53 Times Americans Were Surprised By British Things
The UK and the USA may share a language (mostly) in common, but when it comes to a number of cultural customs, the Atlantic Ocean seems like the smallest thing separating them.
Whether it's their unique accent that somehow carries over into their typing, their obsession with tea, or the fact that they put baked beans on their toast, Brits certainly have a way of making those of us on the Western side of the world scratch our heads with confusion. That's not to say that Americans don't have quirks of their own, but here at Bored Panda, we think Great Britain deserves some special recognition this time around.
Check out the top British moments that left Americans completely stumped below, and be sure to vote for the ones that you're still trying to understand as well.
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I am from the US and I have thought the same thing ( why do we call it math when it should be maths) and always assumed I was just overthinking. Then I learned that Brits use maths and now I feel less foolish. Also, I love eagle fucker. Laughed out loud on that.
Us British can sneak up on you like a ninja in the night or even an iceberg in open water
Translation: Friend it's hard to explain, it's just like one day you will be with your friends having a look in a sports shop (called JD) and you might fancy the curry offer that's on at the local pub (called Wetherspoons) but your friend Calum, who is a legend and awesome will be like "Guys let's go to Nando's (a resturant chain in the UK, cheap and good tasting food, hence it feeling a bit cheeky) instead." and you'll think "Great idea. Let's go for it."
That's probably because they never had to become an independent country.
Why is that so weird to Americans? You know what I find weird? That Americans make everything sickly sweet and have an unhealthy relationship with Maple Syrup. On bacon? Really people?
If you youtube Anglophenia she explains why there are two taps. They didnt want the hot water being contaminated by the cold water as they had seperate tanks. This was back in the day, they just do it now as nostalgia thing.
That doesn't happen anymore though and they still build houses with sinks like this. It's ridiculous... I can't wait to get rid of mine and stop wasting my hand like a bloody idiot swingin for one tap to the other
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It's either winter is coming or I am the blood of the dragon, mate.
The hot water comes from a tank where it's heated, meaning it's not safe to drink.The cold comes from a filtered plant so u can drink it.
If you want to drink the water, just turn on the cold water only. And by the way the hot water before being heated comes from the same filtered plant, doesn't it... so it is clean already. When heated the heat should kill any bacteria in there if any at all.
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I am still traumatised by this thing after almost 6 years of living in the UK.
I thought this was just old-fashioned taps all over the world. Do they still install these into new bathrooms? That's madness if they do.
Here's an enviromental friendly idea: cap the drain, fill the sink with your desired temperature, use the water that you need. That will use less water than running it. I understand you will not find this comfortable, but is just a matter of getting used to it. I have gotten used to running just the ammount of water I need, but I see most people always open the valve full way, even if they just want to get ther hands a little wet. Now people from some states in the US can tell you how precious this resource is. Everybody took it for granted not long ago.
I guess I must be the only person on the planet that finds this perfectly normal 🤔
This is in some public bathrooms. They suck, but I can say they exist all over
We used to have taps like that, and I'm sure old buildings still do if they haven't been renovated. I'm NOT sentimental about fixtures.
I grew up in an old apartment in Chicago and our bathroom sink had faucets like these but much older looking.
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It was really the other way round; not contaminating the cold (drinking) water with the water from the hot tank, which was stored in a tank (usually in the loft) until used, and was therefore not drawn straight off the mains supply. Originally, the hot water tanks were not very secure and might even get contaminated with loft 'creatures' (think - the odd dead mouse, leaves etc.) as these were old houses and old fashioned tanks. Separate taps (faucets) kept the drinking water supply clean. I recall this clearly from my childhood, my mum telling me not to drink from the hot tap. Obviously nowadays hot water tanks are secure and all the water is drinkable. It was a public health issue back then, and it worked! Many older houses still have old wash basins and taps, but in a modern house you would only see one tap.
My mother told me never to drink the hot water because of leeching from the lead pipes, since even brand new pipes are made with lead,, but based on the other comments I’m seeing, you might be correct.
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Cold water for cleaning ones teeth. Hot water for washing ones face or hair. It's not difficult.
America use to have this back in the day, if you go to a house or building pre-1940's you will still see this.
I grew up in a house in the USA built in 1837 and they were not like that.
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One for hot and one for cold??? Sorry again left, going to burn you now lol
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do Americans not have this? I literally cannot imagine washing my hands and not feeling my skin burn off...
Was to the UK a summer ago and yes saw many of these also on bathtubs too! Has to do with the way the plumbing was set up many, many years ago.
because youre suppose to fill the basin first and wash with that. well back in the day at least. long before "america" was even a thing.
In the 80's-90's, I lived in an older wooden house in Cali that had separate taps. But I agree with other comments that hot water usually isn't filtered so it's not safe to drink.There are cases of brain eating bacteria in like Louisiana where people die from using a Nettie pot. So yah I still kind of stay away from using hot water for certain things.
It used to be common in the US too. My dorm room was not en suite, but had a sink in the corner with separate taps.
