Although I was born in the United Kingdom, I spent a significant portion of my childhood growing up in Qatar. Situated just off of Saudi Arabia, Qatar is a pretty tiny country, but it's also a country dominated by Western expats. As a result, I got to go to an international school, I learned maybe three words of Arabic, and got to keep most of my Western influences and ideals. Unfortunately for me, those Western influences were more American than they were English.
As a result, I have kind of a weird mix of British and American knowledge. I spell my words with "U"s and "S"s instead of "Z"s, but I wear "pants" rather than "trousers". I prefer the Premier League to the NFL or the NBA, but Peep Show can't hold a candle to the American sitcom 30 Rock. More importantly, my weird upbringing helped me to understand a few subtle differences in American culture that are kind of odd, to say the least.
1. Air conditioning. Everywhere!
2. I don't know why, but American toilet stalls have such wide gaps
15. Spray cheese, and all the affronts American make to dairy products in general
Separated by a massive body of water called the Atlantic, British and American culture are literally oceans apart. Americans, if you're reading this; just know that we love you anyway, despite all your idiosyncrasies. You keep on doing you.
Before I start this article, I would like to make one thing clear: I have never been to America. I have spent my entire existence on the grey, soggy shores of the United Kingdom and occasionally foray into Europe to have a browse at some culture (walking around cathedrals). That said, I feel like I have been to America already. As anyone who lives on planet earth would attest, America is regularly forced in our face and down our throats.
Whether it's movies, TV programmes or the news, all the world watches America and for this reason, I feel like I've skated Venice Beach, had Christmas in NY and drove the lonely road of route 66.
However, America still fascinates me. I feel like America is just pretty... well... American. Everything would be bigger, the drinks come in red cups, everyone is slightly sunburnt and all the food is served in disturbingly large portions. So, to see if my stereotypes about the US were true, I headed to Reddit to see what it is really like in America and, yeah, I was spot on.
1. I can't tell if this is great or disgusting
"You can get melted cheese on basically any food." - bertiebees
7. How do people keep track of what they're spending?
"Having tax added on when you get to the till i.e. price tag says $5, you take a $5 bill out of your wallet, then bam, you're asked to pay $5.86 or whatever" - ahphoque
The United States of America truly is an amazing nation.
It is the country that gave the world musicians like Elvis Presley, visionaries like Walt Disney, actors like Tom Hanks, tech geniuses like Steve Jobs, and companies like McDonald's.
In addition, the nation has been led by some truly inspirational leaders - such as George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, JFK, and Franklin D. Roosevelt.
But despite the fact the USA may be the home of the free and the land of the brave, it is also a hub of bizarre activity other nations just cannot get their head around.
In fact, a recent Reddit thread asked the question: "What do Americans think is normal for everyone, but actually it's not normal for anyone but Americans?"
And the results were certainly eye-opening...
1. TitanicBeta: "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'."
3. HollowMist11: "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."
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4. ferret_80: "Casually driving a couple hours. Cars are so ubiquitous and stuff is so spread out a lot of the time we don't even think about travel in distance but instead in driving time. Driving 2 hours on a weekend for random day trip doesn't seem like anything of note. driving 8 hours is a long trip but not really a huge deal."
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5. Ssffxx: "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."
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6. sunnyeggs0: "Say 'I'll just have water' at a restaurant and not be charged for it or be asked 'What kind?'"
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7. KingAceNumber1: "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."
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8. I-am-a-Mango: "Being legally allowed to drink only when you reach 21."
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9. Adam-West: "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?"
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10. TitanicBeta: "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."
12. danno49: "Gratuitous violence in entertainment is normal. But show one boob and people lose their s**t."
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13. I_hate_traveling: "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."
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14. gibbylewd: "Not owning kettles and MICROWAVING their water for coffee/tea."
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15. CaravelClerihew: "Putting your country's flag everywhere and on everything.
