The truth is in the eye of the beholder. For Americans, this means endless free refills, red solo cups and supermarket aisles dedicated to an entire kingdom of cereals, sour and crunchy, salty and sweet, family boxes and portion size. For Europeans, this is something they only see during Netflix TV series while shamelessly devouring entire seasons on rainy Sundays.
But in order to find out what cultural differences really stand out as major when comparing the American lifestyle and the rest of the world, one has to look at what people themselves have to say. So we compiled a list of the best answers that reveal what’s totally normal in the US but looks very out-of-this-world in other countries below.
If you have something to add, please hit us in the comment section! And in case you’re in the mood for more culture shocks, check out our previous article on an American living in Italy who shares the incredible USA vs. Italy culture differences she has experienced.
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The idolization of politicians. They are public servants, similar to a courthouse clerk or a city hall coordinator. They are not rock stars. You dont need to scream their name, buy their merch, fully commit your life to them and believe everything they say. Just... treat them like public servants. Sure, they get power and position, but hold them accountable when they abuse it. Dont let corporations and politicians take over, the political system is created by the people, FOR the people. It just... boggles the mind.
When you are 18 years old, you can be shipped to a foreign country to kill humans, but you are not allowed to drink alcohol.
and most likely you gotta go kill those other people because they are a bit different and don't believe in drinking alcohol
To find out more about what an American living abroad had to say about cultural differences, Bored Panda reached out to Kacie Burns, actor and dancer from Canton, Michigan, who has been documenting her daily adventures after moving to live in Florence, Italy. Kacie has a whopping 479.6K followers on her TikTok, where she has amassed 12.9M likes for her fun and lighthearted videos.
Having lived in Europe for quite some time now, Kacie has confirmed that American culture is really different from European in so many ways. “Everything from what they eat to how they dress to what they value to culture/society norms—and then it differs even further when you look at the cultural differences between different European countries,” Kacie told us.
Gratuitous violence in entertainment is normal. But show one boob and people lose their [minds].
Why the big amount of flat-earth and antivax people?? Is your education system not doing well??
She also said that she experienced “major cultural shocks living in Italy, but I know that if I visit or live in any other European country, I'll experience different culture shocks there as well.” The biggest lifestyle and mindset difference Kacie sees is “the old saying, 'Americans live to work, while Europeans work to live.' It's so true.”
Being concerned when anyone speaks a language you can't understand.
I live in India and we have 22 language here, with multiple dialects of the each language.
Actively avoiding healthcare visits/checkups because if there's something wrong and you don't have the money to pay for treatment, then you'd rather just not know
That women only get about 6 weeks off work after having a baby and it's most likely to be unpaid.
She added that in general, “Americans are constantly on the go—constantly working, constantly moving, constantly striving for the next best thing, which is great for its own reasons, but I've also found that because of this, Americans are much more stressed, much more overworked, and much more burnt out compared to Europeans.”
Kacie recounted that when she moved to Italy, one of the biggest culture shocks she experienced was “how Italians take time during their day to slow down and relax, whether it be closing the store for 3 hours in the afternoon to go home and spend time with family or having mandatory paid vacation weeks by law, no matter your job.”
Having said that, the actress and TikToker added that it also has its negative connotations “but in general I've found they make enjoying their life a priority. It's definitely something I've gathered is similar as a whole in Europe as well!”
American flags everywhere. I traveled throughout Europe and the Caribbean and I usually only saw their flag on government builds and here and there. Where as here in the USA the flag is like Franks Red Hot. We put them on everything. Magnets, churches, cars, condoms, every front porch, and street lamp. #murica
Nah...at this point when I see someone proud of the this country is and thinking it's already "great"...I know they've got a MAGA hat somewhere.
Registering to vote. As a Canadian, you're automatically enrolled when you turn 18 and get a notice where your polling station will be for every election.
Prescription drug ads encouraging people to ask their doctor about the drug being advertised.
Not using the metric system. Counting in football fields/moon landings instead... I don't get it.
There's the rub. I've been brought up during the transition from imperial to metric in the UK. However, are speed signs being still in MPH (Miles per hour), but quantities of food are in metric. It's all a mish mash. Sometimes I measure thing in inches, sometimes in centimetres. Confusion!
When I was there during the last election I was shocked at how phrases like ‘well they have the black vote’ or the ‘Latino vote’ came up all the time on the radio. Obviously it’s not racist but it’s just something that would never come up in my country. Like, why would latino people all vote for the same person?
Having only two parties: Republicans and Democrats. I know there are some smaller parties, but the system is stacked against them.
Ambulance rides costing money seems pretty absurd to people from other countries.
I just googled it and at least in Germany, the insurance pays the ride to the hospital. But there should be a medical reason for calling the ambulance (which is almost always the case), for a "fun" ride the cost is between 300 -500€
Toilet cubicles, where people not only can peek, but an adult person could crawl into your cubicle, there is so much space under the "door".
It's meant to make you feel unnerved therefore making you do you business quicker so lines are shorter.
