“Red Solo Party Cups”: 40 Things Locals Don’t Think Twice About That Foreigners Find Incredible
Interview
Aside from getting to cuddle cute cats and eat delicious food, travel is one of the best things about being a human being. Travel expands our minds, exposes us to new ideas, and shows us just how different some corners of the planet can truly be, compared to back home. There’s nothing like going on an adventure to make your heart sing!
Redditor u/scoopy-frog sparked a wholesome and interesting discussion after asking internet users to share some of the things that are pretty much mundane in their countries, but foreigners think are utterly amazing. We’ve collected some of the best insights to share with you, Pandas, and a lot of them are related to wildlife, not just culture and customs!
We got in touch with the author of the awesome thread, and they were happy to tell us all about their travel philosophy. You'll find Bored Panda's full interview with u/scoopy-frog below, so be sure not to miss it.
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Oh man, one of the absolute cutest things I've ever seen was a work friend of mine at the time who was visiting from Australia. He came into work that day totally beaming because he had seen a squirrel on his way there. I was very confused until he told me they don't have squirrels in Australia. He went on and on about how cute they were and I told him I had a surprise for him when we went to lunch. I walked him a few blocks up the road to a local college campus where the squirrels are so fearless they will literally come and take food out of your hands. They'll even sit on your shoulders so long as you sit still and feed them. This man was absolutely *geeked* when I called over a group of squirrels with some crackers from my lunch. I thought his head was going to explode when I told him to stand still and sat a cracker on his shoulder which a squirrel happily climbed up him to get. He legit froze and started tearing up. I was worried he was afraid or something and I asked him if he was okay, this man looks at me with the biggest smile on his face and says in the most adorable, quietest little voice as to not scare the squirrel on his shoulder away, "This is the single best day of my life!" Squirrels, of all things. Lmao.
Bored Panda reached out to redditor u/scoopy-frog to hear about the inspiration behind the intriguing thread, as well as to shed some light on what they value the most about travel and what to keep in mind when you go abroad.
"I was inspired to ask the question because my husband is from Brazil. When I met him, he had only been in America for 3 years, and a lot of our early conversations were about our different cultures," the OP opened up to us that this topic has long been on their mind.
"I loved the discovery and the way the conversations diversified my worldview, and wondered what perspectives people from other countries might have," the author explained that they were very curious to hear what some of the other Reddit users had to share on this question.
Humming birds. I live in Palm Springs, CA and was visiting the Moorten Botanical Gardens when I overheard someone with a British accent say, "OMG is that a HUMMINGBIRD?" I wasn't aware they don't have hummingbirds where they live. They were just astounded and amazed watching it flit around, stop and hover, then move on.
Snow. I had a Mexican roommate in Chicago who had never been snowed on before. She put her arms out, spun around, and squealed, “its just like the movies!”
I get snowed in every year, still love it, the quiet, the isolation, it’s so peaceful 😀❄️ I can totally understand folk who’ve never seen / experienced snow being excited by it.
We were interested to hear the redditor's thoughts as to what makes for a truly good traveler and what everyone should probably keep in mind when interacting with various cultures abroad. The key here—as in most areas of life—is having respect and being flexible.
"Be respectful. Remember that you are the foreigner, and your location isn't required to conform to what you're comfortable with," u/scoopy-frog stressed the fact that it's up to the individual to adapt.
"Take the opportunity to go outside yourself. If something seems extraordinary, don't be afraid to question it to learn more, but be mindful that you're experiencing someone else's way of life."
Opossums. In America they’re big, light colored, and pink nosed, with a hairless skinny tail. The Indian workers saw one and ran over with their arms wide exclaiming, “I just saw a mouse and it was **this big**!”
Free public electric BBQs. In Australia, at many beaches and parks, there are free BBQs. They are nearly always clean and work very well.
Everyone uses them and cleans them after they finish cooking.
Castles, castles everywhere. Wales had the most castles per square mile of any country. Just on the Gower peninsular (which is about 70 square miles) there are 6 castles (or castle ruins). They’re just part of the landscape here, some are in city centres, overlooking marshes or beaches or up on top of hillsides. I find them both endlessly fascinating and simultaneously just part of the backdrop.
Wales is beautiful, but please do not expect to see Hogwarts if you visit.
However, there are lots of people around the world who have never even taken a single step abroad. Bored Panda asked u/scoopy-frog what advice they'd give someone who's scared of travel.
Here's what they told us: "No matter where you go, there will be someone you'll connect with. Humanity's deepest instinct is for connection and camaraderie, and even cultural or language barriers won't hinder positive interactions and experiences."
