Top 10 Culture Shocks moving from the USA to England
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After living here in the U.K for over 20 years now, I still mess things up! And so I wanted to share with you the biggest culture shocks I had (and possibly still have!) moving to England.
Huge thanks to Stephen (he’s from Liverpool!) and Claire (from Yeovil) for playing the ‘What Does this American word mean in England?!’
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American with 34 years in France and the only thing that bothered me in the UK light switch height....
Minced beef, or Lamb isn't American ground beef or lamb. Minced meat here in the Uk is real meat from basically the nearest part to the bones (aka skeletal muscle), while Ground meat is emulsified meat and fat. They are not the same thing. Minced meat is 100% meat while ground meat might be something in say a sausage, which is bulked out by other things including cerals, Ground meat texture is creamy.
@@thetruthhurts7675 We have different grades of ground beef. Some is sort of fatty, some is very lean. It depends on what you are cooking on what type you buy.
Texan here. My very best friend is from England. She and I looked up the yearly rainfall rainfall for "rainy old England" and Texas. Texas is supposed to be all desert, because of Hollywood, and there is desert in Texas, but it's not all desert...just like California. We compared Dallas, Texas to London, England. In Dallas we get 3 times more rain than London does, because we are in the "sub tropical" side of the state. So much for "rainy old England". You are right about queues. We don't have them. Instead, we have lines, which are exactly the same thing. We bag our own groceries, even check them sometimes, or some places check and bag them for you. It depends on the store. So, you thinks we don't have roast dinners? SERIOUSLY??? I do roast beef and roast chicken dinners all the time. We also have fish n chips too. We just call the batter "beer batter" instead of "crunchy batter". Well...my friend and I couldn't stand to watch anymore of the video because of your lack of knowledge of the US. OTHERWISE, I'd have more to say on the subject.
@@stevenhoskins7850 Ground beef is emulsified fat and meat, it is not minced beef full stop, for example there is no heart or tongue in minced beef, but in ground beef it is a constituent part, plus you can buy ground beef with that is labelled with lung, or other organs, which you cannot in the UK. You are correct about what you can buy, and the grades, but emulsified fat is NOT good for anyone at all.
In the 70's when I visited California, I asked the receptionist at the hotel for a rubber for a mistake I had made. She almost fainted. I then asked my male colleague to knock me up at 7a.m.
😀,😀!
😂😂😂😂😂
Lucky guy ! 🤣🤣🤣
😂Too funny!
😂 😂
Countries where they don't queue, old people and children get pushed aside or trampled. In the UAE a Philipino person can wait an hour for an info desk to open and then just before it does an Emirati can just walk on up before the people who've been waiting - queuing is more fair. In England, the person who has waited the longest, gets served first.
American's and Canadians always que also. Its considered very rude to "cut in line" in front of others who have been waiting longer.
Yes, in my experience as an American, 'cutting in line' is considered very rude! Also, often people will offer for someone elderly or with a physical disability to go ahead of them, or will allow someone at the supermarket with only a few items go first.
We may line up in America but in my experience the lines are uneven. The Brits queue up in tidy lines, ramrod straight. Marvelous!
Not necessarily, I live in the south of Spain and queues are virtually non-existent here but when it comes to getting on the bus or whatever everyone knows who was there longest and waits their turn. They actually ask "are you the last one?" So even though there isnt a physical queue there is a pecking order. And no matter what the physical queue would have been, old people generally always get preferential treatment and younger people let them jump the queue just out of respect for elders. Not like in my UK home city where old people who have been waiting longer get barged out of the way by groups of teens who have zero respect for their elders.
Well, it is supposed to be that way in the US, but, kids nowadays are not taught manners anymore! People are selfish and rude a lot.
Perhaps you'll like this English culture shock story, told by my dear father-in-law.
Dad was raised in rural Oklahoma and southern Utah, and is a folksy farm boy at heart, but his choice to join the US Air Force sent him and his family all over the world. He spent some time in England on joint maneuvers with the RAF. American air bases usually featured a mess hall, with the food served buffet or cafeteria style, but things were... well, different in England. Dad headed to the officers' mess and was surprised to be met by a waiter, seated, and offered a menu. Well, how posh! Then he realized to his dismay that the entire menu was in French. The only thing he could read was at the bottom: "Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding." He promptly ordered that.
After a bit, the waiter bore out a lovely plate of roast beef with this odd little puffy breadlike object next to it. Dad looked at his plate in some consternation... where was the pudding he'd ordered? He called over the waiter and asked where the Yorkshire pudding was, and the waiter politely indicated the odd little puffy bread. "Ah, clever Brits," thought Dad. "They put the pudding IN the bread." So he cut into the bread... and it was hollow and empty! He'd been robbed! Called the waiter over again, and the long-suffering waiter then explained what a Yorkshire pudding was.
A few years later, when he was serving in Scotland, Dad heard a fellow officer at a party tell a story about "the stupid Yank who didn't know what a Yorkshire pud was." Dad waited until the laughter had subsided, then stood up and said, "I'll have you know I AM that stupid Yank!" Roars of laughter. They wouldn't let him buy his own beverages after that.
This is absolutely amazing, because I actually was baffled the first time I ordered Yorkshire pudding
@@Stefaniaddison so im confused is it a dinner roll?
@@michelewilliams3761 no, it's like this interesting puff pastry
@@Stefaniaddison No, it is not a dinner roll, it is a batter mix
@@joemorris5288 they're similar to dutch babies
In 1965, when I was 13 years old, my family moved to England from the corn country of middle Illinois. I had never been anywhere really, except grandma's house on vacation. Months later, I found myself a new boy sprog at a British Public School. A strict traditional British boarding school. I was the only American there. Culture shock on steroids! French. Latin. Chemistry. Physics. Geometry. Rules. Uniforms. Schedules. Bloody 'ell! Ah, but there was rugby! The Tuck shop. And hot custard poured liberally over cake. Now that was culture shock!
Jesus ur like 60 lad
Delicious culture shock, sounds like.
Ahh...tuck shops and custard on cake type stuff...mmm...yum.
@@MBarnett make that 70, get some extra maths coaching, it may come in handy when you're a grown up
@@cuckootown9478 thanks for that maximas, I can tell you’ll make it far in life, correcting 2 month old comments, sounding like a teacher.
To the “so what” people...The English are what they are, and every country has it’s lingo, habits, food, and drinks. I find it charming, fascinating, curious, and, frankly, WONDERFUL. Travel really does widen your “scope of imagination “.
They haven’t traveled to appreciate for sure. I used to travel so much and I’ve seen good and bad all over and it makes me appreciate culture and peoples habits.
Too many Americans think that everybody should do things the way that we do them. The English have been around a lot longer than the United States. That's one thing, when you go to Europe you see things that are very different there, and you learn to appreciate the United States but at the same time respect foreign countries and how they do things. No one who travels to a foreign country should expect everyone that they meet to speak English, either.
@@cremebrulee4759 We learned this thirty years ago, while my US Navy husband was stationed in Japan. Fortunately, most of the squadron spouses were extremely gracious and embraced the culture. There were one or two (very young) spouses who didn't get it, and would complain about some things that were purely cultural. My 12 year old daughter fell so much in love with Japanese culture that she began studying the Japanese language on her own. She became fluent by adulthood.
Totally! It really does.
@@cremebrulee4759 Especially Americans! As George Bernard Shaw said:" Americans haven't used it for years!" - Professor Higgins in My Fair Lady.
Lucy Worsley has a documentary on the history of tea etiquette where the milk went in first if you had inexpensive china so the hot water wouldn't crack the cup. Those from more affluent families put the milk in last as they had the better china.
To be honest with you, once you ruin your average China, you never use them again for hot beverages
Who cares??????
