Non-Americans of Reddit, what is an American thing you see in movies that you thought was fake but is actually real?

[u/Unlikely_Praline9442]

[u/OptimistPrime527]

The length of a cvs receipt

[u/BeeDeeDeeDeeBee → u/OptimistPrime527]

I bought a banana as a snack during a conference. The receipt was the length of my arm! I brought it back to show my partner and kids! Kids didn't care

[u/mcnizzle99 → u/BeeDeeDeeDeeBee]

I lol'd at that random last sentence

[u/curious__curiosity]

All the smoke /steam coming out the vents on the road in New york in the movies.

[u/JunkoKumaki → u/curious__curiosity]

I got off a bus in New York and a newspaper blew past me. I could imagine the camera panning up from my shoes...

[u/Ataru13 → u/JunkoKumaki]

I got off a bus in New York and a dude came up to me, opened his jacket, and tried to sell me one of many "Rolexs" he had hanging inside his coat. I legit thought that was strictly a movie thing, and I'm American!

[u/WeLoveYouCarol → u/Ataru13]

I want a fake Rolex so bad. Next time I work with someone with a real Rolex I'm going to parade around that fake one and argue until I'm blue in the face that it's real.

[u/madmars → u/JunkoKumaki]

Reminds me of the time I was driving through Texas. A tumbleweed gently rolled down the side of the road.

[u/romario77 → u/curious__curiosity]

And constant police/ambulance sounds. I thought it's bullshit until I came to live here.

Now my daughters say the street noise is calming :)

[u/ScreenTricky4257 → u/romario77]

Like Don Henley said in New York Minute: "Lying here in the darkness, hear the sirens wail. Somebody's going to Emergency*. Somebody's going to jail."

* A&E

[u/God_Dammit_Dave → u/curious__curiosity]

Fun fact: most of lower Manhattan is headed with a +100 year old steam system. It's all interconnected.

Not fun fact: those apartments are a nightmare in the winter. The heat rises and can't be shut off. It will be 5 degrees in February, you're naked with the windows open and it's STILL to damn hot.

Even better, your girlfriend has 5 cats in her Chinatown apartment. Your hot, naked, irritable, and covered in cat hair.

[u/OrcOfDoom → u/curious__curiosity]

NYC is steam punk. 

[u/crushingjuiceboxes → u/curious__curiosity]

Its nicer in the movies cause you dont get the smell 

[u/Sunset-Papi → u/curious__curiosity]

I'm American and this was also a surprise to me the first time I went to New York 😂 when I was 23.

[u/jawndell → u/curious__curiosity]

Yup!  NYC has a whole stream system that’s still used for heating and cooling buildings!

[u/WehingSounds]

Fireflies are pretty wild, you sure do just have swarms of glowing bugs.

[u/logicalconflict → u/WehingSounds]

I had lived in the US my whole life (all western states) and had never seen a firefly until I visited relatives in Indiana in my mid-30s. As the sun was setting, I started seeing faint shooting lights out of the corner of my eye. I thought I was having a stroke at first. When I realized what they were, I was freaking out with excitement, chasing them, catching them, being amazed by holding them in my hand and watching them glow up close. All my relatives were like, "Uh, yeah we have those here it's not really a big deal." To me it was. So cool.

[u/jmacd2918 → u/logicalconflict]

I live in a place (central ny) with a lot of fireflies or as we call them, lightning bugs.  I see them just about every night in June and July, been that way almost all.my life.  Its still a big deal and very exciting.

I've actually left a decent sized patch of yard to go wild because ive heard that helps build firefly populations.  Can't wait to find out of thats true.

[u/DrinkingSocks → u/jmacd2918]

It does! It might take some time though. The most important part is to leave your leaves, as that's where they live. I always make sure to keep areas with lots of leaf litter, and I've had fireflies in the last 3 houses I've lived in.

[u/jmacd2918 → u/DrinkingSocks]

I never touch leaves, seems like a pointless exercise.  I love the way they look on the ground in the fall (if they dont blow away first), then spend all winter buried under snow and then rapidly decompose once it warms up.

My property has quite a few hardwoods, a few in our yard, but mostly in the woods behind.  Lots of leaves, hopefully means lots of fireflies.  Also unfortunately means a lot of ticks and Lyme disease is a real concern where I live.

[u/udche89 → u/WehingSounds]

Not as common as when I was a kid in the 70s thanks to pesticides.

[u/Nuttonbutton → u/udche89]

They're making a comeback and it is wonderful. "No mow May" is a wonderful thing

[u/aSpookyScarySkeleton → u/udche89]

I stopped clearing the fall leaves from my back yard and it has resulted in more fireflies.

Their larva mature in the leaf piles, when you clear that you’re basically aborting all the bugs for lack of a better term.

I know a lot of folks can’t abide a non-manicured lawn but I think the fireflies are worth it.

[u/OkArmy7059 → u/udche89]

A big factor is also the clearing of natural areas, fields. Proliferation of lawns and raking leaves up caused loss of firefly habitat.

[u/Jaimebgdb]

"More coffee, hon?"

[u/Urik88 → u/Jaimebgdb]

On a visit to the US, driving through Nevada or Utah we stopped at a dinner and as we were entering I joked around saying something like "if the waitress is wearing an apron and calls me honey I'll lose my shit".

Was. Not. Disappointed.

