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42 Times Americans Realized Their Everyday Comforts Were Luxuries In Countries They Traveled To
Interview
It's easy to take a lot of things for granted if you never leave your home. One of the first learning moments many kids have is when they visit a friend or relative and realize that people live differently. But travel is the number one educator, a way to see just how differently folks from around the globe get by.
Someone asked “What's a luxury that most Americans don't realize is a luxury?” and netizens from the US shared their thoughts. We also got in touch with the netizen who posted the question. So get comfortable as you scroll through, upvote your favorites and be sure to share your own thoughts and examples in the comments section below.
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#1
As an American who now lives abroad, air conditioning .
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#2
Windows with screens. When I lived in Geneva, I was in a sixth-floor walk-up flat with no A/C. I was in for a very unfortunate surprise when the weather got warm and I opened the windows only for bugs to swarm in. No screens! How was I supposed to sleep in a hot bedroom and I couldn’t even open my tiny window for some air flow?!
Bored Panda got in touch with the internet user who posted this question and they were kind enough to share some more details. We wanted to know why they picked this topic in the first place. “My friend traveled to Poland, and she was surprised that drying machines for clothes were a luxury. Hardly anyone had them over there.
We were also curious to hear their thoughts on why the thread had so much engagement. “Popularity in questions asked on that subreddit are just random really. You can ask the same question another day and not get any responses. Sometimes they hit, sometimes they don't,” they shared.
#4
School facilities. As a rural Canadian, I grew up watching American TV and was always seething with jealousy over American schools. I was especially jealous that Americans could sign up for the school play and meet a teenage heartthrob. We didn’t have school plays, or a theatre in general, or band, or football, or a swimming pool, or art classes.
Jan Rosier 5 months ago (edited)
French situation is pretty much the same as in Belgium. And I consider it an advantage: kids who sign up for extracurricular after school (arts, sports...) tend to be motivated to do so, and more importantly : being good or bad at whatever you choose or donot choose, has absolutely no influence on your school grades.
#5
Space. We have so much space. Lived in Japan for 2 years and space is what I missed the most. Bigger cars, houses, trees, cities (more area), businesses, etc… other places mostly seem so cramped. Even bigger cities like Chicago have so much more room comparatively.
We also wanted to hear if this netizen had any examples of their own. “I used to play WOW classic with a person in our guild that lived in Lebanon. He would not always have 24 hour electricity.” We also asked if they had any favorite posts. “I would say the entire thread is my favorite, it's a humbling read for any Americans that don't travel outside the country.”
#7
Excellent water pressure in showers. When abroad, showers are like a flower watering pot. I like to feel my shower. Make the pressure strong enough to tear my skin off, then back it off like 10%.
#8
Great disability access. I can go to any place — theatre, store, office, school, whatever — with confidence that I'll be able to navigate fine in my wheelchair, and they'll have ramps and/or elevators.
Jrog 5 months ago (edited)
As in most of the developed world. European accessibility laws are in fact stricter than ADA's. Americans often complains about very old, historical buildings not being fully accessible, but that is a very rare exception that needs to be thoroughly motivated and specifically approved by the town council.
#9
In the early 2000s I asked a refugee from Somalia what if she liked it here. She said yes. "What's your favorite thing?" I said.
"If my house starts on fire I can call 911 and someone will come put it out."
"Oh. Yeah. That's awesome.".
#10
Garbage collection. When I traveled a little bit, one of the things that struck me most was the amount of garbage in the streets and piled in fields. There is no municipal collection in some parts of the world.
#11
Unless you truly live in the middle of nowhere, access to good Mexican food is basically guaranteed.
#12
That at school your child can get free services like speech therapy.
#13
Access to all types of climates and natural wonders in a single country. You like mountains? Go west. Beaches? There are lots of American cities located right by the sea. Like the cold? We've got Alaska! Deserts, canyons, waterfalls, geysers, forests? Got you covered all in one country where people speak one language and use one currency.
#14
Controlling the temperature of your home to whatever you want 24/7/365.
Most other developed countries are either good at heating or good at AC, but rarely both.
#15
Back yards! Even if it’s small, a patch of land attached to your residence that no one but you has access to is something most people in cities in east, southeast, and South Asia can only dream of.
#16
Libraries. The American public library system is very advanced. It's also, general speaking, free to use.
#18
Regular street-sweeping. You won’t notice it until you go somewhere without it.
#19
Dryers that actually dry clothes. I'm American but my new apartment has a European style 2 in 1 washer/dryer which i thought was cool at first until I used it and it takes 4 hours for a dry cycle, is soooo loud, and the clothes still come out a little damp. I miss my American sized washer dryer separate units
#20
Hot water. Grew up off grid, and hot water from the tap meant you had to have the water pump working and you had to have water in the catchment. Plus propane for the water heater, so hot water wasn't a guaranteed thing. Been living in "real" houses for the last 15 years and everytime I turn on a hot shower I'm still thankful .
#22
Drinks with ice ‼️Apparently Europeans don’t like ice. Room temperature drinks don’t quench my thirst.
#24
Vegetarian and vegan options.
rullyman 5 months ago
Massively country dependent. UK is great for both- vegetarians have been catered here for about 100 years but vegans have lately been considered too. India has arguably the best vegetarian cooking in the world, and they are lacto vegetarians, so you just need to find dishes without milk to go vegan. Any country with a strong Buddhist presence will have vegan options- you may have to learn to ask for a monks meal.
#25
The public education system, like having the ability to go to a school that’s covered by taxes; sure, it’s not perfect, and there’s always issues, but there are many people throughout the world that have never had this sort of opportunity that I think we in wealthier nations often take for granted.