On on of the addendums to Downton Abbey, they stated the same. Basically boils down to class division.
@@kathyschmidt7312 Exactly. Every lady of the day wanted to show off by putting in the hot water first. Thank goodness we all get good china these days. I can't imagine having a cup fly apart on the table. History is so funny at times.
@@maggiegray1698 It's history trivia, Maggie. These days no one cares, but I guarantee you, 150 ago it was indeed a big deal in fine homes. Silly, but that's how it was.
Oh, hahaha, yes, I can identify with all of this. I first went to visit family in London back in 1968. At that time, if you asked for a glass of water in a restaurant (which they never gave you as a matter of course) they would look at you as if you might be planning to bathe at the table. And if, when asked, they did give you water, it was always tap water, without ice. The ice maker was something foreign to them.
Fish & Chips also had a far better taste than today. They were fried in beef fat, & packaged up with real newsprint. It was wonderful. Today, it is still OK, but not the same. Still, I absolutely LOVE England, & was last there toward the end of 2019! 👍🙋♀️🥂
Loved the video, pretty funny! Although as a Brit, I can say the dinner etiquette and the no hugging is very much an aristocratic thing! For dinner in a “commoners” house it’s just a plain old knife and fork, and in our house they’re just thrown in the middle of the table so our toddler doesn’t grab them! 😂
And I always hug my friends when I see them! I only shake hands in a formal situation (like an interview or a business meeting) and the air kiss i do with European acquaintances!
Everyone I know is a big hugger too. I don't get that one at all.
I’m from WV in the USA. I’m glad you said this haha I was thinking “woah, they’re fancy all the time!“ haha I couldn’t keep up as a momma if I had to make the table like that all the time hahahah
@@hessmountainhomeschool3660 none of us got time for that! 😂
Yep! It’s a bit funny sometimes, because my great grandmother was more aristocratic, so whenever I go to my grandmother’s she’ll have loads of cutlery and I panic EVERY TIME 😂 we’re a regular family lol and it trips us up
@@Adam_Adam_Adam_Adam My Mum said i was a bit of a hugger , then years later , i realised she had said " You're a little bugger " :)
One of my favourite American/British moments - I was on one of my visits with my best friend (an American who has been living in London for 20+ years) and he was introducing me to an English friend, who after a brief chat said to me, “you don’t talk loud enough to be an American.” In his dry British way he was paying me a great compliment.
I was traveling in Britain with a college group and was very embarrassed by how loud the younger people were in the group. They never seemed to pick up on the offended looks of the British around us.
Brown tea??
wow!
Guilty!! Although I have to say, the times I've traveled in Britain, I tended to moderate my voice to whatever company I was in; very useful when visiting other cultures!
I'm trying to learn from that, and you are right, we Americans can be too loud.
I thoroughly enjoyed your video. I have been watching many British shows on the TV or tele. I can understand how these differences in our common items can be confusing. I really would like to visit the UK someday.
"What's the difference between a cake and a biscuit?"
There was actually a lawsuit which defined this, because cakes and biscuits are in a different tax bracket - weirdly enough, biscuits are classed as a luxury food and cake isn't. When Jaffa Cakes first went on sale, HMRC (the taxman) sued McVities (the manufacturers) claiming they should be taxed as biscuits at the higher rate. In court, McVities' lawyer demonstrated that when biscuits go stale they go soft but when cake goes stale it goes hard, which the court accepted. Jaffa Cakes go hard when stale so they are *officially* cake!
I love Jaffa Cakes. But I did wonder why they're called cakes. Well, they ARE cakes ;)
That’s absolutely fascinating!! Thank you for the information!
George Harrison would definitely have had something to say/sing about this (“Taxman”)
a fun fact is that after this case The HMRC had the last laugh as the loop hole that allowed cake to be exempt was closed so mcvities spent a fortune fighting and winning the case only to have to pay the tax anyway………..it’s true when they say there’s no avoiding death and taxes
Lol true indeed - the official cake/biscuit distinction (hard/soft when stale) still stands though!
How well she's acclimated herself to living in England! I would miss the big hugs we give in the U.S. The U.S. has so many different cultures combined, but all of the ones I've ever come in contact with big hugs are acceptable and encouraged. Hugs to you and your family from west of Boston, Massachusetts!
Not all but are like this in the uk me I hug people I know
We'd say 'acclimatised'
LOL @ “when the sun comes out it’s like a celebration”. So funny, yet so true! England is a country where you can have all four seasons in one day - often in August!
Well that is generalization .If u live in Maine, our weather is same as N.B or cooler than England
I am an American and lived in a little village called Emberton. I confess that I absolutely adored that village and the people but totally hard culture shock. You’re so right about the weather. I went out to plant in my garden one day in May when it was sunny and cool. I had to go in because it started to rain, then it hailed and then the sun shone again. All in the space of about an hour. Best piece of advice I got from another American was regardless of the weather to go out and take a walk every day. Summers for more difficult for me because of the very long days and the lack of screens on windows. I had my garden door open and a magpie came in and stole my remote. The next time I went to America I bought some screening and made my own window screens. My husband used to say that the spiders were lovely but I didn’t quite see it that way and I really did value my remote. I would go to the market town of all me on market day and everyone knew I was American so everyone had to tell me their story of their vacation in Disney World. I was shocked at how many smokers there were. Out of the country you could still smoke inside of the pubs at that time and I was appalled at the number of smokers. I think the joke is that if Brit sees a crowd queuing they will just join the queue not even knowing why they are in line. And supermarkets….I remember the first time I went to Tesco and stood there waiting for them to put my groceries in a bag and they stood there looking at me waiting for me to put them in the bag. I didn’t know I had to be my own bag girl. I also didn’t know I had to put a pound coin in to get a cart. And of course when I wondered why the “Hoover” wouldn’t work and I realized I needed to turn on the plug at the wall. But the thing that Americans need to remember is to simply embrace and enjoy a different way of life. We don’t always get the chance and if I could I would go back to England in a heartbeat.
Thank you for sharing your wonderful stories!
@Jellyfish "shooting" jokes are so strange to me because, while even one shooting is tragic, it's really not that big a part of a typical person's day. The likelihood of being in a mass shooting is not likely (and I mean true mass shooting, not a gang shooting or death by suicide, which is often included in those numbers), but the way people inflate the occurrences really seems to diminish the actual problem. I met someone from the UK who asked me about gun violence, and when I replied, "It's not a good thing, but what about it?" they said something about how I must be so scared to go about my life and send my children to school. Imagine their shock when I told them that my only familiarity with shootings was the same as theirs- on the news. People forget how big the US is, and how something that happens in one place can be just as far removed as something happening in a different country.
I guess I'd think the jokes are clever if they were at least reflective of reality, but the fact is that they actually just desensitize the issue. I guess there has to be a low-hanging fruit of humor in all facets of life, though.
I’m British and I absolutely HATE how true that queuing comment is! I’ve never really thought of it like this before, but you’re right. At least once a week I’ll join a queue, in the supermarket, train station, airport, wherever, and just wait to find out what I’m queuing for. I once nearly missed a flight because I just blindly joined a queue, but it was for the wrong airline’s check in desk. Now I’ll awkwardly ask the person in front of me what we’re waiting for if im in a rush! Learnt that one the hard way!
As they say- if you don't like the weather, wait 5 minutes.
It’s interesting so many Americans state British food is improving, and they’re absolutely right. The Lend-Lease Act of 1941 was skewed massively in America’s favour when Britain, standing alone to fight fascism, paid a heavy price for clapped out warships. By the end of World War II Britain had amassed an immense debt of £21 billion. A further loan was made in 1946 as Britain, bombed heavily in the blitz, was on its knees. Rationing didn’t end until 1953 but good food was still hard to come by. US troops stationed here, and tourists, must have thought British people ate badly on purpose, their jokes certainly implied we did.
