Those odd little differences between countries that confuse or unnerve you.

[polishgenius]

I'm making this thread because I noticed today, not for the first time, that butter in Germany softens and melts way, way easier than butter in England. I didn't even know that different melting points of butter was a thing, but apparently it is. I don't know quite why this irks me so much, but it does. Maybe because I'm used to leaving the block of butter I'm currently using out of the fridge but you can't really do that here, a mildly warm day or someone cooking with the windows closed will reduce it to a puddle.


The other observation that's bugged me since I moved to Berlin was that almost every place I've lived in or visited (and despite my short time here I've lived in a few), when you put the kettle on, the kitchen lights dim. I assume this is because they're on the same circuit as the plugs/appliances, but it never fails to disconcert me because, growing up in a place where afaik wiring like that is not the norm, I'm immediately all like 'woah what's wrong with my electrics!'.

On the other hand, as I work in a nursery, I'm a fan of the way German kids still watch most of the same children's programs on telly that their parents would have done. Because that's not the case in England.

So anyway, for those of you with experience of blatting around all over the globe and what-have-you- am I the only one or do you have any little, meaningless observations like this?

[Jon AS]

Can't help yout with the butter. Real butter is supposed to melt (how do you spread it on bread otherwise?), but this:

The other observation that's bugged me since I moved to Berlin was that almost every place I've lived in or visited (and despite my short time here I've lived in a few), when you put the kettle on, the kitchen lights dim. I assume this is because they're on the same circuit as the plugs/appliances, but it never fails to disconcert me because, growing up in a place where afaik wiring like that is not the norm, I'm immediately all like 'woah what's wrong with my electrics!'.

is definitely not normal. Clearly Berlin is in worse shape than I thought.

ETA:

Things that bug me in other countries: people in France seem to drink way too much UHT milk. I mean, there's been this creeping advancement of longer-lived milk in Germany as well, but you still have to put the stuff in the fridge (and thankfully it's not quite as disgusting a UHT milk).

ETA2:

Nutella also tastes different, depending on country of origin. That's not necesarrily a bad thing, though.

[Clueless Northman]

I should try this with Nutella.

Coke definitely tastes differently. You can tell at times there's a hint of cinnamon in some European cokes, but in the US, I mostly if only get an overbearing vanilla taste.

Old buildings have annoying wiring, so it's not a surprise you can experience this in some parts of old Europe. I hope newer housings in Berlin don't have that kind of issues.

[Calvin the Bold]

The fact it took me one month to find Reese's Peanut Butter Cups in London.

Or the fact those cups were located within a 60s walk from the flat I was in.

Much easier here in the US.

[S John]

I learned that standard size grocery stores in the US are gigantic. Even if I made the extra walk to go to the bigger store in Glasgow it still would have been a small-ish one by US standards but the little corner Sainsbury's that I went to the most was only about the size of a 7/11. Of course, it didn't really matter because I did not have a car in Scotland and I can only carry so much. So I ended up making frequent small trips to the store instead of less-frequent large trips like I would here.

I also learned that they sold Lucky Charms in a candy store and that I'd apparently been eating candy for breakfast for 30 years.

[Ser Scot A Ellison]

Jon AS,

What is UHT milk?

[Raja]

The tea I make tastes different everywhere. It's probably because of the milk but it's the one thing I miss most about home when I'm traveling. Also, woe to those who say I should use skimmed milk, that should never happen under any circumstances.

Expanding on S John post, the sizes of drinks at the cinemas in the US is ginormous. I ended up purchasing a 'medium' drink which turned out to be in the biggest cup I've ever seen. Also, unassigned seating :shocked:

Another funny thing to happen to me was when two fairly young boys didn't understand what I meant when I asked 'Are you in the queue?' apparently they had never heard of a line being referred to as a queue.

[Alex.]

The other observation that's bugged me since I moved to Berlin was that almost every place I've lived in or visited (and despite my short time here I've lived in a few), when you put the kettle on, the kitchen lights dim. I assume this is because they're on the same circuit as the plugs/appliances, but it never fails to disconcert me because, growing up in a place where afaik wiring like that is not the norm, I'm immediately all like 'woah what's wrong with my electrics!'.

That sounds like you've got badly rigged electrics rather than it being a national thing

[Datepalm]

The vastness of US stores is, indeed, extremely disconcerting. I had no idea what to make of Walmart.

Apparently the hardness of butter is related to its water content. Your quicker-melting German butter might be better quality that the ice-block English butter you're used to. (Or I'm wrong about that.)

[Ser Scot A Ellison]

Raja,

You have assigned seats in movie theaters?

