Culture SHOCK in America as a South African | First Time Visiting the United States of America | USA

Ah, the United States. The land of opportunity and jumbo-sized hot dogs. In this video, I share with you my culture shock in America as a South African and what it was like my first time visiting the United States of America! The USA is so uniquely different and diverse that it can take some time to adjust to everyday life there, and this can be quite a shock at first. I cover everything I found to be pretty weird (and awesome) during my time in Chicago, Los Angeles, San Diego, Las Vegas, and Miami, I cover all things American. All the opinions and experiences mentioned in this video are personal and firsthand from the year I lived in the United States of America.
Background information: I was born in South Africa and lived there until the age of 22 when I decided to explore my Italian roots in Italy. My family is in South Africa because my grandfather was captured by the British in Tobruk, Egypt in 1942 fighting for the Italians. He and his comrades were sent down to South Africa (SA) as Prisoners of War. By the time WW2 ended a few years later, the Italians in SA had the choice to either remain in South Africa or return to Italy. As they had already begun new lives in their new country, my grandfather was one of the many who chose to stay. And so, my father was born here and eventually met my mother who is South African.
I moved to Italy in 2016 and went on a crazy journey for 2 years ( • Why I Moved to Italy |... ) During my time living in Italy, I met Michelle. We got together, left Italy a few months later, and decided to move to the US in 2018. We got married in April of that same year and began settling down in Chicago after spending a few months with her family in Los Angeles. That was my first time in the US and I had A LOT of adjusting to do. The US runs with its own entire system altogether, and you can tell that as awesome as some of the components of this system are, there was a lot that I just couldn’t get on board with. Overall, I loved my time there and will hopefully be returning soon to visit Michelle’s family in LA!
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▬ Video Chapters ▬
0:00 Intro
0:26 Just Like The Movies
1:34 Flags
2:08 Variety
3:09 Money
6:23 Celebrate Every Occasion
6:44 Loud
7:41 Food Portions
9:05 Being Asked for ID
9:49 TV
11:38 Different Laws in Different States
12:09 Imperial System
12:40 Gaps
12:55 Diversity
14:46 Stereotype
15:46 Burglar Guards
About Us:
We are Matteo & Micha, having lived on 3 different continents & even a cruise ship, we hope to use our experiences to inspire you to break out of your comfort zone and explore new places, embrace vibrant cultures, try new things, and have an overall incredible time doing it! If that sounds like the kind of content you are into, then hit the red subscribe button!
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Watch next - REVERSE Culture Shock as an American - Things I DON'T miss about living in the USA | Living Abroad
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[@TheGlobalExpats]

*July 2021 Update: Hey Guys, thank you for sharing your thoughts on my culture shock video, I appreciate your ability to see the light-heartedness in my sense of humor! I truly loved my time in the US, good times were had, I learned a lot, and will cherish my memories there. Micha and I left the US a while back and are currently living in Italy. If you would like to see what Italy is like then check out our latest videos 🇮🇹 Stay safe Yankee-Doodles! 👌🏽 Did I miss anything? What shocked you about the US? 🙌🏽🇺🇸

[@reddomain]

All accurate stuff 😂😂

[@GlobalTrndz]

🤣🤣🤣 you missed not a single thing! Loved this video, and those by your wife. Subscribed! 😂❤️

[@TheGlobalExpats]

@@reddomain Thank you, Rita! 😊

[@TheGlobalExpats]

@@GlobalTrndz Thank you so much Miss Mosa! We appreciate the support! 🥰

[@briannebutaro6391]

The credit card issue and the tax issue shocked me

[@autumncolors1673]

No one confuses a one dollar bill with a hundred 🤣. It's just not a thing that happens

[@abdur1300]

believe me its a thing that really happens,, in many country the money (cash) is available in different color so that people dont get confused.. go check yourself

[@autumncolors1673]

@@abdur1300 go check your money

[@PlanetDashing]

I think he means to visitors since there all the same colors. But obviously we Americans know that

[@Ap_twsh]

I mean it would be interesting if people did.

[@honeyhernandez91]

Right different presidents on the bills . And hes asking about why we have 1 dollars bills ? For the strip clubs duhhh lol

[@Riptionator]

The one dollar bill exists so that you can make it rain at the strip club

[@TheGlobalExpats]

😂😂😂

[@dchiznit209]

Cuz making it hail would hurt for strippers

[@nicolesanderson8757]

@PhantomStranger Ive actually seen just that lol. At a strip club in Edmonton Canada, at the end of the night the last thing this girl did was sit on the stage with a bucket and ppl were suppose to toss loonies or toonies into the bucket in front of her lol.

