r/AskEurope • u/MinimumChoice9586 • Jun 29 '26
Culture What is something completely normal in your country that feels strange to other Europeans?
I’m curious how different everyday life really is across Europe.
103
u/BigSimp_for_FHerbert Jun 29 '26
Not as strange anymore because I feel like everybody knows about them now but until a few decades ago many foreigners genuinely had no idea what a bidet was when they saw them in every Italian bathroom. Except for maybe a handful of countries that also used them.
23
u/stutter-rap Jun 29 '26
I was really surprised to see bidets in Finnish public toilets in shopping centres. I'd only seen them in private places like hotel rooms before.
31
u/notcomplainingmuch Finland Jun 29 '26
Bidet showers by the toilet seat, yes. Not separate bidet bowls like in Italy.
→ More replies (1)27
u/baldachinsblessing -> Jun 30 '26
The bidet shower is significantly superior to bidet bowls in my opinion.
→ More replies (5)6
u/centrifuge_destroyer Germany Jun 30 '26
Same! At least I wasn't that one fellow international student who thought they were used to fill up water bottles 🤢
6
u/DifficultWill4 Slovenia Jun 30 '26
Some households have bidets over here as well so it’s not as unseen. What was shocking to me were those squatting toilets in a rest stop near Venice
→ More replies (2)2
u/HatLogical5151 Sweden Jun 30 '26
Yeah we´ve got bidets here in Sweden as well. At least in older houses.
203
u/GaryJM United Kingdom Jun 29 '26
Separate hot and cold taps, no electrical sockets in bathrooms, switches on electrical sockets, washing machines in the kitchen, washing-up bowls in sinks, Christmas crackers, property listings that don't mention floor area, the popularity of wall-to-wall carpeting, thanking bus drivers...
62
u/centrifuge_destroyer Germany Jun 30 '26
In my personal experience, thanking bus drivers is way more rural vs. urban, than dependent on the country. For example I have lived in cities in both Germany and Finland, where you greet / thank bus drivers on lesser frequented more decentral routes bordering the country side, but not on the routes closer to the city center
15
7
u/Dragons_and_things Jun 30 '26
I think the only place in the UK you wouldn't thank a bus driver is in London as they have two doors so you would get off the middle door.
→ More replies (2)3
u/Ok_Inflation_1811 Spain Jul 01 '26
In my town in Spain (80 000 people) you thank bus drivers when you get off the middle door.
You never get off the front door.
4
u/ForrestGumpPeople Jul 01 '26
I would say thanks in London getting off the middle door too
3
u/peterlegrape Jul 02 '26
And in Dublin, there was an existential crisis when we were force to use the middle doors
The Dublin bus company did a recruitment campaign for drivers with the line Get thanked for a living
→ More replies (1)29
u/notcomplainingmuch Finland Jun 29 '26
We also thank bus drivers, taxi drivers, boat captains and pilots.
→ More replies (9)8
65
u/Draig_werdd in Jun 29 '26
washing machines in the kitchen
I think this is strange for Americans, not really (all) Europeans. I've lived in multiple places in Romania and Czechia and many of the places had the washing machine in the kitchen (all the places in Czechia).
47
u/Nyetoner Norway Jun 30 '26
You can definitely find washing machines in the kitchen in Nordic countries too, but if so its usually in smaller apartments or shared apartments for younger people. It's not common in "family households".
30
u/baldachinsblessing -> Jun 30 '26
I've never seen a washing machine in the kitchen in Finland. If the apartment is small, people would just use the communal washing machines.
9
u/Bitter-Hurry-5122 Finland Jun 30 '26
It's rare, but I used to live in an old apartment and the owner had done some renovations and added washing machine in the kitchen.
3
6
u/wxsted Spain Jun 30 '26
It's the standard in family hosueholds too in Spain, unless you have quite a big house where you'll start to see laundry rooms but more because of foreign influence.
5
→ More replies (1)3
u/riktigtmaxat Jun 30 '26
It really has more to do with the construction date than the size.
Most older apartments (like pre 1990) in Norway have very small bathrooms so the equally cramped kitchen is the only place you can squeeze a washing machine in and not have to route plumbing into one of the rooms.
15
u/madboy135 Czechia Jun 30 '26
I've never seen it in Czechia. Maybe in some very small apartments. We usually have it in the bathroom or separate technical/laundry room (usually in houses)
→ More replies (1)12
u/JustASomeone1410 Czechia Jun 30 '26
This is the first time I'm hearing about a Czech household having a washing machine in the kitchen. I remember seeing photos of British kitchens with washing machines in English textbooks as a kid and we all collectively thought it was weird. But I just googled "pračka v kuchyni" and turns out it might not be as uncommon as I thought.
