Foreigners Explain What Shocked Them Most When Visting America

I've traveled pretty extensively within the contiguous United States. I've spent time in all 48 of those states—and Washington D.C.—and I've lived for extended periods in 13 of them.

I've yet to make it to Alaska or Hawai'i.

Although at this point, a Hawai'i excursion will only be after an invitation from a Kānaka 'Ōiwi. The resources and housing for the Lāhui are stretched too thin for me, as an Indigenous American Auntie and elder, to engage in casual tourism there.

My international travel is limited to Canada, Mexico, Germany, and Japan.

But I thoroughly enjoyed each of them. My Mother's people are from Canada, so that feels like a second home, but there were moments of culture shock in Mexico, Germany, and Japan.

I'm sure the experience is the same for international tourists who choose the United States as a destination.

Reddit user RevolutionaryRip2504 asked:

"For people who have visited the US from other countries, what shocked you the most?"

Not As Familiar As You Think

"I was shocked that it’s a foreign country."

"That might sound weird, but you think you know America because you see so much of it on TV/film or in music and because we share a language."

"But it’s not until you go there that you realise it’s truly a foreign country, with all sorts of customs and habits you’re unfamiliar with."

~ Brighton2k

Hello, Friend

"Random people will stop and talk to you."

"I'm used to a friendly nod or a 'good morning', but in America they're open to conversations with strangers."

~ MagicalWhisk

Car Culture

"Just how un-walkable everywhere was."

~ Ben-the-banana-man

"Yes! As an American I usually only vacation in pedestrian friendly places. I love a walkable downtown. I don’t want to have to use a car to get around."

~ momohatch

"My mom was in hospital in Houston. My hotel was across the street and down a couple of blocks."

"No sidewalks, except around the hospital...then they just end."

"To walk to her, I had to:"

"Walk along the side of the busy road in the grass, tripping over garbage and holes, then, go through some bushes into a parking lot until that ran out, then cross a street from a parking lot to a grass bank, which I walked until the next street light, crossed over, walked another bit in the dirt on the side of the road, crossed at another light and suddenly I'm on hospital sidewalk, and feeling like I was back in a modern country."

"So bizarre, and I'm an American."

~ TeachOfTheYear

Have You Been Injured?

"Probably not my 'biggest shock', but something that I definitely noticed."

"The amount of billboards along roads."

"A ludicrous amount. And sooo many of them are for personal injury lawyers, and by that I mean, there are an insufferable amount of Morgan & Morgan billboards."

~ Sensitive-Reaction32

"Or the law offices of Joe Bornstein."

~ MohawMais

"I used to look at them as a child on road trips looking for any interesting billboards. Maybe 2% had something somewhat interesting on them."

"The rest? Personal injury lawyers, news channel/local radio ads, fast food next exit, and the like.

"As an adult, I ignore them now."

~ HagalUlfr

"Maine—where I live—has banned billboards since 1977 (with only a handful of exceptions). Four states—Maine, Vermont, Alaska, and Hawai'i—don't allow billboards on highways."

"You don't realize what a difference it makes to the scenic beauty and peacefulness of the drive until you travel somewhere that does allow them."

~ MohawMais

For Profit Healthcare And How To Pay For It

"How many ads there were on TV regarding healthcare and the need to sue someone."

~ Miss_Bisou

"Yes. Advertising for prescription medication is wild. I always enjoy the 30 second fast talk of side effects it may cause."

~ unique_name5

"We do love a good frivolous lawsuit 'round these parts."

~ Reddit

"Both those things used to not be allowed to be advertised on TV in the USA, then came cable television, big money, and the Reagan Administration, and the floodgates were opened for ambulance chasing lawyers and big pharmaceutical companies."

"My doctor tells me it took a while to get used to patients asking for a specific drug they had seen advertised when they have no clue what the drug is for and that it will do nothing for what is ailing them."

"But hey, pharmaceutical stocks are some of the fastest growing."

"The moral of my brief story is that money rules everything in America now, even our government. It is no longer 'by the people, for the people', it's 'by the wealthy, for the wealthy' and the reigning logic is that somehow favoring wealth and corporatocracy is good for the public."

"A logic that has employed weaponized propaganda on those same television screens to bury it into minds so that votes become automatic."

"What started out as favoring 'job creators' and 'the money will trickle down from above' created an oligarchy with massive wealth that now owns our government."

~ oldbastardbob

Reality Bites

"How dirty the Hollywood Walk of Fame is… on TV it looked so neat."

~ Saggitarius30

"I mean, the Hollywood Walk of Fame is consistently on the top of 'most overrated landmarks in America'."

"As a citizen, I have no plans of ever going."

"That isn’t exactly the best place to visit if you want to 'see America'."

~ DirkNowitzkisWife

Falling Through The Cracks

"Something that surprised me was how many people with unchecked mental illness were on the streets."