I, and a whole generation, grew up in the 1960’s on a diet of spam and potatoes, the best food being exported to pay off the debt, with interest of course. Food gradually improved until the 1980’s, when things were back to near normal. However, the debt was not paid off until 2007, after a final payment of about $83m USD (£45.5m) to the United States, and about $23.6m USD (£12m) to Canada.
British food is the best it’s been for four generations - all we have to do now, is pay for a pandemic.
You seem to resent having to pay America back for the help she gave you. I guess Britain much preferred the old way where you would just take whatever you wanted from other countries without paying a penny.
As for standing alone against Germany, perhaps if you hadnt exacted such a heavy penalty against Germany in WW1, you wouldnt have had to face that problem.
The price for the destroyers was naval bases in the west Atlantic whose only real use would have been to either defend or invade the North American continent. They were desired by the US so that they could not be used by Germany for an invasion of North America in the even the British Empire fell; in hindsight perhaps not a realistic threat, but a threat that genuinely concerned the US government, in general, and FDR, in particular, at the time. The only money the British spent on them was the money to refurbish the destroyers. Furthermore, the Lend-Lease Act is what permitted arms and supplies to be sent to Britain without payment, the debts were incurred under the previous scheme, 'Cash and Carry', which replaced the Neutrality Act in 1939, this allowed belligerents to trade with the United States, provided they payed in full for the goods and carried them on their own ships, in practice it meant trading with the UK was allowed as Germany was under blockade did not have access to the Atlantic trade routes. But by 1941 Britain had run out of money which is why Lend-Lease was ultimately implemented.
As for the reputation of British food being bad, that predates WWII and I've seen such references going back to the 19th century...both in the US and in Britain. It seems to be more a result of the status French food had at the time and to be a stereotype largely perpetrated by the French and Francophiles in both the UK and US. I don't think it was ever particularly true, it was just the prejudice of the age which has been fossilized in culture through jokes about bad British cooking.
@@johnohara1433 Personally, since they started them both, I think Germany should have been forced to repay the entire cost of the two wars they waged against us. WW1 reparations due to the UK were never extracted in full, and nobody in Germany ever suffered any serious consequences as the result of them. Had there been a full military and economic occupation of Germany until they had repaid the damages due to the Allies from 1919 onwards there would never have been a WW2.
'paid a heavy price'???? But you DIDN'T pay !! 90 + % of the debt was forgiven.
@@noneofyourbusines9976 90% of the Lend-Lease debt was forgiven; the support provided to help rebuild Britain was not.
What surprised me when I spent time in England is...there is a pub on practically every corner of the city and ,they DO have cold beer. Even if it's a warm or even hot summer day it gets freaking cold as soon as the sun goes down. Absolutely no one in the states can make a decent fish and chips!! No matter how many restaurants I try the fish is always soggy.
The secret is using the right type of potatoes . The ones called King Edward are the best .
'Absolutely no one in the states can make a decent fish and chips!! ' I had a problem with tea in both the States and Canada. I don't know if it's the tea, milk, water or some combination. I only found a single instance of a decent cuppa and that was in a luncheonette in Chelsea, NYC.
@@eattherich9215 it seems in America a good cuppa is a tea bag dipped in hot water??? Mind you I love a good cup of coffee but ,there's an enormous difference in a well brewed cup of tea and a bag of crud dipped in hot water.
I lived in Golders Green for awhile. An absolute beautiful area and fairly close to everywhere. The L is nearby and the Bus picks you up Accross the street. I'm a bit of a shop holic so I spent an inordinate amount of time in Camden Town
@@welshpete12 love the irony, i DO hope ya can see it, are kid.
Julie, another difference that shocked me was in America so many stores and fast food restaurants are open 24/7 and English stores and restaurants tend to have more traditional business hours.
Back in the 1970s shops closed on Sundays and were closed in the evenings.
And some counties still no booze sold on Sunday, Blue Law
@@gavinreid2741 I remember that, and several closed early on Friday and Saturday.
@@ladyjustice1474 yes, it was actually in law until 1994 that shops had a half day closing., usually Wednesday.
A LOT fewer places in the US are fully 24/7 now. Covid stopped that and many places have stuck to a schedule somewhere between what they had pre-Covid and what they had in the very early days of Covid (once they re-opened, that is, for the spots that had closed). Walmart’s here now close at 11pm, same with all local groceries. Which sucks as someone who loves to bake at 2am, lol.
My US Navy family was stationed in England when I was a young teenager. We lived on the economy in a tiny, rural farming village that wasn’t well-off at all. I loved getting to experience living on a real working farm (that was older than the US colonies!), as we lived in the retrofitted dairy building. I went to secondary school in the nearest city- it was only 10 miles away, but the school coach took over 30 minutes to get there. A big memory standing out is how I nearly failed a maths unit early on in my first year in my English school because I could not understand the vocabulary or the heavy Somerset accents of my teachers and classmates (I did quickly catch on, but this particular maths unit was still early in the school year). My Mom (I quickly and easily switched to calling her Mum while we were stationed over there) had to go to the school to get my teachers to show more sympathy towards their young American student- this seemed to work! (I think of this situation a lot actually in my current job as a public elementary school teacher in the States, makes me quite sympathetic to kids in new and scary situations.)
Very interesting..
"maths" being very non-U.S.
Math or Mathematics
(Had to quit math at Diffy-Q)
I love this. I wish so badly I would’ve been treated difference as a kid with autism but was undiagnosed until after high school. (In the US)
Great video. As a Brit living in Las Vegas I have to get used to saying dish and laundry detergent. The English say washing up liquid and washing powder. A tap in America is a faucet.
Garbage (Canada), rubbish (UK) or trash (USA). Bin it! Boot of the care (trunk), the list goes on. Thank you very much indeed in stead of simply thank you. Well done you, instead of well done or good job.
Pants. I rest my case. No other word can lead to so much confusion and embarrassment. It means trousers in North America, and underwear in the UK and Ireland.
I am German living in Germany, married to an American. I have lived in the States for several years and I am very fond of Great Britain and its culture. This being said, to be an outsider of both cultures being discussed above, I listened to this video with a grin on my face. Very entertaining and delightful!
Thank you for reminding me of the many things I learned when I moved to England at the age of five. I spent many mornings at a British school bringing up the queue which meant being the last one in line walking to the park! I have to tell you it was a rude awakening moving back to the states at age 18 to attend college. I did not spend the entire time in England I also lived in France and Belgium. You are familiar with Belgian chocolate? When I came back to the states I spit out a Hershey bar thinking it had gone off (that’s British for gone bad). Every once in a while I slip back into my British lingo and there are times that I cannot think of words in English because I only know them in French! And that is over 40 years ago from living in Europe.
There is no comparison of European chocolate to Hershey's. Hershey's is just plain awful and DOES taste nasty if you've been used to European chocolate. I sympathize!
@@kathymcfarland5516 I agree with you, but the reverse is reading about an American visiting the UK who thought our Cadbury chocolate was awful, can you believe it? It's what you are used to.
@@kathymcfarland5516 p
Fish on a Friday is a Catholic tradition. In our household, we never have meat on a Friday, it's always fish (my mother is Catholic). When I was a little girl, we always had roast beef and Yorkshire pudding on a Sunday. Chicken was reserved for other days of the week.
It still holds sway in America, even after Vatican II. Every major city (and small towns probably) have restaurants that all serve clam chowder and have fish specials on Fridays.
As well as being a Catholic tradition my understanding is that people were encourage to eat more fish , during the reign of Elizabeth I, to increase the number of sailors who ib turn could be called upon to serve in warships.
We're no Catholic and we eat chips on a friday
It's for lent
Or Anglican, we always had fish on Friday too.