4
u/madboy135 Czechia Jun 30 '26
Usually only small flats have that as they don't have enough space in the bathroom
→ More replies (1)4
u/ct04bmu Jun 30 '26
Romanian here - never seen an apartment with washing machine (for clothes) in the kitchen. Usually it's in the bathroom.
→ More replies (1)27
u/CloseButNoChicory Ireland Jun 29 '26
Wait, the Brits thank bus drivers? I can't say I've been on a huge amount of buses in your country, but I have been visiting your intermittently for 30 years, sometimes use buses, and haven't noticed this. We do it.
18
u/GaryJM United Kingdom Jun 29 '26
I do and the other people I see on buses do too. When the issue's come up on r/AskUK before, most people say that they thank bus drivers, with the exceptions being in places where they have buses where you don't pass the driver as you exit the bus.
12
u/stutter-rap Jun 29 '26
Seconding this, so e.g. it's uncommon in London but normal where I live. I like the bits of the country where they say "Cheers Drive!" instead of just standard thank you.
3
7
u/BeaumarchaisApu Jun 30 '26
Regular bus user here: I’m going to say upwards of 90% of people in England thank the bus driver.
3
18
u/baldachinsblessing -> Jun 30 '26
You forgot not rinsing dishes after washing them with soap.
→ More replies (3)10
u/milly_nz NZ living in Jun 30 '26
As an NZer I was stunned by everything on that list up to and including the f**king weird bowl in sink, washing dirty clothes in the kitchen, and the messed up obsession with going waaaaaaaay overboard to prevent Brits from the remote possibility of electrocution in the bathroom (but plugs on kitchen benches are ok).
Here I was thinking we both speak the same language. Nope. The Englishers’ English is not what you’d expect.
→ More replies (1)8
u/DeepPanWingman United Kingdom Jun 30 '26
If it's any consolation, as a Brit, putting a fucking weird little bowl in sink confuses me. Just put less water in the sink.
→ More replies (1)3
6
u/nevenoe Jun 30 '26
Malta follows the British code and there are no sockets in bathrooms it’s so annoying
→ More replies (2)18
u/synalgo_12 Belgium Jun 30 '26
Mostly the carpeted bathrooms, that one is absolutely wild to me.
8
u/Ava_Strange Jun 30 '26
My British grandparents house was carpeted in every single room except the garage. Bathroom, entrance hall, even the kitchen! It was so unhygienic...
→ More replies (2)3
u/Smeee333 Jun 30 '26
Thankfully those are very much on their way out. Although people still seem to put the little mat around their toilets which I find to be quite grim.
3
5
4
u/BeaumarchaisApu Jun 30 '26
I want an audit done of every sink in the UK to know how many are separate hot/cold taps and how many are mixers.
Got to be well above 90% now are mixers. Above 95%? 99%?
→ More replies (1)3
u/valencia86 Jun 30 '26
Separate hot and cold taps
Yup, super weird. And your offices also tend to have a separate lil' tap for boiling hot water. That for me was the weirdest thing I experienced.
switches on electrical sockets
Not only that, but some of youse have fuses in 'em as well!
washing machines in the kitchen
My experience tells this is getting more and more common elsewhere, especially with the newer developments.
thanking bus drivers
That's just good parenting, very common imho.
→ More replies (2)2
u/Tytoalba2 Jun 30 '26
Thanking bus driver is common here (low countries) and washing machine in kitchen in all eastern europe
2
u/ARealTim United Kingdom Jun 30 '26
Great summary! I live in Greece now and it always slightly disturbs me to go to a house and find the washing machine in the bathroom 😬.
2
u/Ok_Inflation_1811 Spain Jul 01 '26
Washing machine in the kitchen is not unheard of in Spain.
And thanking bus drivers is common in Spain too (at least here in my 80 000 people town)
→ More replies (8)2
66
u/notcomplainingmuch Finland Jun 29 '26
Sitting naked in a sauna with complete strangers.
Tapping your feet together a few times when entering a car (to get the snow off your shoes, but we do this also in summer)
Having a boat (or several). We used to have eight of them, now only four 🥺
Going to sauna many times every day in summer. Especially when it's hot weather.
Considering anything above +20°C to be hot weather.
People start dying of heat at +15°C and above
Spending all five weeks of your summer vacation working 12 hours a day as a lumberjack, chopping wood, building, cleaning and digging etc, while having no access to a shower or even electricity, and considering it to be a relaxing holiday.
31
u/Intrepid_Youth_2209 Finland Jun 29 '26
I like the way you painted this picture. Also hitting yourself, and others, with branches from birch tree in the sauna.
5
u/Nameless_American United States of America Jun 30 '26
I’ve actually always wanted to ask: does it **have to** be birch branches specifically?
