stores.
• The prices of alcohol in restaurants and bars (by the glass) is generally more expensive than in Australia.
• Cigarettes can usually only be bought at supermarkets, grocery stores, drug stores, and gas stations.
• Most over-the-counter drugs/medications are sold in drugstores and many supermarkets. The American equivalent of a "chemist" is the "drugstore". Drugstores sell many other items than the chemists Australians are used to. They can sell groceries, alcohol, cigarettes, newspapers, and even electrical items.
• You can not buy Codeine over the counter in America. Codeine is considered an "opiate" and can only be obtained by prescription. This makes it difficult when trying to find something for a cold or flu. The best thing is to get advice from the pharmacist on duty.
• The Panadol and Panadeine pain-killer brands are not available in America, however there are plenty of pain-killers with exactly the same ingredients, such as Tylenol and Excedrin.

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