[@user-ce1rm5xu5w]

@@nicolesanderson8757 when I was younger I remember going to Canada, first thing I saw as soon as I crossed in was strip clubs all over!

[@Ap_twsh]

@@dchiznit209 LMAO

[@hiddenname9809]

As an American, I don't understand why so many foreigners are worried/concerned/disturbed even angry by American flags everywhere. 1.) You are in the United States of America. 2.) Your culture and our culture are not the same, same with history. 3.) We see things and value things differently. It should be a given that we are different. Just because you do things in a certain way doesn't mean we have to do things the same way as you do. I would think this is common sense?

[@PebblezfrmDetroit80]

We Americans damn sure know the difference between $1 and $100!!!! They look totally different to us!!!!! 😆 🤣 😂

[@TheGlobalExpats]

A little change of colour would be helpful for the foreigners! 😜😂

[@PebblezfrmDetroit80]

@@TheGlobalExpats 🤣

[@aldrintejada598]

We don't care what foreigners think... Exactly what it is.... You're foreigners. America isn't for you.

[@cbicnone2228]

We use debit cards, instead of carrying around a pocket full of coins.

[@kev7161]

It's becoming more normal here as time goes by, but many countries have pay by phone - - scanning bar codes and what not. When I lived in China, I paid for almost everything with my phone scanner (or their phone would scan my phone's QR code). My Chinese friends would laugh at me when I pulled out cash for something.

[@redwingfan9393]

I can't stand wandering around with a pocket full of change.

[@user-ce1rm5xu5w]

@@kev7161 Apple Pay?

[@TheGlobalExpats]

That makes sense! 😅

[@kev7161]

@@user-ce1rm5xu5w No, Wechat pay.

[@benozzy003]

the us does have $1 coins we just don't use them

[@leviticuscornwall9631]

Every time I tried to use a $1 coin they thought it was a fake

[@oldnumber5866]

If you pay off the card every month there is no credit. You forgot to mention St. Patrick’s Day and Cinco de Mayo. Only in America do we celebrate a foreign country’s holidays.

[@TheGlobalExpats]

That is true, I did forget those ones 😅

[@Fermifire]

3:20 Bro, can you imagine carrying crap tons of coins in your pocket, no thanks. I like folding my dollar bills nice and neat in my wallet, that's why. The color thing, you get used to it, all I have to do is look at the president's face and I know. 😂

[@TheGlobalExpats]

Haha fair, I guess I'd just have to get used to it when I'm back there 😅

[@dianefreeman7194]

For the paper money, look at the corners. That will tell you the denomination. I have no idea why the coins are sized the way they are. I never use them. I save them up and deposit them in the bank. I go out with $20 dollar bills and get the smaller bills as change.

[@AquivaStar]

As a South African, I hate coins and prefer notes. I think the reason for us having low denomination coins is because they aren't worth much? i.e R1 ZAR = 0.07c US

[@emmef7970]

Or you look at the corner of the bill which shows the denomination. We are smarter than 3 year olds and don’t our money color coded.

[@eekns]

Who uses cash anymore?

[@elizabethstanford6826]

The thing about having ID to get beer is if you look under 26 years old you are supposed to automatically ask for ID because you never know when cops are sending someone in just to see if you will sell beer without ID or to a underage person because cashiers will lose their job on the spot and some go to jail. That's why they ask for ID just about every time. Even though I think that is a very stupid law.

[@newgrl]

As a bartender in one of the Plains states, it's a $5000+ fine for the person that sold it to you and the establishment that sold it can be shut down for a period of time if it happens more than once. We just card everyone. Easier than dealing with the mess that happens if you happen to sell to an undercover cop.

[@bossfan49]

@@newgrl What I don't understand is why the cashier at the grocery store asked him for ID when he wasn't making the purchase. Michelle's ID is all she needed.

[@newgrl]

​@@bossfan49 Nope. Unfortunately not true. It can be assumed that the person buying alcohol is buying for everyone they're with and supplying alcohol to minors is ALWAYS against the law. If the retailer gets caught, or the minor in question gets in trouble later and just names the retail store that sold them alcohol, it turns into a liability for the retailer. It's a mess no one that sells alcohol wants to be involved in. Just leave the underage friends in the car. Much easier for everyone.