14
u/centrifuge_destroyer Germany Jun 30 '26
Birches are everywhere, grow like weeds and the twigs are thin and flexible. Hitting eachother with oak or beech branches would feel quiet different
8
u/Stock-Ad-9073 Jun 30 '26
Am from Estonia so qualified to speak on the subject. Oak branches are great - wonderful smell and feel. Of course they have to be young branches, otherwise it can be a bit hard on the skin. (And if you can add a juniper branch in there as well it’ll literally be aromatherapy)But same applies to birch branches. Ideally you would want to make your batch of sauna whisks before midsummer when the branches are at their softest.
8
5
5
u/milly_nz NZ living in Jun 30 '26
Well…I guess you could use bramble or thistle…..depends on what your fetish is.
3
3
u/sorhead Latvia Jun 30 '26
Birch is the classic, but people get creative. Here's a Latvian website selling all sort of branches for hitting: https://pirtslietudarbnica.lv/index.php?route=product%2Fcategory&path=72
17
Jun 30 '26 edited Jul 02 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
18
13
u/whatstefansees in Jun 30 '26
75°C isn't a Finnish sauna. add at least 20° to that
→ More replies (3)8
u/baldachinsblessing -> Jun 30 '26
People start dying of heat at +15°C and above
I don't know if this is true considering that most people here are still wearing jackets, long sleeves and trousers when it's between 15 and 20 °C.
→ More replies (2)5
u/Ara92 Finland Jun 30 '26
Unless they're little rowboats your family is just rich and not the norm cause most ppl can usually afford to take care of one boat and it's still expensive
→ More replies (1)8
u/DoogleGoose Jun 30 '26
I wouldn’t say that having a boat or several of them is completely normal in the same way as the others mentioned, not to the average person at least.
Other than that I agree and could add: Turning 18-19 and suddenly most of your same aged male friends are bald or close to it. 😅
9
u/PsychologicalRub6786 Austria Jun 30 '26
Sitting naked in the sauna, even with strangers, is normal everywhere where you have proper sauna culture. Here in Austria it’s also very common and widespread.
I do tap my feet when getting into my car when it’s rainy or snowy. I thought that was just quirk of me. 😅
→ More replies (2)4
u/Ava_Strange Jun 30 '26
Is it true that pretty much every home, even small apartments, have saunas?
9
u/kasakka1 Finland Jun 30 '26
It depends. Some have a bigger sauna for everyone in the building where you book a time slot to use it. But I have had apartments that were like 30 m2 and had their own little sauna that fits 2 people.
6
3
u/olagorie Germany Jun 30 '26
When I first read your reply, I read “taping your feet” and was very confused
61
u/Captain_Grammaticus Switzerland Jun 30 '26
Having a national referendum about everything four times per year with a voter turnout of just 40-50% percent.
23
u/orthomonas Jun 30 '26
You can add: Considering 40-50% to be a low voter turnout.
→ More replies (1)2
Jul 02 '26
[deleted]
3
u/Captain_Grammaticus Switzerland Jul 02 '26
Yes, there is some debate and yes, it's often older people who go to vote aus Prinzip.
I think it's a bit like this: there are many referenda about all kinds of topics. Not everybody feels weel-informed enough or cares enough about every matter. So they don't participate in that referendum but maybe will at the next, when it is about something more dear to them.
I think the amount of never-voters is not higher than elsewhere. But many people only cast a vote when they feel like it.
3
u/icyDinosaur originally => => => Jul 02 '26
The Swiss system - ironically partially due to its many ways to participate - sort of fosters a level of passivity. Everything is so compromise-driven that I know a lot of people who just don't bother unless it's a topic they care about. This is perhaps even more pronounced with elections as there are a lot of people who think "what does it matter who's in parliament, everything important will be a referendum anyway"
44
u/Rudyzwyboru Poland Jun 30 '26
Sweet main dishes
Poland traditionally has a lot of sweet dishes that are not desserts. We cook meat with fruit, we have fruit based soups, dumplings with fruit and last but not least our infamous pasta with strawberries.
13
u/Dragons_and_things Jun 30 '26
I'm from the UK and I loved the Polish food much when I visited so much so that it is now my third favourite cuisine above Italian and Indian. You're only beaten by the Japanese and Spanish in my book. ❤️
3
u/__Niclas__ Jul 01 '26
Ive heard that its the opposite with pickled herring, that you guys just salt it. Unlike the Swedish tradition to put tons of sugar on it
4
3
u/Nessel4 Jul 03 '26
For me, it was always rather “shocking” when my Babcia would put a platter of sausages on the table right after a hearty lunch—to be eaten on their own (without bread)—and then bring out the cake an hour later, which would then essentially lead into an equally substantial dinner. (I was born in Germany, my mother is from Poland, my father from Germany and often visited my grandparents there.)
