When it comes to one’s perspective on individualism, free expression, government, religion, and morality, Europeans and Americans are worlds apart, according to Pew Center. But to really grasp some of these cultural differences, you don’t need to look far.
Think of red Solo cups, free refills, air conditioning, and something as simple as bulk shopping. Now think of Europe, for example, France, where daily trips to local grocers for fresh produce are common, and Italy, where air conditioning is a rare sight unless it’s in hotels meant for tourists.
So when someone put up a question “Europeans who’ve visited the US, what made you go 'What The Heck'?” on Reddit, people had a lot to share about their experiences. 33.8k comments later, the answers are in right below, and it will surely put some much-loved all-American things into a very different European perspective.
#22
I thought the gap in bathroom stall doors was a myth until I visited the US. Didn’t get privacy for my five-day stay. How do you s**t when someone can look you in the eye?!
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174points
#23
Seeing an 80 year old woman working behind the register at a supermarket
171points
#24
The general weirdness surrounding alcohol. Us Brits went for a drink at lunchtime once and our American friends were referring us to AA
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166points
#25
The choices of cereal at the breakfast in the hotel all had at least 20% sugar.
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165points
#26
Australian here.
I did a lot of hiking in America around Cali and the south west. My first comment is how amazing your national parks are, backed up by an organised park service. I haven’t seen camp sites in Australia half as organised as yours.
Second was how cheap food is! as i was road tripping I originally planned to cook for myself out the back of my van. But honestly it was cheaper to eat at Denny’s, where I only had to hit breakfast and dinner and I was set for the day - the portion sizes were huge.
Third. Wtf is with your toilets! They are filled to the brim with water, and your poo just sorta floats around until you flush where it then goes around in circles until it goes down the drain. My first few poops in your great nation was really unsettling. But I got used to it by the end.
Fourth. The disparity between rich and poor. Like you see it in Australia a between suburbs bit - but it was just so pronounced in America.
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164points
#27
When in Boston someone realised we were British and came over to have a conversation:
"Oh my god, I have a friend in England. She lives in London. Do you know her?"
Hmm, there are 9 million people who live in London, and 65 million in the UK. The chance of me knowing one individual is quite remote!
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162points
#28
The amount of homeless people. People straight-up walking past an elderly woman living on the streets to get to the 7-Eleven.
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161points
#29
I saw a woman put sugar in her coke at Ihop for breakfast. I've been told that's gross even for other Americans.
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149points
#30
Indoors feels colder than being naked in the winter
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145points
#31
Went to Mc Donalds and ordered what i always order. But it tasted completely different. And fanta was just weird orange juice Syrup.
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140points
#32
The sheer size of the place is amazing. Each state is its own little country. I lived there for 7 years and visited some different places, and each time I crossed a state line it was like crossing a border in Europe — everything was different again.
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136points
#33
How low down the toilets are compared to here in the UK. Went to sit on one, dropped as I thought I'd missed the darned thing then felt like I'd broken my ass on impact. It's like missing the bottom step of the stairs, but even worse.
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134points
#34
During my first visit, I was astonished at the number of small airports and incredible number of small aircraft. So much freedom to fly across a vast country. Amazing.
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129points
#36
Movies set in New York prepare you for everything except the smell of [poop].
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124points
#37
I was going to count the number of American flags I saw on my two weeks in Florida.
I gave up on the ride from Miami Airport to South Beach.
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112points
#38
Jay walking and the lack of pavement/sidewalk on many roads. I found it so hard to just get from one place to another.
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108points
#39
1. You guys do not seem to have have touch and go card payment systems. A lot of places still rely on signatures.
2. Almost all food tastes sweet, including bread.
3. Credit history anywhere outside of the US isn’t considered “real” and will not hep prove you’re a real person when you want to open a bank account.
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106points
