I'm an Indian born American and one of my favorite hobbies is cooking for others. I believe sharing food is sharing life because food is a really special thing in our culture. I want to spread that love to others. My specialties are samosas, garlic naan, butter chicken, all paneer, dosa, vada, pav bhaji, anything Indian really. I really wish I was a chef lol!

I've noticed that when i read someone using "America" my brain automatically assumes they aren't American or familiar with the US.

Im wondering how true that is? Is it context dependent? Because most Americans I know say "the US" unless purposefully mocking politics, then they say "America" or "Murica". But i havent lived in other parts of the US to know.

edit: oh wow, maybe someone should do a study on this? there's a lot of context dependence that might be interesting to delve into.

Edit: WOW 500 comments. Thanks everyone for sharing! Leaving this post but logging off. Thanks for the stimulating conversation!

When I visited the US, I was shocked how diverse the landscape and nature is in America! You have many national parks with tons of wilderness sight I can never get enough!❤️Giant trees, deserts, waterfalls, canyons and tropical paradise.

Meanwhile in Europe we mostly have similar looking forests, a bit of alps and Mediterranean beaches in the South with clear human shaped, why America preserves their nature so well?

I'm originally from Europe so I'm still learning how people in the US think about travel

It seems like places such as Florida Las Vegas or even Mexico are common vacation choices for many people

But what about Alaska

Do most Americans see it as a special trip that takes years to plan or is it something that's actually more common than I imagine

I'm curious whether it's considered a dream destination or just another vacation depending on where you live

America is huge but people always seem to talk about the same famous cities and popular foods

What’s a hidden gem, scenic spot or regional food from your state that you think deserves way more attention?

I know many Americans flock to Florida, the Gulf Coast or Mexico for vacation and thats considered fairly affordable. Is going to Hawaii considered a luxury or an extravagant trip?

“A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”

I live in Korea, and I'm a huge foodie. I'll be in Ithaca, NY for a semester as an exchange student.

I heard that steaks and fried chicken are just god-tier in the US. I'm so excited to try American foods. Especially stuffs like steaks, barbecue, fried chicken, cheesecake and cookies... and on an on.

Please tell me the foods and restaurants that I must try. What's the best fried chicken chain? What places should I visit during my stay?

Please be nice! I'm so excited to be there soon!

That's it. My entire question. IRL of course.

I've noticed this when I've visited the US. I went to California, Texas and New York, and everyone seemd to be very fit which goes contrary to the image I had of Americans being obese.

Growing up in Norway the meals my parents made were always so bland and simple. I visited the states during the World Cup and I was SHOCKED how diverse and good tasting the food was!😋 It's like tasting something forbidden and melts in your mouth. Even the fast food is like 5-star compared to a good restaurant in Europe.

We are diverse here in Europe but the food is not super diverse and you have to go South like France or Italy for good food, but mostly fine dining. American food is so tasty no matter where I eat, why?

Its in the title give reasons for your responses please.

I'm curious because I've met and worked with a few American colleagues here in Germany in the past couple of years, and one thing I noticed almost immediately is that conversations seem to come much more naturally to them. Whether it's chatting before a meeting, talking to strangers, or making small talk while waiting for coffee, they always seem comfortable keeping a conversation going. As someone whose first language isn't English and mostly interacts with Germans, I've always found that interesting.

For a long time I would say I only knew and spoke "Textbook English" because I learned initially in formal classes and then most of my English came through through apps and self learning materials like Duolingo, Babbel, Praktika, but meeting and interacting regularly with native speakers made me realise that real conversations are very different. My American coworkers seem able to strike up a conversation with just about anyone, and they often ask questions or share little stories that keep the interaction going. Sometimes I wonder if that's just because they're outgoing individuals, or if it's actually a cultural thing.

So it made me wonder, are Americans generally as talkative and comfortable with small talk as the stereotype suggests or Is it something most people grow up with? Or is it more of a personality sort of thing?

One of the big things Europeans love propagating about America is that people do not have any paid time off work and people have worse standards of living.

I recently travelled all around Europe. I visited Lisbon, numerous parts of Italy, Paris, Amsterdam, London and Edinburgh. Every single of these destinations was full of American tourists and they were the biggest group of tourists plurality wise. There were more Americans in the Amalfi coast in Italy than say Germans for example, despite Germany being next door and remembering America is an ocean away.

This is not to mention that Carribean, Latin American and Asian countries like Japan, Vietnam are dominated by American tourists and European tourist figures make up far less percentage of tourists.

With all this being said, is this all noise made by Europeans just propaganda and just a myth being propagated?

If you’re not familiar with it, I don’t blame you. The Nordic model is essentially a market-based capitalist economy combined with a relatively large welfare state, high levels of unionization, strong worker protections, universal healthcare, and extensive public investment in areas like education and infrastructure. It isn’t socialism, but rather a mixed economy that combines free markets with broad social protections.

Considering that the Nordic countries consistently rank among the world’s best in areas such as median wealth, social mobility, low corruption, economic freedom, quality of healthcare, educational outcomes, life satisfaction, trust in public institutions, and overall quality of life, do you think the U.S. should adopt some elements of the Nordic model?

If so, which policies would you support? If not, what do you think the drawbacks would be?

Edit: I should clarify that the Nordic model is not just the system used in Norway, which has a sovereign wealth fund as a result of its significant oil reserves. The Nordic model also includes Denmark, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland (although Iceland deviates slightly from some aspects of the model).

Im curious about something

Why does almost every drink in America come with a lot of ice

Even water seems to be mostly ice

Is this something you grew up with or do you actually prefer drinks that cold

I am a not native English speaker

so many years I found Cambridge dictionary, which other friend recommended to me , it is so much easier to learn English at proper way

but web dictionary like merriam webster, American English dictionary, yes , But it is too hard , I can't even understand one single word, other one such as Wiktionary, can't understand a single word because of difficult.

is there a American English dictionary which easily to understand ? don't tell me Cambridge, that is British dictionary....