As an American from Kentucky living in Scotland, I can appreciate this video in a fun way as I have experienced the same cultural and language shocks as yourself Julie.
An Australian family in Louisville Ky for 18 months (Luisville, LUHvul Looey ville) was a fun time and fondly remembered.
I'd so love to hear your delicious accent--just imagine, Southern mixed in with a bit of Scottish brogue, how yummy!
There are quite a few Americans in Scotland. I've been here 20 years.
@@booperpotpie9634 My deal is, if I spend any time anywhere, I pick up the accent and way of speaking, to where locals think I'm a local as well.
Greetings from Canada, the country caught in between.
You are likely to hear both sets here
We generally lean toward the standard British pronunciations... But not always.
Cookies are usually a filled cookie, but shortbread are always biscuits, there are places to have afternoon tea with scones jam and clotted cream, or finger sandwiches.
I believe it was Winston Churchill who observed that Britain and The US are two great countries separated by a common language.
Absolutely loved this.
I lived in America for 10 years in various states from the early eighties. I didn't realise how English I was until strangers wanted to hug me and I felt most uncomfortable LOL (this has changed so much over the last 20 years, people hug a lot here now)
I had some confusing moments. An American friend used to call me and say "what's up" and I thought that she was asking me if there was anything wrong when she actually meant what are you up to, what's going on.
Then there was the time I was going to my usual workout class and the 4 ladies logging everyone into class said, buy x amount of tickets and you get a free fanny pack, I just burst out laughing in shock, and they were all intrigued, why was I laughing. I had to delicately explain that fanny is a rude word in Britain that means a ladies private parts. The class was in hysterics.
There were so many times I would say something only to see a blank face particularly if I was being ironic (the dry English sense of humour) and I would have to explain that I was just kidding.
I have lived back in England for about 30 years now but still say trash, loved my time in America 🙂
Love to my American cousins 😘
When my Dad went over to England in 1962 to marry my Beautiful English Rose, Mom it was much different...It took 15 hours from New York to Reykjavik Iceland then to Manchester...My Grandparents were the first to have a TV set and a telephone in the house..The neighbors always came over to use the phone...Everyone called my Dad the American Yankee...When my Grandad took my Dad to the pub..he asked for ice in his drink...Ice..we don't have ice here..Yankee...I was very lucky..I had my American family and my English family...My parents were married for 57 years till my Beloved Mother lost her battle sadly with cancer...
I traveled to the UK in 2007, up in the Lake District. I think the things that stood out to me were: there are dogs everywhere. Really well-behaved dogs! As a dog enthusiast, it was charming to see the dogs all just walking on a loose lead with excellent manners on the trains and even lying under the stools at the pubs while their owners had a pint. It was lovely! Also, train service. Everywhere. Here in the US, you only have train service between major cities. Funny words that struck me were “Way Out” instead of “Exit” and “Lift” instead of “Elevator”. Also, being a history lover that I am, walking into an ornate cathedral that had actual people buried under the stones I was walking on felt very strange, especially while being surrounded by sarcophagi with ornate carvings of the occupants. It was weird. Cool, but weird. Add to that an actual priest swinging incense around and I felt like I was in a movie. 😂
Dogs are popular in restaurants same as Germany. Dogs are OK but screaming kids are not. I think America have got it backwards.
@TE Lawrence oh please. 🥱🥱
@TE Lawrence That's nasty
@@DavidEVogel Yes. What's with kids these days? Why can't parents teach them manners early on? We see lot of noisy pampered kids in public places these days and parents don't shush them.
Yes, i travelled around the States with my dog in 2019 and owners were generally stunned when my dog would sit down to a hand signal, and stay until he was released. In the US few owners seem to bother training their dogs and if you see an untrained brute coming the other way on a rope it is best to cross the road (not that Americans walk anywhere much in the first place, of course)
I moved to the UK in 1988, and the first summer I had a job (1989) and went wandering around the local market during my lunch hour, sometime in August, I got sunburnt and started suffering from prickly heat. Even year before then, when my family were on a fortnight's holiday in Scotland, the first week we had wall-to-wall rain, but the second week was the most glorious sunny holiday we'd ever had. So I think it's a little unfair to comment that it's "always" raining during summer holidays... it's variable, as you'd expect from a temperate climate. (Cream first on the scone, then jam - it's logical because the jam is soft and shifts around, the clotted cream is stiffer and more spreadable like butter.)
Where did you move from if you don't mind me asking?
Ya it do t always rain at all it’s funny right now 🤣
I just love you! From a SOUTHERN American, I have a hug waiting just for you!
As a Proud Canadian don’t say “Canada is just the same as the States even in jest”. Canadians see that as an insult. We are proud of our own culture and want to maintain our differences. 🇨🇦
You mean like bashing the heads of baby seals and putting your flag all over your backpacks.
You have a culture?
I'm as Canadian as you are but I'm not offended by someone thinking we're the same as the US; I just roll my eyes a little because I realize that someone saying that has never been here and doesn't know what they're talking about.
@@sladelefty You apparently think that all Canadians approve of the seal hunt. I've never seen a survey on the matter but I expect there is plenty of opposition to it. It just isn't illegal, at least not yet. I think it is regulated though and it's a bit of a political hot potato because the people that do the hunting count on it for a big part of their otherwise meager income.
As for putting our flag on backpacks, that is apparently a defensive measure so that we don't get mistaken for Americans who, for better or worse, are reviled in some countries, usually over politics. (I'm NOT talking about Trump; this started during the Vietnam War as I understand it.) I've heard that many AMERICANS use Canadian flags on their backpacks just so that they are mistaken for Canadians so that they don't get harrassed by the locals but I don't know if that is true.
@@sladelefty Americans wear their flag everywhere, all the time, constantly, and don't seem to have a problem with it. Canadians wear their flag while travelling, so people don't mistake them for Americans. Like it or not, Canadians are better regarded in the world, and so are treated better.
When I visited London two years ago, the waitresses had a hard time understanding me. I’m from Texas. They had no idea what I was saying 🤣
Our Royal Navy friend did a great impersonation of a Texan, apparently it was a popular pastime 😂🇺🇸😂🇬🇧😂
Same for me being from NY! And I think I speak very clearly but I suppose it’s about what you are or aren’t used to
What always amazes me is the vast differences of the accents in the UK for such a small country. We have accents in the U.S., but you'll only see the larger differences after you've gone a fairly great distance.
Texas drawl! Lol
I am Canadian and tried asking for a glass of water in a restaurant. The waitress looked confused then looked at my cousin who translated : a glahss of water, with distinctly pronounced ts. I said, What do I sound like ? An American cowboy? “I’ll have a glaass of wadder ma’am.” 😄
As a dad and grandad with an ex-pat daughter who has been in UK for 27 years and three frightfully British grandchildren (ages 18-15) I really enjoyed this (and got all but one of the American-British word equivalents correct!
So pleased that I found your channel. I remember watching "Ladies of London," and I always thought you were so kind, open and warm. I am pleased that your family's estate is being sustained with you at the helm. Looking forward to more videos.
At the helm ?? Go on with yas talking all posh lmao
The reason the British drive on the left side of the road goes back to medieval times and is due to jousting. The knights strongest arm was the right arm and they would sit on the left side of the board separating the horses, holding the joust across their chest which was the most powerful position. The tradition was kept and use when car production began.
There are even archaeological hints or goes back to Roman times.
Yes,I knew we were first on this
Not being competitive or anything......
Everyone in Europe did until Napoleon came along, you can blame him for metrication also.
Cars slowly replaced horses, and horses are universally mounted from the left hand side, so we drive on the left because traffic has done just that since the domestication of the horse. The protocol also transferred to shipping which always passes to starboard and docks to port.
I just find it fascinating that the design on the car didn't follow the dominant hand idea. Operating a manual vehicle with the left hand instead of the right feels counterintuitive.
