Things about America I’ve realized are weird now that I’ve moved away
HAPPY 4TH OF JULY, YA’LL! In honor of the most American of holidays, I thought I’d share a few things about America that I’ve come to learn are considered a little weird now that I live abroad.
Like I mentioned in my previous post, if there was one, literally one, silver lining of the pandemic, it’s that I was able to visit home much more in the last year than I ever had before since I was able to work remotely.
It was soooo nice to be able to go home for so long. I mean after all, they do say distance makes the heart grow fonder. Although I’ve found that to be partially true, when it comes to going back to the US to visit now that I don’t live there anymore, in my experience distance ALSO makes me realize that there’s some super weird things about America that literally no other country does.
Here’s 10 normal things in America that I now realize are a little weird now that I live abroad.
1. Over-the-top displays of patriotism
Guys. No Irish person would be caught DEAD wearing clothing plastered with Irish flags. Every time I go home, I’m always so shocked to see how much crap with American flags is sold everywhere. Everything from baby clothes to beer koozies to boxers. I didn’t realize how American it was to have flags freaking EVERYWHERE until I moved away. Honestly, the only people here you’ll see wearing clothing with Irish flags or “Ireland” printed on it is tourists on St. Patrick’s Day.
Another thing that I’ve come to realize is really weird is that we stop everything we’re doing to stand up, face a flag, put our hand to our heart, and recite the Pledge of Allegiance in unison. This is one of those things about America that other countries find very weird. People from other countries that I’ve spoken to have even told me that they think it has serious “Mother Russia” vibes. And I can’t say that I blame them.
2. How confusing and difficult filing taxes is
Maybe it’s just me but… I had NO idea you were still supposed to file US taxes even if you’re living abroad?? I guess I never gave it much thought and assumed that if I wasn’t living and making money in the States, I wouldn’t have to deal with with all that BS anymore.
But seriously, it really is TOTAL BS. Why is filing US taxes so confusing? There are so many different forms to fill out. The IRS really make it nearly impossible for someone to do their own taxes.
In Ireland, you don’t even really have to “file” taxes. It’s all done automatically and is really simple and straightforward. Irish taxes are SO simple. At the beginning of the year you go onto an online portal and upload any receipts/expenses that you want to claim tax back on. Then, it’s all done automatically for me. That’s literally it. It’s so easy.
I found out I was supposed to have been filing US taxes after living in Ireland 5 years. I had 5 years worth of foreign income tax to file with the IRS that I just never did. Whoops! And 5 years of un-filed taxes = a LOT of forms to fill out.
I ended up using Taxes for Expats to sort out my expat taxes and it was super simple. All I had to do was fill out a thorough questionnaire, and they did the rest for me.
For the most part, I’m a big believer in “why pay someone to do something that I can just do myself.” But it was SO worth it in this case to pay and know that my taxes would get done properly, and that the IRS wasn’t going to be putting out a search warrant for me for tax evasion.
3. Mega Stores (and mega sizes)
I have a mixed feeling about this one. On the one hand, I like bopping around to different stores to get what I need here. And I think having smaller stores gives more local vendors a chance. You go the grocery store for groceries, a pharmacy for medicine, a liquor store for alcohol, a garden center for plants, etc. You get the idea.
However, there is something to be said about a big ol’ Walmart, ya’ll. I mean, in what other country on earth can you walk into a single establishment and get food, clothes, paint, medicine, alcohol, plants, and more, all while getting your car serviced? Hell, you could even get your hair cut there while you’re at it!
It’s definitely nice to have the convenience of having everything you need under one (gigantic) roof. But in Europe, it’s definitely weird to have such gigantic stores like in America.
Another thing I’m always surprised by when I go back to the US is just how large everything is. It’s one of those things about America that always shocks me when I go back now that I don’t live there. It’s just my mom and dad living in the house now and the sizes of their groceries just seem insane to me now compared to sizes here. The ketchup bottles are large enough to feed a small nation! Obviously America is known for its large portions. But you really start to notice how over-the-top large everything is once you live abroad.
4. Literally all of our units of measurement
Six years later and I’m STILL not totally used to kilometers, celsius, and the overall metric system. I still automatically think in inches, miles, cups, ounces etc and even still have my weather app set to Fahrenheit. And it annoys me that I’m still not used to it!
But seriously, did you know that the US, Myanmar, and Liberia are the ONLY 3 countries in the world that officially still use the imperial system?
The metric system really is so much more streamlined and straight-forward. My life would be easier if I had grown up using it instead of having to get used to all new units of measurements when I moved abroad.