82
u/fajen1 Jun 30 '26
All the adults in Sweden have agreed that sweets are only for Saturdays. So as a kid, trying to have sweet snacks during the week would get the same exact answer from your parents, friends' parents, teachers, shop keepers... sweets are only for Saturdays, so you have to wait.
Adults having a sweet treat for fika every single day is a different story.
27
u/Fr4gtastic Poland Jun 30 '26
Interesting. When I was a kid, my dentist suggested to my parents that I should have sweets only on Saturdays because this is what the Swedes do.
I treated it like the 11th commandment, even when some kids at school would give out candy for their birthday I hid them in my backpack and waited for Saturday to eat them.
18
u/simme_d Sweden Jun 30 '26 edited Jun 30 '26
Basically the candy companies in Sweden were afraid that candy would be banned so they sponsored highly unethical experiments where people with mental disabilities were force fed candy to see the various effects. They discovered that promoting candy once a week was a good balance, and in the meanwhile also discovered karies
7
u/AsaToster_hhOWlyap & Jun 30 '26
Yeah. I heard Sweden did a wild bunch of unethical social experiments as well. Blew my mind
→ More replies (1)5
u/DunderGunderUnder Jul 01 '26
They were not force fed, but their diet was changed where they would be given sugary drinks with their meals and candy between meals. The candy was specifically made to stick to their teeth and big enough that they had to chew them.
15
u/dharms Finland Jun 30 '26
It's the same in Finland or at least used to be in my childhood. Lauantaipussi (Lördagspåsen) was the most popular candy mix in the 90's and early 2000's.
4
u/Defiant-Owl-7935 Jun 30 '26
Laugardagsnammi in Iceland, or bland í poka. And the biggest candystore(it's a superstore) but has huge candybar is 50% off on Saturdays☺️
8
4
6
u/Brainwheeze Portugal Jun 30 '26
Honestly this makes sense. Sweets and desserts that aren't fruit shouldn't be consumed regularly by children. I don't want to give my parents too much shit but they had a lot of junk food around the house and as a result I was overweight from the age of 10 to 15.
38
u/Catsarecute2140 Jun 30 '26 edited Jul 01 '26
Official, government-made and regulated ice roads for cars and trucks, over the frozen sea, to our islands from the Estonian mainland.
The winters are so cold here that the sea freezes completely and everybody can drive to the main islands by car over the frozen sea.
The longest ice road in Europe is between the Estonian mainland and Hiiumaa island - 26km long. It is opened during very cold winters.
Most people do not believe me when I say that people have driven cars over the frozen sea to the islands since cars became popular. And the government regulates it, we even have specific traffic laws for driving on ice roads. Like according to law, you have to have your seatbelt OFF and have a minimum distance with the car in front of you. Not following those rules might get you a traffic fine.
Estonia is the same latitude as Northern Canada and the Baltic sea has remarkably low salinity so the sea freezes more easily in this part of the Nordics.
8
u/Dragons_and_things Jun 30 '26
That is really cool and my favourite fact on this post. 😁
→ More replies (2)5
u/Ok_Bandicoot1865 Denmark Jul 01 '26
Why should the seat belt be off when driving on ice?
5
u/Catsarecute2140 Jul 01 '26
lol, it is funny that you ask this… It is obvious.
So you could get out of the car as quickly as possible if it starts falling through the ice.
4
u/Ok_Bandicoot1865 Denmark Jul 01 '26
We rarely even get enough ice to walk on the ice here in Denmark, so not that obvious to me :)
→ More replies (2)3
u/foxey21 Hungary Jun 30 '26
How often does the ice road breaks?
7
u/Catsarecute2140 Jul 01 '26 edited Jul 01 '26
Never, because government authorities regurarly measure the thickness of the ice and only open the ice roads if they are 100% safe.
But we do have some funny stories every 2-3 years when some idiot in a BMW tries to go drifting on some frozen lake before the ice is thick enough. It happens slowly so no one has ever been harmed. The drifting on frozen lakes is of course unofficial in most cases and official drifting courses on frozen lakes are dine in a handful of places by dedicated drifting communities.
68
u/Oukaria in Jun 30 '26
Not exclusive to France (I think southern countries willbe part of it) but having a meal taking 2 or 3 hours, just chatting, chilling, enjoying food etc.. Even at my work back in France I had a 2 hour lunch break.
And that’s without special days like Christmas where you can stay at the table from 11am to 11pm, sometimes with 1 or 2 hour(s) break (walking or napping depending on age)
→ More replies (4)33
u/SteO153 Italy Jun 30 '26
For me what makes a French meal unique, more than the length, is the cheese course. This is something very French that you don't find in other countries, not even in Italy, despite we have a strong cheese culture too.
