Not everyone knows what to expect when they come to the United States of America. We have tons of cultural differences from other countries and the ones we have integrated have evolved throughout time to become more Americanized. When people come here they love to talk about all of the things that gave them a feeling of culture shock. We've collected all the best examples from the gaps in the public toilet stalls to those armageddon street preachers. Take a look at what everyone else is saying shocked them the most about America.
Amount Of Food Options
In America, we eat a lot, and there needs to be an amount of food available to those people. But we also have a lot more varieties than many other countries might have available to them.
More than that, our aisles are filled with tons and tons of the same product, whereas in other countries you might see just a single row for the same product. People are often impressed and surprised by the number of options available to them when visiting the USA.
Portion Sizes
Speaking of eating a lot, have you ever noticed that our portion sizes are huge? And you get a huge bang for your buck. That and being able to take your food home makes going out sometimes affordable. And we're not talking about the dollar menu.
Some people are even shocked to find that the smallest size drink at certain restaurants is a whole liter! And even then you can get free refills. We love those free refills, even if it does make us a bit sick or unhealthy.
Gun Obsessions
Americans love their guns. Whether or not that means they love putting restrictions on them or that they love bringing them to the range doesn't matter. Americans are just obsessed with guns.
It might have something to do with the culture surrounding the army and other defence forces in America, but we have tons of guns available, shooting ranges, and video games based around shooting. Not that that's all necessarily a good thing.
Lack Of Guns
Some people that come from heavily militarized areas are actually surprised by the lack of guns around--can you believe it? People who come here from Israel, for example, are used to seeing their soldiers lined up everywhere.
In America, the only people you actually see touting guns are Police officers. Otherwise, you have to go to the places where it's okay to have a gun out. There are pretty strict rules about gun use, so the next time you think that our gun laws are bad, remember you don't have to walk around seeing them everywhere.
Widespread Spanish
Some people are surprised by the amount of Spanish they see every day. People tend to think that this country is mostly English based, which, to be fair, it is. But Spanish has been an unofficial official language here.
Though no language has ever really been official at the federal level in America, it's generally considered that we need to use both English and Spanish with important things, like going to the airport. America was founded by immigrants and we even hold territories that are mostly Spanish-speaking.
Motorcycles For Leisure
There are people who are surprised that America uses motorcycles for more than just business and delivery. They come from countries where motorcycles are the main way to deliver goods or people around the city.
In America, motorcycles are used for sport and leisure. We find that using cars or trucks is more efficient for deliveries than motorcycles are due to the sheer amount of supplies necessary to deliver. There just isn't enough storage on a motorcycle.
Inefficiencies
Some people actually think that America is less efficient at doing things than other countries. Robin Zeitoun, who hails from France, told Vice in an interview: "To pay rent, you have to use a check? I have never written a check. The last time I got a check was maybe 20 years ago, from my granddad."
They also said, "I went to the post office yesterday, and I was waiting in line for maybe an hour—and there were only five people in front of me. I felt like I went from a Western country to a third-world country. People here with money have access to things. The rest of the people are just trying to survive."
Braces
Many people are surprised to see the prominence of braces in our population. One of the things that we value as Americans is having a nice, straight smile and so we often put braces on our children when their adult teeth have grown in.
There are many countries, however, that don't put as much of an emphasis on having straightened teeth. It isn't considered a bad thing to have messed-up teeth, more like a fact of life. It is also an expensive process, so it's not all that surprising.
Diversity And Acceptance
Paula Morita from Romania wrote this on Quora: "Although many people are against immigration here, some people argue that in America, people have an easier time assimilating. It's probably due to the understanding that this country was basically founded by immigrants and that our population is a large portion of people from outside the US originally."
Anybody that lives in America is considered an American. Asians are Americans, blacks are Americans, Indians are Americans, whites are Americans, Arabs are Americans, Italians are Americans. People can retain their home culture, but they dissolve into the large American society and are considered a part of it, not strangers or outsiders.
Far Distances Between Cities
Marita also wrote about our vast distances: "Living in such a large country twists your perception of distance. I used to think any drive taking more than an hour is basically a road trip, now I’ve realized there are people that commute for over an hour every single day."
