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11 “Culture Shocks” That This New Zealander Experienced After Relocating To The US
We live in a world where a lot of things we learn through books, movies, and the internet. But one of the most common and exciting ways to learn more about other cultures is by traveling. For a lot of people, this became an interesting and eye-opening experience, so a lot of them like to share what they have seen and heard, and compare this experience with how things are run “at home.” Bored Panda already covered some of the stories of people who decided to share their cultural shocks, one of these stories you can find here.
When people talk about their travels, very often a place they refer to as culturally shocking is the United States. One of the recent is examples is TikTok user Jazz Thornton who started sharing what things she finds weird and different in the US. The woman who is from New Zealand relocated from her country to the United States and has already become viral on TikTok with her funny and entertaining videos.
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School At 7.30 Am
You'll start school at 7:30 in the morning. Are teenagers functioning at 7:30 in the morning, because where I'm from, we start school at 9 AM every day. That means that you have to get up at like, 6 AM something. I wasn't getting out of bed until like 7:30 AM. Who decided that teenagers work best at 7:30 AM?
'i Really Wish I Had An Accent'
So the other day I was on a conversation with an American, and she looked me in the eyes and goes, 'man, I really wish I had an accent. I just speak normally.' Which I was like, 'ma'am, you do realize that the USA is not a main character, right?' You do have an accent to absolutely everyone who is not American.
I love the U.S BECAUSE one of the reasons that i love it here is that most U.S citizens have an accent. Californians have their own accent, Southern accents, New York and New Jersey accents. I love hearing them all
It's Really Expensive To Have A Baby In The USA
It cost about $50,000 to birth the baby. These children are putting you in debt. In New Zealand hospitals are completely free. So you could be in there for like four months afterwards and you wouldn't have to pay a thing. We do pay taxes to obviously cover that.
I'm so glad I'm Canadian. I'd rather pay .13cents on top of the price tag amount then pay for medical direct. I've had 2 kids. They have had surgeries, I have had several surgeries(disabled) and long term stay admitted to hospital(almost dying twice) all my ultrasounds, MRIs, PET scans, xrays, blood work, infertility treatments, eye exams, ER visits, every single specialist doctor plus every GP visit(including house visits) midwife appointments, at home follow up after delivery..free parental or breastfeeding support etc.. all of it, I wouldn't be able to pay that out of pocket. No matter how much taxes I have paid or will pay in life, it wouldn't come anywhere near the bills that a America charges. Oh and kids have free dental to 25 too. Some cosmetic stuff is covered depending on the cause/effects too
Jazz is a well-known mental health activist film director and book author. The 26-year-old woman’s work is related to spreading awareness and educating people about sensitive mental health problems that many individuals suffer from. For this reason, her and her friend started an organization called Voices of Hope. Jazz tries and enjoys encouraging people to believe in themselves, to have a hope that things will get better. She likes to remind this to people through her videos.
The Price That Is Displayed Is Not The Final Price
Like today I went and bought a dress and the price tag that I saw on it when I actually went to go check out, it was like $10 more, because they add tax on after. And then when you're in restaurants and stuff, it's the taxes added and the tipping is added so like nothing is the normal price. Like if that happened to me in New Zealand and I went to pay for something and it was like more than what the price tag was, I'd be like, 'I'm sorry, what?'
Why there is not an option to write at least something like "10 $ + x$ tax = xy price"
Because then shoppers could see the price and realize how expensive it is - hide as many costs as possible and customers will flock to your 'great deals'. This is why we have the tipping system, for example. Also look into car dealership fees. A $30,000 car will usually cost you over $35,000 after they add stuff like a $200 charge for 'maintenance' on this brand new car, or $700 to pay for the costs of the delivery truck that stocked their inventory. Shopping is not a convenience for the buyer, it's an opportunity for the seller.
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In Sweden the tax is baked in with the price, so if the price for a dress is 250SEK (25~$) then it is just that. What a crappy system not include tax, any other countries who does this or only America?
