Questions you have about other nationalities!

[WatermelonWaveclub]

Just for fun. DD and I were just watching a video where Americans were asking questions about the UK. What are your questions (can be for any nationality from any nationality)? And please feel free to answer other people's questions!

I'll start with some questions for Americans:

Are your grocery bags really those ones without handles? They look really awkward to carry!

Why do you not have electric kettles?

In High school films the English teacher for example always gives them some homework to do by the next day and says 'see you tomorrow' - do you have the same classes every day? We just had English twice a week or something!

It's completely true IceandIndigo, being a vegetarian is not that popular in Spain. People eat lots of vegetables salads and traditional dishes made with pulses in their daily diet. I think the reason why meat and fish are always as part of the menu in restaurants is because for many many years after the Spanish civil war only the wealthy consumed meat and fish in regular basis. My parents' both families as kids after the civil war only had meat once a week on Sunday (normally chicken paella or roasted chicken). So I do think that's where the perception comes from. To eat only veg by choice is still considered "strange" specially by the older generation, my parents would not understand it. It will change with the new generations. That's my guess!

I am Czech. Several points to topics from this interesting thread.

Given Czech language is (partially) German translated to Slavics, we have similar toilet euphemisms - big and small need, or big and small side.

Our traditional Christmas meal is carp fish with potato salad, but many eat schnitzel instead.

Sentiment towards the capital city is the same as everywhere else.

Indian and Thai food is relatively new here and domain of younger people in cities, many people over 50s have never tasted it. Similarly hummus. British cuisine is known here mostly as part of the bad jokes (Why have England always had so many sailors?), but I like jacked potato and some places offer fish and chips.

In history lessons we do spend some time on European colonialism in general and a lots of time on WW2, including concentration camp visits or documents.
And yes, the Benes' laws and afterwar deportations of Germans -which is the shade on our history- were touched as well. History outside of Europe& North America was briefer and I must admit to some confusion in timelines.

I really admire how Germans deal with their history. Given Germany was our WW2 aggressor and now our are most important economy partner, it helps a lot that they don't deny the events which our grandparents remember and learned from that as a nation.

I can't understand why some here claim teenagers are too young and sensitive to learn about their own (UK) history just because it isn't pretty. I've already noticed that "they are so young" is standard anglophone response for anything which makes adults uncomfortable and touches children in any way, but I just don't get it.
I am spending time now to understand more of our 20th century history and I felt bit angry, that 1950-1970s weren't covered better. I can't imagine how humiliated and let down I'd feel if I went out of general education missing such important and influential piece of my country's past as colonialism is and someone foreign would point it out to me.

Loved reading this 💕

Whatever rocks your boats... but a bit of a heresy. :)

How long is the interval between death & burial/cremation in other countries?

Usually just a few days in NZ, although it might be a bit longer if someone is coming from overseas for the funeral.

Sorry to hark back to an early topic in the thread but in terms of Americans and kettles: a reason was given several times that lots of Americans don’t drink tea, and have filter coffee not instant. But I still don’t understand how you make filter coffee without boiling water? Don’t you have to point boiling water into the filter, or am I missing something?

Oh also for Australians and spiders:

a few people said they kill white tail spiders, but I didn’t think their bite was particularly harmful to humans?

also for those who say they have had to kill huntsmen spiders, is that not a shit scary thing to have to do? I can see a red back would be easy to crush (though I’d be wearing something more than a flip flop personally) but those massive spiders must be quite difficult to kill

I find that describing basic measurements are different around the world. I'm Aus/British and if I was describing 30cm (1 foot) I'd hold my hands in front of my body in the air at a rough, 30cm distance. I lived in the middle east for many years, and people from there, would use their own body as a measure.

So for a few cm's- they'd point to their own finger and measure along it. For a 30cm measurement, they might point to their own inner elbow, in reference to the length from the tip of their fingers to their elbow.

Any other different measurement tools from around the world?

@Mooshamoo yes, the gory details should be taught.

Maybe in civics though, as an example of power and its misuse?

Because properly speaking, history is about teaching young people to gather evidence on a given topic, to think an argument through, to express it and to defend it. It's not about learning off facts and parroting them back.

You do need a basic knowledge to use as a framework though. The debate as to what constitutes a framework is important. Is it a list of the kings and queens and the wars they fought? Is it a list of the grievances of the Irish, and a very clearly defined set of goodies and baddies, with the Easter Rising serving as the end of history for Ireland, and everything else is just items of minority interest? Is history a story of humanity constantly improving, perfecting types of government and political systems? Or are we going around in circles?

www.argos.co.uk/browse/appliances/coffee-machines/c:29562/type:filter-coffee-machines/

I’m in CA and they have actually passed a law here saying high school can’t start before 8:30. I actually think it is a bit annoying as my DS will have less time after school before his after school sport. We are all up early in the morning so it is just going to be wasted time

My machine heats and dispenses the water just below the boiling point, which is supposed to be the best temperature for brewing coffee.