5. The lack of public transportation
People in Europe can’t understand the lack of public transportation in big parts of the US. It’s definitely weird considering the size and population of America.
I get so frustrated by the lack of public transportation every time I go back to the US. It truly is so hard for someone to get around without a car in the US, at least in the South where I live.
One of the best things about Europe is the sophisticated train network. It’s so easy to get from one country to another! Cheap, quick, and comfortable. I love trains – you don’t have to go through the hassle of the airport, and train stations are much more centrally-located than airports. So yeah, big fan of trains.
Even though the train system in Ireland is not great compared to the rest of Europe, it’s decent enough, especially for getting to the major cities. And when it comes to local transportation within Dublin itself, you have the option of the train, the tram, or the bus. I don’t have a car here, so these methods of public transport have been a life-saver for me.
That is definitely not the case in the US.
This last time I was home I wanted to visit some friends in New Orleans (2 hours drive away) and in Houston (4 hours drive away). Both MAJOR cities, both not too far away from my hometown. Car rental prices were ridiculous, so I looked into public transportation options – buses and trains.
Not only were there so few options, they were also so slow. What would be a 2-hour drive was a 4.5-hour train journey with AmTrak. Plus, not one single person I know had ever taken the train, so no one could even tell me if it was safe to take alone, or what to expect.
And when it comes to local public transportation, it’s basically non-existent. The local buses are few and far between, unreliable, and not the nicest at all. It’s so frustrating when I visit home and don’ t have a car. My movement both locally and across cities relies on either an expensive car rental, or getting friends/family to drive me.
It’s 2021, America! Get with the program and invest in public transportation. It’ll help with traffic AND it’s way better for the environment. Win win!
6. Price of healthcare / health insurance
I meannnn….yeah. This one REALLY annoys me. We all know how insanely expensive it is to access any sort of medical service in the US, especially when you don’t have insurance. It’s honestly ridiculous.
Ireland’s healthcare system is far from perfect. But I didn’t have health insurance for the first few years of living here, and I was never concerned that one unforeseen accident would put me in a lifetime of debt. Prices here are fair and affordable. Why can’t the US be the same?
7. The normalization of student debt
This is another no-brainer. Irish people, and really Europeans in general, are always absolutely aghast at how much universities cost in the US, and how normal it is for people to graduate college with a 5-6 figure student debt. I think this is one of the weirdest, most normalized things in America that is absolutely not normal anywhere else in the world.
8. Lack of vacation days / maternity leave
There’s a lot I miss about America, but getting only 10 vacation days per year is NOT one of them. That was the norm when I was working in the US, so I didn’t think anything of it. But now I realize how little that is.
In Ireland, any salaried job you get is going to give you at least 21 days. Most of the time it’s even more than that.
How can you plan any significant vacations with only 10 days to use in the entire year?? It really does blow my mind that this is still a thing. It’s so unfair.
Another thing that blows my mind is how little maternity leave new mothers get. The minimum required by law is only 12 WEEKS UNPAID? That is shocking. The amount of women who have to return to work, freshly postpartum with a 12-week old baby, because they can’t afford to take any more unpaid time off is truly disgraceful and again, very unfair.
9. Sales tax not being included in the price
I loveeeee the fact that the tax is already added to the price shown on the tag here. The label says something is €5? Then you’re only going to pay €5 at checkout! It’s so handy!
Every time I go to the US now, I find myself getting so annoyed by the fact that you have to take into consideration how much tax will add to the final cost of something.
I used to literally NEVER give this a second thought because it was just how things were, and I was used to it. Now, I find myself getting so irritated by it every time I’m back.
10. Tipping culture
Different people may have different opinions on this one.
Every time I go back to America, it always blows my mind how we as customers are expected to tip everyone for everything. Waiters, bartenders, hair dressers, taxi drivers, everyone!! But the fact that waiters make less than minimum wage and are expected to make the rest in tips is what really annoys me.
When I worked as a waitress in the US in high school, I made less than $3/hour.
Now compare that to when I worked as a waitress when I first moved to Ireland. I made €11/hour. But guess what – I still made tips.
It’s not fair that wait staff in the US have to bust their asses to make minimum wage on tips, and it’s also not fair that customers are expected to pay their wages.
I get that there are different sides to the argument; some people might argue that wait staff are in a position to make a lot more money this way. Others might argue that customers receive better service when waiters are trying to make tips.
However, I’m a firm believer that a tip should be a little added bonus, not the difference between a hospitality worker making a decent living or not.
Plus, having the tax and tip added onto the price means that every time I go out to eat, it ends up being so much more expensive than what the menu price is (see point #9).
photo via