[polishgenius]

Jon AS,

What is UHT milk?

Ultra-high-temperature treated. Basically an extreme form of pasturisation. Essentially the milk can last a lot longer before going off and you can keep it out of the fridge (for months) before you open it, but it doesn't taste as nice.

Oddly enough, while Jon finds that France has too much of it compared to Germany, I've found it's way, way more common here than back in the UK (where it's pretty much a rarity). I had come across it before in Poland, though.

That sounds like you've got badly rigged electrics rather than it being a national thing

Absolutely, but like I say, it's not just one place. I do live and spend most of my time in old East Berlin, so it may just be shoddy commie workmanship, but this is one thing I don't recall in Poland.

[Sir Thursday]

One of the things I notice when visiting the US is how much slower kettles are over there. Because of the lower voltage mains electricity, boiling water takes an absolute age. No wonder they don't drink as much tea Stateside.

ST

[Maithanet]

In Argentina, napkins at restaurants seemed to be made of wax paper and were useful for absolutely nothing. You could take three or four of them to wipe off your hands and they would still have grease or fruit or whatever you were eating on them. I cannot for the life of me figure out what purpose these horrible napkins serve, are they meant to be purely decorative? Do the locals all carry around a cloth napkin and laugh at the tourists who have grime on their hands all the time?

[White Walker Texas Ranger]

Expanding on S John post, the sizes of drinks at the cinemas in the US is ginormous. I ended up purchasing a 'medium' drink which turned out to be in the biggest cup I've ever seen. Also, unassigned seating :shocked:

The vastness of US stores is, indeed, extremely disconcerting. I had no idea what to make of Walmart.

I learned that standard size grocery stores in the US are gigantic. Even if I made the extra walk to go to the bigger store in Glasgow it still would have been a small-ish one by US standards but the little corner Sainsbury's that I went to the most was only about the size of a 7/11. Of course, it didn't really matter because I did not have a car in Scotland and I can only carry so much. So I ended up making frequent small trips to the store instead of less-frequent large trips like I would here.

I also learned that they sold Lucky Charms in a candy store and that I'd apparently been eating candy for breakfast for 30 years.

Indeed. Like Krushchev, you have to acknowledge the inherent superiority of American Capitalism.

[Prue]

Maybe you bought 'streichfähige Butter' = butter that was mixed with rape seed oil to make it softer even if it is kept in the fridge?

[S John]

The vastness of US stores is, indeed, extremely disconcerting. I had no idea what to make of Walmart.

Apparently the hardness of butter is related to its water content. Your quicker-melting German butter might be better quality that the ice-block English butter you're used to. (Or I'm wrong about that.)

I didn't know you were over here, DP. Or maybe I did and forgot?

Anyway, I always treat going to Wal-Mart like a special operations mission. First of all, you must travel light. No large groups that might get bogged down. Then you get in there, you find your objective, and you get the fuck out as soon as possible.

[Raja]

Ser Scot,

Most of the countries I've lived in has assigned seating. It's just what I'm used to.

Stores in the US are indeed vast, especially those Home Depot.

[Reny of Storms End]

The tea I make tastes different everywhere. It's probably because of the milk but it's the one thing I miss most about home when I'm traveling. Also, woe to those who say I should use skimmed milk, that should never happen under any circumstances.

Expanding on S John post, the sizes of drinks at the cinemas in the US is ginormous. I ended up purchasing a 'medium' drink which turned out to be in the biggest cup I've ever seen. Also, unassigned seating :shocked:

Another funny thing to happen to me was when two fairly young boys didn't understand what I meant when I asked 'Are you in the queue?' apparently they had never heard of a line being referred to as a queue.

I'm positive that I once read somewhere that tea will taste differently when you travel, because of something like what's in the water, or maybe it was the milk.

I think I would have recognized you meant line when you said queue. I have a similar story. When I was 18 I left the states for a trip to England and Scotland. Upon first landing in England I needed to relieve myself, and after looking around realized I needed to ask someone where the facilities were. So I stopped this man and asked "Excuse me could you please tell me where the restroom is?" His immediate reply with much disdain on his face was "The What?". I think I tried a few other American names for it before finally saying I just had to pee. My family really loves that story, mostly because I am able to capture the incredulity of the response, and it's in a British accent.

[S John]

Ser Scot,

Most of the countries I've lived in has assigned seating. It's just what I'm used to.

Stores in the US are indeed vast, especially those Home Depot.

Have you been to Sam's Club or Costco? Those will blow your fucking mind.

[MercenaryChef]

Bags of milk. Whoa.