Not putting the final price on the tag. I'm not sure whether it's still like this, but a few years ago one never knew whether the $1.00 item in McDonald's or Burger King is actually $1.00 or maybe $1.08.
The enabling customer service culture.
It’s created excessive portions in restaurants, created Karen, gives way to a disposable attitude towards products, and generally gives a sense of entitlement where most people start adding it to their list of rights.
The minimal amount of paid days off you get from work. A friend of mine from Wisconsin was very proud he got 20 days off per year. If someone in Germany would offer me only 20 days, I would laugh at him and leave.
How many days off do you get? I am from Germany and the minimum amount per year are 20 days of holidays, it also individually depends on your type of contract and the company you are working for - but for 5 day work weeks we usually receive a maximum of approx. 24 days per year which is not much more than your friend from Wisconsin gets. Now I live in Spain and get 21-24 days per year off (plus plenty of public holidays). Germany is not that much better than other countries, when it comes to leisure time for employees.
Attack ads against political opponents, ads for law firms or lawyers. These kinds of ads are illegal and considered unethical in our country. Also expecting a teenager to be out of the house by the time they're 18. I live in Southeast Asia. There's no stigma about living with one's parents. Most of the time, there will be three generations living in one house.
"Most of the time, there will be three generations living in one house": Don't confuse denial to leave parental house with lack of space or money. Sure, I would never ask my children to leave the house when they were 18 -they don't live with us since their mid 20s- but younger generations must not live with older ones. Granted that this is sometimes unavoidable, due to financial or health reasons.
Not owning kettles and MICROWAVING their water for coffee/tea.
I use our Keurig as a kettle. It heats water to the proper temperature for black tea. Works great for a Cup of Noodles too. Edit: I should clarify. I don’t use a k-cup. I dispense the hot water into a mug and add a tea bag.
Load More Replies...Rather generalize this: 110V as the typical home voltage, whereas 230V is much more practical due to the lower currents and lower transmission losses.
110V is much safer for general household usage. Permanently installed appliances use 220V in the US, same as everywhere else. Our 110V is center-tapped off of the 220V transformer feed, so technically our 220V is only ever 110V from the neutral/ground.
Load More Replies...Why is this a problem? It heats the water, mission accomplished. I don't even own a mcirowave, use a stovetop kettle, but FFS, stop already, who cares how we heat our water!
I can answer why it is perceived as a problem by some but firstly I promise you I genuinely do not care or have an axe to grind over how people in the US heat their water for tea! Fact is the temperature of the water does make a difference to the flavour of the tea. It can be harder to be certain of water temperature in a microwave - knowing exactly what that temperature is and how much it can vary within the cup or container. Too hot and the tea can be bitter and so on. Ideal water temp varies for different teas as well. I do wish it stopped coming up though. It's not like it actually matters to anyone else if someone isn't making their own tea to the optimum flavour. It would be like everyone caring if you added sugar! Each to their own.
Load More Replies...Most Americans don't drink nearly as much hot tea as some other countries do. So why the hell would we need specialized equipment taking up valuable counter space to heat tea water? Especially in the Southern states where we drink our tea ice cold because why would you want hot tea when it's 37 degrees Celsius with 95% humidity for weeks at a time? Why aren't the Brits being criticized for not as commonly having coffee makers in their kitchens as Americans do? What are they, animals? Why don't Icelandic people have Cezves in their kitchens to make their Turkish coffee with? Why aren't the French being criticized for not having 8300 NT$ rice cookers to cook and keep rice hot all day long like any normal Taiwanese person does?
No, what’s not normal is y’all losing your damn minds over heating water. W-A-T-E-R. Wah-tur. WATER!
That, my good sir or madam, is just inaccurate. We are not losing our minds over the act of heating water, we are losing our minds over the chosen method for doing so. Why would you want your coffee or tea to taste of microwave when there is an alternative?
Load More Replies...I never microwave water for tea or coffee. I have a wonderful mini hot water heater at my kitchen sink that holds maybe 1 QT/.945 ltr. I love it!
I would love the taps like Quooker - boiling water immediately. One day... sigh.
Load More Replies...It is hilarious to me that non-Americans seem to think we dont have kettles here...lol. Almost everyone I know has one.
I . . . don't do that . . . i warm my water on the stove using a cute glass kettle . . .
I own a kettle, who in their right mind would microwave their water? in my experience, microwave makes everything just taste weird
I have a kettle. There is no problem with microwaving though.
There is no problem boiling tea water in the microwave if you do it properly. It is true that water heated in the microwave shows signs of boiling (bubbling and steam coming out of the cup) before it is actually boiling, but if you leave it long enough it will reach boiling point. It is also true that the microwave heats the water unevenly (as opposed to a kettle which heats it from the bottom up) but this is solved by stirring the water. Heating the cup in the microwave until it starts to bubble, stirring the water with a spoon and putting it back in the microwave is still a quick and convenient way to heat water that is perfectly good for tea, especially if you are making it for just one person.
