50 Of The Funniest Things Americans Have Been Told By People From Other Countries

To learn more about this topic, we got in touch with Angela Hanyak, an American expat and blogger currently based in Frankfurt, Germany. She was kind enough to have a chat with Bored Panda and share some of the funniest things she's heard people say about the United States.

"I live in Germany, and Germans are always asking me how Americans live with such bad bread," Angela says. "They're absolutely appalled at the white sandwich bread that is common in the United States. Here in Germany, there are so many bakeries selling freshly made bread, and Germans love darker breads made with rye flour. I guess this is less of a stereotype and more of an experience from their travels to the U.S. I can't tell you how many times I've heard that they loved their visit to the United States but hated the bread."

Aside from the bread, Angela says she's often asked why people drive such big trucks in the United States, and how they even fit on the road. "I'm used to large trucks and SUVs, but now that Europeans have pointed it out to me, I can't unsee it when I'm back home," the expat shared. "The trucks really are so big! You rarely see personal pick-up trucks in Europe, so I understand why this is a little confusing to them."

Next, we asked Angela if she thinks the stereotypes many people around the world believe about the U.S. are actually true. "I think that a lot of [them] are born of a little bit of truth," she told Bored Panda. "I've heard snide comments about Americans and guns or Americans needing their big screen TVs. And, of course, these are stereotypes, but there is a kernel of truth to them. I think Hollywood plays a huge role in how people view the United States, for better or worse."

So what's the best way to actually understand the United States and its culture? "Take a regional approach: the Deep South has its own food and music cultures, just like the upper Midwest does," Angela suggests. "And Texas is a cultural entity in itself!"

"The U.S. is such a big country, that the best way to actually learn about its culture is by focusing on one particular part of the country at a time," she continued. "If you're looking for a place to start, I think some of the best cultural cities in the U.S. are New Orleans, Nashville, Milwaukee, Kansas City, Chicago, New York, and San Francisco."

Finally, Angela added, "No country is a monolith, and that's certainly true for the United States! There's plenty of culture there, but yes, there's also a lot of stuff to roll your eyes at."