[@bossfan49]

@@newgrl So a parent grocery shopping with their children can't buy alcohol?

[@newgrl]

@@bossfan49 In a grocery store, and an obvious parent/child relationship, sure. Two friends, one of age and one under age... probably not. I would definitely get a manager's approval first.

[@zethembengcoboen138]

Another day I took a long drive to the moon....and "boom" an American Flag 🤦‍♂️

[@ridesharegold6659]

2:18 - I lived in Australia for a few years and it was one of the hardest things to explain to Australians. "Oh, America has shit beer." Yeah, sure you have the option to buy cheap beer. You also have the option to buy great local beers or German or Belgian beers. It's up to you and your budget. We have it all.

[@SoniaJbrt]

I bet you don't have Castle Lager or Black Label😂 Ok, maybe you do. But I don't even drink Beer! I LOVE your root beer btw😍

[@peppernation9213]

The reason the United States does not switch over to metric is because it would cost too much money. We would have to change all of our machines that are calibrated. We would have to change all of our tools. It’s just not financially smart to change everything now.

[@iriselisa946]

But, as an American, I believe that our schools should teach the metric system in school; not just in 3rd grade, where most kids will forget. It is so helpful.

[@mydraftable6526]

@@iriselisa946 I'm from S.A. I couldn't go back to the metric system. I find the imperial system very easy. Also just so you know, we do have a one dallar coin in the states. Just not that popular

[@iriselisa946]

@@mydraftable6526 I can understand that. I am just saying that both should be taught to our children so they can understand US and the rest of the world :)

[@bevtuft3572]

as far as metric for cooking...no thanks! why do I need a scale...much easier to measure out a cup, half cup, or ounces instead of hundreds of mils.....no thank you

[@word42069]

Also there’s no problem with it and industries that work internationally use the metric system anyway… also we do learn the metric system throughout school especially in the sciences. Metric system is easier than imperial…….

[@dougbowers1256]

You’re right about the toilet stalls but please understand one thing that may make you feel better. NO ONE LOOKS. When you enter the restroom you make the quickest of glances to see if the stall is occupied and if it is, you don’t look in again. The glance isn’t long enough to see anything. If you are the occupant of the stall and someone were to actually peer through the gap you can see them doing it, would call them out on it for being a pervert and that would be that. It doesn’t happen. I think the gaps are to prevent people from doing drugs in the stalls or having sex. They don’t all have those gaps but most do, though almost none as wide as you indicated.

[@emmef7970]

I've never looked through the gap to see if it's occupied. I think most people (at least women) glance down underneath the door, if you see shoes the stall is occupied. Generally speaking if the stall is occupied the door is firmed closed. More often than not, if the stall is unoccupied the door is at least semi-open.

[@gromester1092]

Carrying around paper dollar bills are lighter and fits better in a wallet than carrying around a bunch of coins. Quarter coins you need only four to make a dollar instead of carrying five 20 cent coins. It just more convenient.

[@TheGlobalExpats]

You make a good point 😅

[@kay-d_9092]

That's a good point, 1 coin less I guess..and the most you can buy with five 20 cent coins is virtually bubble gum, unlike four Quarters

[@gromester1092]

@SIFUNDO LORYED MABASO Yes, it’s called a nickel.

[@1_chilled_guy595]

I couldn't imagine opening up my wallet and seeing a bunch of notes that look all the same, Ill go crazy LOL One thing that SA got right was different colour notes lol

[@solicitr666]

Who carries cash in America anyway? Everything's plastic (or Apple Pay). I carry a few bucks for tipping.

[@RitaLady]

You will find bars/gates on windows in rough neighborhoods in the US. I thought everyone had them as a kid until we moved to a nice area.

[@JustMe-oi9ms]

Choices are always better than not having any, in my opinion.

[@jecarlin]

I'm American born and raised and got a chuckle out of bit where you talked about the legal advertisements for compensation. We can be a ridiculous country. Also, we do have a gold colored $1 coin, it doesn't get used because the government won't take the dollar bill out of circulation. People are used to dollar bills and you'd have some people complain about carrying extra coins with them.

[@GotoHere]

Every state , county and city can have a different sales tax. To put the thousands of different prices on packaging, determining quantities of pricing/packaging would be inefficient and costly. And then correctly ship that package to the specific places that match that packaging price would be a logistics nightmare. Next to impossible. That’s why the tax is added at the cash register.