Really interesting explanation, thanks. It’s like that in a number of countries I’ve visited, vegetables and pulses seen as food for poor people.

The question of hyphenated Americans- Irish-American, Italian-American, Polish-American, Norwegian-American, etc isn't as clear-cut as identifying your ethnicity.

Very few Americans of German ethnicity proudly proclaim themselves as German-American. This is because of two world wars and violent antiGerman sentiment, in particular during the first world war. For Germans, anglicising surnames and assimilating fast was the name of the game in the early 20th century.

Irish and Italians came from the poorest parts of poor countries and were shunned when they first arrived because of that and because of antiCatholicism. Keeping their love of the old country and their sense of identity strong was a badge of pride. It was so strong that they tried not to mix too much even with each other. To this day in towns established along the east west railroads and in the western cities you will find RC churches dedicated
to St Patrick and St Joseph, and you also know what community you are in in bigger cities in the east and midwest by the names of the parishes. St Patrick's Day is 17 March and St Joseph's is 19 March, with different traditions associated with the two feasts.

Wrt African Americans, the history is different. The term is intended to restore a sense of pride in the origins of people whose ancestors were taken to America as enslaved people and whose culture, language, names, and sense of identity were stolen from them. Everyone else could hyphenate their identity but African Americans could only use the terms the oppressors chose for them for hundreds of years.

I passionately believe that young people should be taught history with as much nuance as possible. Teaches critical thinking, prepares them to vote and understand why things are a certain way, how different people can perceive the same events in different ways and how change can come about. All of this will make them better citizens and also better employees.

Disappointed that no one French has managed to clear up why a PP had such trouble getting a ‘digestif’ type drink after dinner in France 😟

My dad ordered rosé with roast beef once in France and the waiter just shook his head and said ‘Non’. It was red or nothing. I’d have walked out.

I don't know the answer to that but I think that some of the French just don't like tourists and particularly British people and they think we no nothing about food. So knowing about an unusual digestif would raise eyebrows as it goes against their stereotype.

I've lived in France for a few years (a while ago) and never had any problems like this because I "passed" as French. However when travelling with my English family the attitudes can be very different. We have been in restaurants where the staff seem annoyed that we want to order food (at normal meal times, perfectly normal and well-behaved family)! And they got very annoyed at me for asking them to cook a burger well done for my DC as they often serve them very pink/raw in the middle. Lots of huffing and puffing even though I was perfectly polite and speaking French!

White tail spiders fucking hurt then again so too do magpies swooping down on your head.

Definitely not. We live in CA. I have an almond tree, an orange tree, a plum tree, a nectarine tree and many kinds of herbs in my back garden. Sometimes we grow tomatoes in the front because it gets the morning sun. Why would you be prosecuted for growing food in your own garden?

I’ve had loads of huntsmans in my various houses, from childhood to adult. My parents were always nonplussed, and would simply say ‘oh look, we have a visitor!’ They would hang around, and then they’d be gone. We always left them alone. I do the same with my kids and they’re not in the least bit bothered. They won’t hurt you and killing them is totally unnecessary.

question for americans - why does the school day start ridiculously early?

Daylight, and sports. Some Autumn sports are played outdoors and not all fields/pitches have floodlights.If you get out of school at 3.15 and you're on a bus at 3.30 heading to some other school in your conference you might just be able to squeeze in your game before it gets dark in late October.

In general, schools in my DCs' HS conference liked to have students home from away meets by 10.30 pm.

This was true of activities like theatre, orchestra, glee, orchesis, etc too.

Also, Americans tend to start work pretty early and if the family is up they might as well be in school.

How long is the interval between death & burial/cremation in other countries?

In Ireland a couple of days.

In the US the same generally holds.

But I still don’t understand how you make filter coffee without boiling water? Don’t you have to point boiling water into the filter, or am I missing something?

Keurigs and Keurig successors, or old fashioned drip coffee machines with the little glass coffee pot on a warmer. DD3 uses a little moka pot. The water goes into all of the above cold.

You only need boiling water if you use a French press or a free standing filter basket. I like both as the water is guaranteed boiling hot, but the moka pot is also boiling.

A small number of people get nausea and vomiting from white tail spider bites and about a quarter find the bite very, very painful.

On learning about colonialism: my nine-year-old is currently learning about the first fleet, children being transported (and dying on the way) and the effects on indigenous Australians. It can be done, in an age-appropriate way.