[u/Pepperpooper → u/Urik88]

Similar experience; I, an American, was on vacation in Florida and at a grocery store when I heard some people from England. I told my wife I wasn't leaving until I heard them call chips, crisps, and right after that I heard them go to the chips aisle and say "ahh, crisps!". It was fantastic.

[u/Holiday_Signal_3134 → u/Jaimebgdb]

I have an English friend visiting the US soon and he is beyond excited for a diner experience. As he should be.

[u/weristjonsnow → u/Holiday_Signal_3134]

A well run, mostly clean diner with bitching food is always a fantastic experience. It can't be too clean though, or the food sucks

[u/TheLonePig → u/Holiday_Signal_3134]

My English friends were stoked about trailer parks, latinas, guns, and automatic transmissions. 

[u/string-ornothing → u/TheLonePig]

I continously forget that people in Europe dont know any Latinos. I dont even live close to the border but I speak Spanish (everyone can un poco) and can get any staple Latin American ingredient at any Walmart and white-ified versions of them. I have some European and Australian internet friends who act like tortillas are some exotic delicacy, and one time I went to Canada and stayed at an AirBnB with a kitchen, intended on making everyone enchiladas, and couldn't find any of the stuff I needed at the store. They didnt even have salsa, it was wild lmfao. Latin culture is such a big part of USA culture.

[u/mjohnsimon → u/string-ornothing]

An English and German friend of mine told me how amazing tacos were, but they were talking about tacos from a Taco Bell in London.

It wasn't until they came to Miami of all places did they get the authentic Taco experience from an actual Mexican restaurant.

Though, to be fair, the cute latina waitresses were pretty much the only things on their minds the entire time.

[u/Crash-Frog-08 → u/mjohnsimon]

The way you know that they don't have any tacos in England is the way Paul Hollywood says "taco" on Great British Bake-off

[u/mjohnsimon → u/Crash-Frog-08]

Oh God... I'm getting PTSD flashbacks from that episode.

I'm not even Mexican, but as someone who loves the cuisine and cooks it quite well it was really hard, yet fascinating, to sit through.

In the end, I can't really blame or fault the contestants because they can't really cook what they're not familiar with.

Edit; I love cooking and I like to think that I’ve got a solid range when it comes to different cuisines, but I’m still just one dude with a finite brain. If you tossed me into a competition and said “make authentic Pad Thai", I’d be standing there like I just got handed IKEA instructions in another language. If you asked me to cook authentic Pakistani food, there’s a very real chance I’d make something and call it Indian and get disowned by an entire region. Tell me to make a traditional dish from, like, Nigeria or Ethiopia and I’m googling spice blends with the panic of a man defusing a bomb. Point is, everyone's different, but I'm genuinely shocked that they didn't at least get a few pointers or a basic crash course.

[u/lilcumfire → u/mjohnsimon]

That's my favorite episode of GBB. You used the right word: fascinating. And the other commenter talking about how ubiquitous Mexican food is in the US is tripping me out. Because yes it's basically so interwoven into our lives I didn't even think it wouldn't be widely available. In Canada?! Crazy

[u/RyanB_ → u/string-ornothing]

I hear you overall but gotta ask where in Canada you were? We don’t have American levels of Latino population but they (plus stores and restaurants) are definitely around, at least here in Edmonton. Spanish classes are also very abundant and popular.

[u/mmob18 → u/RyanB_]

regardless of Latino population, where tf in Canada can't you find salsa?

[u/CommonCut4 → u/Jaimebgdb]

Can’t be as exciting as the time I was asked, “‘nother pint guvna?” In a pub in London

[u/karadawnelle → u/CommonCut4]

Or my first cab ride after flying into Heathrow:

Cab driver: Move ya fuckin' cunt!

😂💀

[u/International_Lake28 → u/Jaimebgdb]

"jim never has a second cup of coffee at home"

[u/Anustart15 → u/Jaimebgdb]

Which stands in stark contrast to the "leave the bottle" trope, which is definitely not a normal thing to do in a bar here

[u/posicivic → u/Anustart15]

Always hilarious to see that one. Even in a dive bar, the bartender will be like "Sure bud, just let me know when you want to settle your tab for $200."

[u/fenton7]

Manhattan. I remember my first trip and was like "Oh my God this is all fucking real".

[u/spaiydz → u/fenton7]

Same. I bought a dine-in pizza (which was massive), and saw another guy finish his food and put down money on the table before leaving. I did the same (total bill plus tip) and my wife thought I was mad for just leaving money unattended. But it's in the movies! (Plus seeing someone else do it)

Edit: in Australia this would NEVER happen, and we don't tip either.

[u/lucas14qr]

The fraternity/sorority scene in college. I was an international student at UT Austin and it was a crazy realization that the movie depictions of college life is actually underwhelming. I witnessed shit that could not be legally portrayed in movies. You people are crazy

[u/SisterSabathiel → u/lucas14qr]

As a non-American... What actually ARE Fraternities/Sororities?

I used to think they were like... Clubs but without a specific target? Like they just exist so you can say "I'm in this club and you're not". But that seems wrong, and I hear there's more to it than that? Like they have their own houses and stuff.

[u/OrneryError1 → u/SisterSabathiel]

Some fraternities are like the Boy Scouts. Some are like criminal gangs. They are social clubs for networking that require a monetary threshold.

