Imagine you’re sitting in a cozy café in Paris, sipping on a rich cup of coffee and indulging in a flaky, buttery croissant. People around you are chatting in a language you don’t quite understand, but the sounds of the words and the laughter make you feel at home. You take a deep breath and think, “I wish I could bring this feeling back with me.”
As frequent travelers, we’ve experienced such moments in different parts of the world. And even when not on the road, we get to know new things as part of Bored Panda, thanks to all the people working hard to fight boredom from all over the world. When one of us shares a local recipe, an untranslatable word, or a picture of what we see from the window, it’s like we’re taking one more precious piece of this big, beautiful planet with us. And it’s not just the food and the sights — the people, the traditions, and the surprising cultural differences and similarities make an unknown place feel like home.
Recently, we stumbled upon a Reddit thread where users shared the aspects from other cultures they would “steal” and make the norm in their own country. Reading through the thousands of comments, we couldn’t help but share the most interesting ones among ourselves. That’s when we realized — why not turn this into a post about adopting new traditions? With so many people sharing their thoughts and ideas on cultural appreciation, there’s bound to be something for everyone.
From the Japanese-style vending machines to the Finnish love for sauna, there were so many foreign customs that we found fascinating and would love to adopt ourselves! So, without further ado, here are dozens of traditions from other cultures that people would “steal” for their own country. Whether it’s a quirky tradition, a delectable dish, or a value you admire, these cultural aspects from around the world are bound to broaden your appreciation for the diversity and richness of our global community.
#1
"Showing the actual price of items in stores instead of having to add the tax on."
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120points
#2
"I like those French supermarkets are obliged to give the food they couldn't sell to those in need. The amount of food in good condition thrown away in my country is obscene."
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114points
#4
"Passegiata. The evening walk in Italy. With friends or family, often arm in arm. It’s truly lovely."
111points
#6
"I’ve heard that other countries are much more generous with vacation time for professional workers than the US is. Probably that."
cohonka: "This has been the biggest culture shock I’ve had moving to Poland. I never had a job in the US that gave vacation days. In Poland, I think the minimum is 21 days. People seem way happier about work here in general.
Also, cashiers get to sit down! I worked a few different retail jobs where if you even leaned against the belt you’d be scolded. Seeing cashiers sitting down was hugely shocking at first."
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102points
#7
"The Japanese habit of not taking up too much space. This goes for stuff beyond physical space. Like being quiet on the train, not wearing cologne, and making sure to not stand around to let other people pass when it’s busy."
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101points
#8
"Wearing a mask in public during a pandemic."
JohnJaysOnMyFeet replied: "People in Japan do it if they have a cold. Not even a possibly deadly virus, A. COLD.
And that’s a normal thing in their society, nobody cares about it infringing upon their freedoms, nobody says it probably doesn’t even help, they just wear them to be considerate to other people."
98points
#9
"Finland ended homelessness. Does that count?"
KuorivaBanaani replied: "We still have homeless people but honestly, to be homeless in Finland would take a mighty effort to pull off. You really have to just f*ck up literally everything you possibly can to end up homeless here. Mainly never pay rent even though the government pays for it. These people are very rare though and they're usually junkies or just hobos who live in shelters."
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90points
#11
"I live in the US and wish more healthy lifestyles were promoted and more accessible. For example, even if you’re just getting a fast food meal, there are much healthier options in countries such as Japan (rice, sushi, and seaweed can be cheap easy snacks). In America, a fast cheap meal is mostly just whatever is at McDonald’s (so fries, burgers, etc).
And the emphasis on getting the biggest, best thing all the time. It can be so excessive and wasteful at times."
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78points
#12
"I could really go for more saunas and hot springs."
TellTaillWag replied: "It would be great to have more saunas and sauna culture like Finland.
user replied: "And everyone getting a minimum of 1 month off in the summer. Also Finland:
*free hot lunch for every kid at school and free hot lunch provided by most employers;
*standardized education that ensures there is no such thing as one school being better than another b/c no funding is allowed privately or through PACs/PTAs."
*free hot lunch for every kid at school and free hot lunch provided by most employers;
*standardized education that ensures there is no such thing as one school being better than another b/c no funding is allowed privately or through PACs/PTAs."
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77points
#13
"Being friendly?
My mum was a teacher in my country, then moved to England and was presented with all these rules about how you cannot make physical contact with children.
It sounds weird, but let me explain. If I was sad, I could cry on my teacher's lap, and if I did something good, she'd give me a hug. She was like a second mother to me. I'm still in contact with her, almost 10 years later. When she injured her leg, we'd go to her house to do our projects. Same with my mother. Her teacher has been her best friend for 20 years, and she was there when I was born.
I understand the reason for the 'no contact' policy. Some people do have bad intentions. But in my country, it is normal to visit your teachers at home. To go to their house to sing a birthday song. To invite them, or be invited by them. I see how it could go wrong, but I'm thankful for the teachers that I got close to (and still I am).
Also, my mother works with special needs children. Some of them really do need human touch, and we both feel like strict rules like this prevent the child from forming a connection."
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72points
#15
"Japanese-style vending machines. I’m in the UK and they would just be vandalized."
blay12 replied: "Speaking of, the one 'standard' Japanese thing I'd like to see in the US would be the way you interact with servers at restaurants."
Rather than the onus being on the server to check up on you every few minutes, you can just call out to the server when you need them and they won't bother you outside of that. When you try to do the same thing in the US it just feels rude, like you're specifically pointing out to your server that they're neglecting you or something."
tigerscomeatnight replied: "My father worked for Rohm & Haas (Plexiglas), and he was in Japan telling the advantages of Plexiglas and how it would withstand vandalism of the vending machines. They just looked at him oddly and said, 'What vandalism?' They couldn't conceive of it."
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71points
#16
"More emphasis on public transportation like Europe (I’m from the U.S.).
It’s probably the case that not everywhere in Europe has great public transportation, but I think it’s safe to say that collectively Europe is better off in comparison to America when it comes to public transportation. Perhaps it would be better to say 'like in parts of Europe.'"
user replied: "I’m from the US and live in Europe. Public trans is great here, but so much better in Japan (lived there for 5 years). Both are pretty great though. It’s just more difficult for the US because it’s so much larger than Japan and Europe."
68points
#18
"Not taking up space needlessly/being considerate to others in common spaces.
In North America, people will stand in doorways, stop to have a chat in the middle of a busy hallway, basically take up space that is for common use, and not think it is rude whatsoever.
I cannot tell you how many times I’ve come across someone blocking a doorway and you give them like 5 seconds to move and then when you say 'excuse me' to get by, they look at you like you’re rude. You’re standing in a doorway people need to come and go out of, be considerate."
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67points
#19
"Teaching a second language early on in schools, - Canadian."
AlhazraeIIc replied: "The tiny little school I went start teaching us Spanish from kindergarten on up. The problem was, the Spanish teacher only ever taught us the same basic stuff every year. Colors, counting, and parts of the house. That lasted until I was in 6th grade and she lost it and started screaming about how we were hell's angels and Satanists and ran out of the room. We didn't get a new Spanish teacher after that."
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59points
#20
"More emphasis on quality over quantity in food.
A giant cup of watered-down coffee is not as satisfying as a modest-sized but decent coffee. A giant chocolate bar made with bad ingredients that just barely legally qualifies as chocolate is not as satisfying are a proper piece of real chocolate."
V1per41 replied: "It would be nice if we could have both. If I go to a fancy restaurant the food tastes amazing but I end up leaving hungry which is annoying. Chains taste bland but at least I get a decent serving size."
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59points