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

[AjasLipstick]

I am a Brit in Oz and for me, the hardest thing to get used to was Sunday trading hours being like the UK in the 70s.

The weirdest thing was how much less formal people are...kids are dressed very informally and parties for children never have kids dressed up in party dresses but in shorts and t shirts. I like it now I'm used to it though.

In Austria.
You take your shoes off everywhere. Kids and teachers have slippers for school and if you have a meeting in the classroom you take them off to go in.

Nobody crosses the road until the green man, even if the road is totally deserted. The pedestrian is king on other crossings.

Brown Biscuit barrel - that is interesting because when I was working in Czech last year, I parked the car 'facing the wrong way' and there was a big fuss and laughing about it,,,,
I was really confused, as a Brit, we park facing any way we like...

Brit lived in the Netherlands for a few years:

Children's birthday parties. I compared notes with a Dutch colleague who had moved the other way. We decided that birthday party 'rules' were definitely one of the 'strange' things:

Dutch party: child is delivered to the party venue and parent departs child hands over gift which is opened immediately and birthday child thanks guest. Party activity takes place.

At the end of the party 30 kids are crammed into a single car. This car goes round the neighbourhood and at each address the car stops, parent reaches in and extracts a child (hopefully yours!).

British party: child is delivered to the party, parents hang around unsure as to whether they are supposed to stay or go. Gift is handed over and immediately removed unopened to another place. Party activity takes place.

At the allotted time for then end of the party parents return and hang around unsure as to whether they are supposed to go in and retrieve their child or wait for the child to emerge.

A few days after the party a thank you letter will arrive detailing the gift - my Dutch colleague described this as a bit like getting a receipt!

American married to a Brit now living in Luxembourg. None of the stores here are open on Sundays, and on Mondays a lot of places don't open until midday. It's illegal to mow the lawn on a Sunday because of the noise. By law you have to shovel your drive and pavements right away if it snows.

It's not all bad though... cheapest petrol and alcohol in Europe. Local cremant won't set you back much more than an equivalent size bottle of San Pellegrino. And they definitely know how to have a good 'fest'. All this business about processed meats being linked to cancer have me a bit because we basically survive on wurst from all the little fests.

Also - was surprised to find some people considered bugger a swear word (e.g. Bugger off/I'm buggered - as in tired). In NZ it's not a big deal.

People pushing. Not queuing, in fact blatantly queue jumping. The same behaviour when driving, so the roads are a bit of a free -for -all (China).

Chickenowner, I do like the country and I can assure you the people like me (or at least getting flowers from some of them last week makes me think that) but there seems to be a bit of a non written rule not to go beyond a slight movement upward of the eyebrow unless they need to ask something. In other countries you would expect a quick “morning! Having a good day? Wonderful , see you around!”

Don’t be so sensitive, every country has its things that surprise foreigners, Britain is no exception (neither is mine)

Ah situp the slipper thing is here too! The children have special slippers for school which they put on every morning! They won't walk around the house now without slippers.

I do miss 24 hr/ 7 day a week GPs .

I'm Irish living in England for 16 years. Things that struck me when I first moved:

• polite drivers
• when offering a cup of tea not having to go through ritual of saying 'no' at least 3 times before accepting the offer of tea ( because it would be impolite to say 'yes' straight away).
• not feelin that you have to acknowledge every single person you pass in the street with a nod or eye contact (this is liberating).
• people abide by the rules, mostly (e.g. no talking in silent carriage of train).

Going back 20 or so years, but as an Australian living in the U.K. For a few years the thing I remember as completely confusing me at first was buying appliances with no plug and having to buy the plug separately and attach it - I had no idea how to do this! (I know they come with plugs attached now.)

Also how small the fridges were - an underbench fridge for the whole family.

Toronto, Canada for six years. Friendly people, lots of phone numbers put into my hand.

Take out coffee as soon as one walked out of the front door, although we are becoming like that here.

Snow pants, boots etc for my little kindergarten DCs to manage every morning in winter.....they did.

Much more efficient ways of renewing driving license, buying a house, drive through bank, etc.

When I was in Spain, I found it a bit strange there was not a word that you could easily use as “excuse me” when you needed to through crowded areas. But everyone was a master in the art of the gentle push.

Gennz18 - given the activity ‘bugger’ is describing I’m surprised you are surprised

The pants thing always gets me too.

Colombia - hot chocolate is served with a piece of mozzarella-type cheese that you are supposed to stir into the hot chocolate.

hm yes - about the word 'bugger' - it is not very long since there was a criminal offence called 'assault and buggery' so it's hardly surprising it's not the most popular expletive ever...
I mean, it does have a meaning.

Yes I know that but it's not considered a swear word in NZ - my grandad would have used it! The word I mean 😂

Haven't lived in the UK, but have traveled, and found it absolutely bizarre (and redundant) that many roundabouts also had sets of lights on them. What's the point of the roundabout then?!

"Heya" was a common greeting from people in the North of England.

A couple of things I noticed about hotels. 5 stars doesn't mean the same in the UK as it does here. Top sheets are nonexistent (gross), and the doona/duvet covers were all pathetically narrow, scarcely touching the sides of the mattress. Also, no face washers provided (I think the only place we got face washers was at a hotel in Windermere).

Ifkip- I drink a lot of tea and have never done the tea dance you mention!! If someone says no I don't offer them again.

I recognise it with cake though.

Rural France here. Endless kissing before village social events (all social events but kissing the whole village takes longer). Shops not serving you at 1145 because they are closing for lunch at 12. Terrible fashion sense (awful fabrics and patterns). Public swimming pools closed all day apart from at lunchtime. The fact that every meal out revolves around the same four (regional) main courses.
I love it here though. 😊

From my time in the US:

Egg & stripy bacon over pancakes covered with maple syrup. In time I have learned to like it.

Only thing I don’t like from there is that social convention that when you meet someone they feel the need to provide details of where they work, how did that happen, what university they attended when it would have been enough to say “Hi, I’m Mike, lovely weather isn’t it?”

'face washer?' do you mean a flannel?
Really wouldn't want to use something on my face that had been rubbed god knows where on other people's bodies....

Decades of being American in UK. I still find new baffling things.

Not wearing pants in bed. Fervent belief that it's essential for health to air your bits in PJs. Just why.....

Tribalism, like Scot Catholics loathing Scot Protestants. Just Wow.

Visible socks = naff fashion. How weird.

Totally agree no-rinsing soap off dishes is the norm in UK, I was with a multi-age group (barely know each other) taking turns hand-washing dishes after a big event last 2 days. I was only rinser.

ElderlyLady - It being completely normal not to say please and thank you in shop/to waiting staff. I am also in Germany and everyone, everywhere says please and thank you - all the time. Always.

Things about Germany - lots of Ice Cream cafes. Totally normal to see grown adults walking down the street in February with a cone! Would never happen in UK.
Text messages start with Dear Elisen, and end with Love from..... Never get a one-liner.
People are lovely. Not stand-offish at all.
Loads of tiny dogs everywhere - in cafes, restaurants, shops.

Brit in NZ (kiwi now though)

• walking places (school, shops, town) barefoot
• shopping in swimming costumes - which are called togs
• the use of pants for trousers
• the use of “bugger” as above - just after we arrived there was an advert for a travel agency on the back of the local buses “Bugger off for bugger all” which raised some questions from my children

The most embarrassing one was the confusion over “root” which I use to mean “search” and here means “have sex with”. When I said I was rooting around in my bag for something the theatre staff fell apart laughing.