The OP continued: "It's jarring to be taken out of what's familiar, but what will be discovered is beyond imagination."
Travel is much more than just about the amazing sights, nature, and architecture. Sure, they're an essential part of any trip. But what truly turns a trip into an adventure is the people we interact with.
Raccoons. Some of my co-workers are from Japan, and one was quizzing me about the best way for his sons to get to see a raccoon when they got there.
“Visit a restaurant dumpster just before dawn? Tear open a box of kitten chow on the back patio?”
“They like cat food?”
“Yes, the like cat food and if you actually do that you will see 6 raccoons the following evening…”
I understand that Japan later developed an invasive raccoon problem….so not quite the novelty.
Six months later my co-worker asked “where do skunks live?”
“In the woods.”
“Exactly where in the woods?”
“I think they dig burrows at the base of….wait a minute, are you going to take your sons skunk-watching?”
Nightless nights, reindeer, some people really like our metal music.
Our enormous parking lots.
Americans don't even blink at a 3 acre parking lot. The Europeans are astonished, every time.
To put it simply, people are social animals and they need deep, meaningful relationships to thrive. An 85-year Harvard study conclusively found that it's not wealth or our careers that truly make us happy, healthy, and living longer—it's the positive relationships we have in life.
So it only makes sense that you try to connect to as many locals as possible during your travels. And many of them will be happy to connect with you, in turn, provided that you show them and their culture the respect they deserve.
Tumbleweeds I live in Texas, had a friend from Sweden lose his s**t when he saw one blowing across a field
A Coca-Cola delivery truck was in the parking lot where I was working. There was a couple from the UK that was very excited about it. They took selfies next to the truck and the driver let them sit in the driver's seat for more pictures. Seemed like a real treat for them.
Coca Cola branded trucks are rare in the U.K., they are associated with the Christmas adverts over here ‘the holidays are coming etc etc’.
Going abroad can be overwhelming at first. Though, if you already know a bit about the local culture and you’re willing to learn the language, things are far easier.
Theory and practice are very different beasts, however. Learning about a country from articles and videos won’t fully prepare you for the nuances of actually living there. That’s why having a friendly local (or two!) to help you out is so important. They can clue you in about the various nuances and faux pas of everyday life.
Parrots. I live in Melbourne and have had American friends quite startled by rainbow lorikeets, thinking they were escaped pets or something.
Old buildings. 50% of the people in my city live in buildings build before 1800.
Singapore - our crosswalk buttons have a pad that elderly people can tap their ID/bus card on to get more crossing time.
I've seen so many "amazing tech inventions that the whole world needs" tiktoks and they always feature them. I've only seen an elderly person use it once. Still neat though.
The sign of a good guide is that they’ll be aware of at least some of the common questions and problems that foreigners have upon arriving. We’re often so used to daily life that we forget how some ‘common sense’ things aren’t all that clear to others from abroad.
It’s only by changing our environments that we become acutely aware of all the things that we take for granted. Whether that’s orderly traffic, the super friendly local wildlife, or literal castles everywhere.
I asked a colleague from India what he found most interesting since moving to the US and he said the orderly traffic. He did a mind blown motion and everything.
There are a lot of things in India they do not have any organization. Trash removal is one of them.
The wildlife.
I don’t think I’ve met a tourist who didn’t have “see a koala” on their to-do list.
But I probably wouldn’t consider them mundane, because I get super excited and really happy when I see a koala and I live here.
“Mundane” would probably be kangaroos.
I held a koala once and it's breath smelled so strongly of eucalyptus, which I love, just not to eat. She was so gentle with me and sweet.
When it comes to interacting with wildlife—whether the raccoons in Japan or the opossums in the US—it’s absolutely essential that you respect the animals. To put it bluntly, you don’t want to harass them or make them feel unsafe. Don’t try to feed or touch the wildlife, unless you’re in an environment that explicitly allows these things.
Obviously don’t, under any circumstances, frighten or try to ride wild animals. Nor should you pick up animals just so you can snap a selfie for your social media pages. Keep a respectful distance and admire these beings from afar.
All the really old churches in Europe. I’m from the US, so buildings that are 400+ years old are really hard to come by. Over in the UK and France they’re just about a dime a dozen
A small village near me (rural Germany) has this beautiful small 9th century church, with the original wall paintings still intact. Fortunately suprisingly many pre-romanic (salic, ottonic...) buildings have survived the wars. The oldest remaining church in Germany that originally was built as such is probably the cathedral of Trier (late 4th century) - which is not that surprising, as it is in a city that is overflowing with .ancient Roman architecture. There is an older one in the same city, too (Trier Basilika, built around 370 A.D.), but that one was not a church orginally, so it probably does not count...