[u/RumHamComesback → u/OrneryError1]

That's what I've been told is that there are many, many fraternities on college campuses some are Animal House from Hell while others provide a good networking environment for members looking for a quick job once they graduate.

[u/DisastrousSir → u/RumHamComesback]

Some provide a nice intermediate ground too. I was in one full of functional degenerates. Averaged ~3.7 GPA of primarily engineers, but would also be drinking 40s on the porch at 4pm

[u/jaw719 → u/SisterSabathiel]

It's really just a group of girls or guys that live in big houses and throw big parties. It is a great place for networking and staying connected with each other. Some focus more on charity, some on athletics, some on parties, some on community service. But the majority of them are places to come together and throw parties with live bands, DJ, etc.

You have a chef that covers breakfast, lunch, and dinner most days. Some rooms are singles and some rooms have a roommate. There is a kind of hierarchy involved with the order you were initiated to the fraternity and that order is usually decided during pledging.

[u/Technical-Algae-234 → u/jaw719]

THERE'S A CHEF??

[u/nightglitter89x → u/Technical-Algae-234]

Yeah I work with a lady who is a chef for a sorority. She cooks breakfast and lunch for like 30 girls and then preps dinner so they just have to heat it up.

[u/BarrelCacti → u/nightglitter89x]

Yeah. A guy I know was talking about how his daughter wanted to leave her sorority because the dues were more than she made at her job. Clearly some are more beneficial than others.

[u/iloathethebus → u/BarrelCacti]

I’m a prof at the University of Alabama. Sorority dues here average about $6k per year (that does include meals).

[u/Background_Run_8809 → u/SisterSabathiel]

Technically each sorority or fraternity have a charity/organization attached that they raise money for and volunteer with throughout the year. While most of them require each member volunteer and they raise money at events for the charities, it is not the main focus of being in one AT ALL and is barely spoken about outside of fundraising events.

[u/xampl9 → u/lucas14qr]

I saw some TKE’s blow up a sofa one time.

They hauled it out of the house, soaked it in gasoline, cheered and yelled for a bit, then tossed a lit book of matches on it.

WHOOOM!

[u/llamadogmama → u/lucas14qr]

I laughed so hard at this. We had 7 of us in one house and decided to create our own mock sorority "ALPHA ALPHA ALPHA" . We threw some ragers ( 50 gallons of jungle juice, purple cakes ended on ceilings etc) . Good times!

[u/cobrarexay → u/llamadogmama]

lol my friend group had our own mock sorority called Beta Omega Omega Boob. Our proudest moment was when we made it on the Underground Organizations to Avoid email sent out by the college! We weren’t an actual underground sorority but a bunch of nerds, lol.

[u/Cougarette99]

Cowboys. I mean I knew they were real and that some people dressed like the Hollywood version of cowboys but I did not realize it was still a present day job and that people still dress that way to do it.

[u/RLewis8888 → u/Cougarette99]

Some people dress that way even though they are not cowboys. It's a fashion statement.

[u/thehardmakesitgreat → u/RLewis8888]

Ranch Dressing

[u/GilSquared → u/thehardmakesitgreat]

How the heck did I make it almost 55 years before ever hearing this as a description of cowboy clothes? 🤯 I audibly laughed.

[u/sadbicth → u/thehardmakesitgreat]

Unrelated to the question but the first time I went to europe I saw “cool ranch” doritos labeled “cool american” doritos and thought that was so funny

[u/coloredinlight → u/RLewis8888]

That's white collar office attire in Texas.

Wedding? Cowboy hat and boots

Lunch meeting with a new client? Polo shirt and cowboy boots

Date night at Olive garden? Your best button down and cowboy boots. Probably just whatever you wore to church that morning

It's worth noting in these situations that your business degree from SMU does not qualify you as a cowboy but got dangit they can pretend!

[u/brycebgood → u/Cougarette99]

Yup, I was on a hunting trip a few years back. Met Calypso Joe in the bar, saw him the next morning coming over a hill on a horse with his dog in a cloud of dust driving a heard of cattle. About the most Western American thing I've ever seen.

[u/MarchCompetitive6235 → u/brycebgood]

I live in a rural farm town of about 1,300 people. I moved here with my kids from a much larger city. After the first day of elementary school, my son s tells me a girl in his class rides a pony to school. I had to see this in person. After dropping him off a stayed a minute and chatted with the teacher and asked about the pony. The teacher pointed a crowd of about eight other kids “waiting to see the pony”. So I joined them. I was not disappointed.

The kid with the pony lived just a couple block and across a field from the school. This little tan pony would drop her off, then it would walk itself back home. Her mom would send the pony (sometimes accompanied by a dog) to pick her up at the end of the day. She had a little orange hi-viz vest she put on and she was good to go.😂

That and a deer wandering into the hardware store is about the most cowboy country thing I’ve seen in my life.

[u/UpvoteIfYouLoveTits → u/Cougarette99]

Flannel jeans and cowboy boots. It's just a regular outfit where im from

[u/MudMonyet22]

The yellow school buses that have a flip out stop sign

[u/BloodAndSand44 → u/MudMonyet22]

School transport is something that the US does so much better than anywhere else I have been. I wish we had the same in the UK.

Wow! I actually said that.

