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The United States of America is the land of the free and full of opportunities. It is one of the largest economies in the world and it has always amassed people for the life one can create there. But, like every country, it has its own way of functioning and the people living there have their own culture. And if you are also attracted to this country and would like to travel to the United States or you are planning of moving there, you should expect to encounter things you‘ve never seen before or things done differently to what you are used to.

A few days ago, Reddit user Ymij asked people to share some things Americans don‘t realize exist only in the United States. And people had a lot to say. The post got more than 10k answers and Bored Panda gathered a list of some of the most upvoted responses.

More info: Reddit

#1

45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group GoFundMe being an acceptable replacement for a health care system

GTrav44 , gofundme Report

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    #2

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group Literally being too poor to go to the doctor, but have too much income for any kind of assistance

    kaden123drake , Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja Report

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    Terilee Bruyere
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    THIS! I remember a time that my dad had gotten laid off and my mum was dealing with health issues. They were simply down on their luck and filed for food stamps. Due to their Canadian pension they only qualified for $18 in food stamps a month and made too much to have health insurance, just adding to the health issues.

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    #3

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group Tipping as a wage subsidy. Many countries don’t have tipping and those that do generally tip a small amount for good service.

    Also displayed prices not including taxes or other fees.

    Impossible-Buy-4090 , Wikimedia Commons Report

    #4

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group Pronouncing corruption as "lobbying"

    GSLaaitie , RJA1988 Report

    #5

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group Assuming that everyone on the internet is American until proven otherwise.

    Officer_Cat_Fancy_ , Steven Martin Report

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    Helena R
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Everything in American-English too rather than British-English. things that are translated from almost any other language into American-English rather than British-English regardless of the subject matter

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    #6

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group The pledge of allegiance. If you tell people here that in America they make kids stand up and recite some prayer to a flag every single morning, they'll look at you like you just grew a third arm.

    emissaryofwinds , USAG- Humphreys Report

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    Karl Baxter
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    We’d call that indoctrination in the UK. I remember speaking with an elderly Italian man who was a child when Mussolini came to power. He told me they were forced to do similar things at school.

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    #7

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group I want to say for-profit prison systems.

    These things are f***** up. If the state doesn't keep up the prisoner quota they gotta pay a fine to the company they owns the prison.

    So this basically makes them try to keep existing prisoners

    downtimeredditor , Molly Haggerty Report

    #8

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group Gender reveal parties

    jemariebearimy , highlander411 Report

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    #9

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group People who angrily DO NOT WANT healthcare.

    spammmmmmmmy , Presidencia de la República Mexicana Report

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    N G
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It's so much more than that. It's not that they dont want healthcare, they dont want to pay for SOMEONE ELSE'S healthcare.

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    #10

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group Having the restaurant take your credit card - in most countries it's considered impolite to disappear with the card as they might write the digits down to charge extra later. Therefore they normally bring a portable terminal to your table so you can keep the card in eyesight and have the (optional) tip actually charged when the card is run and not added after the fact.

    Broadmin , Unknown Report

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    Johnny
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Most places use chip-and-pin where they *have* to take the card at the table since you need to enter your PIN. USA credit card banks decided Americans aren't smart enough for chip-and-pin, so we just have chip and an archaic signature.

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    #11

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group The Imperial System, Fahrenheits, massive ad breaks. I swear i watched US Television once and i nearly had time to go take a s*** before the adbreak ended. And i'm one of those people that play on their phone while on the throne

    Pyanez11 , ilovebutter Report

    #12

    I am from Europe and I have never seen in supermarkets scooters for people that are so obese they can't walk by themselves.

    indigo-wolf Report

    #13

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group Medical debt

    CIA_grade_LSD , Grant Source Report

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    Winx
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Add "who is paying their debt while also stopping treatment because they can't continue accruing more debt"

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    #14

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group Waiting like 8 weeks after your elections till the new guy comes in to power is pretty f****** weird

    Snoo61123 , GPA Photo Archive Report

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    𝔹𝕖𝕝𝕝𝕒
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Well the president who lost the election is probably going to need time to pack his stuff out of the White House and finish up some things before he leaves office.

    Dill
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Many have to vacate their home and office and do it within 24/48 hours.

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    Lorraine R
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Used to be four months, which made some sense when people had to travel by horse. Lincoln had to bring his family and household a thousand miles from Springfield, Illinois, to Washington after he was elected.