"I’ve also got the opportunity to drive from North Carolina to Montana (about 40 hours) twice. The US has every landscape imaginable." Due to the sheer size of the country, it's easy to drive for hours before you reach your destination. And also, as Marita said, there are all sorts of different climates to see here.
School Amenities
Many people are happy to see all of the things available to their children at school in the US. Little things you would think are necessary are air conditioning, hot lunches, and free busses.
We like to think that our schools could use more things, which they could (better education for those who don't have as much access is important), but we also tend to forget that a lot of the things we consider a given are actually a huge thing to have for some countries.
Obesity
We have a lot of food, and people eat it. America has one of the highest, if not the highest, reported amount of cases of obesity in the world. There are people who come to America with barely enough food to survive their previous residence.
Anda Galffy, a blogger from Romania, had this to say about the situation: "Sadly, obesity is not only condoned in this country, but rigorously defended through anti-discrimination laws." While we definitely agree that obesity is a huge issue, recent trends argue that you should be body positive rather than acknowledge the issue.
Informality
Galffy also wrote about the informal nature we tend to have with each other: "Calling your elders, teachers, and superiors by their first names was unheard of in Romania and it still is in most cultures I know. But the Americans’ informality doesn’t diminish the respect they have for other people."
"Calling someone by their first name is usually a sign of friendliness or acceptance, not a way to make one feel unimportant." While we still have yet to meet a superior who is okay right off the bat with calling them by their first name, we do see how we value kindness and friendship a lot and will potentially allow those close to us to break formality.
LGBTQ+ Openness
This is a huge one. We live in a country that has made it legal on the federal level to be gay and have a same-sex marriage. Not only is it legal, but it was ruled unconstitutional to not allow people to do so.
There are too many countries that do not allow gay marriage. While some countries that don't allow it still recognize the license in some areas, it's not good enough. And we haven't even talked about the countries where even being gay is illegal. We must count our blessings that we're not one of them.
Wealth Not Being Obvious
Many people think that people in America are not obviously wealthy. While that's not necessarily the case in say Los Angeles, there are many cities where how much money you have isn't readily apparent by the clothes you wear or things you have.
Aniruddh Chaturvedi wrote this on Quora: "A lot of people I know who have fancy stuff usually go into credit card debt in order to fund their lavish lifestyle. It's strange! Perhaps expensive material possessions are simply a form of validation that rich people usually derive from their work, their family, friends, etc, which may not necessarily be the case for the average consumer."
Education System
People are shocked by just how much it cost to go to school. They say the system sucks and that it's just there to make more money off of people. We don't exactly disagree with them on that one.
Sometimes it really does feel like they charge you just to breathe. And people wonder why Americans don't finish higher education. Why can't we have free tuition or be paid to go to school like some other countries?
Lack Of Vacation Days
We are busy bees here in the States. Many people work overtime (whether or not they get paid is a different story) and while the average workweek might be 40 hours over a five-day span, many people work more and even work 6 days a week.
More than that, you're typically allotted a two-week vacation every year! Considering there are 52 weeks in a year and the amount of work we put in, that's really not much to brag about. You might have a job that makes it more convenient to go on vacation, but the majority of the country does not have that same luxury.
Small Talk
Many people are actually surprised by the amount of small talk we do. We're just trying to be friendly and not stand around awkwardly in silence with the people around us.
Piotr Waszkielewicz from Poland wrote this on Quora: "I'd heard of it on numerous occasions, especially during my English lessons, but I never really got it. What's the point of talking if there's nothing to talk about?" You make a good point there, Piotr.
So Much Sugar
People seem to think we put a lot of sugar in everything and...we do. We make everything sweet from soda to lemonade and not to mention all of our baked goods. Everyone loves sugar, but in America, it's very accessible.
Over on Reddit, napaszmek talks about how they think "Everything is sugary and sweet. I swear even bread was sugary instead of salty". While this m y be true...actually we have nothing to say about this. It's just true.
Extra Sugar
Luzi1 over on Reddit had this to say about our use of sugar: "I witnessed a mother opening several packs of sugar and sprinkle it in their kids Coca Cola. I’m still speechless."