Its actually illegal in NZ-the Consumer Guarantees Act makes it clear that goods must be sold at the advertised price. Also-As we are all adults its pretty easy to work out the GST
We have 2 tax values: usual goods(7,7%) and necessary goods(2,5%). Flowers are necessary. Tampons aren’t. There is still a long way.
Lots, if not most, countries have a tiered sales/VAT tax like that. There are always some odd items in both categories but most countries still manage to display the full price incl the correct local tax.
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The $45.50 is a part of the tag price suggested by the manufacturer. $49.99 is the pricing tag applied by the shop. Usually, those tags are placed over the suggested prices, whoever tagged this item just probably didn't care....which knowing the horror of working retail, probably they didn't.
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Capitalism b******t is rampant. Lots of place have better consumer protection than US. If a business can make you believe you're paying less, they'll do it. "Sweet! It's just 4$!" for an item at 4.99+tx.
In Minnesota, there are no taxes on food or clothing. Where were you?
Funny how in America there are so many taxes and healthcare is still not free
There are states that you don't pay any sales tax, meaning the price you see is the price you pay.
The tax doesn't bother me as much. The "tip culture" for me is insane tho! You shift the responsibility of paying a living wage from the employer to the client. This is freaking bananas! I'm so glad in Europe this is different...
Canada and the USA have tax exempt status for the First Nations. For there to be a pay-the-price only on the tag, there'd have to be 2 listed prices and as in both countries, the lowest price on the tag is the one they have to sell it at, there'd be chaos and confusion. Not to mention the problems at the cashier as the tax exempt cards have to be shown BEFORE the sale (in most areas) or they pay the taxes. I've seen people flip out because they had to pay taxes on a dollar item because the store didn't honor the tax exempt card if it wasn't presented BEFORE the cashier started ringing up the purchase.
Unless you live in a state like Delaware - we have no sales tax on most stuff.
With this one, its more because things in different shopping categories can be taxed at different rates. They can even be taxed differently depending on WHERE you are. And not just state-to-state, there are things called 'economic development zones' where the local sales tax can be different. US tax code, be it income tax, sales tax, gas tax....it's all nuts. The absurd number of taxes we have on so many different things is next to impossible to break down and understand.
The United States is NOT a SOCIALIST nation. Taxes are collected and are supposed to be used to sustain social programs and infrastructure. Sales taxes are imposed but an individual has a CHOICE as to purchase or not. It would work better if there were not so much misuse and corruption. Kind of like how YOU CHOSE to leave New Zealand and come to the U.S. How would you feel if those that choose to go to New Zealand complained or made fun of your customs, food, and socialistically supported benefits and very high rate of taxes.?
you'd have a hard time in NZ. usa tho has pretty much everything wrong with it, apart from some lovely people. sort your country out dear
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Because the sales tax rate can change just crossing the street. Different states, counties, and cities can all have different sales tax.
And each could display it like all the other countries do.
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On the other hand, you never get to know how much you're being charged by the government. They conveniently hide their share of the take.
This is very useful when I was a kid. I was given a budget to spend on books and toys. When I bought something with this budget, I only had to worry about the price tag, nothing else. I was able to dodge those taxes.
We get that there are different taxes in different states. It is not entirely dissimilar in Europe where you can freely move from one country to another with different levels of tax. But we display the prices with tax included, so that if you go into a store with $10 you can actually figure out just how much you can buy with it. There is nothing to stop them displaying both price including and excluding tax, but they don't. Unless Americans are all maths (sorry math) geniuses, I really don't see why they enjoy making people's lives difficult.
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Tipping
Tipping is literally not a thing where I'm from, like, again, America with the unnecessary math. How do I calculate this? What am I supposed to give someone? In New Zealand, the minimum wage is $20. That's for an adult. In America, it's $7.25. Now, keeping in mind that our currency is a lot weaker than America, it equals out to be $14.10 in minimum wage, which is double the minimum wage here. But also do people make more money from tips?
