It’s no secret—the rest of the world looks at how peculiar American culture can be and wonders if it’s even real.
‘Cause let’s face it—even if it looks fine for us, that doesn’t mean that having police patrol your school, paying for a ride to the hospital, and calling the toilet “restroom” when we all know very well there ain't nobody going there to have a rest shouldn’t raise a brow for others.
So this time, we are looking at what American things make our fellow non-American friends scratch their heads in simple, yet very spot-on questions below. Our dear American Pandas are also welcome to help separate what’s real, what’s rumors, and what only happens in movies in the comments! And after you're done with this post, check out our previous one with things Americans do that require an explanation for non-Americans.
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But taking off shoes and socks when you come in is nearly as good as taking off your bra.
This gets rehashed all the time. "Jelly" in the UK is what Americans would call "jello." So yes a PB and jello sandwich would be disgusting. Jelly in the US is jam or marmalade in the UK. PB and jam is amazing.
Oh, that makes sense. We do NOT put flavored gelatin on sandwiches. We put marmalade or preserves.
Load More Replies...PEANUT BUTTER IS AMAZING AND NOBODY CAN CHANGE MY MIND
I love how people in Europe will freak about PB&J, then eat Nutella piled 2.5 cm high on toast...
As above, that's because jelly in the UK, and probably elsewhere, is gelatin not jam or marmalade. A PB and G would be pretty disgusting. Americans (and I know, I am one) believe the world revolves around them and that all cultures, people, and countries should follow our "examples". Just a little political diatribe. The US has become so embarrassing
Load More Replies...I'm from the UK, and I love peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (although, we call it peanut butter and jam).
Jam is made with whole fruit. Jelly is made with only the juice (and usually corn syrup). Jelly is WAYYYY more popular here (USA).
Load More Replies...(hides pb and j sandwich.) yes, its an inside joke. No one eats that.....lol
Is "jelly" something other than a sort of jam but made with fruit juice instead of the fruit in other parts of the world? I've hear this one before and I get the impression that people elsewhere in the world are thinking something than we are actually eating. Kind of like how US pudding would be what the UK calls custard rather than what pudding actually is in the UK.
In the United States, per 21 CFR 150, "Jelly" is defined as a cooked and pectin-jelled preserve made from clarified fruit juice, "Jam" is cooked and pectin-jelled preserve made from the whole crushed fruit. This was necessary because definitions varied widely depending on region.
Load More Replies...Oh yes, much less palatable than haggis, tripe, caviar, lutefisk, or pangolin.
Peanut butter is an inexpensive protein. And a PB&J is easy to make.
Even in Australia we eat peanut butter and jam (same thing as jelly) or honey...it's great!
Izzi I really hope you're not from England because I would ask "Is chutney actually eaten or left out to kill zombies!". How dare you make fun of my precious peanutbutter and jelly ! Disgusting looking? Yes ! Tasty? Absolutely !!!!
Grew up on it. STILL a favorite with a glass of milk. More strange is why doesn't everyone eat PB&J ?
PBJ is awesome. It isn't an American thing either. PBJ is all over the world.
It's probably the most American meal. Fat and concentrated sugar between two slices of carbohydrates.
I've only ever eaten peanut butter in one other country (New Zealand) and it was nasty. Maybe I just bought the wrong brand, but when I mentioned it to my hosts they told me that peanut butter just isn't as big a thing there as it is here, which gave me the impression that their peanut butter generally isn't as good. (There may have been more to this conversation to give me that impression. It was nine years ago.) Ever since then I've just assumed that pb&j hasn't taken off in other countries because their peanut butter doesn't taste as good. I don't know why it wouldn't since the best peanut butter is just mooshed up peanuts (no salt, sugar, or whatever abomination they put in Jif and Skippy to give it that frosting-like consistency), and the roasted peanuts I bought at the grocery store in NZ tasted fine.
Canadian here . The jelly can be purple grape jelly which is a kind like a clear grape jam. Great with PB! Also jam, of course. And banana!
My favorite comfort food! PBJ, butter both sides and grill that sucker like a grilled cheese, then eat it warm.....heaven
Among my friends and relatives peanut butter and chocolate sprinkles/flakes (hagelslag) are quite popular. Or PB and sambal. Never tried Pb&J. Does it need to be a specific flavour of jelly/jam?
Not to my knowledge. I've had blueberry, strawberry, orange marmalade, grape, and probably others. Haven't yet met a PB&J I didn't like.