Seems a bit more of a faff then just switching on an electric kettle though to be honest. Could easily end up with water that is too hot and will make the tea really bitter (tannins). Still, everyone should do what they prefer. It's their drink.
Load More Replies...We don't microwave water for coffee, we make it in coffee machines. Tea on the other hand, if you find the rare American who drinks tea, is most likely snooty enough to have some fancy kettle for it. It helps them drink it with their nose in the air so they can look down on all others.
Uh I know two Americans who don't even drink coffee... Only tea and they aren't snooty. Me I'm Italian so coffee love is required, (especially ground) but I'm also Australian so I tend to have a soft spot for horrible instant coffee.
Load More Replies...On the other hand, I'd rather hear my water on the stove than in a single purpose electric kettle. Oh well.
In the UK the kettle is always faster because of our having a higher voltage electrical system - that's one of the reasons why the electric kettle is so popular. You say single purpose but I use the kettle for many things. Eg it's much faster to heat the water for boiling something on the hob using hot water from the kettle, rather than bringing it to the boil on the hob. Even with super fast induction hobs.
Load More Replies...I own a double coffee brewer. Standard carafe and single (k-cup style) For both of us, we just the carafe setting. For just one, we use the carafe setting and brew half a pot. I use the k-cup side for special stuff like pod-theraflu, instant hot cider (not the greatest, but better than none), etc... I do NOT use the microwave to heat water.
Having one appliance which does many things is more efficient with money and space than also having a specialized single-purpose appliance.
Load More Replies...Microwaved water is usually for tea. For coffee, most people have coffee makers. We don't drink enough tea to justify owning a dedicated electric appliance for it, so most people have an old fashioned stove kettle if they have one at all.
NOOOOOOO I'm American and I hate this. Everybody in my family is a tea snob, so we have two stovetop kettles and one countertop electric kettle that we use EVERY DAY, MULTIPLE TIMES. We don't have a microwave. My British friend always says she thinks we are secretly British.
Well, it seems I'm going to shock people, but at home, I'm using the microwave to prepare my mug of tea for breakfast (I can feel you shivering). At work, instead, we have an electric kettle. As I'm often using teabags, I can barely feel a difference. But when I want to drink a delicious tea, I'm using my teapot. Depends on the time I have. Oh, and I'm French.
Not everyone. Proper tea is made with a kettle. Proper coffee is made with a Kuerig....LOL
'Proper' tea is made with a condescending and smug attitude.
Load More Replies...Because I need yet one more thing in my kitchen for a cup of tea that I may have once a year.
For tea to brew well, the water needs to boil. The microwave only makes water hot, not at boiling point. If you don't have a kettle, you can use a regular vessel on the stove and boil water for tea/coffee.
Load More Replies...Who (and why!?) microwaves water for coffee? instant coffee is not common what so ever. That is an incorrect generalization. I am not buying an appliance for a drink that is hardly on the top ten list of most popular beverages here. We are a coffee country. Do you guys own drip coffee machines?
Sir, our Founding Fathers dumped a s**t ton of tea into the Boston Harbor in protest to the Tea Act levied on the Colonies by England. They were protesting the taxation of tea. We are very much a tea country.
Load More Replies...It is easy to survive without owning a microwave. It is probably healthier not to own one too.
You have $4.50 in your pocket. The fancy drink is advertised at $3.99. Do you have enough money to buy it? Dunno!
This one is more on the positive side, because I think we could learn some from it.
Talking and sharing your life with complete strangers. I have met quite a few americans so it seems the norm that you share and engage with strangers in public. The bus, train, parks etc. And then you go on your way.
In Denmark you'd be a "freak" if you did that.
Joining the army for college money and free healthcare.
Also how religious they are
I never understood why people in American TV series lost their house and job just because they got really sick.
Then I found out that it can happen in America.
They always say that the movies are fake than the more you learn the truer they become
While on my travels I've noticed that Americans have a totally different expectation on what service you get in restaurants and cafes and sh*t in Europe. Like the waiter arrives at their table seconds after they've sat down and takes their order and when he's out of ear shot they complain about the bad service. It's like if they don't get the OMG HOW ARE YOU GUYS MY NAME IS MIGUEL AND I'LL BE YOUR WAITER THIS EVENING and then have their water topped up every 20 seconds then it's bad service
Nipples, or in general the hyper-sexualisation of nudity
Somehow you can't buy a 16 year old kid a sex education book or have them watch a porn video, but it's perfectly alright to buy him an assault riffle.
Being able to vote before reaching the legal drinking age
As a Brit living in America the amount of pharmaceutical commercials on TV is creepy.
I've been to New Orleans, and everyone was calling me "honey", "sugar", "babe", "sunshine", and "love". I found it very sweet, blushed every time and generally, couldn't get enough of it.
On the other hand, the amount of ice you put in drinks is ridiculous.
2017 in Athens, Georgia I passed out at work and was fine but my boss had already called an ambulance and insisted I get checked out...a less than 2 mile ambulance ride cost me $950 with insurance. I was only dehydrated...
