Info about the US

1. we tend to think of it as cool beans and harry potter land
2. its stupid and yes we do have 2 do it but some schools are getting rid of it.
3. yep. either that or we look murderous.
4. true.
5. crappy. we've mastered the art of graffiti and sticking chewed gum everywhere. cars r better.
6. if u dont like the service we dont tip but no matter what its considered extremely rude not to

Q: how well are u accepted in Europe?

 

1. It really depends where you're raised and who raises you. A lot of us admire Europe if we're open to other cultures, and a lot of people think everything is less interesting or important than America. When I think of Europe, I think of all the different countries I haven't explored yet.
2. Growing up, I had to say it or stand while others said it every single day. A bit ridiculous, but a lot of Americans really go for that crap.
3. I would say people don't smile all the time even though we're told we should. If you were to smile all the time, you would look crazy. But yes, a lot of fake smiles.
4. Yeah, most people wear the same shoes outdoor and indoor. The only time shoes are changed is for various activities, like sports or hiking.
5. Public transport is awful in most of the US. New York City is the biggest exception to that. I've been to England several times and the public transport is fantastic there, people actually use it. Here, you would ideally either own a car or have someone else drive you.
6. Tipping is really weird. If you don't tip you're seen as some kind of monster, and if you only have enough money to eat and not to tip, then you just "shouldn't eat there". However, if the service sucks, this goes out the window and it's perfectly viable to not leave a tip.

 

1) Most of the Americans I know view Europe as older and more cultured than America--I think there's a bit of an inferiority complex going on. To be fair I don't know a lot of the NASCAR crowd, but I know they're out there and think differently.
2) I had to learn it, but I honestly don't recall the whole having to say it daily in class. It still surprises me when I hear about that.
3) Americans smile a lot more than Europeans in my experience. We talk a lot more to strangers too.
4) Yes. I think a lot of people don't wear shoes in their own home but beyond that, same for in or out.
5) It's pretty good where I live. For years my husband and I didn't even have a car, now we have one between the two of us.
6) The thing with tipping is that it's enshrined to the point where it's actually sort of calculated into the servers wage, the result being that even in nice restaurants if you take tipping out of the equation servers make frightfully little. Most areas even allow restaurants to pay them below minimum wage with the expectation that the difference will be made up in tips. For bad service I tip poorly. Twenty percent and up for good service, fifteen for eeehh service and ten percent for the kind of bad service you might speak to the manager about. I can only think of one occasion where I chose not to tip at all.

 

Hope this helps

- Most Americans I know tend to view any part of Europe starry-eyed. I'm no stranger to that, myself. Everything's pretty much fancier when you're not in the US.
- The pledge is dumb, really. It has some cool historical context, but even that context shouldn't make it mandatory like it is. I once got in trouble for saying it too fast...
- I've never heard about the smiling thing. I hear that we're quite friendly, and I suppose we are in comparison to the French, but that's really it.
- I.. suppose. Yeah. I mean, why would you change your shoes if the ones you already got on are perfectly fine?
- Most people prefer cars over public transport for a variety of reasons. It's more reliable, it's cleaner, and you don't have to deal with harassment.
- Tipping is a huge deal in the US because if you don't tip at least the 7 percent of your bill, you're essentially subjecting the server about $2 an hour, which is FAR under minimum wage. So yeah, technically it should be illegal for it to be set up like that. For some reason, it's not...

 