[@stpaley]

the US does have dollar coins; sacagawea, susan b anthony, & i think the eisenhower--you could come across them in circulation but it is rare like the $2 note

[@cbicnone2228]

With the server leaving with your card, if you find a disputable charge on your bank statement you can always dispute it with your bank, and they will resolve it. And the server will probably will not do anything with your card cause they want to keep you as a customer. That is one of the reasons for good service.

[@karmalynn78]

I love how in the background of your video the cat appears, and disappears-MAGIC!!

[@thabanimahlaba9769]

lol I saw that too!

[@karmalynn78]

😱😱😱😱 DEMON KITTY!!! AHHHH! Just kidding. He's actually no demon cat. Nope. It is The Devil himself. Honest. 😁

[@aka3927]

The lawyer commercials are so corny and cliche but everyone is just used to it😂

[@leatile4310]

I’m from Botswana 🇧🇼 and living in Chicago. That was hilarious 😂 and true. Love Chicago

[@TheGlobalExpats]

Chicago is awesome, you are lucky to be living there Leatile! I'm sure you probably also experienced most of what I mentioned 😂

[@HS-ml8dx]

What line of work are you in, Leatile? Do you miss Botswana? I'm from South Africa and would get so homesick living overseas. Hope you enjoy it, though.

[@rebeccam.7249]

@@HS-ml8dx if you get home sick why do you leave your country then? just stay in south africa and you will not be home sick

[@leatile4310]

@@HS-ml8dx I was in university, graduated now. I have been in Botswana for 15 year, US since then . I like it because I’m used to it but I miss everyone in Bots

[@megalou6567]

I am American. And I get very overwhelmed by all the selections of everything

[@TheGlobalExpats]

It is crazy... unless you need something small and random then it's awesome because you can actually get it! 😅

[@mrsoshadabaadman]

Struggling in the dark with a R10 vs R100 is the only dilemma I've ever faced with notes here in SA.

[@TheGlobalExpats]

I'd ask why you can't see properly in the dark but that might be a question for Eskom 🤣🤣

[@mrsoshadabaadman]

@@TheGlobalExpats 😂😂 And alchohol.

[@TheGlobalExpats]

@@mrsoshadabaadman Shame, don't blame the alcohol.. blame the government, it's usually their fault anyway 😂

[@alanpeterson4939]

The reason we all talk so loud is we shoot guns so much, we are about half deaf😀

[@joeredemption84]

Stripper Panties dont take Coins, Bru!!

[@TheGlobalExpats]

Fair 🤣🤣

[@visserman365]

What's the slot for then?

[@Grimpurple_minion99]

The seller can be find or charged for selling alcohol to someone underage, they could also lose their license no alcohol. But that is why they require an ID to be present in order to serve or sell you alcohol

[@teonthevwwhisperer7316]

That slang is gonna differ from province to province but it is different you seem to be picking it up well great video

[@brianmontgomery1619]

You were pretty much on the money. No pun intended. Glad you enjoyed your time in the States. However, we are not ignorant. At least no more than in any other country. It sounds like you spent most of your time in the cities. The vast majority of Americans are decent and down-to-earth people and we are definitely not like the movies portray us.

[@1_chilled_guy595]

Good to hear, By all the KZbin videos and Hollywood movies I've watched, Americans are portrayed to be very ignorant to the outside world

[@matthewhall1062]

Why are there so few flags in South Africa?

[@boitshokoradebe4097]

The TV thing kind of explains why they don't know much about the rest of the world.

[@elizabethstanford6826]

He may not have had it on his cable TV or satellite but we do have the news from every country and yes we keep up on everything that goes on around the world. The one thing about Americans are it doesn't matter how much we disagree but if something happen to our country or our people we band together no matter what. That's the good thing about America you can have your own opinions and you don't have to agree with absolutely everyone. We hate seeing all the tragic things that are going on in different countries. That is the reason why our military goes where they are needed and yes leaders from other countries do sometimes ask us to intervene on their behalf.

[@m2ranojaholo79]

@@elizabethstanford6826 Your military goes to other countries for private capital, which has nothing to do with ordinary Americans. But this is never reported in your main stream media.

[@bvbxiong5791]

on public tv, international news is given like a 30min segment around 6pm. on cable tv, stations like CNN cover international news 24/7.