"It just felt like a huge amount of people who've fallen through the cracks and not received the support they need."

"Been to 5 states and several cities, and NYC was particularly bad for this, and it was pretty heartbreaking."

~ Acrobatic_Toes

Tipped Over

"Tipping culture was very intimidating, especially coming from a Southeast Asian country."

~ needy_yue

"It's getting bad at this point, even for us Americans. We're now getting asked to tip cashiers for doing nothing out of the ordinary, it's getting ridiculous."

"Like I told my wife, if I have to stand up to order, I'm not tipping anything, and no amount of social pressure is going to change my mind on that."

~ skol_vikings_88

"Another thing that's often brought up is 'oh, without the tips they're making 2.45/hr'. But they can only be paid at that rate if their tips equal to at LEAST minimum wage."

"Otherwise they're paid minimum wage for those tipped positions. I hate that argument that shifts all responsibility to the customer."

"Last time I ordered a pizza for pickup, I was even asked for a tip then."

"For what‽‽ I literally drove to town and picked it up myself!"

~ themagicbong

Retail Margins

"I'm Canadian and grew up very close to the border."

"The thing that has always 'shocked' me is how much more affordable—even with the exchange rate taken into consideration—clothes are a 30-minutes drive away."

"Like, I once bought a sweater at Macy's (which, granted, was on sale) only to be shopping at The Bay a couple of months later and came across the exact same sweater at 3x the price."

~ BananasPineapple05

Peek-a-Boo, I See You

"The huge side gap in stalls of public restrooms."

"I don’t want to make eye contact with strangers while my pants are down."

~ chronicallyill_dr

"This is an actual American design choice!"

"It’s done to make sure people aren’t having sex or any other illegal activity in a stall."

~ ned_luddite

Suburban Sprawl

"I landed at JFK airport in New York City. Shortly before that, we were over a residential area and I was shocked by how it was just horizon to horizon of same size house lots in a grid pattern."

"Not broken up by apartment buildings, or parks, or shopping areas...just all similar houses and houses and houses...and more houses..."

~ SamyMerchi

"Post WWII suburbs. Housing projects where everything’s strictly regulated by an HOA to preserve house value."

"I have relatives who live in a yuppie farm that only allows houses in three different shades of tan, they can’t have more than one bush every so many square feet, lawns are mowed on these days from 10am to 7pm, etc..."

"I always think the place has a bizarre, dystopian feel to it, but they like the fact they never have to deal with that one neighbor who has five dead vehicles on his lawn or the one who never cleans up after their dogs."

~ pellakins33

Effortlessly Cool

"I didn’t believe that all New Yorkers (NYC) actually dressed that cool. I thought it was just something TV exaggerated, until I finally visited and realized that, yeah, every single one of them really is that effortlessly cool."

"From casual and effortless to bold and unique, everyone had a distinct sense of style and each outfit felt like a personal expression of who they were."

"Very different to what you see in my city."

~ _schlong_macchiato

"This is so true. I live in London and we all look like clowns."

"You'd think as a major city we'd be up there style wise, but NYC is just another level of cool."

~ sunandskyandrainbows

Where Do The Coats And Boots Go?

"I honestly thought the front door opening up right in the living room was just a trope for TV shows because of the studio audience and such."

"No, turns out many American homes are designed this way. Blew my mind."

"You'd never find a single home or apartment without some kind of entrance hall, foyer or mudroom where I'm from."

~ Vildtoring

"In the suburbs, most people enter through their garage, so there's usually some little mudroom or laundry area by that door."

"The front door is for guests, so they can go to the living room and be comfortable."

~ dripsofmoon

🇺🇲🇺🇸🇺🇲🇺🇸 Old Glory 🇺🇸🇺🇲🇺🇸🇺🇲

"Look to your left? U.S. flag. Look to the right? U.S. flag. Car park? Huge U.S. flag. Car dealership? More flags than cars."

"I always thought that bit in Spiderman was over the top, but flaaaags!"

~ notabirdorplane

"A top reply from this same observation on another forum was:"

"'America's overabundance of flags while grooming their kids to pledge their allegiance to it gives off Nazi vibes to this foreigner'."

"Well, f*ck. They're not wrong. Have you seen who has the most flags?"

~ Kucked4life

Mostly Nice

"How friendly some people are. Like if you make casual eye contact people smile at you."

~ kolossal

"How pleasant and welcoming almost everyone was."

"I found the majority of people I interacted with to be friendly, polite, interested in where I came from when they heard an accent, etc... I’m afraid I had allowed myself to believe that all this crap we see online reflects the reality in the USA for most people, which it absolutely doesn’t.

"People in the USA were getting along with their days and along with each other pretty well from what I see."

~ quackmeowawoo

What shocked you most during your travels?