While this is probably one of the more extreme cases you'll see, we won't deny that we use a lot of sugar. If you go to Starbucks for a coffee you'll only get black if you specifically ask for it. All the specialty drinks already come with tons of sugar.
Street Preachers
"So many whackos around," says Reddit user Panceltic. "People just standing in the middle of the pavement with a huge "Jesus is coming" sign or similar." We definitely defined what it means to be a street preacher.
If you go to the right places, you can literally find those people talking about armageddon, just like the ones in the movies. We feel like one day one of them is going to be right and that we'll all have ignored the warning signs like the boy who cried wolf.
Dirty And Rusted Infrastructure
Panceltic also described their experience in the US saying we have, "Extremely dirty and old public infrastructure - NY subway feels unsafe to use at times, some of the stations look like they're collapsing any minute now".
This is very true. It must be fine if we've been using it up until now, but there's always that bit of doubt whenever you walk into the subway. They also smell like pee which is not pleasant in the slightest.
Poverty
"The poverty. I had been to the US a lot, but always along with the coastal cities. Sure, I saw homeless people around LA and New York, but I’ve seen homeless people in Sweden too and figured it probably had to do with addiction or mental illness," explained MrOaiki.
"Then a couple of years ago I decided to travel across the US. I started in Los Angeles, then Nevada, and then just moved on throughout the southern parts of the country. There were places that looked like a third-world country. Homes barely holding together, people with dirty clothes, just horrible horrible poverty that I’ve never ever seen in a developed country before."
The National Anthem
Another Reddit user by the name of GalileoGaligeil had this to say about our pledge of allegiance: "Having to say the 'Pledge of allegiance' every single day, not gonna lie I found that really strange because it kinda gave off North Korea vibes to me, that’s just something that would be unheard of in German schools."
We understand why some people would find it offensive to always have so much pride in the country that they came from. Here in America, though, the pride we have in our country is for our ability to live freely and happily, so to not acknowledge that would be underappreciative.
Homelessness In Abundance
Where there's poverty, there are homeless people. As unfortunate as it is, the truth of the matter is that America has a disproportionate amount of homeless people all over the country.
You can find them on pretty much every street in well-populated areas and you'll even see them on the streets where they'll clean your windshield for a few bucks or sell you a brochure of some sort.
Big Streets Even In Small Cities
superpauloportas over on Reddit mentioned "How hard it is to walk in smaller cities. Everything is designed around cars. Want to go to the mall across the street? There’s a 6 lane road, good luck crossing that! If you somehow manage to do it, you still have to cross a gigantic parking lot that is like 10% full."
While we agree that everything is huge, you get used to it pretty quickly. There's tons of transportation if walking isn't an option, but most places are pretty accessible. And not to worry about crossing the roads thanks to all the stoplights.
Tipping
A lot of countries don't require you to tip your server. In fact, there are some countries where it might even seem rude as if giving them money is an insult to how much they actually make.
Here in America, the servers' tip is pretty much their wages. The federal government only requires waiters to get paid minimum wage if their tips don't get them there on their own. That means that your tip is quite literally the living these people are trying to make.
Shoes On At Home
There are many countries, especially in Asia, where taking off your shoes in your home is a sign of respect. To do otherwise is disrespectful and you should be careful to remember to remove them at the door.
In America, these rules only apply on a case-by-case basis. You typically ask if you should take off your shoes, but many people just tell you to do whatever you're comfortable with.
The Prices And Sales
America may not always be the cheapest, but when there are sales in the stores, they go all out. Buy one get one free is an all-time favorite and many retail stores will have clearance sales where you can get stuff for a few dollars.
In general, you can also get things for cheap. Because we grow a huge variety of fruits and vegetables within the country, they'll only be a few dollars or even cents to the pound. Just watch out for that sales tax.
Afraid To Seek Healthcare
"Extremely sad to see people freak out about having to get medical attention and/or illness at work. Also going through the trouble of verifying my travel insurance indeed cover me in the states," says Reddit user LeBronzeFlamez. "I have been less concerned about going into literal war zones."