[@ultraman5168]

@@m2ranojaholo79 the world loves to complain about American interventionism, but it complains even more when we refuse patrol the world's oceans, feed the hungry, build the infrastructures of developing nations, and supply the world with medicine and doctors. The last time the USA decided that getting involved in the world's problems wasn't worth the trouble, Hitler and Stalin took over all of Europe while Imperial Japan was on it's way to conquering all of Asia and the Pacific. The people of the world have been BEGGING us to bail them out of their problems for more than half a century and counting. And the rich nations of Europe and Asia both just love to have the USA around to deal with messy situations, to this day; we're your fixers for shit like ISIS, or whatever other psychopaths have crawled out of the middle east that week, or containing rogue states like Iran and North Korea, or providing deterrence against longstanding historic aggressors like China and Russia. At least in Asian nations they're thankful for US help with PRC expansionism. Europeans look down their noses at the barbaric USA for being so militaristic despite the fact that Euros spend table scraps on their own defense and come crying to the USA whenever Russia so much as looks at it's old satellite states and other nearby territories. Complete hypocrites who directly benefit from what they claim to condemn. We know that if we ever stopped doing things like freedom of navigation patrols with our navy, defensive basing to deter invasion of our allies, donating 36% of all international food aid every year, sending hospital ships full of supplies and legions of relief personnel to international crisis zones, you'd just complain more and the world would be a hungrier and more dangerous place for it. You already had the nerve to complain in 2017 when, we let Europe take the bulk of international refugees for the first time in decades; we know that some parts of the world will never actually appreciate the things the USA does for them. We're the hero you need, but don't deserve. We're fine with being the world's long-suffering manservant. We know you'd be helpless without us.

[@henrybeesley6359]

@@ultraman5168 Well said and to the point. Many will not recognize it as fact. Just like failing to pay their 2% to NATO, while the US contributes 70%. I get tired of other countries trashing us. There is not another country more patriotic.

[@kirbyburden2755]

Great video! My wife and I will be visiting South Africa next year. I've been searching KZbin for various videos about your country and found yours. You had me laughing at most of your perspectives about the US and just a few I'd like to discuss. Thank you for sharing and giving me several laughs! I think everyone should travel! It certainly gives a unique perspective on life, and you can differentiate ideas from movies and other things.

[@SoniaJbrt]

You will fall in love with our beautiful South Africa! October is a great time to come, best weather then. Do yourself a favor and search on KZbin for Johhny Clegg Scatterlings of Africa. He was a South African musician who captured the heart of South Africa ♥️

[@haruruben]

those lawyer ads for the earplugs, that means they have some proof that the ear plugs were defective so if you used them you were exposed to risk of ear damage so you’d be entitled to damages for the exposure. This sounds like a “class action” law suit which is where a large group of people affected by some action, often a defective product or unfair business practice, can join together to seek damages. usually the individual damages are too small to warrant an individual law suit. Imaging a bank illegally charged 1 million people a $1 fee… for each person to seek damages, they wouldn’t bother so the bank just got away with a $1,000,000 robbery. So a class action law suit represents all million people and gets them their dollar back… minus legal fees which is usually like 25%. This is good becasue it keeps companies in check and punishes bad behavior, it saves the government from haivng to do this work since there’s an incentive for private lawyers to litigitate these matters… wow I just wrote a whole article on this

[@solicitr666]

The end result of which is that the plaintiffs get a settlement for $3.27 each, and the lawyers make millions in fees. And in many cases they are little more than shakedowns: if the lawyers can pile up enough members of the class, the company under that onslaught can't afford to litigate it so they settle.

[@haruruben]

@@solicitr666 yes, welcome to America 🇺🇸, you can move to China if you don’t like it

[@acegh0st]

I’ve got some friends from South Africa and they told me one of the first things that shocked them about moving to the US was that nobody really had a security/privacy fence around their property, which I thought was unexpected. Similar to you, they said it took them a long time to feel totally safe/comfortable with their property being just completely open to street traffic.

[@TheGlobalExpats]

You are so right, no fences/security plus it freaked me out that I didn't have burglar guards on the windows, and we lived on the third floor 😅 We are not used to being so 'exposed' if I may call it that 😄

[@jaredf6205]

I had South African friends growing up. They would do crazy things like leave their front door open at night and not lock their car because of how safe it seemed in American suburbs compared to Johannesburg. I’m like no, you’re overcompensating way too much, this isn’t some magic crime free land just because we don’t need barbed wire around every building.

[@hiddenname9809]

If someone wants to break in, they will break in. Doesn't matter what kind of security or fence you put in.