1) I think most Americans think of Europe as older, more cultured, and more historic. To some Americans this is something to look up to, others think it's wrong simply because it's not american. I think a lot of it depends on what country you're talking about. If you mention Britain most people will respond favorable, Germany or Russia, not so much. Mention any of the little countries like Belgium or Latvia and you'll just get blank stares. As for what I think about, tend to think about the history a lot (I'm kind of a history nerd so that might be unusually). I think of things like Medieval castles, Knights, the Roman Empire, Vikings, stuff like that. I also think about land marks like Big Ben in the UK, or the Eiffel tower in France.
2) It's dumb, kids shouldn't have to say it, we should honestly just forget it existed. Seriously I don't like it. I avoid it if I can. If I have to I refuse to say the "Under God" bit because I'm an atheist and supposedly there's no set religion in the US. I can't really remember if I had to say it in school or not, that was awhile ago. I think I did in elementary (kindergarten through fifth grade), after that I don't think so. I know a lot of places do require it though.
3) Depends. Walking down the street most of us just have resting bitch face. But ya, it's kind of expected that anyone in a retail or customer service job smile at costumers, even when they really want to bash in the customers skull.
4) Do you mean indoors as in in our houses? I personally don't wear shoes when in my house, I take them off as soon as I come in the door. A lot of people are really anal about taking shoes off before going on the carpet so you don't get dirt on it. But you don't put on another pair, you just walk around barefoot or in socks. And no one in the US changes shoes when they go to a public place like a store or restaurant. Do people in Europe do that? I've never heard of that.
5)I've heard it's pretty good in big cities like New York or Chicago, but in most places it kind of sucks. Most Americans don't use it if they have another choice. We'll usually look for someone to give us a ride before even thinking about looking up the bus schedule. I kind of have mixed feelings about driving everywhere. On the one hand it's nice to be able to go where you want when you want, without having to worry about missing a bus or train. On the other hand dealing with traffic sucks.
6)Tipping is pretty much a necessary evil here. Basically how it works is waiters and waitress are payed less then minimum wage (and minimum wage is a joke, but that's not what you asked) so they rely on tips to make up the rest. If they don't get tips, they make hardly any money. The usual rules is ten to twenty percent, depending on service. However, there are a lot of people who don't tip if they feel the service was bad. The whole system is stupid, because it's basically the restaurants way of getting their costumers to pay their employees for them.

 

1) Depends on who you ask. Most college educated Americans view Europe as generally more advanced in terms of social services (cheaper college education and universal healthcare are the big ones we think of). There are many Americans who don't like gun control laws, which I know in many European countries are much more stringent than in the US, so Americans find that weird to ridiculous. I have run into some who think that Europe is a land of have and have-nots, but these are few and far in between.

2) We usually say the Pledge of Allegiance at the beginning of the day throughout grade and high school and at the start of major sporting events. Interesting little tidbit about that: My grandmother (who was born in 1925) once told me that before World War II, instead of placing the right hand over their hearts as we do today, Americans used to say the pledge with a salute to the flag that was identical to the Nazi German salute. After the war began the US government had the salute changed for obvious reasons.

3) Depends. I'll use my retail job as an example: Usually we're required to greet people at the door. Some smile back and are polite, others just look at you like you have a problem, then there are those who give you the stink eye.

4) Yep. No point in changing your shoes unless you stepped in dog crap outside or you need to change them for work purposes.

5) Some cities have better public transit systems than others. For example the transit system in Portland is generally better than the one in Seattle from what I have heard from friends and relatives who've lived in both cities.

6) Tipping is considered very important in the US, mainly because in some states servers actually make less than the minimum wage, which forces them to rely primarily on their tips to make ends meet. Servers are also taxed on their tips on top of their wages. I know as I've worked several years in a restaurant and tips are everything to the servers.

Traditions:
On the last Thursday of November is Thanksgiving Day, where all the banks and government offices are closed and everyone visits relatives, eat big dinners, and pass out watching football. Its supposed to celebrate the first successful harvest by American colonists back in the 1600s.

Super Bowl - A major American football game held every February that heralds the end of the football season. People go to friends houses or sports bars to eat, drink, and root for their favorite teams.

 

1. My view on Europe is that it's an awesome, magical place that I would love to explore and possibly live there (for many reasons that I won't get into here).

2. Outside of schools, it really isn't said. In schools its usually cited to begin the day and I know back when I was in high school (grades 9-12, from 1999-2003 in the state of Wisconsin) you were not required to stand and say it. Don't know how it goes now.

3. Smiling really all depends on a lot. I've noticed that in the bigger cities people tend to keep to themselves and barely acknowledge those around them unless they have to. In smaller cities and towns, and especially among older people, you will get a smile along with a greeting of "Hello!" or "How are you doing?". Sometimes it's done as a common courtesy and others it usually starts a conversation betweem friends and/or neighbors.