UK citizen. I've had two bouts of serious illnesses in the last six months. During that period, I required four ambulances, treatment in hospital plus medication etc. None of which cost me anything. However, it is worth pointing out that if you work, as well as paying taxes you also contribute National Insurance contributions, which goes towards the National Health Service (NHS) amongst other things.
Willingly putting yourself massively in debt for a college degree.
I come from a place with free university education (which has its own drawbacks of course), and the fact that you can make such a huge, life-altering decision at 17 is considered normal over there, that seems downright bizarre to me.
Europe here - many public universities for free and many private ones. You can choose and you don't need to be in debt for the rest of your live.
Asking everyone “what do you do?” when you first meet them. I live outside the US and realized there are some people I’ve known for years and I still don’t know their job. I think in the US jobs are a bigger part of a person’s identity than in some other places.
I guess given their crappy leave entitlement, and ridiculous expectations about always being available, that might well mean it's occupying a larger part of their life and identity than it does in other countries
Circumcision and medical debt
My maternity leave was an unpaid 6 weeks, and I had to fight them on not shorting me because I went past my due date and didn’t keep working until the day I went into labor.
In Germany, it is illegal to make a woman work 6 weeks prior and 8 weeks past her due date. (You get paid normally in that time.) After that, you can have up to 3 years of maternity leave. In the first year, you get 65% of your former income, the rest of the time is unpaid. Also you cannot be fired from the beginning of your pregnancy until you come back after maternity leave.
Side effects on medication adverts.
With James' Hayfever meds, I can get through the day with ease!
Side effects may include:
Loss of sight
Loss of hearing
Loss of sense of smell
Coma
Headaches
Fever
Vomiting
Diarrhoea
Loss of consciousness
and death.
Limited sick days.
Seriously that's a thing? How does one plan how maby days it takes to get well after kidney surgery?
Extra large bottomless cups for cola or soft drinks.... you could bathe in those....
Wasn't there this one mayor in a town who wanted to ban those buckets to fight obesity and had to ditch the plan to avoid a public hanging?
Why people censor swears that are totally obvious
American here:
When I was studying in the UK I had to send some financial documents back to the US. The only way these documents were considered valid was if the original was mailed in, or if I faxed a copy. When I asked the printing office if they could fax it for me they looked at me like I was an alien and said the school hadn't owned a fax machines for like a decade. Then they asked me if I still use a VCR.
A flag in every corner of a classroom, and Americans being very patriotic to the stars and stripes. Other countries barely give a [poop] about their flags
If you hoist the flag in Germany outside of the World Cup, you will be looked at crookedly. Sometimes you are also called a Nazi. That American patriotism scares me a LOT!
That American kids eat straight sugar. Walked on to the playground and saw kids chugging these long thin sticks. I try and it was just colored sugar lol. Called them pixie sticks.
Just "dealing with" preventable and curable diseases instead of seeking medical attention out of fear of crippling debt.
Sueing for any possible reason. It's so common that there are commercials on tv and radio telling you to sue "x" company for "reason". Lawyer ads are also very common because of this.
Having seen the cost of medical bills, I get it where any genuine injury has been sustained.
Driving everywhere.
Our country is big. BIG. you want to walk 25 miles to work? Public transit systems don't often run to a town of 5,000. It would be great if we had small self contained towns but that is not how our country was formed. We have no history of self sustaining walled towns or feudalism. Americans like to stretch out and we have land in spades.
Drink sizes.
When my family visited in 2017 we landed in Texas for a stopover. First thing I saw in the shops part of the terminal was a dude who was drinking from what looked like an actual bucket - here in NZ our “large” drinks would be considered an American “small” or maybe “medium”
if people didn't drink out of buckets, then there'd be no diabetes. And then doctors would go out of business for lack of patients. If we prevented preventable diseases, our economy would go bust.
The extent of the tipping culture is frankly shocking to me.
Being loud and rowdy when sober seems to be a very American thing.
Funny thing is, I’m American and considered a loud person in America. I can only imagine that my voice must sound like a f**king air horn to foreigners.
In Germany, we tend to be much quieter in public, esp. on public transport. But then I went to Japan and after a couple of minutes, I realized that people were staring at us for having a conversation in a train and I felt so rude and loud suddenly! So when abroad, it is a good idea to look around you and check if your behavior is fitting in the surroundings.
I've had several German friends who were amazed that at house parties everyone actually does drink out of red Solo cups. They thought that was just a weird thing people did in movies and now they think it is a huge conspiracy or something
People of Walmart
Living "paycheck to paycheck" despite making like 4 grands a month
This COMPLETELY depends on the area. You living in an apartment in Jackson, Mississippi? You are NOT living "paycheck to paycheck" making $4k a month. Living in a 3 bedroom home in San Francisco, CA? Yup, you are certainly living paycheck to paycheck. Our cost of living varies wildly depending on both region and state.
Having to take out a second mortgage because you twisted your ankle in the wrong state.
Most shopping carts in the US have fixed backwheels. In Germany all 4 wheels are able to freely turn 360° which makes moving the cart around much easier.