    Batgirl Kitty
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I agree. I hated having to wait so long for Biden to kick our horrible old president out of office.

    Nick
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Really? How many elections has Israel had I the last 2 months? Like 9? And in the UK it seems like a new election is held every time the PM gets a big head and says "Vote me out I dare you!". Our political process can get funked up sometimes but you're going to get a nose bleed up on that high horse.

    Eemeli Saarelainen (Molter)
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Nobody else gives a f**k about Israel than USA and Israel. And Palestine and Iran a other way. Changing the PM doesn't require new elections.

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    Lily Swag
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Well, to be fair, running a gov't that covers over 330 million people is a bit complicated, and those weeks are considered the transition period. Normally (AKA, not under the reign of trump), the outgoing administration works with the incoming administration to share info, intelligence briefings, and other secure info. It also allows time for the incoming administration to hire their cabinet and staff and ultimately allows them to hit the ground running and have a seamless transition. It's not like buying a used car. You can't just toss the other guy the keys and be like "good luck. Oh, and you have to double pump the clutch when you start it."

    Nikki Hilton
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Yes! We all knew that 45 was going to do some big damage from Election Day to inauguration day, and we were right. As soon as votes are verified should do it.

    Tim Haight
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Rememeber the Gore / Bush bs in the Florida election. It was close. They did recounts until the Supreme Court stopped it. Of course the Sec of State was the same party as Bush and the governor was his brother (Jeb). So Gore really had no chance to win Florida all it did was make the certification time longer until the inevitable happened.

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    Tim Haight
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The day of the elections and inauguration are in our Constitution.

    Stijn Dero
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    In Belgium it took us 541 days to form a new governement after election, an official world record!

    Eemeli Saarelainen (Molter)
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    That's quite an accomplishment considering how small Belgium is. 😄 I mean by physical size. You cannot blame on slow communications.

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    Matheus Oliveira
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    In Brazil, it takes about the same time, but the person is elected on the same day as the voting. The waiting period is only for the final arrangements and the transfer of power. We just hope that day comes soon...

    Michael Panzera
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    https://qz.com/1935755/why-is-the-us-presidential-transition-period-so-long/

    Tammy Hawkins
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I think that most people agree with this, especially after the 2020 election.

    Joseph OReilly
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It's just enough time for a possibly very salty leaving president to do as much damage as possible

    Wilf
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Just a legacy from the old days when it could take days, even weeks for the states to report their vote because you know- the US is a vast country and information moved slowly before telegraphs and railroads came along.

    CatWoman312
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Okay and a lot of European countries are still a monarchy so....yeah

    Eemeli Saarelainen (Molter)
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    They are most often parliamentary systems where the monarchs do not have much real power. US president has way more power than any European monarch. They just haven't wanted to abolish a tradition.

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    Kristján Magnússon
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I've seen those computers..."richest country in the world" uses floppy discs that are older than me(39)

    Om
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I don't think that's THAT weird, because you can't expect all the candidates to be ready to run to the White House the next day (or whatever "short" period of time is considered acceptable). However it IS weird how long it takes to count the votes. It shouldn't take more than a couple of days, including the re-count.

    Douglas Turner
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Well, American elections are their own kind of special, in so so many ways...

    Radek Suski
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Waiting in lines just to vote is actually bigger issue. I never had to wait longer than 10 minutes to cast my vote

    Shalini Pabreja
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Give enough ammo to the outgoing to wreak havoc, especially if he is as messed up as 45!

    Sanne H.
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The most recent Belgian government formation took almost 600 days. So 8 weeks to form a new government is actually not that bad.

    Johnny
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It's supposed to allow the new president to build his administration and prepare for a seamless transfer of power -- but that only works if the previous administration cooperates -- that cooperation needs to be mandated in law.

    Music Mania
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    To be fair, this is supposed to be a handover period that the last guy just said F*it.

    Vanessa Flores
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I'm American and I don't understand mos of these things on the list lol

    M O'Connell
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    That wait is one of those unfortunate things that is baked into the constitution. Quite a few problems in government revolve around baking unnecessary details into laws that would then need to be voted on to change those details. Such as what computer system the IRS must use.

    Violet Smith
    Community Member
    3 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It's more like 2.5 months, so approx 10 weeks. Just bizarre.

