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37 Cultural Things People Thought Were Normal Until They Traveled Abroad
Different cultures have different traditions, quirks, and habits. At this point, we all know that. And yet we rarely question our own until we go somewhere else and realize that, actually, this is not something the rest of the world does. Cue the surprised Pikachu face.
One Redditor asked people to share things from their countries they thought were normal, only to find out while traveling that they were anything but. The replies were full of fascinating examples, ranging from oddly specific potato peelers to unexpected types of toilet paper. Scroll down to read them.
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#1
Australia: Honestly, noisy birds. Going overseas and standing in nature/quiet suburban street and NOT hearing a constant white noise of bird calls feels very weird.
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#2
Canada: Not mocking physical differences to your face.
Visit India or Korea and strangers will tell you exactly what is physically unappealing about you.
#3
Italy: I thought social distance and respect of personal space were a thing all around the world. Then I went to India and China.
#4
Netherlands: When it's somebody's birthday, you don't just congratulate the person who's birthday it is.
Everyone kisses *each other* while saying something like "congratulations with X's birthday!".
So when I visited Mexico I kissed my mother in law on a family member's birthday, while saying "felicidades!!". She froze, blushed and said: "ehm ,thanks, but... it's not my birthday today".
Short awkward moment. Luckily my wife stepped in to explain that Dutch people are just weird.
#5
China: Cook Chinese food in my apartment without setting off the smoke alarm.
Walk the streets at midnight without worrying about safety.
A farmers' market with more than 30 kinds of vegetables.
Free public toilets on the street.
Food delivery arriving in 20 mins.
A park with old ladies dancing all night.
A national football team that loses all the time.
#6
New Zealand: I couldn't believe it when I went to the USA and Europe in summer and didn't get sunburnt after 10 minutes.
#7
Ghana: Greeting everyone you meet on the street including strangers. That's not normal in Germany.
#8
France: Price tag being always full taxes. When I went to San Francisco I was surprised and embarrassed to leave things I wanted to buy because the taxes made my cart over budget.
#9
Turkey: There is some but the most obvious one is this:
We Turks grow up with street cats. As kids, we play with them outside and we’re used to seeing them everywhere, every day. And honestly, at first, most of us don’t really get why street cats in Turkey are such a “thing” globally, until we realize other countries don’t have nearly as many as we do.
#11
Philippines: Priority lines for the elderly, people with disability (all kinds), and pregnant women in all establishments. We have a separate line for them and they're the ones only allowed to use them. This includes exclusive counters/cashiers, grocery line, and train cabin, and all. Haven't seen one in any other countries Ive visited.
#13
Jordan: Having woman's only/men's only gyms. I just thought that was the norm, the way public bathrooms are. It didn't occur to me that it's because we're more conservative.
#14
Most typical spanish tourist mistake it's thinking everybody share the shame schedule as us, here normal business are open until 20:00 and most bars and restaurants until 00:00.
So going out for dinner at 22:00 and finding everything closed it's one of our cultural shocks in many places.
#15
In Denmark, we leave our babies outside on the streets in the cold, when we want to have a cup of coffee in a café or going to the cinema. This is the most respectful thing to do, but other countries don’t do it..
#16
Canada: I didn't realize how abnormal it is to leave your doors unlocked until I started making international friends.
#17
Belgium: I was pleasantly surprised when I went to New York last year and never had to pay to use a public toilet. You could just walk into a public building and use the restroom.
#18
Iceland: Stale fruits and vegetables. I still remember the shock of tasting an orange that was sweet rather than sour and slightly bitter and a fresh corncob rather than one from a can or a frozen bag.
#19
Ireland: Drinkable tap water and not bothering with bottled.
Hanging around outside without being eaten by bugs.
Not owning an umbrella. Ignoring the wet and wind.
Small talk and making jokes with literally anyone.
Respecting the queue.
Loose fruit and veg without packaging.
#21
Us Bulgarians nodding in the opposite direction for yes and no. Had a fair few confused situations and laughs the first time I went abroad.
#23
United Kingdom: The alcohol culture. It really isn't that strange to see people in the beer garden with a pint at 10:30am on sunny days. In most other countries, a morning drinker is considered an alcoholic... but, not in England. Not when the sun is out.
#25
United States of America: Complimenting or striking up convos with strangers while out and about. I'm not sure if it's purely a Texas, US, or just suburban vs urban thing but I know I'm used to when I'm out and about just being like "Oh I like your shirt!" "I like your makeup!" etc. as I pass by someone if I feel inclined.
When I was in Toronto visiting a friend I noticed that people generally just didn't seem to want to be bothered, even for something positive and friendly like that. Again I'm not sure if this is a country to country thing or just an urban vs suburban divide thing, but it stood out to me.
#26
Poland: 10+ different tea varieties in almost every house. My grandmother would give me cherry tea for upset stomach and I caught a stomach bug on a vacation in Montenegro. Asked my mother to buy some tea and she only found chamomile.
#31
India: Dry Vs Humid Heat.
Grew up thinking Indian summers were the ultimate boss level—insane temps, full humidity (at least my region).
Then I experienced dry heat in the US/Canada at much *lower* temperatures… and it somehow felt worse. Got brutal tan lines and my skin literally hurt to touch.
Completely changed my perspective, turns out “how” it’s hot matters way more than the number on the thermometer.
#32
Canada: My husband is American from the south. When I visit I can't wear my shoes indoors. I'm sorry. I have a fresh pair of socks on, my feet don't smell, I just cannot physically make myself wear shoes indoors.
#33
Ghana: I thought it was normal to eat rice with stew, until I spent one week in Burkina Faso.
#36
Canada: First time I went to Thailand I got mocked ruthlessly by locals for having an insane sun burn. Some people tried pointing me towards a pharmacy so I could buy some cream/sunscreen, bust most of the locals just got a good laugh out of it.
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