That there are many libraries of all kinds in the United States.
I've never seen a Canadian drive down the road with two of their nation's flags on the back with flames shooting out from the sides of the truck.
Then you haven't even been in the Golden Horseshoe. Without any negativity, the maple leaf is plastered on everything, to include 2 flags on a truck.
I'm an American (born and raised), but I've heard that in other countries, strangers don't say hi or strike up conversations with each other. I know non-Americans are confused but let me explain:
Sometimes if you are say at an amusement park for example and you're waiting in line for a ride, strangers would strike conversations with you and such and this is actually pretty normal. Or say you are walking around in a park and you walk past by someone, you usually smile and say a quick "hi" as you are walking past that person.
I've had countless times where I've had people strike conversations with me that I didn't know. White people do this, but especially Black people do this a lot as well. Like you would see an old Black lady at a store and she'll just start talking to you.
I've had Europeans tell me that people would think you are mentally ill if you were to strike up conversations with strangers in Europe for example. Especially in Asian countries no one does this (I've heard). Strangers absolutely do not say a word to each other in Japan or China for example.
Side note: This may also be a regional thing in the US. I've lived in southern states mostly (like Texas) and people are really damn friendly down there. Now I live in Connecticut and people are way less friendly over here (no offense).
This one is one that I think other countries should think about adopting. I was recently hospitalised, and the most reassuring conversation I had was with a stranger who nattered about her husband's bedding plants for 20 minutes - completely taking my mind off the pain I was in. (I'm in the UK). There's plenty on lists such as these that I think the US has just gotten wrong compared to the rest of the world (healthcare, work ethic, the republican party), but this aspect I'd like to import.
Probably not really European but Finnish, memes about forgotting to connect your phone to wifi. Here we have unlimited internet and it's working almost everywhere. Also the unlimited mobile data costs here like 30€ in month
I got off the plane and asked the cap guy how far the hotel was and he said about 30 miles. I almost had a heart attack... turns out cabs are cheaper than the Uk
I can't remember the price I paid but I was presently surprised.
The UK cabs are like £4 per mile
also you would get laughed of the taxi for asking to go 30 miles and not taking the train
There was a 24-hour pharmacy across the street from our apartment. Nothing shocking there, except it also sold booze and cigarettes.
One positive thing I've noticed, foreigners love how big Halloween is here.
At least in the Midwest, the soft smiles you give to strangers if you make eye contact while walking past them. Did not go over so well in Germany.
I think this is going to change over time. I remember a time (in Germany) when you were at the cash register in a supermarket and you and the cashier wouldn't greet each other. Then suddenly, maybe about 30 years ago, that changed. Now we say "hello" and "have s nice day" and sometimes talk a little, but I remember it being so, so weird, to have to talk to the cashier! It was really awkward du first. Now of course, I cannot imagine to not day hello to the cashier, it just seems so rude. But I think at the time, it wasn't meant in a rude way, it was just normal for everyone.
As an American I was shocked to learn that not every school internationally has a building cop
Injured people try to avoid getting ambulances called for them.
Well, if you know that a 4 minute ride will cost you enough to feed a family of six for 4 years, you'd be reluctant too.
Just the sheer scale of it. I could drive the distance from the most northern part of Scotland to the most southern part of Cornwall and still be in Texas. How is that possible?!
They have garbage disposals in their kitchens. That's just so wild to me.
Lemonade. I'm America, but there was a post going around a while back about an American who ordered a lemonade at a restaurant in Australia and was confused to receive a Sprite. The op of the post was the server, and thought it was just the American being snooty for being confused. Then commenters from other nonUS countries chimed in on what a lemonade is to them. It blew my mind, because in the US lemonade is so iconic as a summer drink, and is often homemade.
Eta: lemonade is not water with lemon in it. It requires sugar and preparation.
Second edit: to all the people commenting "hello America, I'm dad" pay your child support. You can't just walk out on an entire country like that and show up suddenly now that I've got karma
Lemonade in Greece is lemon juice, sugar, water or lemon syrup and water. It can be either homemade or store bought, but it definitely is not sprite. Sprite is sprite.
When I went to New York I was flabbergasted by the amount of people just loitering on the streets or having phone conversations that everyone can hear on the train like npcs from GTA.
People outside of the USA don't hang out in public or let other people into their business on public transport.
I managed to hear a woman talk about how her baby daddy wasn't going to her daughters birthday party and I started to pick side's in her personal life, while walking through Central Park I heard two friends with a substantial age gap talk about everyone in their friend group having mistresses and they were trading information on the mistress facts each of them knew for their respective friends, I got invested in that one so I folliwed them for a while (pretending I wasn't) because I wanted the tea.
I'm assuming this person is from northern Europe. Because there are loud talkers in Greece too. Oh and also people who listen to music on speakers in public places :(
Biscuits and gravy is a legit thing. Also you can ride motorcycles without helmets in some states??? And your iced tea isn't sweetened unless you ask for sweet.
