How Russians See America: 50 Facts About the USA

Фото: Depositphotos

Each country has its own characteristics that are easier for tourists or immigrants to notice. The blogger under the nickname Zaneta shared her impressions of the USA on her page in Live internet.

1. Even if you buy one banana from the supermarket, it will be put in a plastic bag or paper bag. Or maybe even two. As a result, a huge amount of both is constantly accumulating in homes.

2. If you ask an American where he comes from, he will first tell you what state or city he was born in, even if he was taken out of it in infancy, and he never went there again. In addition, Americans love to list what percentage of what nationality is present in their pedigree.

3. You can return almost everything you bought back to the store, saying that it "did not suit you." You will receive either money back or a purchase loan. I personally saw one woman bring a huge bag full of used makeup without a receipt and receive $ 300.

4. The system of mediation, or snitching, is unusually developed. For example, if a “No smoking” sign hangs in a public place and someone starts to smoke, none of the visitors will personally reprimand the smoker. They will go and complain to the manager.

5. Bouquets of flowers are sold for a penny in all supermarkets, but men give them to women very rarely. A bouquet brought on a date will induce the girl to think that the guy is a loser and is desperately trying to win her favor.

6. Americans are incredible workaholics. If you come to the office at 6 in the morning or stay at work until midnight, no one will appreciate it. That is how many work.

7. If you really want to make someone feel guilty and apologize to you, suffice it to say that his words or deed hurt your feelings. "Hitting someone's feelings" is a very serious offense in the United States.

8. Americans know how to make money on the most incredible and even idiotic idea. One, seeing dentures in the dentist's office, molded crooked teeth in plastic houses to scare his friends, and became a millionaire, putting this production on stream.

9. Americans are not taken to meet on the street. If someone approached you, get ready to hear a foreign accent.

10. Americans consider potato chips as part of the dish as a side dish, like Russians, for example, fried potatoes.

11. The Russian dish aspic makes Americans wonder, or rather, carefully hidden disgust. Jelly here can only be sweet.

12. In America, the concept of "no prophet in his own country" does not exist. Americans take pride and trumpet all over the world if their fellow countrymen are successful abroad. In the same way, they raise a fuss if one of their own is in trouble abroad.

13. In the American military, not only are they well paid and provide numerous benefits - often parents themselves send their teenagers there to be “turned into men”. The result is usually very impressive.

14. Suing some company on a completely idiotic reason is a favorite way of income for Americans, reminiscent of a national sport. Sometimes a person gets involved in a collective court by accident: several times I received a piece of paper in the mail with a request to confirm my desire to participate in a collective court and receive compensation. It turns out that someone did not like the purchase (or service), and he decided to sue, as well as to involve another one hundred to five hundred people who bought goods there at about the same time. The irony is that the real money is made by lawyers, because they get a percentage of each person involved, and you will be sent twenty bucks divided by one hundred to five hundred people.

15. American girls are very independent and confident from an early age. It is difficult to imagine a young American woman trying to win the favor of her parents or those around her by obedient behavior. The famous Russian remark “well, you’re a girl” has no equivalent here. Appearance, and especially thinness, are in the first and all other places here.

16. American boys will do their best to get a girlfriend as early as possible. It doesn't matter how many boyfriend friends you have, or whether you do well in sports, if you don't have a girlfriend, you're a failure. When you have a girlfriend, your friends automatically think that you are having sex (which does not always correspond to reality), which means that they are incredibly cool.

17. Until recently, the buyer was asked his postcode at the box office to find out where else a new supermarket could be built, but someone sued, and now companies are prohibited from finding out such personal information.

18. American husbands often repeat the saying “happy wife - happy life”, hinting that you shouldn't argue and contradict your wife, it's better to agree right away, you will still lose. American fathers have no objection to take out credit cards when their daughters want to buy something or spend the day at the salon. With their sons, fathers are much more strict and generally treat their daughters' boyfriends with great distrust.

19. While traveling to other countries, Americans never try to learn a local language. They do not understand why the French refuse to accept their order in English, believing that they just show off and create unnecessary problems. The whole world already speaks English, what's the problem?

20. Americans are not interested in foreign films and celebrities. Only when a European star moves to the United States can newspapers write something about her, but otherwise the Americans are completely indifferent to foreigners.

21. Living with parents or relatives is not accepted here and it only happens if a person has no money at all. But a great number of Americans rent their house to rent or rent housing with perfect strangers, which they found on the ads. It is not uncommon for lonely people to take tenants in order not only to save money, but also to avoid loneliness.

22. Americans go crazy about pets and often treat them better than their family members. The hostess of the house can not bother cooking dinner for children and her husband, while zatarivayas with a variety of canned food and mixtures for a dog or cat.

23. If you do something with your own hands, no matter how crooked and oblique, Americans will admire and advise you to start your own business. It is normal to applaud a homebrew singer loudly, even if a bear has stepped on his ear. Therefore, the screens often show off indescribable mediocrity in the full confidence of their talent.