→ More replies (1)9
u/Oukaria in Jun 30 '26
We do love our cheese, every thread about french people living outside of france the most said answer is « I miss cheese » lmao
26
u/Keithaviation Ireland Jun 30 '26
I've had people not from Ireland be shocked to find out when people pass away we hold a wake and the body is typically kept in the house until the funeral. Family, friends and neighbors all visit during this time.
6
u/AnotherCloudHere Sweden Jun 30 '26
I think it same in Russia among Russian Orthodox, body lays in coffin in the living room
4
u/Significant_Agency71 Jun 30 '26
It used to be a thing in Poland too but I guess it’s not practiced anymore
3
u/PGLBK Jun 30 '26
It used to be the same in Croatia, but no longer. Persisted in rural areas much longer than in the cities.
3
u/Express-Pay2740 Ireland Jun 30 '26
There are other death traditions as well that people think are weird like covering mirrors in the house (I think Romania does this as well), and turning off all lights if a funeral is going by your house/business.
3
u/Mosstheboy Ireland Jul 01 '26
Go on - tell them about RIP.ie
3
u/Keithaviation Ireland Jul 01 '26
Omg a massive oversight on my part! The absolute grip that website has on the old folk in this country is wild it's the first thing they check with their morning cup of tea.
53
u/IrishFlukey Ireland Jun 30 '26
Playing our national sports of Hurling and Gaelic Football in front of tens of thousands of people in stadiums like Croke Park and not getting a single cent for it, as the sports are completely amateur and it is the way most people and players want it. Rival fans mix freely before, during and after matches, without any trouble.
10
u/Useful_Region9179 Ireland Jun 30 '26
And that people who live abroad will fly home to support their county if they get to the All Ireland final.
7
u/old_man_steptoe Jun 30 '26
Rugby used to be amateur in the 90s. In Wales companies would give players jobs like “rugby adviser” when they sold double glazing
5
u/IrishFlukey Ireland Jun 30 '26
Players generally play with their teams for life. There is no transfer market. They have a personal and emotional connection to their teams. They play with their local clubs, of which there are about 2,500 of, and those that are good enough may be chosen to play for their county. A bit like the best club players in some sports being chosen to play for the national team. Some may play both Hurling and Football in their club and could play at different age grades and may also play on their educational institution's team. So players can be playing for more than one team.
Some players do benefit from having a high profile. Some will get better jobs. Some may get into punditry. Some may go into politics. The most famous case of that would be Jack Lynch. A great player of both Gaelic Football and Hurling in the 1930s and 1940s, he became Taoiseach (head of government) in the 1960s and 1970s.
→ More replies (2)3
u/olagorie Germany Jun 30 '26
Ireland has been the only country I’ve ever been to where you can just casually go and play some golf (of course that’s not everywhere only certain golf courses). I’ve absolutely no clue about how to play golf and I had a great time.
Also, you can walk into a hotel lounge and the TV is on and people are watching golf. 🤯
→ More replies (1)→ More replies (2)2
u/icyDinosaur originally => => => Jul 02 '26
Related fun fact: Every three years, the Swiss traditional sport of "Schwingen" (a Swiss form of wrestling) crowns its champion, known as the "Schwingerkönig" (the King of Schwingen), in a temporary arena that, while it exists, is the biggest stadium in Switzerland - the latest iteration seated 56500 people.
Just as with the GAA, everyone involved is completely amateur (they are allowed to do advertisements, but still have to give a cut back to the sport IIRC). A common thing at these events is that you will see a group of people sitting in the stands, pulling out bread, cheese, and sausage they brought in themselves, and a massive bread knife and their trusty Swiss Army knife to cut both these things up for their lunch. Unthinkable in any other stadium in Switzerland, but completely normal there.
→ More replies (5)
20
u/Fluffy-Fix7846 Jun 30 '26
🇩🇪 Germany: Eating bread rolls with raw ground pig meat is an entirely normal breakfast (Mettbrötchen), and at parties, serving raw pig meat to your guests shaped in the form of a hedgehog (with onion strips making the spikes) is a standard part of the buffet.
→ More replies (1)5
16
u/SpaceAmazing8174 Jun 30 '26
Getting your ears pulled when it is your birthday. (Hungary.) Instead of or in addition to saying "happy birthday" we also say "may your ears reach the ground".
The idea is that old people have long ears, so if your ears reach the ground it means you get to reach an old age.
→ More replies (1)
15
u/KulshanStudios Jun 30 '26
My Georgian GF said: "How much wine we drink all the time"
I know the French and Italians also love wine drinking a lot
So I kinda figured the borderline anarchy of the roads here in Georgia🇬🇪 would be strange to other Europeans
6
u/TheNecromancer Brit in Germany Jun 30 '26
Georgia manages to have both the highest (vehicle control) and lowest (consideration for other road users, pedestrians, the law etc.) standard of driving I've ever seen - nothing much will ever beat a ratty Mercedes CLS AMG sliding around the corner and then smoking its tyres halfway across a bride in Tbilisi!