4. Shoes aren't generally worn indoors in your private residence. We usually go barefoot, in socks, or slippers depending on personal preference. In public, however, we do have different kinds of shoes for different situatations, most common being dress shoes for work if you work in a more formal setting or a pair of tennis shoes or sandals for doing general things like going grocery shopping.

5. Public transport really doesn't exist outside of the larger cities and is usually nothing more than bus service that's not 100% reliable, and it's for a reason. I don't remember the exact details, but roads and rules of driving back in the early 20th century actually favored pedestrians and made things rather safe. As the U.S. auto industry grew in size it also grew in power. It essentially sqelched any substantive attempts at making any sort of reliable and affordable form of public transportation and by the mid-20th century the interstate highway system was created by President Eisenhower, in roughly 1953 and it was called the Interstate Highway and Defense System, and America's car culture was firmly established. Over the past couple decades there has been a push for more and better public transportation in various cities across the U.S. and Elon Musk is beginning to test a protype of his Hyperloop transportation system that would link most major cities in the U.S. with mind-bogglingly fast travel. If it works, one of the first letgs to be built will be between Orlando and Miami, making what once was about a 3 hour car drive into a 45 minute commute.

6. Tipping is very common when you dine at a sit-down restaurant. The going fare for tipping is generally around 10% of your bill, but you are free to tip anywhere from $0 to infinity. Some restaurants will automatically add in a 15% tip called a gratuity if you are part of a large group, say 8 or more people. Tipping is how the waitstaff earns most of thier money. I used to bus tables at a now-closed restaurant in my hometown and I was the highest-paid person on the waitstaff at $3.50/hour and I got 10% of the tips the waitresses earned that night, split between myself and however many other bussers were on (most I earned in one night was $60 in tips on a Valentine's Day). Most waitresses only earn around $2/hour so the tips they get in a night is how they make up the difference and bring thier hourly wage up to the federal minimum (which I think is around $7.50/hour).

If I think of anything else to add, I'll make another post, but hopefully this helps

 

1. There is an extremely large diversity of opinions on this matter (it is a nation of 300 million+ people, after all). Everything from utmost hatred and disgust (generally far right people) to idolization and envy. Of course, most people have never been, and don't realize that there is a large amount of diversity between countries.

2. It's disgusting. The nationalistic aspect of it alone pisses me off - but forcing it on children? It was true for my school, but I lived in a very rural area of the US growing up. You actually aren't legally required to recite it, but (again, at least where I grew up) you're signing up to be ostracized if you don't.

I was already ostracized, so I made a point to sit down and listen to Rammstein's Amerika every day when they did it....


3. ...I've never even heard of that one? And it's definitely not remotely true. There are some areas that are more inclined to passive aggression, but not to that extent...

4. Only if they're idiots that want to ruin their carpets. Just based on my experiences I'd say the vast majority take off their shoes at the door.

5. Depends entirely on the city. Some perfect, some middling, some terrible. It is a lot harder in the US since there is way more space. Second question, again, depends on the person. In more rural areas almost everyone has a car, but it's more out of necessity - doesn't mean they wouldn't prefer to bike everywhere if they could.


6. No, it's not necessary, but it has to be really poor service for you to not leave one without breaking a social norm. For what it's worth, most private restaurant workers that aren't higher up on the chain get paid very shittily. Accordingly, they deserve that tip if they didn't do a terrible job.

 

