Expats, tell me what aspect or social norm of your new country was strange to you?

" I will have to avoid Aberystwyth seafront lol "

it would probably be OK just to stroll down the seafront just don't stay in any hotels...
I stayed on the seafront when I was a student, and the house was infested with mutant oriental cockroaches..I swear.
It's a restaurant now....:(

Moving from London to Glasgow (English)

Being asked where I stay, rather than where I lived.
The Protestant/Catholic divide.
Football shirts everywhere!
Anti-English feelings.

Kismett, you don't have to return an "alright" with another "alright". It's perfectly acceptable to say hi or hello! Well, that's what I always do (as a Brit to another Brit). I've got one acquaintance who always says "alright, Pan" when he sees me - I don't think I've ever offended him by saying "hello, Paul" in return

I’m very afraid of cockroaches. So I’m going to be on the lookout, if I ever need to stay in a hospital. And I will have to avoid Aberystwyth seafront lol. Thank you for the heads up :) hehe

Northern Italy for five years.
The racism. Lega Nord rallies with people openly Nazi saluting. Police leering at my friend after we'd had a car accident and taking the piss out of the name of the poor south American chap my Italian friend had crashed into.
Newspapers with the nationality of crime perpetrators in the headline. 'Tunisian steals car' for example.

Obsession with 'catching a draught.' A gust of air apparently wreaks disease and almost certain death.

Not automatically being invisible after having children. Would still get 'ciao Bella' even whilst pushing a pram. Would get a little wearing after a while though.

Seeing groups of hooded teens hanging out on street corners and no-one being overly concerned or scared. They'd stop to politely say 'Boungiorno' to passing elderly people and often have a nice chat.

I'd have to agree about the Brits not rinsing our soap sudded plates. I got used to running the tap and washing up an item at a time.

Glitzy they are mostly in old institutional buildings like hospitals..:(
oh and in Aberystwyth. Aberystwyth seafront is swarming with them..:)

Living in the UK, I notice how people are shy to talk about money, even in a non boastful way like to discuss investments, etc.

People love to whine just to start a conversation. Yes I am going to get flamed but I actually find it funny and I do like most people I've met.

I still have not figured out what to say to 'You're alright?' as a greeting after almost 10 years.

People are quite obsessed about social class.

I find this odd, but I hang around working class circles and the reverse snobbery is ugly. Many people I personally know would dislike you instantly if they know you have wealthy parents. It's almost like you can never truly be one of them even though it was ok before they knew your background.

This is not exclusively in the UK, but there are too many inconsiderate people talking in the cinemas. And the best part is very rarely anyone would confront them maybe because British people are too polite. I would tell them to shut up or call security.

You do love your tea! When tea bags run out at work, it is a crises.

So many young girls with babies in working class area and benefit system that traps people in poverty instead of empowering them with skills. If you are paid to stay at home, you will stay at home. I've known someone who quit his job after a day because he couldn't be bothered.

It is true that the Brits have one of the greatest sense of humour. It's one of the few things that keep me sane living in this country.

Just an observation, OP did ask..

When I lived in France I hated the fact that you were supposed to go and kiss everyone and say goodbye every time you arrived (or worse - left) anywhere. So time consuming!

I started just ducking out of parties without saying anything which I am sure they considered the height of rudeness but if I'd waited until I'd kissed forty odd people and said goodbye I would have been there all night.

Dullandold thank you! So it’s just two people saying “Alright?” “Alright?” to each other? It makes me feel so awkward!

The dishwashing thing here was weird to me too. We have a dishwasher now and I think it’s saved my marriage.

Dull, I have heard there are cockroaches ( once) but I have never seen one or heard people talking about them, so it’s hard to imagine they're are here...somewhere!

Brit who was living on small Caribbean Island.

Being called "Miss Firstname" by all work colleagues. So lovely.

If you are driving around and see someone you know on the road or as a pedestrian, you must beep your horn. It took me ages to work out that was what was going on and I wasn't driving dreadfully and being honked at. Oh, and nobody wears a seatbelt. And nobody worried about drinking and driving

It took me about three months to slow down. I would be stopped by strangers as I walked down the street, as they asked me what I was running from. I thought I was walking at a normal rate. Normal London pace is apparently running from a fire pace in West Indies

Irish in Uk.
The well behaved queues that go on for miles.
The little roundabouts everywhere. Why?
How unfriendly people are. Have lived across from a neighbour for 10years who has never said hello to us. So rude.
How busy everywhere gets during school holidays.
The traffic around London. Hours spent in traffic jams.
Parenting competitiveness and school admissions.
Leaving school and working at 16.

hopping the baby thing is funny. Also the staff with babies handing them over to you for a shot.

chickenowner I also didn’t think notsure hates the U.K. I don’t know where you get that idea from. She was just commenting on something she found odd when she first moved here, like what happens to most people when they move to another country for the first time.
I’ve never lived in another country long enough to really encounter this. I lived in Germany for a year but that was all. Sunday trading hours were a pain in the arse (aka shops closed), I felt it was somewhat backward compared to here, but it seems quite a few MNers would love there to be no shops open on sundays (I wouldn't).