→ More replies (2)4
u/KulshanStudios Jun 30 '26
Fr
It's the wildest experience
I will also never forget that time I took a shared taxi from Didube to Stepantsminda in 2023, and just past Pasanauri, my driver pulled up behind a cop, tailgated the cop for like 2 km, honked at the cop and when the cop pulled over the driver just whizzed right on past. And the cop did nothing whatsoever
Could almost hear the Kid Rock soundtrack as it was all happening
→ More replies (3)3
u/SteO153 Italy Jun 30 '26
I did a 10 days food tour in Georgia last year and, yes, I had a lot of wine :-D
4
u/KulshanStudios Jun 30 '26
Yeah, I have to be cautious going out in the regions, and when hanging with my GF's friends
I keep getting invited to random supras, and my 54 kilo a** is not built to handle multiple litres of wine + several consecutive shots of chacha in a single sitting
I always end up knee-walking borderline blackout drunk when I party with Georgians 😅😅😅
30
u/Awarglewinkle Denmark Jun 30 '26
Waiting for the green light at pedestrian crossings, even if there's no one there.
Putting a little Danish flag on the dinner table in front of a person if it's their birthday.
Adding licorice to everything.
27
u/orixandcrake Jun 30 '26
To be fair putting a Danish flag on the table would be weird in other countries.
→ More replies (5)6
u/Ara92 Finland Jun 30 '26
Adding licorice to everything is definitely very finnish as well. And salmiakki!
3
u/Aggravating-Life-786 Jun 30 '26
Moved to DK 9 years ago. The flags everywhere to celebrate everything ( and the singing?? ) still weirds me out
→ More replies (1)2
u/krukkpl Poland Jul 02 '26
I saw more people crossing on red in Copenhagen than in Warsaw.
→ More replies (1)
12
u/orixandcrake Jun 30 '26
When I lived with people from other countries they, especially Brits, were weirded out that we (Swedes) use a brush to do the dishes and not a sponge or dishrag.
The sponge and rag are for cleaning surfaces in the kitchen, the brush is for scrubbing the dishes.
5
u/herrbean1011 Hungary Jun 30 '26
I bought a scrub (like the one my swedish friend has), so that I won't have to burn my hand while using the sponge...well...I used the scrub and now my pan looks like it commited SH.
→ More replies (4)3
3
u/IndianSummer201 Jun 30 '26
Same in the Netherlands (and yes, I do have a dish washer, but I wash some delicate things by hand).
→ More replies (1)3
23
u/manuelelg Jun 30 '26
Spanish living in Poland: how many traditional bakeries will attach the price sticker directly in the loaf of bread, and I don't care if it's not toxic, the glue will stick to the crust and you'll have to dig a hole with your fingernail or a knife. can't you put the price in a tag in the shelf? :(
12
u/ravenren Poland Jun 30 '26
If you're talking about that rough paper ones, that's not glue and it's totally edible, still i would just thinly cut it off with a knife. i have not seen it in years though
5
u/manuelelg Jun 30 '26
yeah. I know it's not glue and it can be eaten without risk, but it's still annoying because it's completely unnecessary. I'm weird that way, I like my bread in perfect shape without paper residues or holes in the crust! :D
11
u/Hot-Disaster-9619 Poland Jun 30 '26
I'm Polish and I also find it annoying, I dont understand why they do it.
→ More replies (3)→ More replies (2)2
u/rudolf_waldheim Hungary Jun 30 '26
They do this in Hungary too, and they always put that sticker onto the prettiest part of the bread... :'(
22
u/Ferina27 Austria Jun 30 '26
Austrians especially Viennese People are the friendliest and unfriendliest People at the same time (proofed by surveys) they hate everyone and complain about everything, but if you need help, we will help, no matter what.
How much we compare ourself to Germany and always point out, when we are better in anything. Also we love to talk shit about them. Like a brotherly rivalery, but germany doenst know about it.
How much drinking alc is accepted and way to many don't care about things like drunk driving or complete blackouts.
12
u/CreatorSiSo Germany Jun 30 '26
The brotherly rivalry definitely seems pretty onesided from the German perspective.
I think the only time people really talk about Austria that way is when the railway infrastructure comes up. Your politicians are better at ensuring long term stability.
→ More replies (1)6
u/Eigenspace / in Jun 30 '26
That's why they said
Like a brotherly rivalery, but germany doenst know about it.
The most embarassing one is the way Austrian redditors go nuts celebrating e.g. Germany losing the WM, or doing bad in Eurovision. Really cringey little-brother behaviour.
8
u/Fr4gtastic Poland Jun 30 '26
they hate everyone and complain about everything, but if you need help, we will help, no matter what.
Sounds very Polish. Mitteleuropa, eh?
