What's one thing you've seen in other countries that you wish we had here?

[chocolateychurros]

In my home country, we have riders on motorbikes whose job it is to transport things from one place to another.
For example, if you left your charger at your mums, you could just request one of those and they would bring it straight to you.
Mind you in that country taxis are a lot cheaper than they are over here, so even if we had something like this here it would probably be too expensive and not worth it.

@madnessitellyou A central vacuum system
They are available in the UK also, MIL has one! They never maintained it and it stopped after about 5yrs when it became impacted with dog hair.
My mum who lives abroad had one installed 40yrs ago which is still going strong.

Fly screens. We recently renovated in the UK, and the window companies looked at me sideways when I asked about them!

Blaster taps and waste disposal units American sinks have.

We had a blaster tap in one house growing up but I've never seen them again.

Most of these things are impossible for us to have because of either weather or the large numbers of shitty people who can’t behave in a civilised manner and have to destroy everything.

I used to live in the UAE and miss the law and order and civility (yes I know it comes at a cost).

When would you close shutters in England out of interest?

Great system. I'm not in the UK and I can text the pharmacy requesting the repeat prescription and they'll have it ready for me within a few hours.

Affordable high end day spas. They’re so much better on the continent. Oh, I know I should say something worthy and life-improving but meh.

a proper dual climate - hot in summer and properly cold with snow in winter.

Also, mountains high enough to ski on (Scotland doesn’t count).

Drive Thru cashpoints

When I went to Alcudia Majorca !!
The cycle lanes were absolutely amazing we cycled everywhere even into other towns !
if Uk had this loadsa people would be on their bikes I reckon it just felt very safe !!

I thought Vancouver had a serious and visible drug problem though?

In the summer to keep the sun out of the house. I'd love them in our house which gets unbearable in the summer. We have to keep the wooden blinds shut but outside shutters are much better for this.

A really good bicycle network that prioritises bikes and pedestrians over cars. Dublin is trying to improve but there are parts of almost any route that are scary.

I really liked the cafe culture when I lived in Berlin. They don't mind whether you have a full meal or just a coffee, there is more cross over between cafe/restaurant/bar and longer opening hours so you can meet a group of friends and some drink or not, eat a meal or not and hang around as long as you want. It's not all 'treat' food like pastries and fried food, they always have a good range of salads and wholesome stuff. I hardly cooked at all when I lived there and had a very healthy diet, if I ate out all the time here it would be both very expensive and too calorific.

Ripe peaches, pears, plums.
A functioning mental health system.
Rent regulation.
Sunshine to dry laundry.

Rome,and other places , fountains for free water. I've also seen them in Manchester Picadilly but nowhere else.9

Basements as a standard feature of homes. All of that useful storage space just not taken advantage of.

Machines on the walls of shops where you can deposit empty bottles for recycling and get a receipt to be redeemed in the shop. Both green and fun!

I also wish we had one specific aspect of Japanese culture in the UK: the one seen in their Apple shops, where (unlike the rest of the world) they don't bother security-chaining down their display phones/devices as everybody just thinks "Well, it doesn't belong to me, so why on earth would I just take it without buying it?!"

I'd close them in winter for insulation to keep the heat in and in summer to keep the sun out.

In South Korea they have these automatic wraps for wet umbrellas in the entrance of stores. If it’s raining outside and you come in with a wet brolley, you stick it in and it wraps it up for you so you don’t carry around a dripping brolley through the shop.

In some parts of China, your online shopping gets delivered to a communal storage in your building. You just pick it up when you get home from being out, no need to wait in for deliveries. My friends apartment block has this and I think it’s genius. We need those here.

Oh yes and clean streets and affordable, reliable public transport.

And at night. Shutters block out all light and it's amazing how much better you can sleep (I say can, because I realise not everyone's sleep problems are to do with light). German shutters are amazing because you open and close them from the inside with a kind of pulley thing and you can have them fully closed, or partially closed so they still let some light in, or partially partially closed...

I do that in Aldi. There are big bins at the packing counters for that. And they have battery disposal boxes also. B+Q have big open bins for electrics, paper, and odds and ends + a charity book stall on an honesty payment basis it's a very cheap way to get some great books.

They're also great at keeping the heat in when it's cold outside.

Most French houses seem to have them (even where the climate is similar to the UK). I close ours as soon as it gets dark outside when we're there in winter.

Dog parks

I don't know if this is available in other countries, but I think we should have proper care infrastructure for our children and our elderly. Two of the most vulnerable times in a persons life.

It seems only the rich are able to access proper, comfortable care for their old age and it's disgusting. Nothing is paid forward in this country. Same with education.

Our healthcare, policing and education systems are fucked.

We live in a third world country and pay heavily for the privilege.

Trains with an upper deck.

What ever you do, do not drink from the fountains in Piccadilly.

In Italy, they have cherry-pickers to help you move larger items from upper floors when moving house. Would love that here.

In Germany - a little Tisch (table) tidy. Basically an empty pot on the breakfast table (usually in hotels) in which to put sundry breakfast packaging (butter paper/teabag/gubbins. It helps keep the table clear of detritus and makes for a more pleasant and tidy eating experience.