1. Japan:
– That super expensive fruit you see in the store is for gifting. It costs more because it’s grown to be very pretty and packaged well. Reasonably priced fruit also exists.
– People very rarely visit each other’s houses. Houses are small, walls are thin, and people are private. Even families tend to do larger gatherings at onsens or restaurants instead of anyone’s home. If people don’t invite you to their homes, don’t be offended.
– Trash is a very, very big deal. Some places have 10+ categories of garbage, which must be sorted, cleaned, and placed out on the morning of the appropriate day, not the night before. People take this quite seriously.
2. Switzerland:
– Almost everything is closed on Sundays, including grocery stores, pharmacies, restaurants, etc. In a pinch, you can go to train stations, airports, or even a little corner shop where there are ’emergency food items’ that are marked up and have minimum credit card limits. Think frozen pizza and overpriced milk. Others who live close to the borders shop in France, Germany, etc.
3. Mexico:
– Everything is centered around the family. Restaurants always have huge tables because it’s always multiple generations and big families out to eat. Restaurants have family meals more often than not.
– We’re more formal here than in the US. We dress every day and don’t wear athleisure. Most people do hair and makeup for basic errands or family days. Shorts and flip-flops are rare, even in beach towns. Think smart-casual to get groceries.
4. Norway:
– We have so many hiking trails and little cottages where you can stay overnight for next to nothing. If you like hiking, definitely come here. Just know that when the trail info says it takes four hours, it actually does take four hours of active walking. I have met so many people complaining about the length of the hike because they are in normal shape and expected the trail would take less time for them.
5. Netherlands:
– We are not hospitable people by culture, and we always eat dinner at 18:00. If there are visitors in the house, we gently shoo them out if it is near 18:00. Dining with a Dutch person is quite rare.
6. Taiwan:
– Cash is still the number one form of payment, and many places may not accept cards at all.
– Kitchens are seen as unnecessary in many apartments because eating out is so cheap and convenient.
7. Spain:
– Shops close in the middle of the day, not because of the siesta, but because it is a mandatory lunch break forced by the companies to hire only one person for the morning and afternoon shifts. Workers are not sleeping; they have lunch and kill time until the afternoon opening hours.
8. United States:
– If you don’t tip, the server doesn’t get paid. The tip is not a little extra, and you’re not being generous if you say to keep the change. At places where you’re expected to tip, such as a restaurant, the staff gets very little in the way of wages; they work for the tip. If you decide not to tip, you’ve just made the waitress work for you for free.
– Public transportation is pretty much non-existent in most of the country other than huge cities.
9. Singapore:
– You can walk out at 3 a.m. to the most ‘dangerous’ part of town, and you will still be totally safe.
10. Serbia:
– There is no splitting bills in a bar or restaurant. Everyone argues about that, and the most persistent or cagey person pays it as some kind of a ‘win’.
11. Belgium:
– We do, in fact, eat fries almost weekly, but the waffles are a more rare occurrence.
12. Italy:
– October is possibly the best month to visit Italy. We still have nice temperatures pretty much all over Italy, and you don’t have the same amount of tourists that you find in the summer.
13. Peru:
– It’s insulting to serve yourself without everyone else first. I would never refill my beer without ensuring everyone else’s glasses were full around me.
14. Lithuania:
– Most of us are welcoming people. If you are our guest, there will be food at the table, and there will be a lot sometimes. If it’s a quick and unexpected visit, you will get tea or coffee and some sweets! If you are a close friend/relative, there is a big chance you’ll get some food packed to take with you 🤭.
15. France:
– If you go to buy bread in Paris between 6 and 7 p.m. you will have a line at a good bakery store. That’s not a cliché. It’s true we do buy bread quite often if not every single day.
16. Australia:
– Too few people are really prepared for how fast the Australian sun will burn them when they get off the plane…If your SPF isn’t 50+, it might as well go in the bin.
What’s something that many tourists might not know about the country where you live? Tell us in the comments or in this anonymous form.