Biscuits and gravy still gets to me. I know US biscuits are savoury but almost every time I picture our biscuits (cookies) with gravy and cringe.
That Dolly Parton has her own theme park in Tennessee. I thought it was a joke.
How cheap food is - I was in Chicago so it was good food too
Tasty cheap food, who wouldn't get fat?
Say "I'll just have water" at a restaurant and not be charged for it or be asked "What kind?"
Tap water is free in Australia from restaurants, pubs, cafes etc but bottled water you have to pay for. And quite often they will have jugs of cold tap water for you to take to your table, for free.
Not really crazy, but I just learned you guys have like outdoor sirens that get tested somewhat frequently. I’ve only heard those noises in video games and movies until my friend sent me a clip, because I had no idea it actually happened.
Not only in the USA - in Czech republic we have them too, test is every first wednesday of the month at noon, for a few minutes. They can also "speak", so you hear "Zkouška sirén" - Test of the sirens a few times beforehand.
That you can rack up 100,000$ upward in debt easily through student loans.
I always thought that the Olive Garden in The Simpsons was just code for ‘generic restaurant’
Taking condiments extremely seriously.
Condiments are the crowning glory of many a dish. Everybody should take them much more serious.
The "Take me out to the ballgame song" thats apparently sung at baseball games. still not entirely sure that guy wasnt taking the piss out of me
That the entire traffic has to stop when a school bus stops.
Having had a classmate get hit by a car after getting of the bus and died, I’m pretty sure that’s a good thing. I wouldn’t put my daughter on the bus otherwise.
Apparently, rolling coal is actually a thing.
It is. It is used to show how little you care for the environment and you do it by modifying your car engine so it produces massive amounts of black smoke. Apart from the environmental issue it's also dangerous and illegal because these clouds of black smoke are like a thick fog, blocking your view. Guys doing this rolling coal are usually aiming their practices on people driving eco-friendly cars and bicyclists.
Whilst there are a few new ones, these list are getting repetitive. There are other countries with differences, would be nice to see a different one for a change.
Yes!! This one specifically said American but other lists were for multiple countries and America made up most of those too. I live here, I’d rather see what other places are like!
Load More Replies...It is getting a bit much, a bit like fish in a barrel, have nothing to write lets do a top 50 ways to put down America...they had a rough 2020 too, give it a rest, it is getting to be like buzzfeed. Everyone tell us what breakfast cereal you eat and BP will tell you who will be your third wife and her sisterwifes starsign.
Oh my god BP, another one of these?? Look, I'm not American and usually I like reading stuff about cultural differences but even I'm getting bored of these "look how different (i.e. worse) things are in America" articles. It seems like you post a new one every few days with 95% of the same stuff as the last one. I've been to America a few times and whilst I will not argue that as a country it has it's issues that do need addressing, I've found it to be a lovely place with lovely people. Time to give it a rest now eh?
*wakes up* *looks at BP* "Ah, America-bashing, and here I thought we got the week off"... *returns to sleep*
Creativity? What's that? This site needs to do more than the 'LOL America' post and Reddit reposts. Rapidly becoming BoringPanda.
America again, hell no! Im expecting cute liquid cats or doggo picture not debating sadwidch portion size or stupid gun you can buy on walmart
Not just that this is up every week, but it’s really like 15 ‘observations’ repeated 6 times. How can I get paid to do this kind of “content”?
YIPPEEEEEE!!!! I'd gone almost 36 hours withoutseeing BP bash the US. What a relief! And such imaginative and interesting facts. Brand. New. Information. Boy, I'm glad BP is here to make sure I understand how much my country, and I by extenstion, suck.
*slips over in puddle of sarcasm* I'm with you, I'd hoped they were gna have a longer break than a couple of days, and maybe do some other countries in the interim!
Load More Replies...Really BP. Why can't you pick on another country??? I know..here's a thought..how about weird stuff in Lithuania?? Smfh.
Right? Quite interesting that we NEVER see Bored Panda's home country in any of these " OMG THEY ARE SO DIFFERENT AND WEIRD" lists...funny that.
Load More Replies...I wanted to be the one to point out the repetitive-ness. :(
Sry but we repeat that this is a repeat and should not be repeated...am I getting repetitive? Repeat after me bored pandas "less 'murica, am-I-the-asshole and tiktok summaries and more pups n kittens, extraordinary art and fun stuff" *stands with the sign guy*
Load More Replies...OK, tell us the weird about your country. And I don’t mean how the healthcare and college are free or that you fart rainbows. I get it, you’re in some sort of utopia when compared to America. Give us the weird.
It seems Boredpanda ran out of ideas for articles and they even recycle reddit posts. I want quality content, not b******t. That American vs European stuff needs to stop, we already know what problems america has. If this continues, i will stop visiting the website. How many great stuff there is on the internet and Boredpanda doesn't cover it like interesting websites or recommended books.
Some of the comments on these daily "USA baD hUrR DUrr dUrr" posts are just really dumb. This may come as a shock to some of you, but what you've seen on tv or experienced in your one week vacation to Disney world, isn't an accurate representation the the 330 million people in 20 thousandish towns and cities in the US.