Do house terms next. I watch English house shows like Grand Design. It took me a while to learn: skip=dumpster; render=stucco; snug=TV room; skirting=baseboards; cornices=crown molding; glassing=windows; homely=homey (never tell an American they are homely); ceiling rose=ceiling medallion, bed head=headboard; valance=bed skirt. I'm sure there are a lot more.
I agree. They refer to tools differently as well. If you want a good laugh, watch the programs with the English sub titles on. Sometimes the translations have me chuckling.
And the “Which floor is referred to as ‘the first floor’ ?” confusion
The homely one gets me all the time- "What a homely room." Whatttt? laugh.
And they call the stovetop a hob! Or is that the oven as well!?
Err excuse me, that's crown moulding :) How about architrave?
I’m doing my MBA at a UK university online and I am an American and hug prone. The first time I met a particular classmate I went in for a hug and she looked nonplussed. I thought it was amusing at the time as she looked nonplussed and confused and now I get it! Also you forgot beans for breakfast. Went to a breakfast buffet and was literally like what are these beans on here for?
well you won't get on in business if you make people uncomfortable.
Pilling peas on the back of the fork!
@@angelicar451Mine in usa was peopleeating like animals ,can't use a knife and fork😂
Our accents and different dialects is something I love about Britain. Even where I live on the outskirts of Manchester all you have to do is to travel in some cases 5 or 10 miles and the accent/dialect will change. It's very localised for the most part and from town to town in a lot of cases. There's slight differences if you listen closely.
bang on Dave. i live 7 miles out of Leeds, and as soon as ya go in to town ya notice the change in accent. it's uncanny....love it.
@@blackbob3358 I live in Batley which is 9 miles from Leeds, we could be very close to each other
Same here in Sweden,, depending on where you live,,accents and dialects however are changing,, perhaps by our big immigration,but i've noticed It's more of a generation thing rather than distance between two places. it's distance in time. Older people speak more of the regional dialect and younger people much less. I don't know it's in the u.k
I think she protests to much, winging for the sake of it. Given the length of time she has been here, she should of got over some of this. At the end of the day she is living in a different country which is not the United States.
@@mattiasandersson2315 Pretty much the same here in England.
I visited England 10 years ago and have stayed very good friends with a few of the people I visited. All of the verbiage mentioned is so spot on! I have to add a few more though... simply because I had to acquaint myself to it very fast while there. One is the way English call the money they use, obviously we know 'pound' but I also would hear 'quid' and that confused me a lot until I realized that 'quid' is basically the slang version of 'pound' and that it's much like in America we say 'dollar' and use 'buck' as slang (think five bucks is five dollars, and in England five pounds is the same as five quid). Plus, there's the word 'Ta' and I found out that it's used not only as a greeting but as a farewell and also as a thank you. That one threw me for a loop! I also noticed too that when I was paying for things at a store and would say "Thanks! Have a nice day!" as I'm accustomed to here in America (and hear it all the time as well from cashiers or other employees) but in England I would say that and get a look of utter astonishment back. It was quite funny to realize that people in England just don't say things like that to each other when shopping and I had to get used to it quite quickly, but I still said it since I can't not do it haha. I absolutely LOVE England and the people and would visit every year if I could afford it :) Love this video!
I am English and never heard of ta as a greeting, ta ta can be used for goodbye and ta for thank you.
I lived in US for ten years and find our differences endearing. That's what makes travelling such fun.
American people were so kind to me and I loved being special as everyone loves my accent 😁
Glad you enjoyed our small country do come back, you are most welcome 😀
Mine was in reverse. The first time I went shopping in the US to get milk I was met by rows and rows of all different kinds; It was like playing 20 questions. I was used to opening the front door and taking it inside - end of transaction..Then they charged me more than the labels said. In England the tax is included in the price - in America - it's added after the purchases.
Sales tax laws are dictated by each state and, though commonly added at the register, you'd never pay sales tax on milk in my state. Food and clothes are exempt from sales tax here.
That was fun! I think we are more British than American! We do not like being told America and Canada are the same! Big differences, bottom line please know we are Canadians and very proud of it! 🇨🇦
Yes Canadian here- We are separate.
My parents lived in the UK, in Kent. I didn’t have culture shock when I visited, the different words things are called were talked about all my life. I loved visiting in England I felt very much at home. I was lucky the weather was warm the two weeks I visited the last week in August and first week in September.
Hi Julie! I'm a fellow Chicagoan who loves your videos! :) I lived in London from 2013-2014 while studying for my MA at UCL. One of the biggest reverse culture shocks that I experienced upon my return to America was how much water is in the our toilet bowls! I remember getting off the plane at O'Hare and going to the ladies room. At first, I thought the toilet was overflowing. It took me a second to remember that we just have more water in American toilets. 😂
The high water level in American and Canadian lavatory bowls was a surprise to me. I kept expecting the bowl to overflow on refilling.
Actually, the weather, when I visit the UK, is quite comfortable for me. I'm from Oregon, where we have the same type of weather as the UK--the marine climate. (At least on the west side of the Cascades.) It's often overcast, hardly ever snows, and looks as if it will rain, even when it doesn't.
The PNW always gets a nice summer though.
We do have more normal summers now here in western Oregon but growing here in the 1950-1960sit was cold. We have to say west of the mountains for the rain discussions because east of the mountains is a desert. The Cascade Mts are so high they block most of the clouds from continuing east.
@@thenetnat But shorter than I was used to in the Midwest. And no mosquitoes, which was a treat!
Funny to read your comment. I'm from Virginia, but as I was watching this video, I was thinking, "I'll bet Oregonians and Washingtonians would feel right at home."
remember the UK is not Just England....this annoys me americans equal the UK with England forgetting Wales Scotland and Northern Ireland (where i comefrom)
So like the eloquent, friendly and understanding young man. This is what the good Brits are to me. Such behaviour. A gentleman indeed and very accommodating.
British folks: "Its cold here, even in the summer" (yet, doesn't snow in winter usually)
Canadians (like me): "Uhh... oh please... don't whine about "cold" until you've endured -30C weather for a whole month, on a regular basis."
British winters, while damp, would be like a vacation compared to what we get here from November to March.
We know the weather isn't particularly cold in Britain but a lot of houses are very old, badly insulated, and poorly heated. My parents' house seems to remain at outdoor temperatures all year unless you're sitting next to the fire.
every thing's relative, mr Rennie. it's 46f now. i'm freezing 'cos i'm 66 and have "very thin blood"......that's it, mush.
I lived in Norway 6 years where it was below minus 20 often in winter and have experienced-30 but that was more a rare occourance than anything. I can say that honestly the cold is different, the cold in the northern latitudes is simply freezing but you can dress well against it and there is no damp in the air, no mould just ice cold. Having mini icicles form on your nose hair as you breath and your eyelashes as you blink is such a different cold form the British 2°c winter where its damp dark wet and windy for months. It makes you feel like the cold gets into your bones, the damp feels like your feet might rot off in winter if you're outside for any length of time and in your home its a constant battle against condensation and damp for many people. In Norway the houses were made if wood which made them really warm, here in England they're made of bricks and the cold air just transfers through the walls. At least they're warmer now than in the 80s when I was a child, with better insulation and central heating, but overall I find the extreme minus temperatures more comfortable to live in than the warmer windy wet ones we have here.
Definitely do the dinner etiquette, please. Also, can we get your husband's top ten about his visits to USA and meeting your family and home culture?
Love this idea!
Oh yes, turn the tables and get a Brit's take on American culture.
Great idea 👍🏼
That does sound fun!! How does the Viscount deal with his American in-laws??
Comment by Carmencita: He probably really appreciated his upbringing in the UK....