"A flagpole on your porch or car bumper sticker may be somewhat understandable, but it gets really weird when it starts popping up on baseball caps, swimsuits or underwear.
"I'm in Australia and Americans are the only ones do this (yes, with the American flag), even all the way out here."
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16. Shervico: "I'm gonna say something positive, I live in southern Italy, but I go all around the state and the most fun and genuine tourists I've met were all American, didn't meet a single entitled one."
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17. jAlvesrz: "Having teens as your child's babysitter."
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18. bantamw: "The one that always shocks me is the whole 'thank you for your service' military thing. The military is treated like some sort of god-level being. It first struck me at Seaworld when they would make all service personnel stand up. In the UK the military guys (a) wouldn’t do it and (b) would be embarrassed. In most cases, they would be actively told not to do it so they don’t get identified."
20. bluegreentree: "Identifying as your heritage instead of your nationality. Americans will say that they’re Italian, German, Polish, etc. when they don’t speak the language and have no real connection to those countries anymore."
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21. nc27kopite: "Tipping is almost compulsory. In UK tips are optional and earned."
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22. HarrargnNarg: "Imitation cheese. Wtf? Why not cheese?"
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And there you have it, 22 things - good and bad - about the US that other nations just can't come to grips with.
A British student has received nearly half a million views in just two days on a video in which she discusses the most "confusing" things about going to college in the US.
Alyssa Feary, a young woman from Brighton, England, talked about everything from having to order in an American accent because people don't understand her accent to her peers not being able to understand why Britain is made up of four different countries.
She captioned the now-viral video: "What it’s like going to a college in America being English."
"So I go to a college in Georgia - I'm English and I have a little list of things that I've learned while going to college here," Feary begins the video.
"Americans can't comprehend that Britain is three different countries and there are loads of different accents. This is a British accent. They always - the first question they always ask me is 'Oh my god, why did you leave, like why did you come here?'"
She adds: "Like they don't understand why people would want to go to different countries.
"This accent gets me a lot of things - who knows why?"
Feary then goes on to talk about her experience at college, explaining: "You don't actually start your college major until your junior year. I'm a Business major taking Environmental Science."
"Erm, they think of Europe as a whole place," she adds. "Like 'Oh I went to Europe this Summer - like it's not many, many countries."
Leary then proceeds to say: "In the south, the word 'y'all' used way too much. Everyone goes to Florida for Spring break regardless of where you live."
"I have to order in an American accent. When I want a water, I have to get a 'wad-urr' because no one understands what I want. And they don't know what a 'full stop' is. They think a comma is a 'half stop'. No, no it's not."
The video currently has 481.2k views, 77k likes, and 1698 comments at the time of writing.
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One person responded, saying: "I feel like 80% of the problems you're experiencing stem from the fact that you are in Georgia."
Another added: "Literally any country in the EU would offer cheaper higher quality education than in the USA, that's why they're asking why you came there."
Speaking as someone who isn't from the states, the USA seems like a sort of whacky place to live right now. I mean, as far as I can tell from various TV shows and news stories, everyone there seems to have an obsession with bacon, guns are easier to buy than a pack of cigarettes, and nobody has a kettle in their home.
However, the weirdest part about America is definitely its laws. And I'm not talking about the sorts of rules that allow medical companies to hike up the price of lifesaving drugs, or the seemingly arbitrary regulations against jaywalking (though those are both nuts, by the way), but the regulations from years ago that - for some strange reason - still exist.
They're obviously not strictly adhered to anymore, but, if you live in any of the following states, you could technically be breaking the law for any of these bizarre things...
Maine
If you live here and your Christmas decorations are still up, get them down RIGHT NOW because it's illegal to have them still on display after January 14th.
Ohio
Here, it is against the law to get a fish drunk. So, if you were planning on getting boozy with your prize Koi this weekend, you'd better cancel.