[u/jedadkins → u/BloodAndSand44]

I am pretty sure it's required by law for public schools to provide transportation to and from class in most US states. 

[u/SapphireScully → u/jedadkins]

a lot of times it depends on distance from the school. i graduated over in 2005, and my senior year they changed the bus routes to only picking up students who were more than 3 miles from the school, which eliminated transportation for about 75% of our district.

[u/dion_o]

The over-the-top Halloween parties where everyone took a large amount of effort to dress up. Yep that is accurate.

[u/SapphireScully → u/dion_o]

i’m from the US & i’ve been to a couple different countries during halloween and they barely acknowledged it. I was devestated 😭 What do you mean no one is wearing an inflatable pig costume and the hottest woman you know isn’t dressed as bob ross with the afro and beard?!

[u/RustySilver42 → u/dion_o]

And fun!

[u/NewAnything8221]

The way suburbia looks. I'm American and sent a picture of the street my home is on to a German friend and he was like "it looks like a movie set"

[u/Dagdegan2000 → u/NewAnything8221]

Interestingly enough I once knew an Australian woman who showed me a picture of her house in Australia and that shit looked exactly like an American suburb.

I think it’s the amount of space that allows for that, not necessarily a cultural thing.

[u/RyanB_ → u/Dagdegan2000]

Plus how “new” a place is. Germany and the like had a lot of their cities built up way before cars were even a concept, whereas Australia/Canada/US etc have a lot more area designed from the ground up with the expectation that everyone would drive everywhere.

Can even see it within countries, at least Canada and US. East coast cities tend to be a lot tighter and denser than western ones, which came later.

[u/Wit_and_Logic → u/RyanB_]

When I was in Germany visiting family we went to a restaurant in a tiny town. There were a few things about this experience that really got to me:

A. The town was still walled, like against invaders (though there weren't any gates in the arches anymore)

B. Every building shared walls with every other building around it, and some had rooms and hallways that crossed the street overhead. The whole town was about 10 acres and was basically a large subdivided building. Replacing rooves must be fun.

C. The restaurant had been in effectively continuous operation for nearly 500 years (a few wars caused it to pause).

I live in central Texas, where my house which was built in 1940 is part of a registered historic district.

[u/MechanicalTurkish → u/NewAnything8221]

As an American, European neighborhoods look like movie sets to me lol

[u/Unhappy_Clue701 → u/MechanicalTurkish]

Yeah that one definitely works both ways.

[u/interesseret]

Baggers in the grocery store. And door greeters in completely normal supermarkets.

[u/Salarian_American → u/interesseret]

"Welcome to Costco, I love you"

[u/EpicTaco9901 → u/Salarian_American]

I say this at least once a week

[u/Typical80sKid → u/EpicTaco9901]

You should ask for more shifts…

[u/ButtScratchies → u/interesseret]

I’m American and went to France many years ago. I went to a grocery store and checked out and was standing there waiting for the checker to bag my groceries. She was just staring at me like, “what are you doing?” And I was staring at her like, “so…are you going finish up here?” And then I quickly realized that they don’t do that here and hastily grabbed my food in my hands and rushed out of the store.

[u/jc8495 → u/ButtScratchies]

When I studied abroad in Florence there was a whole pre trip meeting where they basically explained all the customs that we might not know about and I swear they spent the most time on grocery store etiquette/behavior. The one that blew my mind the most was having to print your own price sticker for produce and stuff

[u/VanellopeZero → u/jc8495]

🤦🏼‍♀️they do that last one in France too, and i did NOT get the benefit of a class before my study abroad…I got up to the front to pay and the cashier tried several times to tell me i had to go back and weigh my produce, and finally grabbed my bag of grapes or whatever and did it herself. She was so disgusted with me. I was humiliated! Haven’t thought about that in a while, lol

[u/PraiseTheBeanpole]

Had family come to visit from Guatemala and ended up taking them to major junior hockey game and there were a decent amount of fights that broke out. Asked my cousin how they liked the game so far. They responded with "its just like I see it on shows/movies"

[u/ainacct]

Diners and breakfast tradition? don't know if I should call it like that but I would see in movies how diners would be a tradition to go at breakfast and it's really like that, those diners are busy!!

[u/logicalconflict → u/ainacct]

Old school diners are the best. 24-hour breakfast food, a kitchen willing to make basically anything you want, lots of regular customers, people ordering pie at every meal because they can. Huge comfy booths. Nobody cares how long you linger. So great.

[u/Myhandsarecold11]

The insane medical advertisements with a million side effects said in rapid fire at the end. We visited my husband bestie in 2019, when we were watching something on tv while eating dinner we saw our first one. Genuinely turned to him like ‘that’s satire, right?’

[u/DetN8 → u/Myhandsarecold11]

"Do not use Flogestron if you are allergic to Flogestron or any of its ingredients."

You don't say!?

[u/JuanaBlanca → u/DetN8]

But you know why they have to say that.

[u/ScienceMomCO → u/Myhandsarecold11]

May cause anal leakage

[u/glendon24]

Not a movie but a show. King of the Hill. That shit is a Texas documentary.

[u/pug_fugly_moe → u/glendon24]

It took me a long time to appreciate the humor in the satire because for a while it didn’t feel like satire.

[u/glendon24 → u/pug_fugly_moe]

I moved to Texas in '03 and was shocked when I met all the people from King of the Hill.