Tipping needs to be eliminated. I go to a small coffee shop in Toronto where the woman picks up the tip jar and shakes it while you are paying. To show me hey look at the tip jar. It lasts only a second but it is very off putting. Tipping is getting out of hand. I am already paying for a service. I live on a budget and getting haircuts and takeout coffee should not feel like pressure to tip. Pay a living wage
American Portion Sizes
So I'm on week two here and I discovered very early on that a lot of your portion sizes, like, the large is a very large. I'm not used to it where I'm from. So, I was like, was this so big? So tonight, right? I was like okay, I'm going to get a small. This is what I got tonight. Please, is someone pranking me? This is the size of my palm. This is my noodle box.
It's wild and depends on the restaurant. If you want big portions you can eat for days, BBQ and those Greek family restaurants serve absurd amounts of food for the price you'll spend. Chain restaurants vary widely.
Dogs In Stores
So you're telling me that here in America, you can bring your dogs into stores with you? Like, guys yesterday I was at H&M, right? And it was like four dogs in the store. I am so here for it. This is not a thing that we see in New Zealand and I need it. As long as I can pet all of the dogs.
The woman also uploads goofy and lighthearted content on her TikTok platform. One of these is related to her relocation to the United States. In her TikToks, the woman doesn't hide her surprise at how different some of the things in the US are. It might seem that some of these things are already well known. Not knowing how to tip waiters in a restaurant and having to pay for having a baby at the hospital are only a couple of these examples. The woman also shared some of the lesser known facts about when American kids start their school day and that people are allowed to bring their dogs to stores.
Which one of these things do you find weird? Or maybe you know something that wasn’t shared on this list? Don’t forget to leave your thoughts in the comments down below!
Scam Calls
I got an American number not too long ago and on the day that I did I had like four scam calls in one day. And now they just- every day, multiple times a day, is just scam calls. I think in New Zealand I got like one scam call every two months.
Burger And Sandwich
Can someone please explain to me why they call this a burger, but they call this a sandwich. If it's beef it's a burger. If it's chicken, it's a sandwich, but they're both in a bun.
Ground beef is called hamburger. In the 30’s it was called a hamburger sandwich, but then it was shortened.
Biscuits And Gravy
All I'm imagining right now is that kind of thing. That beautiful biscuit cover in meat sauce. It just looks nasty.
Spray Cheese
This does not exist where I'm from. I've been told to eat it only with Ritz crackers so you have put your thumb on it.
I remember back when Bored Panda used to focus on creative stuff, like artists, and the like. Now it's just tiktok and reddit reposts...
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How many more of these posts? We've read similar many many times! Was hoping for something different to be told but no! All the same
If at least once in a while it was about another country than the US
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Can I point out that all of New Zealand fits into the US 37 times, so, yeah, we have variations across the US even some Americans will never see in person. Get. Over. It. Can we now see cute animals, artwork, and maybe Brutus & Pixie comics to get both?
Another New Zealander here. I see this person has already adopted the intensely irritating habit of unnecessarily saying "like" in every damned utterance.
This chick just seems stupid and probably a bad representative for NZ.
I'm not American, but change the frigging record... We read the same lists over and over.
I am assuming she is asking these questions in a video because she nobody in America wants to talk to her.
Not an astute summary. You probably think.Lorde's second two albums have merit on nationality alone.
I remember back when Bored Panda used to focus on creative stuff, like artists, and the like. Now it's just tiktok and reddit reposts...
Load More Replies... How many more of these posts? We've read similar many many times! Was hoping for something different to be told but no! All the same
If at least once in a while it was about another country than the US
Load More Replies... Can I point out that all of New Zealand fits into the US 37 times, so, yeah, we have variations across the US even some Americans will never see in person. Get. Over. It. Can we now see cute animals, artwork, and maybe Brutus & Pixie comics to get both?
Another New Zealander here. I see this person has already adopted the intensely irritating habit of unnecessarily saying "like" in every damned utterance.
This chick just seems stupid and probably a bad representative for NZ.
I'm not American, but change the frigging record... We read the same lists over and over.
I am assuming she is asking these questions in a video because she nobody in America wants to talk to her.
Not an astute summary. You probably think.Lorde's second two albums have merit on nationality alone.