Can we find something less repetitive? I want to hear about giant Italian fruit and weird German breakfast cereals.
Yes, please. Are these random examples or which german cereal is weird?🤔
Load More Replies...If you're gonna do an America bashing post, do a Swiss bashing post or a German bashing post or something. (I have nothing against Swiss or Germans, just am trying to make point). People are making America sound like an absolutely awful country next to North Korea.
Another thing about these articles- they cherry pick the bad stuff. If you only look at the dregs of any country it makes the country appear to be horrible. A recent good thing is our vaccine distribution, we’re way ahead of almost all of Europe.
To anyone else tired of seeing this content, we just have to stop clicking on it. This site, like any other, will continue to post anything that gets views, since that's what gets them paid. I wish I could've some how made this comment without adding to the page view count.
We can downvote the article too to show how we feel ^-^
Load More Replies...You did this same article twice last week, then once the week before. It's all the same stuff over and over again. You're turning into Buzzfeed so gradually it's like you hope we don't notice it.
Yea, I’d like to read through it, unfortunately though, I’ve already read this post like 6 times! What the heck!? The first time it was interesting, now not so much.
Don’t forget to downvote the actual post if you disliked it, I’m sure it works better than just leaving comments.
Can we PLEASE stop with the America-bashing articles?! How would you feel if I believed that every single person in your country was exactly the same? Not to mention, quite a few of these observations are complete and utter bullshit.
Even as Brit I have to say, enough of these "Isn't America weird" articles, one or two every now and then is fun, because they are easy to take the piss out of, but this is just the same stuff recycled again and again.
Chief Panda, please stop USA bashing, it's not big, it's not clever, it's not even new.
The USA is a large country composed of people who have differences of opinion. At least we have the right to express such differences. Cannot stand Trump and his lot but it is what it is and I will still defend his supporters’ rights to air their thoughts. Ugh. Believe it or not, many of us speak more than one language, many of us have traveled overseas, and many of us do not rely on a microwave for cooking food/reheating beverages. The amount of disinformation about the USA on this site is egregious. Please come visit the USA once COVID is under control. We have cold beer, Sasquatch, and an amazing coastline waiting for you in the PNW. 😁
Can we have some new kind of content plz BP? I remember when BP was about arts, interesting stories, inspiring stuff... now it's just reddit posts. :/
For anyone that doesn't know, you can create your own articles/content to submit.
2 things we found odd when visiting friends in the US: not being allowed to have an outdoor clothes line or a rainwater tank. This was over 20 years ago so maybe things have changed
i have a home owner's association that won't let us have either and it won't let us have a shed
Load More Replies...I think the thing about this post that I find so amusing is all of the non-Americans explaining American thing incorrectly. I get a chuckle out of hearing how bad America is from people that don't live and don't realize that most of the things listed are the exception rather than the norm.
So much of this comes down to the richest assholes in America being greedy and saying “how do we make more money today?”
Hahaha oops. I've been here for a month already. I guess I need to prepare for repeated stuff then haha
It could be a list of basically anything and I’d still downvote it if it was repeated in this manner. It’s more the repetitiveness and lack of originality than the actual subject matter for me.
Load More Replies...LOL...we dont have brick houses? I have a brick house. As does my mother, best friend and my husbands brother. There are entire neighborhoods in my city alone full of them. Not sure where the heck you got THAT piece of misinformation from!
Load More Replies...Whilst there are a few new ones, these list are getting repetitive. There are other countries with differences, would be nice to see a different one for a change.
Yes!! This one specifically said American but other lists were for multiple countries and America made up most of those too. I live here, I’d rather see what other places are like!
Load More Replies...It is getting a bit much, a bit like fish in a barrel, have nothing to write lets do a top 50 ways to put down America...they had a rough 2020 too, give it a rest, it is getting to be like buzzfeed. Everyone tell us what breakfast cereal you eat and BP will tell you who will be your third wife and her sisterwifes starsign.
Oh my god BP, another one of these?? Look, I'm not American and usually I like reading stuff about cultural differences but even I'm getting bored of these "look how different (i.e. worse) things are in America" articles. It seems like you post a new one every few days with 95% of the same stuff as the last one. I've been to America a few times and whilst I will not argue that as a country it has it's issues that do need addressing, I've found it to be a lovely place with lovely people. Time to give it a rest now eh?
*wakes up* *looks at BP* "Ah, America-bashing, and here I thought we got the week off"... *returns to sleep*
Creativity? What's that? This site needs to do more than the 'LOL America' post and Reddit reposts. Rapidly becoming BoringPanda.
America again, hell no! Im expecting cute liquid cats or doggo picture not debating sadwidch portion size or stupid gun you can buy on walmart
Not just that this is up every week, but it’s really like 15 ‘observations’ repeated 6 times. How can I get paid to do this kind of “content”?
YIPPEEEEEE!!!! I'd gone almost 36 hours withoutseeing BP bash the US. What a relief! And such imaginative and interesting facts. Brand. New. Information. Boy, I'm glad BP is here to make sure I understand how much my country, and I by extenstion, suck.