24. Americans are not very superstitious. Except for knocking on wood, I can't remember a single superstition. Trips to fortunetellers and fortune tellers are mainly engaged in immigrants. But one and all believe in the apocalypse and the existence of UFOs.

25. Higher education in the United States is considered the key to a successful career. At the same time, the majority of all billionaires and truly wealthy people either never crossed the threshold of college, or earned their money on something to which their diploma has nothing to do. Graduates of pre-retirement universities pay loans for studies and await old age with fear.

26. Americans consider a lost day if they have bad hair and they are generally very sensitive to haircuts. They can walk in training pants and a T-shirt, but with a beautiful haircut, high-quality make-up and very well-groomed.

27. Work as a service staff is not considered shameful. But gardening is done only by Hispanics. The worst thing you can do for your reputation is to use government assistance.

28. Americans love to read and buy a huge number of books every year. At the same time, the majority of the population can not correctly write half the words of the English language and does not know the meaning of the other half. It is not uncommon for a professor to write something on the blackboard in the classroom and be corrected by the students. Errors in spelling are not considered a cause for embarrassment.

29. Americans do not hesitate to talk about sex and the anatomical structure of both women and men, as if it were a conversation about the weather. All non-destructive designations of sexual characteristics have long been a part of everyday speech, and menstruation, members, vagina and sexual intercourse are quietly on the TV screen. Also, for some reason, asshole always dubbed on television as well bitch or son of a bitch - not.

30. The worst structure in the United States is not the police or the courts, but the tax authorities. The defaulter will be taken out of the ground - and a specific guard will come. Although they don't play with the police either - you won't be able to dodge a fine on the road. Maybe, if only you are a pretty woman.

31. In America, there are bars and clubs only for black. Only for whites have I not seen, and most likely, such a bar will often have to change the glass in their windows.

32. Only narrow family parties and dinners in the White House are celebrated with a feast. In all other cases, the meeting is likely to be held either in a bar or restaurant, or at home there will be a buffet and no toast.

33. Americans do not write birthday and holiday poems. A postcard for the occasion with a ready-made text is bought in the store, a signature is put and presented most often without a gift. The most popular birthday greetings are “Happy Birthday!”.

34. Americans do not like to openly disagree and say “no”. When they refuse, they are more likely to say "yes, maybe, maybe." You need to get used to reading these signals and not insist or accidentally mistake “maybe” for agreement.

35. In schools, no one has been in the same class for 10 years, and, like in universities, they meet different people in certain lessons. Americans remember school with hostility, and some with hatred. There are constant clashes between teenagers, jokes between girls, competitions, who has more money, who is better dressed and who has a cooler boyfriend (girlfriend).

36. Americans travel very rarely. Canada and Mexico are not even considered "overseas". Those who have rested in France are considered to have seen the world.

37. Bargaining in America is not accepted, but if you find any defect in the product, you can get a discount. Sometimes 50%.

38. Cars drive everything, and even driving stereotypes exist:

if there is a car in front - Asian;

if there is a car in front with the turns on - a pensioner;

if you are overtaken with tinted windows - Iranian or Russian;

if there are 25 people in the car - Mexicans;

if the music rumbles and the car doors shake - African American.

39. It is very easy to register and open your own business - you will not find much paperwork on your way.

40. Americans do not take offense at all when someone speaks negatively about their country. They will even agree that their president is ridiculous, democracy is not real, and that they are laughed at or hated all over the world. At the same time, almost no one would think of trying to emigrate somewhere.

41. According to the incredibly popular site where you can order a letter from Santa for your child, his office is in Texas. This is another example of the entrepreneurial spirit of the Americans - someone came up with the idea to write wishes from Santa on beautiful paper and sell them for 10 bucks. The founder's annual income is in the millions.

42. Enjoying a leisurely lunch in the middle of the working day is an atypical picture for the United States, and even snoring for a quarter of an hour sounds unrealistic. Basically, people grab sandwiches and eat them at their desk.

43. Taking a picture for Playboy magazine is not considered something shameful. It is a shame to post your nude photos from the back taken at home.

44. Americans love to sell their junk, posting ads for sale and exposing old things, furniture and anything at the garages. People are buying up - only the noise is worth it.

45. Losing weight in the United States is considered an achievement more important than success in business. If any fat businessman with his millions loses weight to normal size, more will be said about this than about his business.

46. All modern houses and apartments are designed with mandatory built-in wardrobes. Usually they have sliding doors that can be replaced with mirrored for an additional fee.

47. Not an uncommon picture - children of wealthy parents work at Starbucks. Parents' money is not considered an automatic inheritance of children, and the latter often make their way on their own, counting on the education and acquaintance of the parents, but not on their money.

48. Couples of aged women dating young men have become commonplace.

49. Crying in a public place is very unacceptable. Swearing loudly on the phone, discussing intimate details, is quite common.

50. Americans can easily part with friends and just as easily find new ones. It is not customary to ask friends for money, salt, or children.

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