20 Redditors Weight In On Things That Are Normal In Europe But Are Completely Absurd In America

"Leaving babies to nap outdoors in strollers."

Jesse

• Published in Interesting
• May 7, 2022

We frequently hear about things that are completely normal in the US but appear to be weird to the rest of the globe. You name it: free refills, high medical bills, expensive education, or the enormous portion sizes.

However, location and time play a huge role in determining what we consider normal and what causes us to raise our eyebrows. In this post, we'll be turning the tables and putting Europe in the spotlight.

The old continent features a plethora of cultures and practices that make it an extremely diverse place to live. Regardless of where you find yourself, most people in Europe agree that it is substantially different from the United States.

It's time to reveal those practices, habits, and manners that individuals in its 44 countries display that appear completely bizarre to Americans in particular. To further this research, Reddit user u/vibrxncy asked American users to share their experiences about things that are normal in Europe but completely absurd to them.

The conversation went viral, garnering 8.8k upvotes and more than 10k comments. We compiled a list of some of the more interesting and insightful comments to show that European countries are also home to a lot of oddballs!

1. Nude women on late night broadcast TV? Never in the prudeness of the USA.

2. Lack of window screens

Reddit user avlas explained in a different r/AskReddit thread why there are no screens in many European areas:

"Some have them, some don't. But for a lot of people, the cons of having screens definitely outweigh the pros. In the end you decide based on how many bugs (especially mosquitos) you have in your particular area.

A couple country bugs never killed anyone, unless you have strong allergies to insect bites there is not much that is "unsanitary", it's more annoying and unpleasant. Bugs are associated with poor hygiene because they also spawn where there is poor hygiene, but the bugs themselves do not carry any diseases, the ones coming inside from the window don't indicate anything about hygiene.

Having screens gives you less natural light and slightly less airflow through the window, and screens that you can open and close are often fidgety. Pets or kids tend to break the net of the screens quite often."

3. Ancient buildings everywhere

4. Underwater foundation

5. Paying to use the bathroom in shopping malls

6. Leaving babies to nap outdoors in strollers

7. Poop shelf toilet

8. Public nudity

9. Cashiers sitting down to check you out

10. Walkable / bikeable cities

11. Small roads with narrow lanes

12. Using c*nt in some European countries isn't much of a big deal

13. Restaurants serve water at room temperature

14. Kissing can be considered a form of greeting in some European countries

15. "You can take single cans from a box/6 pack of beer or soda in Norway and buy just that one"

16. Too many languages to keep up with

17. Storing eggs on the counter

18. Throwing cigarette butts on the ground

19. Using the sauna naked with strangers

20. Using one currency in different European countries

21. Laundry machine in the kitchen

22. Unsliced pizza

23. Sweden's requirement for employees to have 4 consecutive weeks off in the summer

Europe is a magnificent continent, and no matter where you come from, you'll discover cultural differences that may seem strange at first.

In addition, if you go throughout Europe, you will observe that each country has its own weird attraction. This is one of the many reasons why the old continent is so intriguing.

Got any weird experiences to share about Europeans? Talk to us in the comments section.

Jesse