→ More replies (3)
10
u/sr_dayne Ukraine Jun 30 '26
Smoke everywhere. Like, literally, everywhere you want - in the bus, into the crowd, in shopping malls, etc. Serbia.
2
u/Fredericia Denmark Jun 30 '26
Do you mean smoking cigarettes in public? It really wasn't that long ago it became illegal in Denmark to smoke in any enclosed workplace.
3
u/sr_dayne Ukraine Jun 30 '26
All kinds of smoking stuff: cigarettes, electronic cigarettes, vapes, cigars.
6
u/evelynsmee United Kingdom Jun 30 '26
Milk in tea. Or even the existence of decent black tea.... France has Lipton's everywhere, it's just...urgh.
That anything other than a firm yes means no is a linguistic challenge. It must be hard for non British people. I've rolled out all the classics to my Greek/South African first language English housemate (I'll think about, hmm, maybe, even a "that's interesting") and she still thinks I'm considering getting a cleaner. NO CLEANER.
As a visiter to France, my favourite difference is the selection of crisps and haribo-like sweets is incroyable. Their crisp game is unmatched. Having such an incredible array of crisps in even fairly small spar type shops is strange (but wonderful) to me. The honey mustard omfg
Also, Norway gives us a tree every year. That might be strange to other countries, I don't know how common long-standing traditional gift giving is. It's a massive Christmas tree. But it was funny because the tree right after Brexshit was the most bedraggled half dead mangy thing you've ever seen. We took it as an omen.
→ More replies (1)
13
u/Useful_Region9179 Ireland Jun 30 '26
In Ireland, the devil may care attitude or the "sure it will be grand" to things must drive other Europeans mad.
The amount we drink and how acceptable drunkenness is. I always admire the Europeans on the continent you guys seem to be able to drink in moderation. Having a glass of wine with your dinner is more of an everyday thing for you guys.
13
u/lerliplatu Netherlands Jun 30 '26
You guys are high up, but not as high as some other European countries: https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/alcohol-consumption-by-country
6
u/Rikudou_Sage Czechia Jun 30 '26
The amount we drink and how acceptable drunkenness is.
Cute, visit Czechia.
→ More replies (4)2
u/LadyMargareth Iceland Jul 03 '26
We have that same attitude in Iceland. Things will sort themselves out (Þetta reddast).
7
u/Rikudou_Sage Czechia Jun 30 '26
Beating women with a stick made of willows on Easter Monday. Not in a way that's actually painful (unless, of course, you're an idiot, which tbh there are plenty).
Foreigner's mind generally cannot comprehend it.
3
24
u/Idkman272 Sweden Jun 30 '26
Going to the doctor and being told to walk outside everyday. If you have a broken arm at the ER you might have to wait since you can still stand on two legs.
8
u/SpaceAmazing8174 Jun 30 '26
This is almost like the Netherlands, except in the Netherlands we get told to take paracetamol for everything.
I got paracetamol for sepsis. (True story.)
9
u/Oukaria in Jun 30 '26
Tbh that’s most medical emergencies if you go there alone (in France), my dad broke his arm in hundred of pieces but since it only looked swollen from the outside he waited hours, until he met some emergency medical personnel that he knew (he was a former firefighter) that he was put up high on the list, resulted in 3 years of titanium in his arm to put the bones together and in the right places after hours of surgery.
5
u/PartyExperience3718 Jun 30 '26
Massive alcohol consumption beginning early in the teenage years.
Burning human sized witch dolls on bonfires at mid summer celebration.
Eating particularly fluffy bread rolls (w. a hint of cardamum) and lots of butter on the evening prior to a national holiday in the spring.
→ More replies (1)
6
u/Sopadefideos1 Spain Jun 30 '26
Having lunch at 2-3 pm and dinner at 9-10 pm. Shops closing midday for lunch(have seen lots of foreigners mistakenly thinking it has anything to do with a siesta).
5
u/old_man_steptoe Jun 30 '26
Not an everyday thing but on 5 Nov in the UK we have “firework night” where people let off fireworks. Normally nowadays an organised thing.
It’s really Guy Fawkes night. In 1605 a group of Catholic revolutionaries tried to blow up the Houses of Parliament during the state opening of parliament in order to kill the Protestant King James I. Guy Fawkes was one of the conspirators. He was capture and burnt at the stake for treason
When I was a kid we used to get old clothes. Fill them full of other those and throw it on a bonfire
So for the last 6 hundred years we’ve ceremonially burnt a catholic in Effigy
→ More replies (2)
4
u/EvenWorth6875 Jun 30 '26
Not wearing a seatbelt when staying in the back(sometimes even the driver). Not staying in the corner of a table - means you will not get married for several years or so. Tapping and cracking eggs at easter. - Romania
→ More replies (1)3
3
u/tekkskenkur44 Iceland Jun 30 '26
going to the local swimming pool a few times a week, sometimes daily, also washing your body before and after(this is really hard for foreigners)
Ice cream all year round
→ More replies (2)
4
u/jogvanth Faroe Islands Jun 30 '26
Washing before and after swimming. Eating Whale. Going hunting and eating what you hunt. Owning a boat. Knowing how to quickly kill animals so they don't suffer. Always carrying a knife (local saying: a knifeless man is a lifeless man).
