Things You Come to Realize When You Go to Europe

Things You Come to Realize When You Go to Europe

Shannon’s take on an article posted on http://theodysseyonline.com

1. We are louder... than everyone...

This takes a little time to notice. When on the trains or on the street, stop talking for a moment. It's actually pretty quiet... Yep, and it’s embarrassing when you’re an American and you see a fellow American being obnoxious and you want to apologize to everyone else on behalf of the moron.

2. Going to class in workout clothes WILL result in dirty looks and judgment.

"Sweats" are not really a thing in Europe, and usually, the people are dressed pretty well. I don’t generally dress like that in public even when I am in the U.S., but it’s true: Londoners and Parisians have more class and self-worth it seems when it comes to appearing out in public.

3. You must embrace a lack of deodorant from those around you.

For some reason, body odors tend to... well, linger a little more. Yep. Just, yep.

4. No matter how hard you try, you still look American.

You can shed your sorority/frat letters and your "I HEART NY" shirt, but for some reason, you still GLOW American. Actually, in Paris anyways I kept being mistaken for a Parisienne, which was the most flattering thing ever.

5. But some people actually like that.

Some locals are oddly fascinated with "The States" and love to find a place they've been there that is familiar to you. True of Parisiennes anyways, which we found to be much friendlier than Londoners.

6. Embrace (or get over) the constant smell of cigarettes.

Smoking is completely culturally acceptable and common here. So, get over it. This one I’ve got to really disagree on. I mean yes, Paris smokes like a chimney, but it’s annoying, and weird really, because they’re so progressive in certain areas, and yet not in the area of sucking-carcinogens-into-bodily-organs.

7. If you see someone falling-over-drunk, 99 percent of the time, they're American.

An absolute given. We can't handle our liquor like the people here. Actually I’ve heard that we just have bad manners. It’s much more socially unacceptable to be intoxicated in public in Europe, at least where I was.

8. Clubs cater to people of every age.

Unlike American bars and clubs where (with the exception of the fake ID entry) everyone is over the age of 21 and generally under 30, the bars here have a variety of 18-50 year olds dancing all alike... scary. K, so didn’t go to any clubs therefore can’t verify. But hey I say more power to ‘em! Age is just a number.

9. The people will greatly appreciate it when you (attempt) to speak their language.

Nothing brings a smile to a foreigner's face like seeing you try to say "thank you" or "hello" in their language. It reminds them that we do actually appreciate their culture. Yes! And my tries at French were so practiced (I am a Francophile after all) that many people started speaking back in fluent French after my simple phrases.

10. You will greatly miss your dryer.

Rarely, if ever, do you come across a dryer accompanying a washing machine. Everything is air-dried. Thank goodness for the Laundromat next door. I can’t do the stiff, scratchy clothes thing. I assume it’s an environmental thing and so I feel like I should be tough and put up with stiff, scratchy, un-dried clothes, but I just can’t do it. Some things are too unpleasant to forgo. I can easily be vegan, which is the most environmentally-friendly diet, so let’s let me use a little electricity to dry my clothes thanks.

13. You can, in fact, walk by police on the street holding an open beer can.

Greatest law (or lack of law) ever. Again, haven’t tried this. But it was nice because I got a beer at Sainsbury’s and wasn’t carded for it even though I look like I’m twelve I’ve been told.

14. Public transportation is not an option-- it is life.

The public transportation is efficient, also surprisingly clean, and used by pretty much everyone in the city. Yes, and for someone who is not confident as a driver, living in a big city with public transport is like the solution to life’s hardest questions.

15. The locals here WILL be fascinated with what you are studying in their country.

It is almost a guarantee that after telling a local you are studying in their country, they will respond eagerly with, "so what are you studying?" Every. Single. Time. I wasn’t a student, sadly. But maybe I’ll do my grad studies abroad…I can have my dreams can’t I??

16. Far too often, you will accidentally buy "sparkling" water instead of regular. Yuck. Although sparkling water is available in the U.S., it is not as common as here-- where regular and sparkling are considered... well, equals. Sparkling water is delicious. Especially when you run in to a Franprix and all around you are French words being spoken by locals and you can pretend, for just a second, that you are one too.

17. It is no rumor: beer is literally cheaper than water. (And water is not free.)

Instead of trying to save a few bucks by getting water, always, ALWAYS get a beer. Here, it will actually save you some cash. Water is cheaper in Europe than it is in the US, at the grocery anyways. I think the cheapest I found was 1L in Paris for 29 Euros. Can’t beat that. And if you chug water like I do, it would be futile to replace that with beer. Seriously, let’s get real here. Not even funny.

18. We have been trained since birth to eat way, WAY too much.

The server will be straightforward and let you know that you are, in fact, ordering WAY too much. Like only a true American does. We didn’t go to any restaurants like that, but we did our people-watching and noticed that everything is smaller in Europe, and that is rather nice. Americans can be disgustingly excessive in all areas, that’s for sure, which is not to say Europeans can’t, but as a whole they are much less so.

19. Ice is a precious novelty and shouldn't be taken for granted... drinks are rarely served with ice. Get used to some nice, luke-warm drinks. I will never again take ice for granted, or pretend that I don’t love it just so that I can fake my European-ness or hipster-ness. Ice = necessary. It was 100 degrees while we were in Paris, and not only did we not have A/C, but of course, no freezer/ice-maker. The solution: STARBUCKS!!! I went to at least one every day, and it was heaven. I try to steer clear of them while at home (price, affiliation w/ Monsanto, not organic) but while abroad I had to get my fix. Starbucks was the only place I knew I could get ice and A/C while in Paris.

20. You will be judged if you eat dinner before 8:30 and leave before 10:30.

People enjoy their meal in the evening and have no rush... unlike anything we're used to. It's actually a nice change of pace. We cooked at our apartment, which beat eating out! Because eating dinner at 8:30? No thank you. I’m not going to pretend I like that either just to “fit in” with the locals.

21. Sometimes you get charged to use public restrooms (WC's), and it stinks.

Although it may not cost much, there are often bathroom attendants trying to either rip you off, or actually charging for using the public facilities. Never saw a bathroom attendant, but had to pay a couple of nominal fees for general upkeep. No prob.

22. Cars WILL hit a pedestrian.

You must come to grips with the fact that in you vs. car, the car will always win. And here, the drivers aren't afraid to show you. Yikes, glad we didn’t observe that. Actually pedestrians seemed really confidant in their ability to not be hit by cars. But again, maybe it was just timing.

23. The people here are generally more eco-friendly.

Between the lack of dryers, AC, the eco-friendly settings on EVERYTHING, the heavy use of public transportation, and conservation of water, the people seem a bit ahead of the curve with helping good ole Mother Nature. Yes, but the host we stayed at in London didn’t recycle and I was appalled.

24. Men are not afraid to wolf-whistle or honk loudly... in fact, this happens far too often.

Public display of affection is much more common here, and the same can be said for men trying to get your attention. They will not hold back. Actually, the only experience we had with men being rude in public was them shoving us quite literally on the street and the tube. Disappointing. Chivalry really is dead.

25. You realize that even though you're in a different country, on a different continent, there are still comforting similarities that prove we're not so different after all. Amen to that. That was the coolest thing, and the reason I want to keep traveling for the rest of my life.