*slips over in puddle of sarcasm* I'm with you, I'd hoped they were gna have a longer break than a couple of days, and maybe do some other countries in the interim!
Load More Replies...Really BP. Why can't you pick on another country??? I know..here's a thought..how about weird stuff in Lithuania?? Smfh.
Right? Quite interesting that we NEVER see Bored Panda's home country in any of these " OMG THEY ARE SO DIFFERENT AND WEIRD" lists...funny that.
Load More Replies...I wanted to be the one to point out the repetitive-ness. :(
Sry but we repeat that this is a repeat and should not be repeated...am I getting repetitive? Repeat after me bored pandas "less 'murica, am-I-the-asshole and tiktok summaries and more pups n kittens, extraordinary art and fun stuff" *stands with the sign guy*
Load More Replies...OK, tell us the weird about your country. And I don’t mean how the healthcare and college are free or that you fart rainbows. I get it, you’re in some sort of utopia when compared to America. Give us the weird.
It seems Boredpanda ran out of ideas for articles and they even recycle reddit posts. I want quality content, not b******t. That American vs European stuff needs to stop, we already know what problems america has. If this continues, i will stop visiting the website. How many great stuff there is on the internet and Boredpanda doesn't cover it like interesting websites or recommended books.
Some of the comments on these daily "USA baD hUrR DUrr dUrr" posts are just really dumb. This may come as a shock to some of you, but what you've seen on tv or experienced in your one week vacation to Disney world, isn't an accurate representation the the 330 million people in 20 thousandish towns and cities in the US.
Can we find something less repetitive? I want to hear about giant Italian fruit and weird German breakfast cereals.
Yes, please. Are these random examples or which german cereal is weird?🤔
Load More Replies...If you're gonna do an America bashing post, do a Swiss bashing post or a German bashing post or something. (I have nothing against Swiss or Germans, just am trying to make point). People are making America sound like an absolutely awful country next to North Korea.
Another thing about these articles- they cherry pick the bad stuff. If you only look at the dregs of any country it makes the country appear to be horrible. A recent good thing is our vaccine distribution, we’re way ahead of almost all of Europe.
To anyone else tired of seeing this content, we just have to stop clicking on it. This site, like any other, will continue to post anything that gets views, since that's what gets them paid. I wish I could've some how made this comment without adding to the page view count.
We can downvote the article too to show how we feel ^-^
Load More Replies...You did this same article twice last week, then once the week before. It's all the same stuff over and over again. You're turning into Buzzfeed so gradually it's like you hope we don't notice it.
Yea, I’d like to read through it, unfortunately though, I’ve already read this post like 6 times! What the heck!? The first time it was interesting, now not so much.
Don’t forget to downvote the actual post if you disliked it, I’m sure it works better than just leaving comments.
Can we PLEASE stop with the America-bashing articles?! How would you feel if I believed that every single person in your country was exactly the same? Not to mention, quite a few of these observations are complete and utter bullshit.
Even as Brit I have to say, enough of these "Isn't America weird" articles, one or two every now and then is fun, because they are easy to take the piss out of, but this is just the same stuff recycled again and again.
Chief Panda, please stop USA bashing, it's not big, it's not clever, it's not even new.
The USA is a large country composed of people who have differences of opinion. At least we have the right to express such differences. Cannot stand Trump and his lot but it is what it is and I will still defend his supporters’ rights to air their thoughts. Ugh. Believe it or not, many of us speak more than one language, many of us have traveled overseas, and many of us do not rely on a microwave for cooking food/reheating beverages. The amount of disinformation about the USA on this site is egregious. Please come visit the USA once COVID is under control. We have cold beer, Sasquatch, and an amazing coastline waiting for you in the PNW. 😁
Can we have some new kind of content plz BP? I remember when BP was about arts, interesting stories, inspiring stuff... now it's just reddit posts. :/
For anyone that doesn't know, you can create your own articles/content to submit.
2 things we found odd when visiting friends in the US: not being allowed to have an outdoor clothes line or a rainwater tank. This was over 20 years ago so maybe things have changed
i have a home owner's association that won't let us have either and it won't let us have a shed
Load More Replies...I think the thing about this post that I find so amusing is all of the non-Americans explaining American thing incorrectly. I get a chuckle out of hearing how bad America is from people that don't live and don't realize that most of the things listed are the exception rather than the norm.
So much of this comes down to the richest assholes in America being greedy and saying “how do we make more money today?”
Hahaha oops. I've been here for a month already. I guess I need to prepare for repeated stuff then haha
It could be a list of basically anything and I’d still downvote it if it was repeated in this manner. It’s more the repetitiveness and lack of originality than the actual subject matter for me.
Load More Replies...LOL...we dont have brick houses? I have a brick house. As does my mother, best friend and my husbands brother. There are entire neighborhoods in my city alone full of them. Not sure where the heck you got THAT piece of misinformation from!
Load More Replies...