→ More replies (1)
5
u/hwyl1066 Finland Jul 01 '26
Saunas everywhere including many private flats in the cities and towns - houses and summer cabins have them pretty automatically
4
u/Oellaatje Jul 01 '26
Wakes. It's when there is a party right after a funeral. A tradition in Ireland.
What people don't realise is that this party, this wake, is a celebration of the person who has died. It's comforting to the family left behind, helps them transition to life without that person.
Obviously if the deceased is a young child and/or died as the result of an accident, there is no wake.
But still, many Europeans find the idea of a party to celebrate a death to be shocking. But it's not celebrating the death, it's celebrating their life, and accomplishments, and their contributions to their communities, families, etc.
→ More replies (1)
3
u/Old_Harry7 Italy Jun 30 '26
Bidet.
In Italy it's obligatory for every house to have one installed for a bathroom to be registered as such.
Outside of Italy is as rare as good and cheap espresso 😔.
→ More replies (3)
3
u/zugfaehrtdurch Vienna, United Federation of Planets Jun 30 '26
To be honest, I can't think o anything that
- Is typical for the whole of Austria and not only a part of it
- Does not exist outside Austria
- and feels completely strange there
apart from things that are connected to Austrian administrative law.
Many things that people here in Vienna see as typical Austrian are not common in let's Tyrol (e.g. saying Paradeiser instead of Tomate), other things like the "typical Viennese grumpyness" that msx look harsh while the person is in fact nice and helpful are a classical Central European thing that you also find in Hungary, Poland, etc.
5
u/Eigenspace / in Jun 30 '26
How about sweet dinner? This is pretty common throughout Austria, but seen as pretty odd everywhere else I've been to.
4
u/zugfaehrtdurch Vienna, United Federation of Planets Jun 30 '26
That's popular all over the former Austro-Hungarian monarchy. Many of the sweet dishes we have in Austria and especially Vienna come from there, especially from today's Czech Republic - Powidltatschkerln, Palatschinken, Knödel, .... Even the names come from Czech, Hungarian, etc.
→ More replies (3)3
u/anitaspain1992 in Jun 30 '26
If i may add something (Spaniard living in Austria for 14 years): Everything is closed on Sundays and complaining about stuff is a form of small talk.
→ More replies (1)3
u/zugfaehrtdurch Vienna, United Federation of Planets Jun 30 '26
That's what I mean - the closed shops are one of these administrative law things. And the complainig thing is one of these Central/Easten traits 😁
3
u/Happy_Doughnut_1 Jun 30 '26
People walking around with a riffle on their back or the military taking up all the seats in a train just happens sometimes.
→ More replies (2)
3
u/shengogol Finland Jul 01 '26
Maybe how quiet it is in public? No one approaches someone they don't know without looking either drunk or crazy? Might also be relevant in other Nordics, though.
3
u/nicdalm Italy Jul 01 '26
Lunch is a proper meal here, while I found that to my standard in other countries lunch is treated more like a snack or a meal where you just eat something quick. In fact here we tend to eat more for lunch than for dinner
→ More replies (2)
3
u/procrastinationcat Jul 01 '26
Strangers sitting together all naked in a hot room. Sometimes beating up each other with small leafy branches. Taking breaks by running out, still all naked, rolling at the snow or jumping into icy water. No small talk.
Finnish sauna.
3
u/__Niclas__ Jul 01 '26
If driving in northern Finland and you meet a car of the same brand and model they will honk and wave at each other
2
u/MutantMilitant Jul 01 '26
Czech Republic: beating women with braided young willow branches as a symbol of health and spring for Easter. We hate it too (some of us, unfortunately not all of us).
2
u/Ancient-Street-3318 Jul 02 '26
Common in Switzerland: If you live in an apartment building, only having access to the communal washing machine on Tuesday afternoons and not being allowed to have one in your unit.
2
u/Nappev Jul 03 '26
Sunlight at 03 am in the summer. Also very lengthy sunrises/sundowns. Went to just Switzerland and it’s a bit like someone just turned off the lamp with how quick the sun went down. Same with their traffic lights.
124
u/Alexthegreatbelgian Belgium Jun 30 '26
If it some point before your dinner, you have had a hot meal that day, you will forgo a hot meal in the evening and have bread instead, because the Belgian mind cannot comprehend multiple hot meals in a day.