[@larryfisher2633]

Why are they're so many flags in America? Why are there so few if S.A,?

[@TheGlobalExpats]

Because they get stolen 😂😂

[@zephyr-mq3cv]

@@TheGlobalExpats Wish I could disagree.🤣

[@gregorywedderburn8565]

Awesome that i got a mention in with this video

[@TheGlobalExpats]

Next up is a cameo 😉

[@MrBCKaraoke]

Penny, nickel, dime, quarter, half dollar, and dollar coins. Paper money is easy, different number amount and different President on each. We also have a Two dollar Bill. The beer buying issue should not have happened unless you are under 21. Sacrilege to say Jack in the Box is better than In N Out. Californians know.

[@JustMe-oi9ms]

He probably didn’t even know about the In-N-Out secret menu!🤷🏻‍♀️

[@MrBCKaraoke]

@@JustMe-oi9ms Exactly. Shhhh! Lol The only way, A.S.

[@JustMe-oi9ms]

@@MrBCKaraoke 👍🏼😊😆

[@TheGlobalExpats]

I've heard about it, but sadly have yet to order anything from it 😅

[@TheGlobalExpats]

You make good points, Bret. I have been trying to find a 2 dollar bill for years, but haven't been successful yet 😅 In N Out for the win, always.

[@eekns]

Only assholes and truly legitimate claimants sue. I’ve never sued anyone. I’ve never been sued nor do I know anyone who has sued or been sued. Yes, it’s possible but very unlikely. However, you could have sued that store for refusing you alcohol. You had valid ids.

[@melbround1]

They reserve the right to refuse service.....

[@user-ce1rm5xu5w]

Not to mention doesn’t suing someone cost a lot of money? Sometimes more money then you’d get if you won

[@darkrita]

I believe he said he didn't have an id on him at the time, which is a valid reason to deny him alcohol. The business could be fined for if they are caught selling alcohol or even tobacco to minors. That's why they ask you for identification wherever you try to purchase such items, no matter how old you look. But I will have to agree in the sentiment that suing isn't really a thing. Though it might be because I don't live in a big city. Honestly the concept of suing sounds tedious and cumbersome. Plus in regards to the commercials he stated about lawsuits, are class action lawsuits where you will get a mere pittance of what they claim you could be entitled too, the lawyers will make more than you will.

[@Seether1975]

One thing that caught me off guard was the rule when turning right in Vegas (apparently in other states as well). I was standing with my indicator on to turn right a few times and then I would catch people behind me drive around me on a red signal and just go. Then I looked it up and learned that it is treated as a yield. But the Americans were so friendly that not one of them hooted at me, just drove around me. In SA you will KNOW about it if you were to impede like that.

[@sbond7510]

I believe that’s a regional thing. If you sit on a red light here in Washington,DC you’d get honked at immediately lol

[@brians48now]

@@sbond7510 Regional? The level of ignorance by the people who live in this Country is astounding. All 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico have allowed right turns on red since 1980, except where prohibited by a sign or where right turns are controlled by dedicated traffic signals.

[@jeffjay9350]

@@brians48now she ment the politeness of going around was regional. We would lay on the horn in Chicago if you did not make the right in red either.

[@estebanalvarez5829]

Awesome video bro. We actually do have one dollar coins in the US as well as half dollar coins, but they are super rare and no one wants them. They are just as rare as two dollar bills. You mainly get one dollar coins from vending machines.

[@dray174]

You can go to pretty much any bank and get 2$ bills and 50cent or dollar coins

[@bseidem5112]

One dollar coins were popular up to the 1960s but they wore holes in pockets.

[@eekns]

We’ve tried metric. I remember learning it in the sixth grade because America was switching. This was in the 1970s.

[@dougbowers1256]

We didn’t try very hard.

[@kev7161]

There is metric all around us, we just don't use it much. How about 2 liter bottles of soda? As a matter of fact, most containers of food have the metric as well as traditional measurements. Rulers and tape measures, etc. have both traditional and metric on them, same with wrenches and other tools. We use metric in sciences and medicines, surely other fields as well. We are all exposed to metrics every day, we just don't really USE it so much.

[@dougbowers1256]

@@kev7161 Automobiles are designed and built using metric measurements.

[@cavaleer]

Love the feedback! haha. Come back any time.

[@toodlescae]

That whiskey shot price varies from area to area. Even if it's top shelf whiskey you wouldn't pay $12 for a shot of whiskey where I live in Texas. I typically pay around $4.