Load More Replies...Why is that so weird? I love PB and strawberry jam sandwiches.
my mouth started watering once you said strawberry jam
Load More Replies...I grew up loving peanut butter and jelly. Still do. So many variations can be made too.
PEANUTBUTTER JELLY TIME, PEANUTBUTTER JELLY TIME, WHERE HE AT? WHERE HE AT?" pbj-time-6...32-png.jpg
Yes, although my mother raised me on peanut butter & sugar sandwiches. I don't know where she got that. There's also peanut butter, banana & mayonnaise and peanut butter with marshmallow fluff.
I have eaten a PB&J samwich for lunch almost every day of my life, yes, it's true.
One of the best sandwiches. If you leave it overnight, the jelly crystallizes and it's even better.
Are you serious??? Never heard of a pbj????? Oh my, you have no childhood XD
I think it's the same as PB and jam - and no, not weird at all here in Oz.
Whoo, that was a train wreck. I meant I didn't have have one until I was like, six. You know the rest.
Load More Replies...I found this very very weird until I found out that "jelly" in America is just what I would call "jam". Then I was like oh OK, I eat peanut butter and jam sandwiches too. (My idea of "jam" is what Americans would call "jello" so, a peanut butter and jello sandwich... no.)
try peanutbutter and nutella, gouda cheese and blueberry jelly or sausage with sugar :-P
ARE YOU INSANE?!! Its the most delish thing ever! Also has lots of fat, protein and carbs - everything the body needs.
Dude why would dance so hard to a song about it? Peanut butter jelly time is a real song, dance, and lifestyle. PB&J is a good go to food if you're hungry and you don't want to cook. Also kids love the stuff so its an easy meal for them.
Where do you live? In a jungle surrounded by rock people? Wtf is this sh!t
An American staple. Easy to put in kids school lunches but most schools banning them because parents freak out about their kids with peanut allergies.
like i understand peanut butter and jam but when it comes to peanut butter and jelly i just dont get it like how do you spread the jelly onto the bread without it being all chunky and slippery?
Peanut Butter and mashed banana and Honey on white crusty roll is delish!!
I eat them almost every day. You can buy PB&J swirled together in one jar. Look up Smucker's Goober Grape. You can also buy them pre-made by the carton (PB&J Uncrustables).
I used to eat something similar in the 70s in the US called Koogle. Can't remember if they had peanut butter, but I seem to remember chocolate/banana. There were other flavors as well.
Load More Replies...oh, he doesn't know about peanut butter, he thinks its just butter
It's actually pretty good, but don't get me started on root beer, that's just not palatable.
Love peanut butter, hate jelly. Peanut butter on crackers is a meal in itself! PNB and untoasted bread--SQUISHY AWFUL!
Jam is made with whole fruit. Jelly is made with only the juice (and usually corn syrup). Jelly is WAYYYY more popular here (USA). Also, our peanut butter has alot more sugar added.
Load More Replies...We have them. They are usually part of the cheerleader squad or dance squad. It is a sports thing. We take sports very seriously.
Even though Americans and Europeans share many things, like commitment to democratic principles, a strategic alliance, and some of the highest standards in the world, there are still some very notable differences between them.
A 2016 study done by Pew Research Center was very revealing in that respect. First of all, it showed that Americans are more likely to believe they control their own destiny.
The research showed that a staggering 57% of Americans disagreed with the statement “Success in life is pretty much determined by forces outside our control.” The percentage was higher than in any other European nations polled.
The second interesting thing the Pew poll showed is that “Americans prioritize individual liberty, while Europeans tend to value the role of the state to ensure no one in society is in need.”
When it comes to religion, it turned out that over half in the US (53%) say religion is extremely important in their life, which is nearly double the share with the same view in Poland.
In France, for example, only 14% consider religion a very important aspect of their lives.
How else would you call them? Students wouldn't use the teachers first name.
Some schools are more strict than others and require them. My schools didn't require them. We just excused ourselves and went to the restroom when needed.
No. They don't - at least the schools that I went to and my nieces and nephews don't (they are ages 4 - 17). In the past, students were made to recite the "pledge of allegiance" each morning, but I think this is something that has fallen by the wayside.
Some schools don't allow it, but at the schools I went to we were allowed to. It was fun! You can put magnets, quotes, pictures of loved ones.
What's so unusual with this? I'm Austrian and my children's friends never used my first name.
I think children all over the world have to feel "slightly suicidal" to do this.
The weird part is that someone would give a rat's a*s about Americans microwaving water or how they eat bacon. Apparently no one has the same questions about Russians, Chinese, or even Lithuanians. Give it a rest Panda.