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    #15

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group Massive gaps on all sides of toilet cubicle doors, like why even bother with a door at all when people can see through so easily

    digitalelise , Victoria_Borodinova Report

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    Biana Vacker
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    i know- you can literally stare someone in the face while they are going to the bathroom

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    #16

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group Flags. Everywhere

    psyk738178 , WTF Colorado Report

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    Pezor Zass
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    How else can they keep up the illusion that they live in a country worth celebrating?

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    #17

    This may be a shot in the dark but product prices not including tax when they’re displayed? Like if something says it’s $10 and you only have $10, what’s with the surprise tax at the till?

    ninjapotatoprd Report

    #18

    Your toxic grind working culture. I find that Americans define their entire personality around their profession. It all feels so shallow and hollow way of living. Like I work so I can do the things I enjoy ( pre covid) I don't work because it defines me as a person.

    vietcong420 Report

    #19

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group Absurdly long election campaigns. In most countries I've been to election campaigns last a month or two, in the US they seem to go for a full year.

    BerserkBoulderer , Unknown Report

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    Biana Vacker
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    we get sooo many ads too; they're literally everywhere and most of them are attack ads with questionable information

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    #20

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group College sports, people do not care about nor have college sports like we do here.

    UnusualLight0 , Unknown Report

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    Pezor Zass
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    it's disgusting the amount of money my school spends on sports, and we're not even remotely a sporty school

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    #21

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group Food portion sizes... In EU you get food portions you can finish and are generally calculated to be pretty much fill/satisfy you over the entire meal.

    When I go to the US I can fill myself up with half of the appetizer

    Drumah , Wikimedia Commons Report

    #22

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group Unused vacation days

    Banana_Gorilla , Unknown Report

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    Aroha
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Yeah in my country, if you don't take your minimum of 5 weeks of holiday per year, it will be scheduled for you. Literally your manager will force you to relax :D.

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    #23

    The use of the words junior, sophomore and senior in school. I don't think I have ever heard these outside of an American TV show or movie.

    No-Soft-3703 Report

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    Kanishka Patel
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Yeah it is pretty weird. Why not just say 9th, 10th , 11th, and 12 grade? Seems much more simple. I am going to be in high school next year and I am Indian but I live in America. I am used to saying junior, sophomore, etc. but my mom finds it really confusing. This seems so unnecessary.

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    #24

    I can't speak for the whole world, but having elections on a weekday seems crazy to me. We do it in the weekend so that people are off work anyway.

    frosty_hotboy Report

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    #25

    A single pool of paid time off that you use for both vacation and sick leave. Therefore having to forego vacation to keep a bank of leave just in case you get ill.

    littleloucc Report

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    Winx
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This is a bad policy because everyone comes to work sick so they can still take vacation days.

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    #26

    People constantly thanking god for every day occurrences

    toshredsyousay6502 Report

    #27

    Those commercials featuring some sort of drug or medication. With the typical closing where the narrator states "Side effects includes blah blah blah...Discuss with your doctor about blah blah blah"

    Noor_awsome Report

    #28

    Tipping, most other places actually pay their waiters/waitresses and tippings just for extremely good service or rounding up.

    Undisclosed-Fruit Report

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    Nikki Hilton
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Already noted. Pay everyone a living working wage (NOT $7.50/hr). Do away with tipping.

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    #29

    Having to drive everywhere. I'm 27-years-old, not from the US and never learnt to drive. I've also never felt like I needed it.

    FreshNebula Report

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    #30

    It's pretty funny watching Americans moan over their super-cheap petrol prices. "But we drive everywhere, cars are fundamental to our society". Yep, same here in Australia, too. Your fuel is still incredibly cheap.

    vacri Report

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    Viviane
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I live in Canada and one of my friends did a cross-country drive via the USA to take advantage of cheaper gas.

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    #31

    Garbage disposal units in sinks. I've been to nearly 20 countries, and I've never seen one.

    TypingLobster Report

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    Andrew Gibb
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    One of the primary concerns of using garbage disposals is that it puts excess strain on local wastewater treatment centers. All of the food solids in the wastewater must be filtered out. Those solids are used to create fertilizer or are sent to landfills.

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    #32

    Longer ad breaks in the Muppet Show.

    The UK version had two minutes of extra content in every episode due to restrictions on the amount of ads you could play on British TV.