Julie Is a gem and so down to earth🤗I love her sense of humor
Yes,I laughed like a drain. I hate the climate also so I complain about that. And the cold,say no more. But even worse the cold deniers while my feet are freezing. Living in Wales,loving the Welsh and the landscape!
I enjoyed seeing her in the reality show. It was interesting
Loved this video! Having a dear English friend that visited when we lived in Southern California, her comment upon visiting Disneyland was “Walt Disney sure knows how to cue people!” Keep up the great work, Julie! Love this series!
I spent much of my early life going between Texas and the UK, and I have noticed a number of differences. One of my favorites is the silent W in words like Warwick and Fenwicks in the UK. Or the pronunciation of Saints, saint in the US, Sint, in the UK. Another is the difference between Men's Trousers and Men's Pants. In the US they are the same but not in the UK where men don't wear pants. I don't find the UK, at least in London, as cold (temperature) as the Viscountess seems to. In fact I have spend some very warm summers in London, longing for Air Conditioning. The great joy I have as a collector of dialects it the difference between London, Yorkshire, and Cornwall, Versus New York, Delaware Water Gap, Great Lakes, Southern and Texas accents. All of which tell us something interesting about our English speaking cousins.
Men definitely wear pants in the UK, it means underwear, unless you're in the north of England cos then pants gets used for p much any garment with two legs
@@testosteronic And obviously pants is also used to describe something that's rubbish
The Cornwall dialect is like marzipan; it is utterly unto itself. It's just so unique and honestly, I adore it.
I agree it is warm
@@testosteronic what is it the English call a diaper lololol a nappie I can't do that one
I must have been born to live in England: love cold cloudy weather, adore rain, live in the country on a narrow winding road, hate hugs, love my labs and was raised to set a correct table. Haha! You are a great old girl and very entertaining. Thanks
It rains much more in Wales, Ireland and Scotland!
I love setting a table so I would love to see a video on table etiquette.
Please no. Sounds very boring.
Table laying is an art form…please table etiquette.
@@ethicalpepper8253 I find laying out a beautiful table shows your guest you care. I find they always appreciate it and are inspired to create their own unique table settings.
I’m not sure my Sunday dinner table would come even close to passing! My question is.... Does everyone set a table even during the work week or is it just a weekend or special entertaining thing?
The whole lack of dinner etiquette here in the US really disappoints me. My mother always made us set the table each night when we were younger (before school activities later in high school (which usually started around dinner time-sports/band practice etc. and ended late.)). She wanted us to eat together and actually talk to each other about how our day was. The table should always be set at least on Sundays. My brother totally lost that tradition with his family. They eat on couches in front of the TV. So disappointing his kids don't get to experience those "old" traditions.
Love your videos. I am from Michigan so I can relate to your down-home Midwestern accent. Here's a culture shock that I experienced some years back. We live in Detroit, Michigan which is just across the Detroit River from Windsor Ontario, Canada. One day we were traveling and crossed into Windsor enroute to our destination, Niagara Falls. Just over the bridge we decided to stop at a McDonalds to get breakfast before getting on the freeway. I went in and ordered some sausage biscuits. The girl at the counter gave a look that clearly conveyed that I was some kind of nut. I finally pointed to a picture on the menu and ordered it. When I got in the car, we all had a good laugh that I had ordered in Canadian parlance "sausage and cookies." Now you have to understand that this happened about 5 miles from our house!
I’m Canadian and that is funny!
I was in the US years ago and ordered a Western sandwich the waitress looked at me like I was from another planet! She then came back to me a very shyly stated she didn’t know what I had ordered! I told her it’s egg, bacon, onion, and green peppers on toasted bread! My order came on two pieces of bread with a fried egg, slice of onion on that topped with slices of bacon!! I didn’t tell her the veg and bacon should be chopped and scrambled with the egg !
They still do not know what a Western sandwich is in the US!!! 😂
I’m originally from Massachusetts (and still live in, just a different part) right outside of Worcester and I’d have to say, I believe we pronounce many towns similarly to people in the UK or England - anyone else from Mass correct me if I’m wrong! But honestly I loved this video! It’s such a simple topic but something we can clearly go really in depth with!
Your towns are named after enlish towns or some of them are
Your towns are named after enlish towns or some of them are
I remember overall a quietness to places but especially pubs. I didn’t realize how it contrasted with places in the US until I returned home after a month of travel in the U.K. when I went to dinner I suddenly was feeling a bit overwhelmed by the loud noise of the restaurant.
Quietness in pubs depends on where you are. Country pubs tend to be quiet but city pubs can be just the opposite, same goes for restaurants.😊
I recall "social parlors" similar to a formal parlor in a house. Stuffed sofas and small tables. The bar had no more than 2 chairs. No TV. No distractions.
I finally went to a restaurant this year after 5-7 years of avoiding them and realized again why I just get take out.
I went out to a restaurant after COVID lockdown and it blew my mind how noisy it was. I had been really looking forward to going out and I had a horrible time. Not to mention when I asked for a menu and was shown a place on the table where I would now have to download the menu to my phone.
Don’t feel bad. After 2years in the Azores and nearly 3 in the UK, the noise in many American places (malls) was overwhelming to me also. I had a panic attack the first time we went out shopping in a mall. I really missed our quieter country life. Later the AF sent me to Seoul for a year. That was a sensory overload for a few months! 😳
This is my favorite Julie video! You seemed so relaxed! My favorite difference is No Hugs. I work in Entertainment and for years have been hugged by virtual strangers and/or persons I don't really like that well. It's just what they all do. Hugs should be for special people and special moments. Don't cheapen hugs!!! :)
We in Iceland did learn to stand in line when Covid came.
This is a nice show. Regards from Iceland 🇮🇸
very friendly service on delivery but the blueberries were past their best.
Did you really not stand in lines before that in Iceland? We in Canada are practiced liner uppers, perhaps due to our country’s British history.
Hello...great video! It was wonderful to hear you (Viscountess : ) ) Clare and Stephen have a fun, laid back conversation! And you asked such fun questions (things we all want to ask ourselves!). I will be watching you faithfully. Thank you....such fun!
P.S. - the weather conversation is so funny!
That was fun! I was in London about 28 years ago, a week before Christmas and it was bitter cold…and I’m from Boston, where we have some extreme winters and can have tons of snow! Apparently it was the first time London saw snow in about 20 years…and it was just a dusting! So beautiful there!!!!loved every minute if it!!!
We get snow every winter on the northern hills in England.
In the city of Hamilton, in the province of Ontario, Canada...Friday was always fish and chips, wrapped in newspaper, from the fish and chip shop, when I was a child.
Yes, and the inks they used in newsprint contained lead.
I love everything British. It's amazing how such a little country has so much history and traditions. I was fascinated by the round abouts and the length of time it took to drive from England to Scotland since it looked so close. Best fish and chips hands down. Love taking afternoon tea. Confused about fried Mars bar and curried chips. Always look forward and enjoy my visits there.
Culture and traditions are more to do with age than size. The British Isles have been successively occupied by the Celts, the Romans, the Norsemen, the Anglo-saxons, the Normans and people from the old British Empire for over 3000 years.
Ha! I'm from the Pacific NW in the US and I went to the UK for three months, April through June, expecting the weather to be much like home. It wasn't. It was, on average, drier, sunnier, and warmer than I expected. I did experience rain, but it was rare and usually light. Lots of gusting winds, particularly in the Wales and the Orkneys. My last week was a hellish heatwave in Cambridgeshire. And London. In June.
Weather in the UK used to be more predictable - hot summers and snow in the winter. My advice to Americans visiting England in the Spring/Summer is that you will need an umbrella and something warm to wear on at least one day during the visit.