I think it's becase more people around the globe see American movies or TV shows than they see movies made by Russians, Chinese, or Lithuanians.
Load More Replies...Do Americans actually have that violent bullying culture at schools, with football players and cheer leaders on the social top and geeks on the bottom? Or senior students bullying first-graders? Please, tell me it's all a movie thing!
It's not as openly expressed as in movies, but unfortunately yes. Bullying is a huge problem. Most schools "anti-bullying programs" are some posters and maybe a talk about how bullying is bad every month or so. I remember in seventh grade I was just the kid everyone hated for no reason. It got pretty bad and I was already dealing with some stuff that comes with growing up, but I know the bullying was a huge part of it. I know of lots of other kids who have had to deal with bullying too. It's really sad, but the whole social cliques and bullying thing is very real.
Load More Replies...I think some of these have to do with a word meaning different things in different countries. Jelly in Europe, for example, I'm pretty sure is what we in the US would call Jello (which is a brand name of gelatin that caught on as the general term for that item). So, yea, we don't eat peanut butter and gelatin. Our jelly is a spread closer to jam but made from fruit juice instead of the fruit.
My jam (I am American) is made with the fruit. Jelly is made without seeds. Gelatin is Jell-O, or an additive to fancy desserts... So I figure we should call it "Fruit Goop" as my sister did!
Load More Replies...Some people yeah but hopefully they just die off. Natural selection
Load More Replies...I couldn’t finish I think they chose the stupidest people they could find to ask questions about American culture. Some of these questions are flat out idiotic
Yup, we really do all of that stuff. At least some of us do all of that stuff. The mom shut up thing varies from person to person. I didn't do it but my son unfortunately did. Question: what's the problem?
They're not problems. It's just curiosity when in other places people do different things. Not worse or better, just different. Also it's interesting to learn that something you do in a way can be done diferent. For example, I also keep my medecins in the bathroom and never wondered why (Oh!). Wanting to know about another person or culture is wanting to love it. ;)
Load More Replies...I really don't get the endless fascination here with American behavior. You can play this both ways. Do Australians really call ketchup "tomato sauce?" Apparently so. Do Americans give a f**k? No. Aussies are cool and can call s**t whatever they want
I mean America deserves to be ridiculed ngl (for the record I am in fact an American)
Load More Replies...I really don't get most of these questions, they are just normal everyday things, not anything hard to imagine or out of the ordinary.
Maybe they're asked by people to whom these things are neither normal, everyday, or ordinary.
Load More Replies...My only question is why did American's vote for a bell end like Trump?
Because the other end of the bell was Hillary Clinton.
Load More Replies...I have one: do Americans really live in dilapidated or unfinished houses? In the movies or on TV you so often see them living in houses that either have the stud walls exposed, or, if they move into another house, the wallpaper will be peeling off the walls, and they just leave it like that through the entire movie or season.
As a foreign exchange student I was completely weirded out by how american high school movies were actually mostly accurate: students are openly ranked by "popularity", the sports coach doubling as history teacher, the cop car circleing the school, the hysteria around prom queen, teenagers going to jail or wearing electronic bracelets, the cafeteria seating by castes (jocks, nerds, mean girls... the lowest rung even ate on the floor, even though there were available seats 0o), sports and clubs being more important than actual classes, the motivational posters everywhere... everything was real. Only the crazy parties were not :-(
Oh I beg to differ! Lol! Not so much now but in the 90s..we rocked the house!
Load More Replies...Ok, 2 questions: 1. Is this going to be posted every week? and 2. Are any Americans answering these questions?
This is my first time seeing and yes, I am answering some
Load More Replies...One thing I've seen many non-Americans ask is if we really have 2-3 months of summer break. The answer is yes.
Well, the schoolchildren do, adults get maybe a week off.
Load More Replies...Canadian here. Most of these are true for us as well. Not all, but many.
