Different places in the world have different cultures and general outlooks on life. But we try to learn more about others and try to understand them so we can get along better. It just so happens that in some places, there is more interest about different people and in some places, there’s less of it.
Often the ones that are ridiculed for not knowing what’s happening in other places in the world are Americans. Bored Panda has a couple of articles in which we gathered lists of people poking fun at Americans. In this article you can see people joining a TikTok trend of sharing the dumbest things Americans have ever said to them and in this one you will find an assortment of screenshots of Americans being completely clueless.
But the people from the United States keep on surprising us and the stories of non-Americans meeting peculiar Americans are never-ending. Reddit user u/esq__ asked “Non-Americans of Reddit, what's the weirdest thing an American has said to you?” Nearly 12k people joined the discussion and they were sharing not only weird encounters but quite absurd questions you wouldn’t expect an adult to ask.
More info: Reddit
#1
"Why do you brits (I'm not British) call an elevator a lift when it goes both up and down?"
I responded that Americans didn't call an elevator a descendevator when it moves down.
Report
501points
#2
At customs in LAX:
Customs Agent: “Where are you from?”
Me: “Denmark”
CA:“Sir, please don’t lie about your nationality”
Me: “Excuse me?”
CA: “Denmark isn’t a real country, now please tell me your country of origin.”
Me: “Sir, you are literally holding my passport, which is from Denmark, in your hand. How can you sit there and tell me that my country doesn’t exist?!”
CA: “Sir, Denmark is a region of Sweden, and not a recognised independent nation”
The swedes would be fond of this encounter.
Report
497points
#3
I once had an american tell me I need to try the “real” Gouda cheese they have in the US because everything else was fake Gouda… I’m Dutch and actually lived near Gouda
Report
445points
#4
Talking about my SIL
“Do you look alike?” “no, she’s black” “You can’t say that!!!” “What should I call her then?” “African American” “But…. She’s British/Guyanese….”
Report
390points
#5
I’m British, was travelling in the states. Got talking to a guy at a bar while we’re waiting for service, and he recommended I try a pint of Guinness while in the US. He informed me they don’t sell Guinness in the UK.
I politely explained that they do indeed have Guinness in just about every pub in the UK. He disagreed, adding that he’s never been himself but his son in law went to London on business and told him so. I explained I’d lived in the UK including London my whole life. He looked at me lost in thought for a few moments, and said: “They don’t have Guinness there,” and walked away.
Report
389points
#6
I swear on my mothers life that this happened:
I was on a student exchange between my German school and a school in San Francisco in the late 90s.
When the Americans came to visit us, we had a welcome party for them at a friends place. That friend had a dog, and at some point he gave the dog a command in German. The dog obeyed, and one of the American kids asks how we managed to teach German to the dog.
He wasn’t joking either, he seemed convinced that all pets are somehow born with knowledge of the English language, but all other languages need to be taught to them.
Report
373points
#7
When an American asked me what it's like to have an accent. They thought that they had no accent and their voice was 'default' basically
Report
357points
#8
“I don’t need affordable healthcare. I need freedom.”
This is an actual quote.
Anyway, the full cost of my kid’s birth including all scans, midwife, obstetrics appointment, labour, innoculations, heel stick and follow-up antenatal was $180.
Report
356points
#9
I live in the southern hemisphere. Talking to an American online in December, and I mentioned it was summer for me. She kept asking which month I was in (kept insisting it must be June) and couldn't seem to wrap her head around the idea that it was simultaneously December and summer in the southern hemisphere.
Report
352points
#11
An Austrian friend and I were told about about this magical thing they have in America called Fireworks and how we should go see it at least once in our lives.
Report
339points
#12
Canadian here. I was 7 and in Florida telling my new also 7 year old friend about our money system. I told her we don't have dollar or two dollar bills they are coins and called a loonie and a toonie. She goes and asks her parents and they told her I was lying.
Report
321points
#13
"Ya'll are part of the USA, you just have a different flag 'sall."
Umm... no. I assure you Canada us not part of the US.
Report
311points
#14
I was asked if France is part of the United Kingdom. When I tried explaining him what the United Kingdom is, he told me England is no longer part of the UK because of Brexit.
Report
304points
#15
"Speak english this is america!" It was online, but yeah. The sheer stupidity struck me hard.
Report
297points
#16
Met a cool group in Belgrade, they were very surprised they could have beer at 21. That was so sincere, I kinda felt sorry for them in a good way. Decided to be a good host and show them the REAL good time. Took them parties, river clubs, cave clubs, found them drugs (they asked) ...all in all we had a pretty epic week, the kind of young people of 21 can make for themselves in capital city.
Somehow the conversation went to God, I mention I don't really believe in that, and they were so f*****g pissed. Literally, instant change. Whole group started explaining me Jesus stuff, angrily, they were disappointed and angry they spent a week with me.
I was so f*****g surprised, I mean we drinked, drugged, and did a lot of s**t Bible I presume doesn't approve. Couldn't held a conversation that evening, couldn't change subject, they kept pushing. Aggressively.
Went to the bathroom, went home.
Report
296points
#17
"How can Canadians offer free healthcare? Why would any doctors want to work for free? This is slavery!"
Report
292points
#18
Had a black american assume that I was "african-american also" because I'm black. I had to explain to him that the ethnically specified title "african-american" is only used to describe black people from america, not black people from other countries, and that black people from other countries are not specifically labeled by heritage, race or ethnicity. Afterward I revealed to him that I am actually bahamian.
Despite all that explaining, he still proceeded to ask "Oh! so you're an african-bahamian then?" I felt the vein on the side of my head twinge a little lol.
Edit: The term is not "african-bahamian" because I am not inherently attached to african citizenship or heritage. This term would be used for someone who is actually from africa, but is also a bahamian/ vice versa, OR someone who is closely attached to that heritage (say, a bahamian whose parent/s were african.) Over here we would just say that we are Bahamians of african decent, but only if the topic came up.
290points
#19
"How long did you take you learn to use metric instead of normal measurements?"
He genuinely didn't understand that metric was a system we actually used every day, we weren't constantly having to mentally convert meausrements to feet or pounds to understand how big they really were.
286points
#20
'I didn't know it was this cold in Cuba' we are in Spain. Spain, Europe. Stupid f****r came to university here on a scholarship for six months and didn't even know which country was coming into nor thought it was strange how long the flight was, he also didn't think about googling the place to see where it was, the weather... dunno, INFORMATION about the place he was going to live for six months. Only packed flip flops, tshirts and shorts. We're in the North of Spain, we have UK weather. He had to spend quite a bit for winter clothes in October because he had nothing to wear. He was also bummed because he couldn't find tacos here (you can)
Report
284points