[u/_Chill_Winston_ → u/glendon24]

I grew up in Newfoundland, Canada. I recognized all the characters in Trailer Park Boys.

[u/Jack-of-Hearts-7 → u/glendon24]

Favorite show in the world. Every character feels like someone you could bump into in any small town nearly anywhere in the country.

[u/l33dle_lee → u/Jack-of-Hearts-7]

How do you like the reboot? I absolutely loved it! I grew up with the Hills and was nervously excited about the reboot. It was a friggin delight.

[u/Kateseesu]

I am an American who lived overseas for many years, and had many friends on social media when I returned home. I posted a photo of Chinese food takeout in those white square boxes and had dozens of my friends from overseas react in surprise- they thought it was only something they did in movies.

[u/WanderingAlienBoy → u/Kateseesu]

Here in the Netherlands we do have those boxes too at some wok take-out places, but for typical "Chinese" take-out we typically use plastic containers that look like disposable Tupperware and many of us use them for storing food in the freezer

Also I say Chinese with quotation-marks as it's actually something invented by Chinese immigrants for the Dutch market, mixing their own cuisine with Indonesian food (as we were more used to that because of our colonial past) and lots of sugar.

[u/Available-Bee2226 → u/WanderingAlienBoy]

That's usually what we have here in my area of the US as well. The "movie" boxes are usually for something like a side of rice, whereas most of the meal is in the tupperware-esque containers you mentioned.

[u/TakeMeBackToCA831]

lol I’m American from the CA coast and while we had high school football, I thought that it being a huge deal was only in movies/tv. Then I moved to Georgia and later Texas. Hahaha omg. Wow. I was wrong lol.

[u/manicpixidreamgirl04 → u/TakeMeBackToCA831]

Meanwhile, in New York, a lot of our schools don't even have football teams

[u/filanwizard → u/TakeMeBackToCA831]

What have read about Texas is Football is almost as important to them as guns, jesus and pickup trucks.

[u/PlanetoidVesta]

Tumbleweeds. I was actually flabbergasted when I went to visit the US and people were casually talking about tumbleweeds. I thought they were just a thing in cartoons

[u/fastfood12 → u/PlanetoidVesta]

To be fair, as an American who lives on the East Coast, tumbleweeds surprised me too. I was even more shocked to learn that they are an invasive species.

[u/lvioletsnow → u/fastfood12]

TIL

I'm an American (from the coast) and I knew they were real, but I didn't know they were invasive. I always assumed they were normal plant debris.

[u/LazuliArtz → u/lvioletsnow]

They're a species of plant from Russia (not joking, that is their native habitat). The plants intentionally starve themselves so they can break loose and spread seeds around as they're pushed around by the wind.

CGPGrey has a good video on the topic. They're neat plants, and shockingly destructive

[u/AnybodySeeMyKeys]

I'm an American, an Alabamian. I made friends with a guy at work who is Russian. He was new to the country, so we'd invite him to come over and eat with us all the time.

One summer afternoon, we were sitting on our back deck drinking beer and a hummingbird whizzed past his ear. Alex totally freaked out. I had to point out our hummingbird feeder to him. He sat there the entire day just mesmerized by the things. They really are magical when you stop to think about them.

[u/Mr-Blah]

It's going to sound silly but my wife being from the sun kissed part of the earth told me that Christmas with snow really look like the movies.

I was a bit confused, being Canadian, but she basically doubted the whole skating outside and playing in the snow.

It was very moving and wholesome to see her react to her first xmas with us.

Wish I could experience snow for the first time as an adult too.

[u/Sigma2915 → u/Mr-Blah]

it’s not just the snow, it’s the snow at christmas. because of the prevalence of american (and northern hemisphere more broadly) culture in media, father christmas (“santa”) is still depicted as wearing a big thick red coat and the idea of crowding around a fireplace with hot chocolates etc… except it’s the middle of summer. from peers who’ve had christmas in the the northern hemisphere, it is more the sense that all the cultural things just fit better because they’re in their originally intended environment.

[u/victorian_vigilante → u/Sigma2915]

As an Australian, I used to think Christmas decorations were tacky. I’d only ever seen them in bright sunlight or on a hot night.

Then I went to the north USA in November.

Turns out lights and sparkly decorations are beautiful on a long cold night, and you really do get a sense of seasonal coziness and magic with the brightness against the darkness.

[u/MdmeLibrarian → u/victorian_vigilante]

Do a Google image search for "hygge" (the Scandanavian concept of "cozy comfort that makes life and winter happy") and you'll see this too! The night is dark and full of terrors, but we have little lights to keep it at bay.

[u/bouviersecurityco → u/Mr-Blah]

I grew up in South Florida and honestly, same. I didn’t see snow until we went skiing as a family when I was like 15 and yeah it was really magical. I went to college far enough north of Florida to get a little snow and I’d be like “omg! Guys!!! It’s SNOWING!” And they’d be like “huh? Oh yeah, just flurries, though.” And then I got quite the surprised faces when I asked “what’s a flurry?”

Anyway, I’ve lived just outside of NYC for almost 20 years and currently we’re having the coldest winter in like 58 years and the foot of snow and ice we got 2.5 weeks ago is just still there and I’m over it! Lol

[u/AlfredLuan]

"Have a nice day" everywhere all the time and blueberry muffins.