Ok as an American: 1: Some of my friends have no-shoes houses, but generally people can wear shoes in the house. 2: Yeah some people eat peanut butter and jelly but it's not as common as it is in media (also it's not allowed in some schools because of nut allergy rules) 3: Yeah, mostly high schools and colleges but school mascots are common. 4: Yes. One time I accidentally put my retainer in the garbage disposal. 5: Yeah cereal is a good quick breakfast 6: Yep, not in all schools but it's very common 7: I don't think people do this but I'm not sure, my house has a tap that dispenses hot water so we don't need to 8: Not in my school (I go to a private school) but in lots of schools. 9: Again, not in my school but it's pretty common 10: Not at my school but yeah that happens, Girl Scouts also has the pledge of allegiance 11: Of course how else can I be ✨ fabulous ✨ 12: Yep, sometimes but not always. I'm running out of space so ill make a second comment
22: Some people dip the crust in ranch but I don't know anyone who puts ranch on pizza that would be disgusting 23: I don't think so, I sure don't but I'm not an adult yet so. 24: Only the rude ones. 25: Yes they're doctors that do doctor things with your eyes. Doctors for your eyes. Eye doctors. 26: Yes 27: A lot of American homes don't have fireplaces, and if they do, it's a fake gas one, so real fireplaces are kind of exciting. 28: Yeah some people do, it kind of sounds stupid 29: Most schools do that, I'm not sure why 30: Yes? what do you guys say?
Load More Replies...I think I’m just weird because I don’t do most of these things... or they’re just in movies- no idea mates.
Articles in the past, with the same topic, as stupid as they are, at least had interesting questions, but this is just c**p
Sorry I find most of these if not all really stupid. Yes we Americans do different things that other countries dont do, and its made to sound like what people do in England, China or any other country is not strange to us. Like eating something called spotted d**k, at least in America most of us know not to put a d**k with spots on it in our mouths. These are always just so rude
America doesn't have roll on deodorant. That spun me out when I visited...
Do american really have no pin codes or biometrics linked to their money. Like anyone can just take your card and go buy a house.
At least half of these are not even close to being typical American things, and that's my opinion as a non-American.
Well..as an american..they are all yes for the majority of us!😂
Load More Replies...Also, I know that American school year begins in mid August like the Northern European countries because of the climate and tο us in the early September
Ahhh good. Its been a few days since we made fun of Americans. I was starting to think the world started to care about other s**t. I'm so glad we have post #12,789,566 being snarky about us.
Do Americans really comment to answer year-old questions that are reposted from another website?
Truth Monster & Kat Hoth~ Thank you! Nice to see the Panda Spirit revitalized!
There are rude people everywhere -- it's not polite to talk with food in your mouth, of course, but some people do.
Load More Replies...The weird part is that someone would give a rat's a*s about Americans microwaving water or how they eat bacon. Apparently no one has the same questions about Russians, Chinese, or even Lithuanians. Give it a rest Panda.
I think it's becase more people around the globe see American movies or TV shows than they see movies made by Russians, Chinese, or Lithuanians.
Load More Replies...Do Americans actually have that violent bullying culture at schools, with football players and cheer leaders on the social top and geeks on the bottom? Or senior students bullying first-graders? Please, tell me it's all a movie thing!
It's not as openly expressed as in movies, but unfortunately yes. Bullying is a huge problem. Most schools "anti-bullying programs" are some posters and maybe a talk about how bullying is bad every month or so. I remember in seventh grade I was just the kid everyone hated for no reason. It got pretty bad and I was already dealing with some stuff that comes with growing up, but I know the bullying was a huge part of it. I know of lots of other kids who have had to deal with bullying too. It's really sad, but the whole social cliques and bullying thing is very real.
Load More Replies...I think some of these have to do with a word meaning different things in different countries. Jelly in Europe, for example, I'm pretty sure is what we in the US would call Jello (which is a brand name of gelatin that caught on as the general term for that item). So, yea, we don't eat peanut butter and gelatin. Our jelly is a spread closer to jam but made from fruit juice instead of the fruit.
My jam (I am American) is made with the fruit. Jelly is made without seeds. Gelatin is Jell-O, or an additive to fancy desserts... So I figure we should call it "Fruit Goop" as my sister did!
Load More Replies...Some people yeah but hopefully they just die off. Natural selection
Load More Replies...I couldn’t finish I think they chose the stupidest people they could find to ask questions about American culture. Some of these questions are flat out idiotic
Yup, we really do all of that stuff. At least some of us do all of that stuff. The mom shut up thing varies from person to person. I didn't do it but my son unfortunately did. Question: what's the problem?
They're not problems. It's just curiosity when in other places people do different things. Not worse or better, just different. Also it's interesting to learn that something you do in a way can be done diferent. For example, I also keep my medecins in the bathroom and never wondered why (Oh!). Wanting to know about another person or culture is wanting to love it. ;)
Load More Replies...I really don't get the endless fascination here with American behavior. You can play this both ways. Do Australians really call ketchup "tomato sauce?" Apparently so. Do Americans give a f**k? No. Aussies are cool and can call s**t whatever they want
I mean America deserves to be ridiculed ngl (for the record I am in fact an American)
Load More Replies...I really don't get most of these questions, they are just normal everyday things, not anything hard to imagine or out of the ordinary.
