America can be a strange place, especially if you're not from here. Check out all the craziest moments these visitors had while vacationing in the states. (They might even have you saying
Those aren’t wheelchairs…
“I went to Disneyland in Anaheim, and it just struck me that there were a large number of disabled people out and about enjoying the rides. I’m from India (where there is no shortage of disabled people) but it was just the sheer number of disabled people that made me extremely happy that the park was accessible to everyone. You done good America, I said to myself as I ate some horrible expensive fried thing. I later realized that most of those people were not disabled but fat people on scooters who did not feel like walking. Where do I sign up?”
Yep, that’s definitely a word…
“Aussie here. When I started chatting to a cashier she squealed and asked where I was from. I told her Australia and she instantly dumbed down how she spoke. ‘DO…Y’ALL…SPEAK…ENGLISH…DOWN…THERE?’ I replied ‘sporadically.’ She laughed and informed me that wasn’t a word.”
Greeting an officer
“One of my old bosses was from the UK and got pulled over on one of his first days in the states. Apparently in the UK the polite thing to do is to approach the policeman and see what the problem is. So he got out of the car to meet the police officer and it went about as well as you’d expect. Guy almost got shot and was handled roughly until the situation was figured out.”
Moving from Africa
“After moving from Africa, as a teen, I’m repeatedly asked why I moved to Africa in the first place, to which I reply that I’ve always lived there.
I am also asked, ‘So why are you white?’ To which I reply, ‘Oh my god, Karen, you can’t just ask people why they’re white!’ However, when they reply with blank stares I realize they aren’t referencing Mean Girls…. Some other questions I get often: So Africa is one country and all the borderlines are, like, states? Are there, you know, buildings? You guys have memes over there, right? Are you AUSTRALIAN???”
Bathroom gaps
“First time I went to the US and used the bathroom I was so weirded out by the set up. Those gaps in the sides your toilet stall doors…what are they even for?”
Norma’s
“There was a place called ‘Norma’s’ in Washington State. Somewhere rural. Anyway, it was like a shrine to George Bush. The owner was a guy and the back of a menu had his face with the quote ‘Just call me Norma’ on the back. Best burger I ever had, called the George W Bush Burger.”
Welcome to Los Angeles
“My first night in LA I watched as a stolen cop car and a million cop cars flew past me down Hollywood Blvd at 60mph at 10pm, then I turned and walked back into the Thai restaurant where I watched the fugitive get PIT maneuvered and shot dead live on the news via Helicopter chase cam. Dude sitting next to us was excited to tell us we had officially ‘experienced’ LA. Over the top car chases, action chase cam news, neon lights in Hollywood, an Asian restaurant that made me feel like I was in an art film…he was right.”
Winter in July
“Australian here – I went to Houston last year and spoke to a girl my age in the airport, we got chatting about Uni/College (it was around July) and she asked me if I was on my summer vacation. I casually explained I was on my winter break. She was genuinely confused and did not understand how it was summer in the US but Winter in Australia. I tried to explain but eventually gave up.”
Flags, everywhere!
“I’m from America, and I have a friend from Australia. It amazes him that there are so many flags, everywhere. Apparently that is a distinct USA thing. He’ll make jokes about how we all forget where we are.”
The nice lady
“I asked an old lady if it’s true all Americans carry guns. She smiled and pulled a revolver out of her purse. She was a nice lady.”
Mall of America
“I was 12 years old when I spent a month in Minnesota. I remember going ‘Wtf’ (or at least a French equivalent) when we went to Mall of America and I saw the frigging roller coaster inside of it.”
The Korean friend…
“Korean friend who just got off the plane in Atlanta: ‘So many big black women!’ Yes, he said it loudly and in public. But my favorite was a Japanese fellow who went to a buffet with a group of us in Vegas. He sits down and his plate looks like a normal little meal; we all have heaps of shit all over ours, and his eyes bug out that we have so much food. I said he’s really going to freak out when he realizes this is only our first plate.”