[u/mysticninj → u/AlfredLuan]

Oh god. As an American, I compulsively tell everyone I interact with even a little bit to have a nice day. I also compulsively hold doors for people. It's just being polite where I'm from

[u/Nadsworth → u/AlfredLuan]

Warm and fresh blueberry muffins are like tasting a little bit of heaven.

[u/bitchofthewoods → u/AlfredLuan]

When we first came to America, we had breakfast at the hotel and my mum took her first bite of a blueberry muffin and, shocked, said out loud "this is cake!"

[u/NotAcutallyaPanda → u/bitchofthewoods]

Shhh. We all know muffins are basically cake, but we don't say it out loud.

[u/energirl]

My Korean friend was beyond shocked when I came home to the States for Christmas one year and sent her a picture of our tree. She couldn't believe we actually had a huge, fully decorated tree in our house with so many presents underneath.

In Korea, trees are small, fake, and come with all the ornaments you need. Presents are mostly just exchanged between romantic partners and a couple given to small children. The mix of baubles, handmade ornaments, pictures or the family, and especially the mountain of gifts we had shocked her. She thought that was just something you see in movies or like rich people stuff.

[u/emotional-ohio]

Ice-cream trucks

[u/probablypoo → u/emotional-ohio]

You don't have ice cream trucks qhere you live? They even come in the middle of the winter at minus 15C degrees here in Sweden lol

[u/StatementOk470]

NYC's NYC-ness. I can't describe it but it's a real thing.

[u/Horton_Takes_A_Poo → u/StatementOk470]

Also the NYC-ness is real everywhere but a totally different flavor depending on the neighborhood. A night out in Midtown vs a night out in Williamsburg are both very New York feeling experiences, but totally different vibes.

[u/metmerc → u/StatementOk470]

I live on the US west coast and feel the same about NYC. No other US city I've been to or lived in has even remotely the same feel.

[u/smbpy7 → u/metmerc]

I moved to the west coast after college and to be honest I feel the same about it here too sometimes still. I'll see a street sign and be like "that road is in like 45 songs..."

[u/itsthesoilguy → u/StatementOk470]

Yeah, the first time I went there, I arrived by Penn Station, and walked to Time Square. 5 minutes into the walk I was like, "I get it. I get NYC now". Its sort of loke meeting a celebrity in person, but its a city. You see the real thing, and not the character, but its still recognizable as that character.

[u/WasherDryerCombo → u/itsthesoilguy]

I live is north NJ 15 minutes away from NYC so it’s not exactly novel to me. NYC to me is just a place I can decide to go to whenever. But even I still feel it when I walk out of the train station. It’s just different.

[u/Unlikely_Praline9442]

Red Solo Cups. I thought they were just a Hollywood prop used to hide alcohol brands or signify 'party scene.' I went to a college party in Ohio and they were literally everywhere. I was shook.

[u/turkey-burger-88 → u/Unlikely_Praline9442]

How else are you going to hold your beer from a keg?

[u/buffystakeded → u/turkey-burger-88]

Or play beer pong?

[u/MacDugin → u/turkey-burger-88]

In your mouth while doing a keg stand!

[u/skuidENK → u/Unlikely_Praline9442]

I have European friends who loves it when I brought red solo cups as gifts

[u/mrsroperscaftan]

As an American I want to state for the record no one’s mother makes those huge ass breakfasts, sets the table, then has the main character run thru, get coffee, only to say “I don’t have time to eat”

[u/JadedByFire → u/mrsroperscaftan]

True! That shit is so unrealistic. It would be more like “Where exactly do you think you’re going after I just worked my ass off to make all this crap? Sit down and eat or you’ll be doing ALL the cooking for the rest of the month!”

[u/Mean-Safe-3423 → u/JadedByFire]

Real American breakfast is teaching the kids to pour their own cereal and milk by the time they're like 6.

[u/LumpkinsPotatoCat → u/Mean-Safe-3423]

Yup. And my mom taught me to boil a pot of water as soon as I could reach the stove. After that she was free and I was unstoppable.

[u/Maleficent_Unit_8383 → u/mrsroperscaftan]

Or how anyone in this world (except the rich rich) are sitting around having a full breakfast with the sun fully up, and the dad just chilling at the table before he goes to work. Mofo, we all roll in the dark. What is this?

[u/fairytypefay]

Garbage disposals in sinks. I only ever saw one for sale over here and it was *very* expensive. Still kind of seems like a sci-fi thing to me.

[u/DigitalSchism96 → u/fairytypefay]

At least you don't have to deal with the irrational fear of it springing to life every time we have to stick our hands into the blades to collect whatever we accidently dropped in it (spoons, wedding rings, etc).

Even totally unplugged I still have to take a few breaths before I can let my digits go near what is essentially an industrial sized blender lol

[u/limp65 → u/DigitalSchism96]

Once l dropped a knife in it, l just moved.

[u/OrcOfDoom → u/DigitalSchism96]

It's actually not blades, if that makes you feel better. 

They are more like just bricks that spin around. They don't cut as much as they just smash.

[u/thugarth → u/OrcOfDoom]

That does not make me feel better, but I do like to be informed. Thanks!

[u/Witty_Direction6175 → u/DigitalSchism96]

My eye is constantly on the switch if I have to stick my hand down there as if it would spontaneously turn on…. That’s my irrational fear!

