The quirks that make the world go 'round

I spent some time, a couple of weeks ago, skimming this forum, where an American novelist had asked for help from foreigners to identify quirks that might stand out to first time visitors to the United States.  The cascade of responses are at times blatantly stereotypical (frequent laments about guns, portion sizes, loud voices, and car culture) but, for the most part, subtle and quite fascinating.  I had no idea, for instance, that Americans are often perceived as broadly friendly and smiley, almost to a fault.

As many posters point out, the vast size of the US leads to a wide variety of regional differences.  Similarly, the concept of what is unusual differs greatly depending on where a foreigner is from.  On this bright, sunny afternoon of my favorite holiday, I am grateful for the intricate web of customs, settings, and attitudes that make America (and every other country) so enthrallingly unique.  It simultaneously makes the world an infinitely more interesting place to explore and helps reinforce the comfortable, deeply ingrained sense of home that comes from being among familiar surroundings.

Happy Thanksgiving.  Below are some excerpted observations, ranging in tone from wondrous to bemused to pure, unadulterated snark.

I was startled to find out that "God Save the Queen" has alternate lyrics.

In general, the scale of things is boggling to Europeans for a while and continues to be boggling in small ways for a long time. Fridges are HUGE compared to upright or under-the-counter European fridges. The default size for milk is the gallon, not the pint. Endless agonizing choices in the supermarket -- which of these 30 types of canned beans do I want now? Roads that feel twice as wide as they should be. Bank lobbies the size of railway stations.

Cities where streets follow a grid. And almost all streets allow cars. As a European I'm accustomed to look for the city center; a place where there are no cars, where streets are meandering, where there are terraces to sit outside and have a coffee. A place that's amenable to walking, to hanging out and enjoying the atmosphere. I did not find such a space in the american cities I've been to. And it prevented me from enjoying the place.

You don't need to drive far from a major city like SF to reach endless expanse of nature. Amazing.

That they probably have the best customer service culture in the world, but can rapidly descend into being the most aggressive if challenged.

I would also reiterate that customer service people here must be super well trained or something, because they are uniformly pleasant and helpful. Every person seems to take a lot of pride in their work, the US is definitely a very strongly work-centric culture. People seem to talk a lot more about slacking off, than actually slack off.

"Uh huh" is an appropriate response to "thank you"

The blatant patriotism displayed by Americans is disconcerting to Britons. There are Stars & Stripes everywhere and it's seen as perfectly normal to display the flag on your home.... The flying of the Cross of St George is more usually associated with right-wing sympathy to the British National Party than a display of patriotism or national pride.

Everyone complains bitterly about the suckitude of government and is suspicious of it but they all follow the rules anyway even if nobody is watching.

A readiness to order pizza at 10 p.m. although one has had a full meal at 6:30.

People ask "How are you?" as a casual greeting, but no one really cares how you are. He feels like it's too personal of a question to ask a stranger and doesn't like the insincerity of it.

People will often say "we should get together" or "you should come over sometime for dinner" but don't actually mean it, they just say it to be polite.

General ignorance about other places and cultures, and how awful many native English speakers are at reading/writing/speaking their one and only language, yet have little tolerance for non-native speakers who may speak several other languages.

When Americans kid one another, they will wait a few seconds and then let the kidee know that they were just kidding. Every time. This shocked me for a while.

Saying "hil-ar-i-ous" out loud instead of laughing.

 American drivers are far more likely to stop and let a pedestrian cross the road, even when there is no marked crossing. Possibly due to the novelty of seeing someone on foot.

Striking up conversation with strangers, smiling at strangers, sharing stories and knowing/ empathizing looks with strangers. This also throws me for a loop, especially all the smiles and random hellos. Cheerfulness is an indefeasible social onus. On the other hand, people in the U.S. are in my experience very polite when it comes to staring (i.e. not doing it).

Americans are social optimists. They assume all interactions will be pleasant until they are not.

On the upside, the readiness of American people to explain something to you or show you how some weird contraption or gadget works - things simple to a american but that a european might have never seen - without seemingly poke fun or look down at you is very heart warming. So, lack of cynicism and apparent moral generosity are the greatest American qualities as far as I'm concerned.

People not realizing that a lot of the rest of the world puts the day first then the month, so when I first got here someone asked me if we had 17 months in Australia when they saw my drivers license.

I have been introduced to people from as wider ranging places as India, Mexico, Trinidad and Italy with what seemed the assumption as we were all from this strange place called "overseas" we'd all know each other or have something in common.

Everything is new. I'd never experienced a physical craving for old buildings before visiting the US! Possibly related: I got the impression that 'the past' is more recent in the US, events in living memory are seen as 'historic'.

The silly warnings on products to prevent lawsuits.
Lawyers have much more cultural cachet than in almost any other country. The idea that lawyers are on a par with doctors as far as people with high-class occupations

There are so many straight lines on maps in the US. When I first came here as a kid (while my parents were in graduate school), we studied the US map in school and I remember being astounded that it literally looked like someone had used a ruler to mark off the state boundaries. Most other places have much more irregular edges.

Paradoxically, although you guys have this disgustingly puritanical attitude to alcohol, when I go into an American bar and ask for a shot of scotch I get a major shot of scotch. I love the way you just put a glass down and fill it instead of measuring a miserly 1/6 or 1/4 gill shot via an optic.

The comparative difference in pickpocketing / theft. In Europe, you leave a bag somewhere, or your wallet at a bar, and you'll just never see it again. People just seem to have their eyes open for an easy score; and someone will have spied it and grabbed it no question. In the U.S. its very likely that someone will turn it in, or figure out a way to return it.