I am a Brit and I am afraid it is true about the washing up.
I only learnt how to wash up properly working in a Greek kitchen one summer, not from my mother that is for sure.

I'm an expat in the UK.

*and the washing up, totally surprised people do not rinse the soap after cleaning dishes with clean running water. "

Oh yes, puke. chickenowner I think you will find in some social circle/class/generation people still do this. DH's relatives all do it, I can find last week's broccoli stuck on my plate during Sunday lunch, it's utterly nasty. And SIL called us snobs for cleaning dishes with running water!

Brit in Aus

BYO - been caught out by this several times!

But worse, when you are invited to friends for drinks, you bring your own booze. It's really weird, so everyone is sitting round drinking their own wine, then someone asks if you'd like to try a glass of their wine, the whole etiquette is very confusing!

I still haven't figured out the correct response for "How Ya Goin?" I think it's like 'Alright?"

I'm endlessly amused by Dutch birthday parties, though. Shake hands with everyone (sounds like Germany) then sit around in a circle. Eat one slice of cake. Go home.

Banks only being open till lunchtime and closed on Saturday. Same with the post office. Queues and queue jumping in government offices, same again only open till lunchtime and the staff being surly and rude. Not just to foreigners but the locals too.
Having to take a morning or day off work to get anything done.

In the Netherlands I was shocked by the racism - it was a long way from the tolerant, liberal outlook I was expecting.

" no cockroaches "

trust me there are cockroaches...:(

Aussie in England.

• light switch pulls in the bathroom instead of power points.

• hand wave to other drivers for stopping

• No fly screens on windows / second security screen door - so windows and doors can be open.

• medical centres 9-5.30 and closed on weekends instead of 8 - 8/9 / 24 hrs and open on the weekends.

• waiting period to join a medical Center

• post being delivered on a Saturday / post office open on a Saturday

• tv ads being childish with lots of people in animal costumes / animated rather than using actual people ( that was when I first arrived - more people in ads now).

• the crazy amount of charity ads on tv

• the number of supermarket chains

• how cheap groceries are

• older people working in supermarkets

• hard water causing my hands to need a special soap to prevent cracking

• all the limescale

• no cockroaches

• lack of traffic lights and all the roundabouts

• sheer volume of people

• people not respecting your personal space

• that aweful sun glare when driving

expat we don’t live in Spain but spend a lot of time there. There aren’t many tourists where we go so mostly Spanish people and it’s a smallish town so everyone knows each other
Dd now speaks some Spanish but before she did she thought everyone was having an argument and a fight was about to break out when the locals greeted each other. Once she got trapped in a toilet and a lady was trying to help her but dd thought she was being shouted at and by the time I got there was trying to escape under the cubicle door!
Waitresses your baby and taking it away into the kitchen for everyone to have a look at while you are eating your meal was a bit of a shock too.

My family were ex-pats, Im really enjoying this thread, just talking about things being done differently without it being taken as diss-ing one way or the other us very familiar (and rare.....)

simply say your name when shaking a new person's hand,

Now, this one I really like, shake hands , you say your name, they say their name. Its all good.

Here, now ( England ) when meeting people, I am used to hold out my hand to shake and say !m Finally, only for the other person to look a bit bemused and say Hello Finally. And not say their own name. I get why Elizabeth Regina expects that she will be recognised, but everyone else ? Its not difficult, all you have to do say your own name. Then the conversation can move on to "did we meet at xxxxx" or "i think we both know xxx*

In South Africa

Howzit? Does not mean how are you it's the SA version of g'day (or alright!). But for years I answered in a very British way 'yes fine thank you, and you?' Horrifying!

Also people asking where I stayed instead of lived. I used to go to great pains to explain I wasn't staying anywhere but lived in South Africa. People were too polite to explain to me that's what they say instead of live.

I think I probably sounded exceptionally British and pretty stuck up!