Were you there in 2018? I was in Kent during April and May of that year and saw very little rain and endured a short heatwave too. No a/c 😓. I ended up hanging around the refrigerated section of Sainsbury’s where it was a bit cooler. I also got my free Sainsbury’s shorts there. The guy running my purchase through got distracted by my Canadian accent and forgot to charge me 😁
@@eattherich9215 Well, I came expecting much more rain. More like at home during that time of year.
@@sheilaenglish7329 2017. Wales, Isle of Man, Lake District, Orkneys, Shetlands, Grampians, Ayr, Hadrian's Wall, Cosford, Duxford, and Cambridgeshire.
My mum was born in Dublin, Ireland, and at 16 moved to Manchester to seek out work. 10 years later she met my father who was an American station at Burton Wood Air Force Base. They fell in love, got married and my sister was born in Manchester. 18 months later I was born in Orlando, Florida. We returned to Ireland and England when I was 3 for a year as my father was sent on a remote assignment. After this we moved to California. In 1966 my Father got stationed at High Wycombe Air Base, and we lived in High Wycombe for 3 years, returning in 1970. So, growing up with my mum, I became literate in British and American, and I feel comfortable with both dialects. I spent 3 months when I was stationed in Germany in 1977 at Lakenheath Air Base. Then much later in the 1990's I worked for an American associate of Lucas Automotive, and for 3 years was traveling back and forth to Birmingham. Thanks for the video series I love it.
Hello
Why do you call your mom mum?
-or- mummy instead of mommy? What do you call a mummy (person who has passed away wrapped in cloth)
@@janetlynn3397 It's just an Irish and British term of endearment for one's mother.
My father was stationed at Burtonwood during the Berlin airlift. Mum was from Manchester. My older sister and I were born in Manchester, my younger sister was born in New York state. When dad was stationed to places where we couldn't go with him (Canada & Viet Nam) my mother would take us to live in Manchester. Grew up 'bilingual' and appreciated both countries and cultures.
We British people say "Knife and fork": Americans weirdly insist on saying "fork and knife".
If you shout to a British waitress "where's my fork and knife?" it could be misinterpreted... ! :)
Interesting. I’m American and I’ve always heard “knife and fork”.
I wonder if it’s a regional thing.
I said that in a British accent and laughed way too long : )
"where's my fork and knife" in an Irish accent (northern irish in particular i think) is even more amusing.
Speaking as an American (midwest born and bred) I have never heard or said “fork and knife”.
@@richardpowell1772 th-cam.com/video/X_JZ7fd1Q7A/w-d-xo.html (time 0:27)
Yes, the narrow twisty roads left me a nervous wreck, and I was a passenger! I wasn't too surprised at some of the differences in common words, after years of watching British TV and movies.
Great video!
Definitely worse as a passenger than a driver.
I would encourage all Americans to travel to the UK, we love you all each and every one of you and you're all most welcome here.
Absolutely loved this! Growing up in the Caribbean we used words like grip vs suitcase, press vs cupboard, primary vs elementary and secondary schoo etcl. I still love using the English words, even though we've become somewhat americanised these days. We still follow the English language and spell words differently colour vs color, neighbour vs neighbor.
Thanks for sharing!
I recognise grip, too. Yard means home and when we got home from school, we changed into yard clothes.
"Press" is a traditional Scottish word for a cupboard in the wall.
I loved this. My gran was Scottish I didn’t realize how “English” I was raised!! I knew most of the words and much of the foods!!! Thank you for the smile!! (We take no cream in our tea lol)
I'm so glad!
Scotland is part of Britain and the United Kingdom but it is definitely not part of England.
@@robynmurray7421 I know that.. what I was saying is I didn’t realize how close the traditions were. That’s why English is in quotation marks. But thank you for treating me like I’m an idiot. I appreciate it.
Could have a lot of fun with the Scottish words. Even your English guests would be flummoxed
@@AmericanViscountess Love these, normally, but so much yapping just to get to the "point" my dear ? Get to the WORDS ? Bye Bye.
The production and editing in this video are excellent, setting it apart from the many videos on TH-cam about the same topic. Being hosted by a Viscountess and the rather grand setting are points of interest, but it is the action off camera that will make me subscribe. Well done on some very enjoyable viewing.
Thank you for watching!!!
I always remember watching the Osbournes & when they are planning a trip back to their house in England. Ozzy warns the crew how bad the weather is. Cold, damp & rainy.
Subbed! American here, who loves all things British. My favorite was no hugs. I am not a hugger and neither were my parents or their parents. My grown kids make fun of me for this, but now it makes sense. Some of my ancestors are from the UK, emigrating to the colonies before the Revolutionary War. I guess old habits are hard to break.
Yes but we English shake hands with everyone. In Washington state( country area. I shook hands with a lady, she looked strangely at my friend’s wife, who quickly said, “ It’s ok, he’s English.”
I pestered them asking, “What did I do wrong?”
After a little persuading they told me, “ We would think you were being forward. Like hitting on someone.”
I was very embarrassed. Explaining “ but we shake hands with everyone!”
They told me a woman has to offer first to shake hands.
This may have changed now. It was 1981.
@@irpriestley Mostly we shake hands in business situations. I never heard that a lady must extend her hand first. Some country folk have limited experience with “outsiders”, a narrow world view, so they take offense where none exists.
@@merrywalsh2809 yes but it was a long time ago.
@@irpriestley they are insecure nothing wrong with that
@@Rayrayray-fv3oo she thought I was being fresh!
Hard core want a dinner etiquette video!! HOWEVER young man - as a duel citizen USA/CANADA - but I grew up in Canada- and therefore identify as Canadian- please please please don't ever call Canadians Americans - it's why we travel with SOME SORT of Canadian flag on us!!
Canadians like to make sure they display our flag so as not to be mistaken for Americans. Most of Europe, and probably other parts of the world also, tend to find Americans are quite rude. Often they can't believe that other countries are not exactly like the U.S.
As an English person it's so funny hearing other countries say how crazy it is that we queue for everything. I literally don't understand how you wouldn't queue like it's just what you have to do otherwise it'd be chaos surely? 😂
I love the UK and live here now but in the US we just don't have very many long lines. More stores means fewer people there at the same time.
Checkout anywhere though has a 'que' :-)
I didn't get that one I'm in Canada east and we line up for everything.
I think what she means to say is there are very rarely queues in the U.S our stores are very efficient and there's normally only 4 or 5 people in my grocery store. More space, less people, less queues
I lived in Great Lakes, Il. for a year from '81-82. Had a blast.
Most of the things you mention I've learned from watching British comedy over the last 40 years or so. Watch more TV -- I mean, telly, and you'll soon pick it up. I scored 100 in your words section! Yes! As for the grocery bagging -- since the pandemic, we have been bagging our own groceries more often. Although, I must say, the cashiers seem uncomfortable watching us struggle with it. Maybe that's a New York thing. I personally would love the cold and the rain. Can I come over now? It's way too hot here.
This was fun. I'd like to see a video on table setting and etiquette. I think that could be fun as well.
This has been such a fun video, I had to write. I am not a Viscountess but I am British. I met my American husband and moved to Minnesota. Your top ten were some of the same for me however, in reverse!!! I have had my work cut out trying to teach my family the table manner etiquette taught by my English mum! My American inlaws have no idea what the table settings are for when they come for special meals like Christmas dinner. This has been such a delight, thank you!
I was born in England. Moved to US at 2 years old. I enjoyed this video and learned so much!
Visiting London when I was younger , my family and I were lost and I asked a random stranger the directions somewhere. He ended one of his sentences calling me "love". I thought that was so endearing. More videos like this please!!
When I visited Liverpool some people called me 'queen' - hard to top :)
Yes! I had a cab driver say “Thank you me love” I just about melted. One thing, they still use the word “groovy”. When my kids heard it from a very young person, they found it hilarious.