#26
While it's true that you will have to drive great distances to get where you want to go, the interstate highway system and the rest areas are a unique feature of the American landscape. In other countries they do not exist, or have been replaced by commercial enterprises. A gas station with a donut shop on the side of the road is not the same as a rest stop.
#27
The single family home.
The vast majority of people live in apartments or row houses/townhouses.
Ripley 5 months ago
Has this person actually been anywhere outside the US? Housing styles are completely dependent on where you live, and it's generally not country related, but city/suburbs/regional/rural related. Source: someone sitting in a detached house in an area of detached housing in Sydney, NSW.
#28
Clean drinking water. My folks traveled the world quite a bit and said that they were amazed every time they returned to the US that there is (or was, a couple of decades ago) clean water out of almost every tap or water readily available nearby. We don't realize how incredible and rare this is, and so we take it for granted.
#29
People obeying traffic signals. Guy I used to work with who was from an African country I cannot recall(this was 15+ years ago) said one of the most suprising things he saw when he immigrated was that people actually obeyed traffic lights. He said where he came from they were treated more like mild suggestions.
Andrei Iepure 5 months ago
We follow the clouds over here. If it rains we stop and dance on the hood
#30
The ability to buy anything you can think of and buying online arrives in less than a week...often in two or three days.
A lot of countries just don't have the access to big box stores or infinite option online merchants.
#31
Traveling to other countries without an approved visa.
Ace 5 months ago (edited)
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2024/01/2024-power-passport-visa-free-travel/ Here are the top 10 rankings for the most powerful passports in 2024, and the number of other countries these passport holders can visit, without having to obtain a visa in advance. 1. France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Singapore, Spain (194 destinations) 2. Finland, South Korea, Sweden (193 destinations) 3. Austria, Denmark, Ireland, Netherlands (192 destinations) 4. Belgium, Luxembourg, Norway, Portugal, United Kingdom (191 destinations) 5. Greece, Malta, Switzerland (190 destinations) 6. Australia, Czechia, New Zealand, Poland (189 destinations) 7. Canada, Hungary, United States (188 destinations) 8. Estonia, Lithuania (187 destinations) 9. Latvia, Slovakia, Slovenia (186 destinations) 10. Iceland (185 destinations)
#32
Fully stocked grocery stores. Life post-COVID showed me how much of a luxury this actually is. I can so vividly remember driving to the store to pick up some things only to find half-empty shelves.
#34
Multiples of electronics, i.e., TVs, computers, gaming systems.
#35
The right to protest, hold whatever backwards belief you want, and say whatever you want (of course if it isn’t true threats or fighting words).
Guy-Incognito 5 months ago
...and get run over by maga nuts for exercising that right or shot.
#36
The freedom to speak openly about your political and personal beliefs, no matter how stupid or uninformed they are.
#37
Fresh fruit from around the world every day of the year.
#39
Spices. Less than 100 years ago paprika was as expensive saffron.
#40
Not caring about customer support. « ill just buy another one »
They dont understand that once you pay for something, its supposed to work as long as physically possible.
Too many dollars on their hands.
#41
This is a hot take but the healthcare. I was born in Europe and have a lot of family still there. In Europe my aunt got cancer. When she needed scans the wait was counted in months. The hospital was terrible, more like a prison with old outdated equipment (this is in a big cosmopolitan European city not some podunk town)
My wife got cancer in the US. When she needed a scan it was ordered by the doctor and she was headed down within the hour. Her room was like a five star hotel.
Sure in Europe it was free, but you get what you pay for. Here my insurance covered all of this amazing care, once I paid the $2500 a year in deductibles everything was free last that point.
My aunt passed, my wife is alive and thriving.
#42
Being able to get insulin. As much as the cost of it sucks, it's still available at all. I haven't missed a single day of taking it in over 41 years. It's why I'm not dead.
Government funded dialysis care. I'm not on dialysis but I used to work in the field for years. If you need it, you get it. Without those 3 3-4 hour treatments a week, those people would die.
Lack of actual wars in our country for over a century has been pretty nice too.
What do you think ?
Shane P 5 months ago
Lol most of these are just blatantly false and unchecked, just like I would expect from most Americans. My favorite is spinning the fact that Americans pay an arm and a leg for healthcare to be a good thing because it somehow makes it more timely. Lol
Tyranamar Seuss 5 months ago
That was so bad I choked. What American still believes that c**p?
Load More Replies...
Verena 5 months ago
It would have been enlightning if the OPs had named the country where they experienced the deficiency
Caro Caro 5 months ago
Yeah, you read it as if the OP has been to ONE country outside the US and thinks it's "the world". There's a vast difference between countries, continents.
Load More Replies...
Justin Tyme 5 months ago
Being able to pay (huge amounts of money) for healthcare while the government spends trillions of dollars to lose wars all over the world instead of funding healthcare. What!? You mean other countries don't get this great privilege?
Shane P 5 months ago
Lol most of these are just blatantly false and unchecked, just like I would expect from most Americans. My favorite is spinning the fact that Americans pay an arm and a leg for healthcare to be a good thing because it somehow makes it more timely. Lol
Tyranamar Seuss 5 months ago
That was so bad I choked. What American still believes that c**p?
Load More Replies... Verena 5 months ago
It would have been enlightning if the OPs had named the country where they experienced the deficiency
Caro Caro 5 months ago
Yeah, you read it as if the OP has been to ONE country outside the US and thinks it's "the world". There's a vast difference between countries, continents.
Load More Replies... Justin Tyme 5 months ago
Being able to pay (huge amounts of money) for healthcare while the government spends trillions of dollars to lose wars all over the world instead of funding healthcare. What!? You mean other countries don't get this great privilege?
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