The sad truth is that healthcare and insurance are not free in America. Healthcare thusly becomes highly inaccessible to a large majority of the population. Because of this, people would prefer to pretend they are okay than to go in for a potentially lifesaving checkup.
Litter
ImFinePleaseThanks said on Reddit "All the waste and no concern for the environment. It really irks me." While it's true you'll see a lot of litter around, that doesn't happen everywhere and we really are conscious of the environment.
Don't get us wrong, you might see it as worse than where you live. That being said, we take steps to make sure that we keep it clean. There are garbages and recycling all over big cities and we don't even pre-separate recycling which makes it easier to not just throw it away since you don't have to do the work yourself (however lazy that might sound).
Toilet Paper
While this one's not so common, for some it is a big shock, so we thought it was worth mentioning. Some people are completely perplexed by the fact that we don't use a bidet, but rather toilet paper.
Scientifically, it's definitely more cleanly and healthy to use a bidet since wiping too much with toilet paper can be rough on your skin, and not to mention some people don't wash their hands. The bidet trend never seemed to catch on here, however.
TV Commercials
"We didn't watch a lot of tv, but when we did, I was very taken aback by the number of commercials. I watched Cartoon Network as a kid and I remember the screen faded to black and immediately back to whatever I watched like every 10 minutes maybe (usually during an exciting part, for dramatic effect).", said Reddit user thelotiononitsskin.
"I realized those blackouts were meant for commercials, but my home country didn't do that." Yes, ads are the biggest moneymaker in our country. If they only played it before or after the show, they wouldn't be able to guarantee people would see and buy their products.
Toilet Stall Gaps
This might seem normal to all of us, but it's not actually all that common around the world. Regardless, this happens to be the most common and annoying gripe amongst Americans (in terms of general annoyances, not important issues).
Why is it that we have gaps in our toilet stalls that everyone can see through even when just passing by the thing? It's super uncomfortable especially when there are those people who deliberately look inside for whatever reason. No privacy at all.
How Religious It Is
"How religious the US is. Pretty much everyone attended a church and the churches were a big part of everyone's life. Weekly attendance was a thing," said JoeAppleby on Reddit. Despite the "separation between church and state", it's heavily implied that people's belief in certain laws stems from their religious beliefs.
They go on to say, "One of my teachers was very progressive (gay democrat philosophy phd literature teacher in a Bush worshipping area) and he was asked by his students about which church he attended. I felt that was weird thing to ask in the first place."
Tax Not Included
In most countries tax is included in the price. This is so that you know exactly what you're paying for. In America, it's the opposite. They literally don't want you to know how much all the things you bought will cost until the end.
This is a largely capitalist tactic to make people feel like they are paying less than they actually will. That way they'll put more stuff into their shopping cart. It's a pretty sneaky tactic, but it works, so it won't stop.
Cheeses
"Swiss are famous for the love of cheese and putting cheese on and in things, but America takes that to another level...even if the cheese is less good tasting," said Tballz5 on a Reddit thread.
"They think they have Swiss cheese, but what they call Swiss like a really sh*t version of Ementaller cheese. They are surprised that we have like 400+ kinds of cheese, none of which we call Swiss."
How Nice, Open, And Friendly People Are
Everydaysceptical on Reddit said about his trip that he liked, "The open and friendly mentality of the people. People were always helpful and polite. Being a 15 y.o. teenager and called "sir" by the people felt very good :D".
We are a very friendly bunch and are willing to help those in need. Especially if you are a foreigner, we want to help make your stay as comfortable as possible. Obviously, there will be some hiccups along the road, not everyone is a good person, but for the most part you'll be alright.
How Much People Prefer Hugs
As we said, we're a friendly bunch, us Americans. We tend to be very open about giving out hugs to those who we appreciate and as a farewell to those we just met. It is understandable uncomfortable for some, though.
For some people who aren't from America, hugging can be a strange and disorienting experience, much like how for Americans the kiss on either side of the face is something we don't expect.
How Fake People Are
In contrast with what people say about how nice Americans can be, many people think that a lot of the nice gestures we do are all part of an act. It's not entirely wrong regarding customer service, but many of us do try our hardest to be nice.