Maybe they're asked by people to whom these things are neither normal, everyday, or ordinary.
Load More Replies...My only question is why did American's vote for a bell end like Trump?
Because the other end of the bell was Hillary Clinton.
Load More Replies...I have one: do Americans really live in dilapidated or unfinished houses? In the movies or on TV you so often see them living in houses that either have the stud walls exposed, or, if they move into another house, the wallpaper will be peeling off the walls, and they just leave it like that through the entire movie or season.
As a foreign exchange student I was completely weirded out by how american high school movies were actually mostly accurate: students are openly ranked by "popularity", the sports coach doubling as history teacher, the cop car circleing the school, the hysteria around prom queen, teenagers going to jail or wearing electronic bracelets, the cafeteria seating by castes (jocks, nerds, mean girls... the lowest rung even ate on the floor, even though there were available seats 0o), sports and clubs being more important than actual classes, the motivational posters everywhere... everything was real. Only the crazy parties were not :-(
Oh I beg to differ! Lol! Not so much now but in the 90s..we rocked the house!
Load More Replies...Ok, 2 questions: 1. Is this going to be posted every week? and 2. Are any Americans answering these questions?
This is my first time seeing and yes, I am answering some
Load More Replies...One thing I've seen many non-Americans ask is if we really have 2-3 months of summer break. The answer is yes.
Well, the schoolchildren do, adults get maybe a week off.
Load More Replies...Canadian here. Most of these are true for us as well. Not all, but many.
Ok as an American: 1: Some of my friends have no-shoes houses, but generally people can wear shoes in the house. 2: Yeah some people eat peanut butter and jelly but it's not as common as it is in media (also it's not allowed in some schools because of nut allergy rules) 3: Yeah, mostly high schools and colleges but school mascots are common. 4: Yes. One time I accidentally put my retainer in the garbage disposal. 5: Yeah cereal is a good quick breakfast 6: Yep, not in all schools but it's very common 7: I don't think people do this but I'm not sure, my house has a tap that dispenses hot water so we don't need to 8: Not in my school (I go to a private school) but in lots of schools. 9: Again, not in my school but it's pretty common 10: Not at my school but yeah that happens, Girl Scouts also has the pledge of allegiance 11: Of course how else can I be ✨ fabulous ✨ 12: Yep, sometimes but not always. I'm running out of space so ill make a second comment
22: Some people dip the crust in ranch but I don't know anyone who puts ranch on pizza that would be disgusting 23: I don't think so, I sure don't but I'm not an adult yet so. 24: Only the rude ones. 25: Yes they're doctors that do doctor things with your eyes. Doctors for your eyes. Eye doctors. 26: Yes 27: A lot of American homes don't have fireplaces, and if they do, it's a fake gas one, so real fireplaces are kind of exciting. 28: Yeah some people do, it kind of sounds stupid 29: Most schools do that, I'm not sure why 30: Yes? what do you guys say?
Load More Replies...I think I’m just weird because I don’t do most of these things... or they’re just in movies- no idea mates.
Articles in the past, with the same topic, as stupid as they are, at least had interesting questions, but this is just c**p
Sorry I find most of these if not all really stupid. Yes we Americans do different things that other countries dont do, and its made to sound like what people do in England, China or any other country is not strange to us. Like eating something called spotted d**k, at least in America most of us know not to put a d**k with spots on it in our mouths. These are always just so rude
America doesn't have roll on deodorant. That spun me out when I visited...
Do american really have no pin codes or biometrics linked to their money. Like anyone can just take your card and go buy a house.
At least half of these are not even close to being typical American things, and that's my opinion as a non-American.
Well..as an american..they are all yes for the majority of us!😂
Load More Replies...Also, I know that American school year begins in mid August like the Northern European countries because of the climate and tο us in the early September
Ahhh good. Its been a few days since we made fun of Americans. I was starting to think the world started to care about other s**t. I'm so glad we have post #12,789,566 being snarky about us.
Do Americans really comment to answer year-old questions that are reposted from another website?
Truth Monster & Kat Hoth~ Thank you! Nice to see the Panda Spirit revitalized!
There are rude people everywhere -- it's not polite to talk with food in your mouth, of course, but some people do.
Load More Replies...