My parents lived in England for 3 years & we would visit them. The 5 things that surprised me were rubbish instead of garbage, garden rather than yard, boot instead of trunk, Hoover rather than vacuum & loo instead of bathroom.
I don't understand why Americans call a garden a yard; after all you do gardening, not yarding/yardening.
@@solatiumz Likewise with bathroom. I was in Blackwell's, the famous Oxford bookshop and a man standing next to me asked a passing assistant, "Excuse me, but do you have a bathroom here?" She directed him, but left me wondering why on earth an American would come into a bookshop for a bath!
@@rawleymyers5647 Bathroom I can cope with, it's the use of "restroom" that makes my mind boggle!!
Milk was added first under the original theory, in Scotland, that hot tea would crack the Porcelain cup if poured in first.
Loved this! It was so much fun! A real hoot! I recommend getting a book with all of these cultural tips, especially the jargon, if you're headed to the UK and you aren't familiar with the "language", and if you don't do a lot of reading by English authors where you have already been enjoying our differences. I love British humor, love how polite and kind the British are, and taking time for tea is so special and a wonderful way to calm down in the middle of a harried day. On our first trip, our guide (who is now a life-long friend) couldn't get over how we loaded on the clotted cream and munched our way through the tray of sandwiches and treats each day. Well...lol...he had us walked off our feet, so of course we were hungry! 😄😉 Every trip was a delight! Beam me up again, please! If I could...a little cottage in a village would be at the top of my dream list. Please do more of these comparison videos. If you have more already, I'm going to hunt them up! A pleasure to watch this!
Here in central Indiana, we have adopted many roundabouts. It's helps prevent many people running stop signs.
Gosh I hate them😫
It also can make the flow of traffic more efficient. Rouand-a-bouts also save money, because there are no traffic lights to power or maintain.
We call them traffic circles in parts of Canada.
One thing we noticed when visiting were cold floors-without central heat some places we visited had pervasively seeping into the feet through the soles of the shoes chilliness. Also some older buildings retrofitted to be hotel lodging-March in Edinburgh-despite heavy drapes (which we put our food behind so it would stay refrigerated) the drafts from the window made our room like an icebox. We unpacked our wool tourist blankets and added them to the hotel bedding to stay warm. Woke up to snow everywhere. In London, we noticed the locals bundled up in heavy coats and scarves wound around-it was 65 degrees-we were in shirtsleeves-with a light sweater in the tote for later if needed-we did receive odd looks. We also noticed that drivers were mostly all politeness and turn taking to navigate the streets-rarely any aggressive drivers-unlike in the USA.
I lived in the UK for about ten years. Houses were always cold as heat is so expensive. What got me is that the people I lived with or visited, spent a lot of money on wine. I always wished they'd do without the expensive vino and turn up the heat instead. Priorities...
We seem to have a lot of angry people here in the U.S. Maybe its our political leadership.
I remember cooking a meal with my best friend who is British for the first time. It took at least 5 minutes to figure out that she was asking me for the oregano (Or-e-gan-o). When she met my mom for the first time, I made her pronounce it and it took my mom 5 minutes to figure it out too. Also, years later, at her wedding, I needed to know where the trash was located and NO ONE could figure out what I was asking for! I thought they were just giving me a hard time, I tried garbage and Trash can. Finally, a Scot came over and barked at them, 'She means the bin, ya numpty!', which was ironic because I could only understand about every third word he was saying, but he understood me. I still don't quite know what a numpty is. Ha! Gouda cheese is also a fun one...Americans say "Goo da", and British say 'Gow da"
British say 'Gow da" - funny that, so do the Dutch.
The transferware in that beautiful cabinet is amazing.
As a Brit, I do get fed up by the constant criticism of the British weather. Yes, the winters are grey and damp. But in the summer, especially in the south of England, there are usually fairly frequent spells of warm to sometimes hot, and dry, weather. I have often experienced periods of a week or two of blue skies with temperatures in the 80s or 90s degrees F. OK, these may be interspersed with periods of somewhat cooler temperatures. But then a week or two later temperatures will often rise again. It is an exaggeration to say summers are always cold.
The one that got me caught out many times was using "pants" instead of "trousers" in the UK and getting very strange looks
So true. Trousers (in Canada) refer to men's suit pants. A woman would never wear trousers. Underwear is called underpants or panties.
In the north west of England we say pants for trousers which confused my uni friends back in the day.
I love her she's sooo down to earth! I'm moving to London so I love her videos like this so I can learn British culture before I move there!
I am a Canadian living in the US and find so many differences. Thanks for sharing yours. I do find that Canadians do share alot with our English friends.
When we went to the Chelsea Flower Show in 2001, it was sunny every day for a whole week! Beautiful everyday. ❤️
I have been watching a lot of British TV via You Tube. From home improvement and restoration shows, to real estate programs. Now I am watching a lot of vlogs of Brits that have moved to France and bought chateaus. It seems like all the trades people they hire for reno work are all British too. As a result, I have picked up a few British turns of phrase, like: "I have it all sorted" rather than the American version of "figuring it out". I didn't even realize I was doing it.
And of course there are things like the British "pudding" Spotted Dick, that would have Americans howling with laughter.
“Spotted dick” sounds like a terrible social disease. However, my favorite is “ Toad in the hole!” (Sounds like roadkill.) 😂😂😂😂
Great memories from when I lived in a British community in the Middle East. We had such fun learning all the language differences.
I love this girl. I'm a Brit but have lived in Houston for the last 35 yrs. I so understand where you're coming from. Too funny.
I can relate to this being an Englishman who emigrated to Canada 14 years ago. In my case the 'reverse' culture shock is also true so I can relate to all of these things as well. What is clear to me are the major differences between different regions of all countries (I also lived in Germany) and between the rural and urban areas of those regions. Also, do not call Canadians 'Americans' even though its all part of North America, they dont like it.
'... they dont like it.' They HATE it. I no longer make assumptions when I hear a North American accent because in my experience, they are usually Canadian.
@@eattherich9215 Am Canadian. Will wholeheartedly confirm! 🤣
I don't think Americans enjoy being called Canadian.
@@k4949 You got that Right!!
This was fun to watch esp as a Canadian. We adopted many names and mannerisms of the British so for me, it doesn't feel strange to use English words 😊
I appreciate that Canadians spell the British way.
@@eattherich9215 Unfortunately, not for everything. Most Canadians will spell colour/neighbour/etc with a “u”, but that’s usually where it ends. In Canada, it’s realize/apologize instead of realise/apologise, pediatrics instead of paediatrics, etc. I’m British/Canadian raised in Toronto
We line up alot in my country in the Caribbean so much so when I was traveling on the ferry and there was a line to get into line😄.. the guard who was standing inside said he never asked anyone to line up everyone just automatically did...we love a line lol...and now i think it may be part of British colonial history
Loved the bit of Peter Gabriel when talking about sledgehammers!!
I love to watch British TV, and because of that, I knew a lot of these. My sister moved to Australia years ago, and started a university course. On the first day, the other students decided to have some fun with the American, but she came prepared. They said "Could I please borrow a rubber?" She pulled out an erase and something else that Americans call a rubber and said "Take your pick."
That's hilarious! Score one for us Yanks!!
You win the internet 🤣🤣🤣🤣
Really enjoyed this Julie! Have been to the UK and Ireland many times and I think the number one thing for me is the pronunciation of places. We N. Americans tend to pronounce things according to the spelling.
Yes! My husband and family laughed at me endlessly about my pronunciation in the UK. I think the way Americans pronounce things makes more sense because it’s more straightforward, but don’t tell a Brit that!! 😂
What about enough or thorough?
MILK FIRST!!! As a half American, who lives in Australia, and has recently fell in love with the Monarchy, I am loving your videos! Please keep up the great work!