    That's 240 minutes of extra Muppet content that most Americans never saw.

    JeremiahSpankMouth Report

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    Fred and George Weasley
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    the UK has limited ad amounts. theyre regulated, so you can only have 12 minutes of ads per hour. obviously in the US im guessing its not the same

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    #33

    Playing the national anthem before sporting events. There may be a handful of other countries that do, but in much of the world it's only played for international matches.

    SkippyNordquist Report

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    Alexis draskinis
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I still dont understand why its played. Its a sporting event, a game, nothing more. Im a baseball fan & i can care less about it being played. I want to watch the game.

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    #34

    Your identity politics used to be just in America, then it spilled out like a burst sewage pipe.

    Consistscent Report

    #35

    Red solo cups. My european cousins asked me if parties in the us really had those red cups.

    Belgianwafflz Report

    #36

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group Bumper stickers. They’re a lot less common in Europe anyway, not sure about the rest of the world.

    Random_Machiavelli , dalliedee Report

    #37

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group Nearly everything about their high schools

    Unfair-Act-4499 , Wikimedia Commons Report

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    N G
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    That's a bit vague. High schools have lessons across the world, are populated with hormonal teens across the world, have school meals across the world - there's certainly a difference in quality here, but it's not a weird American thing. So, everything else...?

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    #38

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group Free refills at restaurants

    milwaukeeminnesota , James Petts Report

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    SimplySarcastic40
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    one of the things i missed living 9 years abroad was this right here...i drink a lot of water. only water, but a lot of it and having to ask for refills of water and getting side-eye was something i never got used to.

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    #39

    Stores like Wal-Mart where you can buy everything that are open all the time. Groceries, alcohol, plants, medicine, tires, toys...

    The first time I went to Germany on a work trip it was a bank holiday and everything was closed.

    I live in Jerusalem now and there is a separate store for everything.

    windwalker28 Report

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    Terilee Bruyere
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I'm in the bible belt. Alcohol can be bought 24/6 here (no sales on Sunday) at Walmart but the actual pharmacy is not open at night.

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    #41

    Graham Crackers.

    Remember when I picked up a friend's mother and her friend at the airport, fresh from the US. One of them was like 'They don't have Graham crackers here?' I'm like nah mate we have crackers for everyone.

    EdwardCosmos Report

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    #42

    45 Things That Are Normal In The US, But Seem Bizarre In Other Countries Shared In This Online Group Parking lot size. I’ve been to about 20 different countries, all over the place, and I have never seen a standard Walmart sized parking lot anywhere out of America.

    Upstairs_Cow , Walmart Report

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    Theoretical Empiricist
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    You can also thank our tragic shadow of a public transportation system and how far we're spread out. In may instances, driving (and therefore parking) is the only option.

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    #43

    Buscuits and gravy. This conjures up images of having a plate of cookies smothered in a sauce made from the the meat juices of a roast.

    plasmadrive Report

    #44

    I wanna say jaywalking. Like, in Europe, you can pretty much cross a road wherever you want but when I visited America there seemed to be this weird sense you were being judged if you walked out into an empty road. Maybe just me idk.

    Caughtinjail1 Report

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    Ulrike Sponagel
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    There is some sort of debate whether jaywalking is or isn’t frowned upon in Germany - many people believe that the Germans are sticklers for traffic etiquette when it comes to walking across a street on a red light, and, indeed, Germans will stand even when it would be safe to cross - for the sake of setting the right example for any nearby children. So, it might be the same everywhere.

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    #45

    It always surprises me when someone from another country has never heard of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

    helplessAteverything Report

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    Tammy Hawkins
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    We say "peanut butter and jelly" but it really is jam and that has always bothered me. Jam spreads way better than jelly.

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    #47

    I wasn't aware we and New Zealand, possibly Australia(?) Are the only countries with ads for prescription drugs.

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    #48

    The fuel-brand Exxon. Throughout the rest of the world, it's known as "Esso." It's only Exxon in the US.

    Taman_Should Report

    #49

    Small talk among strangers.

    CallieIsQueen Report

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    Ulrike Sponagel
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    There are rules where I live: thou shalt not converse with the cashier but thou absolutely shall at the butchers.

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    #50

    Thanksgiving

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    BookCrazyTeen
    Community Member
    3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Well that’s because thanksgiving is a part of AMERICAN history. 🤷‍♀️

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