Washington
If you come across Bigfoot, a Sasquatch or any other undiscovered species while out for a walk here, you'd better not harass it, as it's prohibited by law.
Arizona
Donkeys aren't permitted to sleep in bathtubs in this state. Washing your ass is still allowed, however.
Texas
Got a spare eyeball hanging about? You can't sell it, unfortunately. The law says so.
Virginia
A weird law here prohibits children from going trick-or-treating on Halloween.
Louisiana
It is illegal to send pizza to someone else's house without their knowledge. You can genuinely be fined up to $500 for doing so.
Arkansas
In this state, it's against the law to mispronounce "Arkansas".
Maryland
If it's a sunny day in Maryland, watch out; you could be fined $10 if you're caught in a park with a sleeveless shirt.
Utah
Vegans and lactose-intolerant folks, listen up: it's illegal for you NOT to drink milk in this state.
New York
If you're reading this after 10 pm and you're wearing slippers, then you are in violation of the law, pal.
Georgia
Here, it's against the law to have an ice cream cone in your back pocket. But only on Sundays. Between Monday and Saturday, you can get soft scoop on your pants all you want.
Colorado
Do you like drinking? And riding a horse? Well, too bad buddy, because you can't do both at once. (This law is actually quite sensible. Well done, Colorado).
Florida
For all you elephant-owners in the sunshine state, make sure you've got some change when you take it to the shops, as you'll have to pay to "park" it.
Mississippi
Here, it is illegal to use profane language while out in public.
North Dakota
Guys, no matter how tired you are, do not - I repeat, do not - fall asleep with your shoes on in this state.
So, if you happen to live in any of these states - or are planning to travel there anytime soon - make sure to keep your pockets free of ice cream, your mouth free of expletives, and your bed free of shoes.
An American woman who lives in Australia has revealed the main differences between McDonald's in the US and the one Down Under.
Visiting one particular McDonald's restaurant in Australia with some friends, Annika Swanson noticed a number of major differences to the menu.
According to Annika, who shared some of the differences in a video posted to TikTok, the items were more expensive despite portion sizes being smaller. She also revealed that certain items could only be purchased at certain times of the day.
"We're at Australian McDonald's. I cannot get over the McChicken is $7.35. It's way cheaper in America," she began her video, which has since racked up over 300,000 views, 27,000 likes and hundreds of comments.
The video was a response to a comment left on a previous video, in which a user demanded to know: "Why would you come all the way to Australia to have American style c**p."
Check out her video below:
The commenter went on to advise Annika to "get out there and try the local stuff."
Deciding not to address the displeased commenter, she added: "You also can't get McChickens after certain times. Oh brother."
Annika then revealed that there was a potato scallops option on the menu, saying: "That is something we don't have in America. The same with all of this."
She went on to show her followers than a whole page on the menu was dedicated to a range of delicious toasties, with fillings including ham and cheese and cheese and tomato.
The content creator also pointed out that macaroons and sparking water were available on the Australian menu - unlike its American counterpart.
"They also have three piece McNuggets, which they don't have in America, which is what I'm getting," Annika said.
One of the friends who accompanied Annika to Aussie McDonald's described the chicken nuggets as "teensy" and gave them a 7.5 out of 10.
"Good flavor, too small," she added.
A different friend shared that they were given a small portion of sauce along with their meal, which isn't offered in American McDonald's.
A third friend jokingly commented that the amount of sauce "seems illegal".
The comments left on the video were mainly from Australians defending their version of McDonald's and also criticizing Annika for how she chooses to spend her time abroad.
One person wrote: "'I got the 3 piece mcnugget... but there's not much there'... umm, how many nuggets were you expecting in the 3 piece..."
Credit: TikTok
Another added: "It’s expensive, because our staff aren’t paid $1.20/ hour."
Credit: TikTok
A third penned: "Our beef burgers are much better in Australia than the US for sure, fresher ingredients too I felt."
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