I married into a South African family...they are amused by how excited I, an American, get about guava and passion fruit flavored everything when we visit them. And the cheap, amazing, wines.
Confirming that they get very excited about squirrels and free refills when they visit here.
I am from Qld and I still get super excited over passionfruit and mango season 😆
When I went to Japan, all the rain gutters had aggressive crabs living in them. I thought that was the coolest thing ever!
The face of that crab looks like one of the green pigs from angry birds surely someone else sees it
Ibis. You can always tell the tourists by the way they take photos of them. The rest of us denigrate them (the birds, not the tourists!) as 'bin chickens'
I only recently learned that they were called Ibises. Been calling them bin chickens my whole life
I’ve lived in Florida my entire life, so alligators are just a thing that you see in the water and occasionally crossing the road. Well, today my wife and I went to the Alligator Farm zoo in St Augustine (it’s accredited, I checked) just to see what it’s like, and boy were there a lot of international travelers from Europe having their minds blown. Y’all really do act like a 7 year old seeing a real life dinosaur for the first time lol.
In New Zealand waiting while sheep are moved to a different paddock on a country road.
Tourists getting out of car taking pictures, whilst it's just basically a traffic jam to locals.
My husband is from Brazil and saw capybaras and golden tamarins regularly (apparently tamarins like chips), and it was so funny to him that I grew up seeing them as exotic and cool. On the flipside, he's taken pictures of things like Starbucks to send to his friends back in Brazil.
All You Can Eat buffets...but they are usually more horrified at our American excess and waste than finding it incredible
Back in Malaysia, I used to work with a Norway based company that will send their young and the brightest Analyst to work with us for 6 months. It must be amazing for them to work in Kuala Lumpur where from their company owned apartment the twin towers are in view, its sunny and warm throughout the year, food are cheap, fruits are plentiful and the city is alive and happening well until 4am everyday.
They always freak out (in a good way) when i bring them to a banana leaf restaurant (no plates, mixed curry rice are served on banana leaf) that you can only eat with your hands.
This is really for Americans from different states. In Ohio we have drive throughs where you can buy a six pack of beer without getting out of the car. My friend from Pennsylvania finds this utterly amazing
As a foreigner in SE Asia, I'm always very excited to see monitor lizards, much to the amusement of locals. In the UK, I kinda love how excited tourists get about Gregg's.
When our family members from other countries visit, I've noticed deer, turkeys, and coyotes blow their mind. A lot of the Safeways have sushi in the deli section, as well, and they've found it pretty crazy.
The distance for things is another huge point of wonderment and shock, as well. So many of our family and their friends don't believe us when we say you can't expect to go to Yellowstone and Yosemite in one day.
Baboons and monkeys. Damn things steal our lunch and the tourists run after them trying for a selfie. South Africa.
Getting naked together in a small room and beating ourselves and each other with twigs.
Temples in Taiwan. Every backroad has one. There's probably 6 or 8 within a 5 minutes walk from building. An American friend visited, and he was mind blown that one of my windows looks over some back alley temple.
I'll see if I can find a pic.
The size of the US. We had some German cousins visit a number of years ago. They were shocked by the driving distance between Las Vegas and Phoenix. They were terribly impressed with our favorite Chinese buffet. The idea of free drink refills was amazing. They were very good about putting us up in Berlin and I was grateful we could reciprocate.
Milk in bags.
Though, to be fair, I've heard it's incredible to other Canadians too, depending where they live.
Alligators, and gas station cuisine. Being originally from South Louisiana, gators are a regular thing. Visitors are astounded that people live among them.
Gas stations and restaurants sell fried gator tail, boudin, boiled crawfish, and great poboy sandwiches.
Red Solo Party Cups
Note: this post originally had 43 images. It’s been shortened to the top 40 images based on user votes.
Having world famous community members who are just going about their lives. Super common in California, but also in Olympic training areas, or in my case, in small town Maine. I lived 2-13 miles away from Stephen King for 5 years and saw him hundreds of times out and about, from the library to the grocery store.
I guess in Germany it's the old city centers for Americans and Asians. In summer they take pictures of my neighbourhood like it is Disney World.
Having world famous community members who are just going about their lives. Super common in California, but also in Olympic training areas, or in my case, in small town Maine. I lived 2-13 miles away from Stephen King for 5 years and saw him hundreds of times out and about, from the library to the grocery store.
I guess in Germany it's the old city centers for Americans and Asians. In summer they take pictures of my neighbourhood like it is Disney World.
