Every country has unique quirks that leave outsiders scratching their heads. The U.S. is definitely one of those countries that leaves others wondering why they do the things they do, especially if they don’t completely understand the cultural differences. America has a lot of traditions in their country, from food to their schools, which show up often on this list of things that only happen in the USA. For those that reside in the United States, these are just everyday norms. Let’s take a dive into 20 things that seem to only occur in the United States.
1. Obsessive Passion For College Sports
Sports in the United States is a very lucrative business, thus the reason why most professional sports leagues, besides soccer, are centered in the U.S.
People from the United States really love their college sports, something that most other countries don’t put much stock into. College football specifically is a sport that generates thousands of people to the games, really just isn’t heard of outside of the country.
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2. Everything Supersized
If you have ever been to a fast food restaurant in the United States, then you know that supersizing is always an option, and one that is often requested. Pretty much every meal has the option to upsize the drink or fries, or some other larger than life sized food item. Many of which are directly linked to some serious health concerns.
Other countries around the world pride themselves on a healthier lifestyle, and just don’t understand why everything in the U.S. has to be bigger.
3. Eating Food From The U.S. While Traveling
One of the many wonderful things about traveling is the opportunity to fully immerse yourself in another culture, including their cuisine. Many United States locals will stick to what they know, refusing to indulge in the local foods.
Many U.S. tourists will seek out the items they know, like burgers and fries, with one of the main reasons being that it helps them not feel as home sick.
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4. Spray Cheese
Cheese, cheese, and more cheese, this food item can be found on just about every meal that comes from the U.S. But Americans have taken it up a notch and found a way to make it even faster and more convenient to use, by way of spray cheese. Little do they know that the spray cheese is only 51% real cheese, the other 49% is whey protein and other ingredients.
This is a product that you just won’t find in most other countries.
5. Displaying Their Flag
The American flag is by far one of the most iconic flags in the entire world, it’s very recognizable and some argue it is the best looking flag in the entire world. Maybe this is the reason behind why so many U.S. citizens love to fly their flags. According to the Flag Manufacturers’ Association of America, they estimate over 150 million flags are sold each year.
American’s definitely enjoy showing their pride via flying their flag as often as possible.
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6. View Pets As Family Members
People all over the world develop strong attachments to their animals, with dogs and cats being the most popular choice. However, in the United States these animals are treated like they are humans.
Two-thirds of households in the United States have pets, and more than $50 million is spent annually on care, giving them birthday presents and having professional photographs taken of them.
7. Black Friday
In the United States one of the busiest shopping days of the year takes place the day after Thanksgiving. Every year people line up outside of stores in hopes of getting the best Black Friday deals.
It’s unknown why this day became so popular, other than the fact that it is the start of the Christmas shopping season. A few countries are adopting this idea, sing if they can reap the financial benefits of black friday blowout sales.
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8. Chanting U-S-A!
Another unique aspect of the United States is people chanting U-S-A. The three letters are so easy to say and there aren’t many countries out there that can say their country name like that.Can-Na-Da, It-A-Ly, it just doesn’t work.But U-S-A!
It gained its popularity in the 1980 Winter Olympics during a hockey game when Team USA defeated Czechoslovakia, becoming a fixture for the rest of the Olympics and now, all of sports when Team USA is involved
9. No Time Off
It isn’t commonplace for United States citizens to utilize their holiday time when they get it, the main reasoning being because they just aren’t allotted a whole bunch.
The U.S. doesn’t require paid leave, many just simply can’t afford to take time off. Most other countries have different policies when it comes to holiday pay, and you would be looked at as odd if you didn’t take a vacation at least a few times a year.
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10. Driving Everywhere
Cars and freeways are commonly seen all over the United States, the main reason being that U.S. citizens drive anywhere and everywhere. There are other public transportation options available, but Americans seem to prefer the drive, even if it’s a long distance.
According to FiveThirtyEight, 90 percent of Us Citizens use their personal car for trips over 50 miles, and even when up to 500 to 1000 miles.
11. Money All Looks The Same
Most other countries have colored money, which many in the United States may affectionately call “funny money.” In the U.S. the money is all the same shade of green, with very little distinction between the bills.
According to history.com, U.S. The Bureau of Printing and Engraving used green ink because there was so much of it available and because green represents stability.
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12. Advertising Medical Products
Only two countries in the entire world use the television to advertise for medical products, one being the United States, the other is New Zealand.
Outsiders find it a bit strange to see commercials with suggestive medical content, to them they just go see their doctors for reccomendations.
13. Pumpkin Everywhere
America seems to have a bit of an obsession with pumpkin. For those outside the country this is extremely strang. According to The Atlantic, pumpkin production almost doubled from $75 million to $143 million from 2001 to 2014.
The fall season obviously plays a very large role in pumpkin purchases, but not just in the traditional Halloween sense. It has become its own spice and can most definitely be seen in coffee shops all over the country, just seems to be one of those things that Americans love to indulge in.
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14. No Taxes On Price Tags
This isn’t unique to just The United States, however, it’s still a mystery as to why they don’t add the taxes to the price tag.
Many countries just show the price tag in its total, meaning the price represented on the tag is the price paid at the register. It does help consumers buy, as they see the lower price before getting to the register.
15. Consume A Lot Of Bread
Freshly baked bread holds a special place in the hearts of many, but there is also such a thing as too much of a good thing is a bad thing. Bread is a staple in almost every meal that Americans consume daily.
According to BreadDaily, each US Citizen consumes around 53 pounds of bread a year. That’s enough bread to have three sandwiches a day for 168 days straight, nearly half the year of just eating bread.
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16. Throwing Scraps Of Peanuts On The Floor
This one is something that boggles many minds, even those that are local to the United States. Despite this it is a common tradition to throw the remainder of your peanut shells on the floor.
You can see this practice at various sports events and restaurants, for whatever reason littering in this context is considered perfectly normal. A bit odd for those that aren’t native to the U.S.
17. Take Leftovers Home
As it was mentioned before, Americans love their large portions of food. Oftentimes the amount of food is far too much for one person to consume in one sitting, thus the introduction of the doggie bag.
There was a time, according to smithsonianmag.com , that asking for a doggie bag was considered poor etiquette. In other countries they serve their meals in “normal” portions, making it easier for people to consume the entirety of their meal.
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18. Giving The Waiter A Tip
Tipping in European countries isn’t customary, however in the United States it’s expected in most establishments that provide a service to consumers. If you consider the low hourly wages that people in the U.S. receive, especially in the service industry, then tipping makes more sense.
Other countries just simply pay their employees a higher hourly wage.
19. High Number Of Coffee Shops
Coffee is a staple in just about every country around the world, however in the United States, coffee shops are in excess. According to finedininglovers.com, Seattle alone has 15 coffee shops for every 100,00 people in their city.
There are approximately 21,400 coffee shops in the United States, which is enough for one for every 14,000 people. That is an extremely high number, and many people wonder why, especially Europeans who drink coffee in a more social setting.
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20. Rooting For Cheerleaders
If you look at the sidelines of any major sport in the U.S. you will see cheerleaders. It’s one of those things that goes hand in hand with sports games, kind of like hotdogs and beer. Cheerleading has become big competition as well, turning into part dance, part gymnastics, so it’s not all ‘Go Team Go!’.
There aren’t many other countries that embrace cheerleading like the United States does.