• Diverse with lots of different cultures. Globalism, and laid back
• I find the pledge of allegiance to fine, but citing it regularly is stupid. You’re essentially saying America can do no wrong and we should blindly do anything that benefits America. In primary school, we had to cite it daily. For secondary, I went to a small charter school that didn’t do anything like that. I think it depends on the school. I would say most do though
• America is a big country with lots of different people that have different social norms. Will people regularly fake smile? In Hawaii? Sure. New York? Not so much…
• Hawaii has adopted a lot of asian cultural norms. It’s extremely rude to wear shoes inside. As far as I know, some people have “indoor shoes” and some just wear the same ones. I think wearing the same shoes for like 16 hours is really gross.
• Public transport varies greatly from city to city. LA doesn’t really have public transport despite being one of the largest cities in the country. New York has a subway system and so does DC. Most cities have something, but it’s not nearly as common as Europe. I absolutely hate to drive so mooch rides off of others or take the bus. If I lived in a city with public transport, I would prefer public transport but might still own a car.
• Generally the service has to be EXTREMELY bad to leave absolutely nothing. Bosses in the US don’t pay their servers a living wage. I find it incredibly horrible and unacceptable, but I don’t think it’s okay to take it out on the servers. If it’s bad 5-10%, average 15%. Over the top 20-25%. It’s 100 necessary unless you want to be viewed as a terrible person. The exception would be fast food places such as McDonalds.

 

- How do Americans typically view Europe? What are some things that come to your mind when someone mentions Europe?

We don't. Sadly most Americans are just ignorant on geography that way. They have no idea that other countries exist outside of America.

But for that rare percentage of people that are aware, we either want to save up to move there, or we think the men are effeminate, the women don't have any rights, and they mostly get drunk all the time.

We generally have a neutral and unacknowledged opinion on Europe so. England especially, we just think it's similar to America, when it isn't .

- What's your opinion about the Pledge of Allegiance and is it true that people have to do it every day at school?
I always thought it was stupid when I was young, and still do.


- Maybe a weird question, but.. is it true that most Americans smile all the time even when it's clear they fake it?
I think that's with any culture. There are people who are just mostly cordial like that.

- Is it true that most Americans wear the same shoes both outdoor and indoor?
Yes. Unlike places like Japan I guess you're thinking, we don't have indoor and outside shoes or there are rules that we have to take our shoes off before entering.

However some people who immigrated to America might still use those same rules though.

- How would you describe the quality of public transport in cities? And do you really prefer car transport everywhere?
Usually public transportation in America is very reliable and sometimes preferred depending on who you talk to. More rural areas, you would need a car though.

- How about tipping? I know it's very common there but how it works? Is it necessary at places like restaurants, even if you are not satisfied with the service?

It depends on your culture. Usually people from a poverty background/frugal with their money, do not tip. However average people and those higher scale with their salary always tip and make a big deal of tipping

 

BadassFrost... it looks like you have a good deal of people providing very nice insights, and many very similar. As an American who has been through Europe several times, I can tell you that one thing I especially like is that litter was rare, and no homeless person ever approached me to ask for money. Maybe its only where Iv been (Belgium, Germany, Austria, Switzerland), or maybe they spend LOTS of $ picking up trash, but that doesn't account for persons not begging for money on street corners. One final note, again maybe its just me but every train Ive even been on in Europe departed and arrived when it should. Cant recall the last time that was true with a flight here in the US. Good luck with the presentation.

 

Okay, for the shoes thing:

Some families will want you to take off your shoes so as not to track dirt inside the house, or if it's a religious thing, or whatever reason. But some don't care. It all depends on the house you enter.

 

I can't speak for all Americans but here are my views.

How do Americans typically view Europe? Weird jeans, better art.

What's your opinion about the Pledge of Allegiance and is it true that people have to do it every day at school? Just words. Americans, especially lately, like to reduce everything to symbols and then argue over the symbols while ignoring the issues they stand for. As a result, nothing gets settled.

Maybe a weird question, but.. is it true that most Americans smile all the time even when it's clear they fake it? Yes.

Is it true that most Americans wear the same shoes both outdoor and indoor? Yes. Gross.

How would you describe the quality of public transport in cities? And do you really prefer car transport everywhere? It varies. New York City has the worst. The MTA is corrupt. So is the whole city. I would say most people prefer to drive themselves.

How about tipping? I know it's very common there but how it works? Is it necessary at places like restaurants, even if you are not satisfied with the service? I believe the standard these days is to tip 20% of the bill. These days you see tip jars everywhere. Even cashiers have tip jars. Why on earth would I tip someone for giving me my change?


Also if you think there are some interesting things / traditions of the US that a random European like me might not know about, pls share it We like to let our politicians run amok and do whatever the fuck they want.