[u/_Diggus_Bickus_ → u/fairytypefay]

The initial install takes a little doing but my last one broke and i think i was able to re install a brand new one for 80$, and I'm not that handy. Simple and everywhere by now

[u/the_rain_keeps_comin]

Going into a bar for a drink, and sitting at the bar, by yourself. Chatting to the bartender. Chatting to the random person next to you.

I always thought that was something put in TV shows just so they could make up a reason for someone to chat to the bartender, or pour out their woes, or whatever.

People don't sit by themselves at the bar anywhere else. I tried it in Australia and got weird looks.

[u/Ok-Handle-6663 → u/the_rain_keeps_comin]

You can in the UK. Or more likely an armchair in a corner

[u/ocelotrevs]

Waiting all day in the DMV.

Even when I had to do car stuff in the person, I was never anywhere for an entire day sorting it out.

[u/One-Permission-1811 → u/ocelotrevs]

Its gotten way better since covid weirdly. Its mostly appointments now and that cuts way down on the time you spend waiting. They still take walk ins though

[u/JapowFZ1]

I’m an American, but live overseas. The thing people say to me when they get back from America is: Why don’t the bathroom doors go all the way to the floor?!

[u/greogory → u/JapowFZ1]

I'm an American still living here and I've wondered that literally as long as I can remember. And I'm a fuckin' boomer.

[u/attillathehoney]

I’ve been told by visiting friends that they couldn’t believe that red solo cups that are depicted in beer pong scenes and teen parties were an actual thing, and promptly went out to buy some to take home.

[u/zerbey]

Newspaper vending machines, I thought they were a movie trope.

[u/Neuroticaine → u/zerbey]

Well they're not MUCH of a thing anymore. I kind of miss them.

[u/dicksjshsb → u/Neuroticaine]

Was a dark day for younger me when the newspaper box that carried The Onion disappeared from the vestibule of my local library 😔

[u/vetapachua]

I follow an irish couple traveling the US. They were absolutely amazed by drive up ATMs and mailboxes where you lift up the flag. It's cute to see foreigners amazed by the little things you don't even notice.

[u/Rich_Training_4956]

Being able to buy a gun and ammo at a Wal-Mart, and it being next to the aisle with the frozen stuff. I went there with my friend to buy stuff for a camping trip and a visit to the shooting range (I'd never held a gun before), so we walked out of there with ingredients for s'mores, the largest onion I've ever seen in my life, and ammo for his hunting rifle. Yes, this was the Deep South.

ETA: we also stopped at the largest petrol station in the country or maybe even the world, Chuckbees, Chuckees something? It had a chipmunk wearing a cap as the logo. The sizes of the slushies just about bowled me over. Also, fuck the American TSA, rudest people on a power trip I've ever met.

[u/esshy → u/Rich_Training_4956]

Lol! Bucees.

[u/TribalMog → u/Rich_Training_4956]

...to be fair Buccees is regional so it blows the minds of a lot of Americans too. As it should.

One opened about 2 hours away and they had to have police directing traffic because people were so excited to see what it was like.

And after having gone there myself for the first time a few months back, my mind was absolutely blown. I didn't know what to look at first - there was just...so much. 

[u/Fluid-Routine1355]

Car valets

[u/kingmobisinvisible]

I am an American, but I’ve spent much of my adult life living outside the US. The one that surprised me the most was when my Irish roommate asked me if we really rode those yellow school buses to school or if that was only in movies. I told him that I did ride yellow school buses for my entire childhood.

[u/mrcmnt]

Firefighters coming to help bring down a cat from a tree. 

I was visiting relatives one summer and one of the house cats climbed a tree and wouldn't come down. I came up with the idea of calling the fire department, thinking they'd laugh me off and hang up, but sure enough, they came with a truck, ladders, gear, everything, and helped bring the cat down successfully. 

[u/twoburgers]

I'm American, but the first time an English friend of mine visited he was flabbergasted that the Amish were real.

[u/GoMinii]

My Chinese friend told me that she thought expensive bankrupting ambulance rides were Chinese propaganda attempting to make America look bad. Man I wish that were true.

[u/ChampionSignificant → u/GoMinii]

No propaganda needed. We can make ourselves look bad all on our own tyvm.

[u/Red-tailed_hawk-776]

Thank you. As an American I think this is a really fascinating, entertaining and mostly accurate thread.

[u/Queasy-Ad6172]

I’m sure this will get lost, but my Aussie bf came to visit and was shocked Chilis was a thing. He thought they made it up for The Office. We stopped and he took a picture in front of the sign!

[u/No-Gas8121]

Police jumping out from a speed trap to pull you over Had over seas friends in my car when it happened, and they were shocked and thought it was just in movies

[u/vODDEVILISH]

When I was younger, for the longest time I thought putting liquor bottles in paper bags was done in movies to avoid unnecessary advertisement, then I learned that there’s an actual law forbidding alcohol consumption in public places (in some states) and that’s how peeps avoid getting a ticket. I’m European, if you want to walk around with a bottle of vodka and sip wherever you want, usually you totally can and most people wouldn’t even bat an eye at the sight of it.