[@terrifictomm]

You're in South Africa? I can understand why you wouldn't trust your server with your credit card. It's not a trust issue. It's a criminality issue. I cannot remember ever thinking a server was going to steal my information. I'm more worried about someone walking near me RF scanning my wallet in my back pocket than I am a clerk or server stealing it. Also, maybe, we have better fraud detection. Recently my bank contacted me because my card's number had just been used to buy gas 100 miles away and they wanted to know if that was me! It wasn't and they cancelled my card. Of course I also wasn't responsible for the charge. This happened again with my new card less than one month after I received it. My point is, the theft was hi-tech. Not some random clerk.

[@ricardorodriguesrr18]

Right on point 😀

[@ChiefOfProtocol_ZW]

If you happen to be in the Chi-town Jewel-Osco next time, they happen to have Ceres juice 😊

[@Naiant]

There's BBC World News. It's not made by Americans, but it's available here.

[@newgrl]

There's also PBS NewsHour, the broadcast station nightly news half hours and several segments of World News on the various 24 hour news channels. Besides... who watches any news program on TV these days? I subscribe to the WaPo and two local newspapers online. If I want video of an incident, there will be better video from more angles and points of view on Twitter and KZbin than there ever will be on TV news.

[@bossfan49]

Also all major network news broadcasts, regardless of city, will have a portion dedicated to world news, a portion dedicated to national news, and a portion dedicated to local news.

[@henrybeesley6359]

Al Jazeera does world news.

[@Rebel9668]

As far as coinage we do not have pennies, we have cents that we colloquially call pennies which dates back to our British ancestry. The nickel is called that because the coin is made of nickel but everyone knows it is worth 5 cents. I'm not sure why we call ten cents a dime, but I do know that back in history before we had nickels we had half dimes back when they were made of silver and thus when we stopped making them of silver and started using nickel to make them they became known as nickels. A quarter is equal to 1/4th of a dollar and if you look at the denominational value of any quarter it plainly states it is a quarter dollar which is 25 cents and between you and me if you're going to carry coins around, the less weight, the better so why not carry 4 quarter dollars instead of 5 20 cent pieces? We also have 50 cent coins called believe it or not, half-dollars though they don't see much circulation because they are rather large and heavy and our dollar coins historically have been quite large and heavy even though modern ones are smaller and gold colored. Our traditional silver dollars weighed in at a whopping 26.73 grams each in total or 0.8593 troy ounces. Modern silver dollars are still made as well, but they each weigh in at one full troy ounce and feel quite hefty in the hand.

[@daholyspirit2783]

Are you talking about America? Because I don’t call all coins pennies and I don’t know people who do pennies are pennies and coins includes pennies dimes etc

[@daholyspirit2783]

And we do have pennies

[@Rebel9668]

@@daholyspirit2783 We do not have pennies in America, we have cents. one cent is colloquially called a penny, after the British coin of that name, but it is not in fact a penny, it is a cent.

[@Rebel9668]

@@daholyspirit2783 Also, I never called our nickels, dimes, quarters, half dollars and dollar coins pennies. If you'll notice, I mentioned our quarter by name and said it is equal to 25 cents, not pennies because we do not have pennies, we have cents. I also named the nickels and dimes too so why you came to the conclusion that I said we only call all our coins pennies is beyond me, lol.

[@solicitr666]

Dime, originally "disme:" (old) French for "tenth."

[@itsianman]

you couldnt find CNN? or RT? or BBC? those are quite common channels with people who still watch television in the usa at least.

[@realazduffman]

Some countries use the metric system and others put men on the moon. But very interesting to hear what people outside the USA think of the USA. People ask why Americans do not travel to other countries much and you said it here--the USA is almost like several countries in many ways.

[@thembankuna6076]

Lol since we're tying our systems of measurement to our countries achievements.. The metric system got the South Africa the world first successful heart transplant...

[@grantrodgers8402]

I audibly laughed at the first comment😂 you trolling or butthurt? Lol and I’m American but you silly😂

[@bebop_557]

Yeah I was not a huge beer drinker until I moved to Texas, which has a bunch of awesome local brewers. Otherwise I never was into beer much. I would recommend you look for local brewers when you're in the States again, give it a try.

[@noox13]

AYO!!! You had me there for a second talking about In-n-Out! XD

[@haruruben]

Korean barbecue is Korean… Korrean cuisine is remarkably un-Westernized. Most other cusines over time have become more Americanized but it’s still quite easy to get real Korean food all over

[@saureco]

We know Bud Lite is gross. That's how we clean our toilets.

