People On Things They Couldn’t Believe About America Until They Moved Here
A lot of people around the world have ideas of what America is like, possibly thanks to Hollywood, or their local news channels, and maybe from what they’ve heard from families and friends. But then, they came here, to the grand old United States and their minds exploded.
Excerpts
Rakib Islam
I am originally from Bangladesh and here are a few things that I find hard to explain to peeps back home.
Fruits and vegetables are way more expensive than meat and poultry.
That, generally speaking, the poor is more obese than the rich.
A lot of couples adopt children, sometimes in spite of having their own, and treat them exactly like their own. (To me, this alone is a marker of a great people)
By and large, people do not carry cash.
That you address your boss (and some of your professors) by some abbreviated variation of their first name. And that applies to pretty much everyone, regardless of how much older they are than you.
Natalia Rekhter
I’m from Russia. Below are a few things I almost always have to explain or discuss with visitors from Russia.
Why individual houses are so large? We always get into discussion that house is not just a shelter, but also a manifestation of one’s financial achievements.
Philanthropy. There is no culture of philanthropy in Russia and many view American philanthropy either as a waste of money or as some intricate plot to get some additional benefits.
People don’t walk places. They go everywhere by a car.
There is almost no public transportation except in a few large cities. People actually have to have cars to get places. Cars are necessity, not luxury.
Majority of high and middle schools have sport facilities of very high, almost professional quality.
Lana Kolupaeva
Impressive distances and poor public transportation.
Food portion sizes which are ridiculous to my view.
Under-dressing in cold weather. Shoes (flip-flops?) + tshirt + cardigan + scarf (+ running nose) = winter city outfit often seen in subway and public places when it is REALLY cold outside.
Large car engines. At home I drove a 1.25L stick-shift Mazda2, which was perfect for the city and quite fuel-efficient. Here if you ask for the car with 1.6L engine in the dealership, you get surprised a look
Questions
What surprised you the most about American during the first days you were here?
Is traffic better or worse than where you lived?
Do you get free refills?
When you order water at a restaurant in your country what type of water do you get? Do you have to pay for it?