America also has two water taps. One for hot and one for cold. It's according to the bathroom and/or kitchen. Not everybody has cold and hot water coming out of one tap.
it is because when British people wash up or shave, they usually run the water into that bowl shaped thing called a wash basin (why else would that be there?) the hot and cold water are then mixed to the users desired temperature and then the washing or shaving proceeds from there...
Because they can. I have separate taps in my bathrooms & kitchen. My family & I have never scalded ourselves. Yes, I live in the USA. And yes, the TAPS were bought @ Home Depot. Faucets are called taps in the UK. And no, I do not have any explanation as to the different words.
I'm American and I've had these...in a house in America. Pittsburgh! (Yes it was an older place, but still. It was in 2009.)
Fill up your hands with cold water, fill it up with hot water and you're good to go! The only way I could cope while in England ;)
WTF, We have that in America too. Older building maybe, i remember them from back in the 80's.
There were plenty of older American apartments and houses that had separate tap too, not just a Brit thing In Days Gone By...
I have this in my British bathroom built in the 90s. I ask myself why the previous owners choose it, every single day. My four year old complains the hot tap is too hot, and the cold tap too cold. I could replace it, but need to replace the sink too. Then I consider replacing the bathroom suite, think of the expense, and change my mind again to put up with it for a bit longer... New bathrooms generally have mixer taps these days. Unless they are styled to look old fashioned.
Because you can drink the water from the cold tap if it's linked from the mains supply!
still have this, use the hot tap if we need to soak something in the sink don't see why its such an issue
This is answered by a very young person, obviously. Everyone used to have two taps.
Back in the old days even America had these taps too. I can remember them from my grade school where they had them.
Actually I like it. Live in Europe many years ago and I did not think it odd. I did think it odd when I got back to states that we only had one spigot.
Because a lot of their buildings are old and have old plumbing (must also have been solid workmanship when originally constructed, because you still find a lot of sinks like this). In newer construction, you will find what Americans consider "normal" sinks. In 1988 I stayed at a brand new hotel in Leeds and I thought "Great! They'll have new sinks with proper plumbing." When I got to my room I did indeed find a sink in the bathroom with a single faucet, however upon closer inspection I found that there were two separate pipes discharging water through the single faucet. One for hot water and the other for cold. Better than the two faucet set-up but not quite in the Modern Age.
Brits don't like newfangled things. Originally, you poured water into the basin and then washed your hands in there. Today, this is considered gross so you turn on both tabs, put some cold water into your hands and then some hot. Yes, it'S totally idiotic, but people STILL install it that way all the time!!!
I love these. England feels like Hogwarts, while the US is the messed up modern world. And don't get me started on Florida ...
From what I heard, the hot water is not drinkable in UK but I don't know if that applies generally. I was always told to plug the sink and mix the hot and cold if I want to wash my face or whatever. Which is fucking idiotic. Especially as a cleaner I hate these sinks because I often need to rinse my cloth under clear running water and I need it warm, not freezing or boiling. But it's fun to come home after a year or so in England. I always stare at our normal taps like it's an alien thing then, or something completely from future, worried to use them because they migt disappear :D
some old schools here in the states still have their vintage sinks biiig deal
And you thought us Brits were straight laced and uppity. Mr Blobby is proof, do not mess with the Brits if you don't want the nightmares Freddy Kruger gets when sick.
Due to the common market trade agreements, there was something of a campaign a while back for food terminology in Europe: They basically wanted all British chocolate renaming as chocolate candy because it wasn't pure enough by their standards (too much milk fat and sugar, not enough cocoa).
Actually all over Europe it's pretty common to have your washing machine in the kitchen. If the bathroom is too small and there is no extra room, where else would you put it? Also in some apartments the water/drain pipes for washing machines are installed in the kitchen only, so you really have no other choice.
We've been watching Vera, The Loch, Unforgotten, Happy Valley, Scott & Bailey & Shetland and have added so many great new insults and idioms to our speech! It's fun yelling knobhead and calling each other cow. I think I have developed a Scottish, Yorkshire, Puerto Rican accent.
That reminds me of something I read. In germany the waterworks have to perpare for the breaks during important football games.
Makes sense, but.... I'm sure U.S.A. doesn't have the same accent in each state, just like the U.K. accents vary by countries and regions. Even in one single city of London you can differentiate between particular accents depending on the part of the city, no? Sorry, I'm an overthinker. *shrug*
Im british and have never seen, heardor tasted this. And i think it sounds terrible
so... you know those little plastic packs that hot dogs come in have a salty liquid in them, right? They're not vacuum sealed in there all dry.
Yeah, Americans have this weird view of the British. In their TV shows EVERY British person either speaks in a really posh voice or is a cockney. WE DON'T TALK LIKE THAT!
when I first moved to the UK and switched on the TV I learned that this is a show about people who have some complaint that's "too embarrassing to show your doctor". But yeah, let's ALL have a look at that on national TV, why not.
It's correctly pronounced 'aitch', without the aspirant. https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/aitch