Prustage on Reddit said, "Everyone greets you with a fixed totally artificial smile, they speak in standard scripts, everything will be "their pleasure" and they will do it "for you". You just feel they are acting out a part but actually not listening to what you say and they certainly never do any of the things they promise".
Flags Everywhere
The amount of flags everywhere is another thing that people said shocked them about our country. We're very patriotic, so it makes sense that we would put up a flag in every place possible.
Our love for America and our freedom just goes that far. If we were to take down all the flags it would be like an act of treason. After everything we've worked on to make America so free, we don't want to disrespect it by taking that all away.
Gas Prices
Gas prices are another thing that people are shocked by, though we have trouble understanding why. We feel like gas is really expensive in all countries other than the ones that actually produce the stuff.
That being said, we definitely agree that the prices are absurd. If you go way out into the countryside, you might find some lower prices due to the lack of demand. But that's not the easiest to do when you live in a big city.
The Division
What shocks Reddit user _eg0_ the most is, "How divided everything is. There are only extremes, no in-between. I thought this was mostly the case on the internet. On the drive from the in Florida airport I saw a "the NRA is a terrorist organization" billboard right next to one advertising semi-automatic (assault) rifles."
"I was also surprised how many churches there were in rural Florida. Most seemed to have advertising unlike anything here in Europe. Some seemed to wage war against each other."
Farting
This is something that in many countries is considered extremely embarrassing if you do so in public. Here in America, while still slightly embarrassing in certain situations, is much less stigmatized.
In fact, a large portion of our comedy revolves around what we call "toilet humor". And if you've ever watched Family Guy, you know they aren't afraid to throw in a fart joke or straight up fart in someone's (Meg's) face.
Water Levels In The Toilet
"The water level in the toilets, I walked into 3 different cubicles in JFK that were all seemingly blocked, until I realized that in the states the water level in the toilets is much higher, like half the bowl, whereas here in Europe there's just a bit of water at the bottom," says fruity_brown_sauce over on Reddit.
Honestly, we didn't even realize the difference. Though we have been to countries that have different levels of flush power, we didn't notice how high the water level is. It probably just depends on where you go.
Strangers Speaking To You
DogsReadingBooks explains, "Strangers talked to me for no reason. I could be walking on the street and a total stranger would come up to me and say "nice jacket" or something similar."
What can we say? Americans are a really friendly bunch. This is especially true in the south. Even if you're passing by someone you don't know, you're likely to get a hello. It can actually be a really nice feeling to brighten up your day.
Revealing Clothing
Unfortunately, in many countries, being able to be free with what you wear isn't as widely accepted as it is today. There are many countries that not only refrain from this, but punish people for doing so.
We're lucky enough to live somewhere that allows us to wear what we want and doesn't stigmatize these things in the same way. To be able to express ourselves the way we do is a right given to us and not many others.
Lack Of Uniforms
Speaking of the freedom to wear what we want, we are also very lucky to not have many schools that require a uniform. Obviously, there do exist the ones that have a uniform, like private schools.
That being said, many public schools have a very modest number of restrictions placed on the dress code in their school. In fact, dress code is basically our replacement for requiring a uniform.
"The Importance They Place On Race"
"Seven years ago, my gf and I went to visit friends in Florida and had a very creepy experience at the airport in NY. I'm very white skinned and light haired and my gf is more tanned and dark haired, more Mediterranean. We both put white race on the forms you have to fill in before entering the country and they accused us of lying because she was Latina," explained Reddit user Spamheregracias.
"For us that was a [shock], in Spain, Latino is used for a person whose country of origin is Latin American, not a race. They also insisted that it could be a crime for having lied on a form, and that race was something very important for health insurance". It's not surprising that someone would have an experience like this, but it's also definitely a bit strange to see it in this context.
How Sensitive People Are
A friend of ours told us that she once "tried to tell a joke to someone, but they got really upset and told me that that's not something you say to someone". For her, growing up in the UK, it was common to make such sarcastic jokes.
Apparently, a lot of people seem to think that we're too sensitive when it comes to a lot of things. We think that it might stem from a want of respect and how much we value kindness. Either way, we have to agree that Americans are a bit hypersensitive.