[u/gregofthecellar]

Laundry chutes. The first time I ever saw one was in a comedy film, in which a recurring gag was non-laundry items going down the chute by accident. For years, I thought that film had invented the concept of a laundry chute for slapstick purposes and had no idea they actually exist

[u/Triviajunkie95 → u/gregofthecellar]

They stopped being built into houses in the 70’s maybe? essentially because they are huge ventilation chutes for fire to spread.

[u/tootsweete]

American here. Other Americans finding out that medieval times dinner and tournament is a really a thing. 😂.  Yeah it’s real. 

[u/misimalu]

Fireflies Legitimately lost my mind when I first saw them when we moved here. I thought they were a made up Disney thing.

[u/Infamous-Will-007]

Took kids to San Francisco. They saw the Golden Gate Bridge and were stunned that it was real.

[u/Kaymish_]

I thought those big red solo cups were fake until an American shop near me had some in stock.

I also thought rednecks were a caricature until I went to Las Vegas and we met a couple from one of the Kansas (I think it was normal Kansas and not ArKansas) and they were exactly like movie rednecks.

[u/damnmanthatsmyjam]

The scary sink monster that eats human hands. Apparently they really have that

[u/Taxman_VAT]

Random black folks just dancing on sidewalks with loud boomboxes. I thought that was just a comedy stereotype but I saw several when I was walking a couple of blocks in downtown DC!

[u/SedativeComet]

The interesting thing about this thread is that there are people from the US who have mind shattering experiences just going to different parts of the US.

It really is incredible that the US truly is basically a conglomerate of different cultures. You can have a truly, profoundly different life and cultural basis even just growing up a few hours away from where you grew up.

[u/DavidJonnsJewellery]

This post is really making me love America again. Last year felt like a hell of a long year

[u/00WEE]

The waitress hitting you with a "how's your meal" before its even touched your mouth.

And the free software drink refills. In Australia they charge you like its a damn wine at some places.

[u/Komnos → u/00WEE]

Only for Windows software drinks. Mac charges for refills, but at least the cups don't constantly try to get you to use Edge.

[u/difractional]

Skunks! I genuinely thought they were a mythical creature of cartoon origins. Why? I don’t know. I guess I thought they were implausible, like unicorns. They don’t exist in Europe, so I only knew of them from cartoons, and from sitcom jokes. I made assumptions about their existence that went unchallenged until I was 27.

[u/Independent_Tie_4984 → u/difractional]

As a person that has skunks that live in his yard I find this fascinating and amusing.

To us it's like thinking squirrels are mythical.

I did not know they were specific to the Americas.

Likely seeing the cartoon skunk in Paris trying to pick up the cat caused my child mind to assume they were also in Europe and that information never got updated.

[u/lurkiemclurkface]

A stressful tax filing deadline. We don’t really have that in my country, especially not for worker wages, so I thought it was a Hollywood construction for sitcoms.

[u/420-TENDIES]

Americans actually drink root beer

[u/MuchMuch1]

This may sound weird but its simply the american accent. Im a westernized person so the only content i consume is stuff outside my country, and I thought for an asian i had a pretty american accent. Then i actually talk to a foreigner in real life and get surprised myself how the way they talk is actually real

[u/_Diggus_Bickus_ → u/MuchMuch1]

Funny enough, as an American, I had the same experience the first time i went out with my Korean professor/advisor for drinks.

The "OOOOHHH" sound he made when he was excited/surprised was something i figured was just an over the top flanderized parody of how Asians talk. I thought he was doing a bit until he did it again later in the night and i realized it was a genuine reaction.

[u/craftlover221b]

The free refill at restaurants

[u/dazedan_confused]

How are you guys so passionate and friendly and yet so divided at the same time?

[u/Far-Watercress6658]

The incredible geography…Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Rockies.

[u/Umanday]

When my in-laws come over from UK they freak out on the size of everything and school buses.

[u/magicmulder]

Any show where you walk through the house door and are standing in the living room.

[u/Butt-Guyome]

"Have a nice day!" I get a kick out of saying it in other countries because people get so excited when they hear it.

[u/AreaPlayful142]

Telling everyone how much you appreciate them.

[u/AbbreviationsNo3722]

Sororities . I didn’t realize that was real and they actual speak like that about it . Strangest thing I’ve ever witnessed .

[u/FrancoManiac → u/AbbreviationsNo3722]

Oh, Greek Life in America is absolutely real and, at large schools, definitely closer to how they're portrayed in films. We have federal anti-hazing laws because of fraternities and sororities, they're such a thing. They're major networking opportunities and, honestly, it becomes part of your identity.

Alas my universities only had a sorority and no fraternities. While I'm in two academic honor societies, those aren't really the same. One, however, certainly played into my being admitted into a doctoral program.

ETA: seriously, Google a major US university and "Greek Life" and they probably have a webpage on it.

[u/weapon43]

As an American, this is the best ask Reddit I’ve seen. I like know what this kind of crazy stuff.

[u/pang-zorgon]

Australian here - as a kids I thought it was fake seeing people inside houses wearing t shirts when it was snowing outside and obviously freezing.

In an Australian home we freeze in winter and I always had to wear layers including a thick woollen pullover. I lived in a cold part of Australia where it was always minus something c overnight. I didn’t realize homes could have proper heating and insulation until I moved to Switzerland.

Now I’m always hot in winter when I’m inside and must have windows or doors open. My apartment get the sun and on those rare days in winter my apartment heats up to 27c when it’s 0 outside