Camels in Mumbai
“My biggest wtf was in Fall 2005. Google Earth had just come out, and my colleague at the University lab and I were looking at it. She was a blonde bombshell from San Diego, and I’m a portly Indian boy. When I showed her Mumbai, my home city, she was blown away. ‘You have buildings?’ ‘Look, there’s an airport!’ ‘Oh my god, you have cars?’ How the hell do you think we get around, I asked. Her reply still rings on my head–not walking, not cows, not elephants, not bicycles, not horse drawn carts. She said camels. If I ever saw a camel in Mumbai I’d stop everything I’m doing and say ‘Holy shit that’s a f_cking camel!'”
Something’s a little fishy…
“When I first came to the US and my dad took us to a restaurant, I ordered a fish dish and when it came out I asked my dad how come the fish doesn’t look like a fish. I was used to whole cooked fish, so deep fried fish fillet looked really strange to me.”
Entering the US
“Well. I hadn’t even arrived yet in the US but in the plane as a foreigner you have to fill out a paper to enter the country with various questions among which, ‘Did you come to murder the President of the United States?’ WTF America?”
The homeless man outside of Union Station…
“When I first moved to America one of the first things I saw after leaving JFK was a homeless man masturbating outside of Union Station. It wouldn’t have been that strange, except I had heard a lot of things about NYC from people who had been there (or knew someone who knew someone, etc) and I was worried what I was seeing was just going to be an everyday, everywhere thing all throughout the country.”
Cici’s Pizza
“I’m from Canada and went to Cici’s Pizza in Florida. Holy sh_t $5 for an all you can eat buffet which was basically a fast pass to witness a sh_t ton of gluttony that was on another level.”
J-walking
“When I went to Florida I was stopped by the police for J Walking. I protested that the road was clear so therefore safe to cross. He said, ‘I don’t know how you do it in your country be here in The US we take road safety seriously.’ Aghast, I explained I was from England and my only knowledge of J Walking was from Lethal Weapon 3 and that I believed it was just a made up law that they used in the movie to sass people. He chuckled and said, ‘That’s a great movie, I prefer the first.’ I agreed and said it was by far the best. After a brief chat about the entire Lethal Weapon saga he said, ‘In future make sure you use the crossings.’ I agreed but asked in a pretty decent South African accent, ‘What if I have diplomatic immunity?’ He chuckled, nodded his head and pointed to the crossing and said, ‘cross there, enjoy your vacation’ and off he went. It was the highlight of my holiday.”
The holstered guns
“I’m Canadian, and I was in a gas station waiting to pay (before prepay took over) and a couple of guys with handguns in holsters were in line in front of me, resting their hands on the guns. Not so much wtf–I knew to expect it–but it’s a memory I think of often.”
The ice cream tumbler
“Was at an all-you-can-eat buffet with a soft serve ice cream machine. As kids we thought we were being little pigs by swirling as high as we possibly could (while our parents weren’t looking or they certainly would have stopped us). The guy after us grabbed a full-sized drink tumbler and filled it up with ice cream. No shame at all. No child-like glee at making the mother-of-all sundaes. I suspect now it was something he did regularly.”
Scottish trees
“I went to Applebees (mistake no.1 I guess) I was then served by a nice young lady called Brittany who asked me with a serious face if we have trees in Scotland.”
Free refills
“When I went to the U.S. the first time and ordered a meal from Burger King, ordering a large fry, coke, and a Whopper, I was blown away by the size of it all. Each item was larger than the same item back home. I was already like wtf, but then the cashier said I could have a second Whopper for $1! Again, I was like ‘wtf, sign me up!’ Another time, while I was in Daytona, I went to a restaurant and the woman kept refilling my drink, again and again. Being a bit shy, I did not tell her to stop, and expected a bill with $15 for sodas, but then I found out the refills were free, wtf!? FREE REFILLS?! I’d only seen that at places like Subway, but so many restaurants in the U.S. had free refills. I love the U.S. for restaurants and food in general, the portions are massive and very reasonably priced.”