[@ESUSAMEX]

We do things differently because we are different. We are Americans! We live our lives our way. We do not want to be like everyone else. We are special and special people deserve a special place. This special place is the United States.

[@user-ks3ol3lw3b]

When I went to visit relatives in Sweden in the 1980s, I was amazed by the number of Swedish flags on houses. Definitely more than in the US.

[@IO-zz2xy]

I spent many years travelling to the US on holiday. Mainly based in Northern Chicargo. Travelled all 9ver the states. Yes, I hear what you are saying. The first time I landed at O'Hare I thought I had landed on a different planet. Nothing, absolutely nothing could I relate too. LOL I found that everything was unbelievably cheap.

[@TheGlobalExpats]

It definitely is like a different planet, Kerry! 😂 Where were you coming from that you found it cheap? We almost had to sell a kidney to survive 😜

[@IO-zz2xy]

@@TheGlobalExpats This was in the early 90's and 2000's. I believe things have got a lot more expensive since then. I live in South Africa, now in Howick, KZN. Strangely I thought I saw a short scene from one of our little shopping centers in your vlog.

[@bossfan49]

Downtown Chicago and immediately surrounding areas, prices are higher. It's like that in any major city. Partly because the property taxes are very high. Also you're paying for the experience of being "downtown". If you travel a half hour or so in any direction away from downtown it will be noticeably cheaper. I grew up on the far south side, but then moved across the border to Indiana. The cost of living is much lower than Cook County, IL (Chicago). If you're visiting and don't mind the commute to downtown, there's an abundance of hotels right near the expressway about 30 minutes from downtown...although you may be able to find an Air BnB for less.

[@xoxo3588]

Nah bruh, it's the Bluetooth Sony headphones blasting music. Gen Z is deaf. Can you hear me now? Now..! NOW!!?? 😂

[@stewarttau1451]

In the USA you can sue a restaurant for giving you hot tea, because it will burn you. But it's tea and supposed to be hot. I'm in Botswana and my grandparents used to scold us for serving warm tea instead of hot tea.😅

[@peepla7]

The way you talk about money crack me up you have some valid points but it's still crack me up.

[@rhynosouris710]

The Sales Tax situation was the same in South Africa as in the US until about 1985

[@LilliLamour]

Some restaurants have machines at the table and some waiters bring the machine. Depends on the restaurant.

[@dannydanny5344]

I’d rather carry a dollar then a pocket of coins 😂 I hate carrying coins

[@west-Co_exploration]

We will never allow the govt to hide the sales tax in the price of goods. If they do, you become insulated to the amount of tax that you are being forced to pay, and never think about it. The only way to keep taxes under control is to see it every time you want to buy anything. If you don't like the amount you are paying, vote for those who will lower your taxes.

[@deedonnerramone4757]

Men died under those flags for our freedom and way of life - Most Americans are grateful and proud of our nation. The Flag is the symbol of America, wave it high and proud. June 14th is Flag Day! Enjoy your Freedom, brave men and women fought for it.

[@user-xm5le5ok2r]

In our state we have international channels. Glad you enjoyed the states!

[@nick8243]

I am fine with imperial measurement. I also like Fahrenheit better than Celsius because it has more precision. And i prefer the US date format of mm/dd/yyyy. The US uses metric for certain things like digital storage measurement (gigabytes, terabytes) or prescription drugs and nutrition facts (grams, milligrams). So it's mixed measurement systems.

[@blacknap0le0n56]

Lol to an American saying a $1 bill looks exactly like a $100 bill is like saying your sister looks exactly like your gtandmother... I can tell the difference just by feel and their posture... a $1 bill is often floppy and durable having been handled so often while $100 bills are often much more crisp and less handled.

[@TheGlobalExpats]

That makes sense! 😅

[@yes2day100]

I'd rather carry a bill than a coin. And only an idiot would hand over a $100 bill instead of a $1. And you're coming after our credit system? Why would you want to carry cash rather than a card? It's what you're used to. Credit card fraud - if they steal your number, the credit card company sends you a fraud alert. In all my 40 yard of carrying cards, I have only once had someone use my credit card. And the card company never charged me for the expense, and changed my account number.

[@Gray-soul_81]

Niche, along with many other words, can be pronounced in a myriad of ways. I say niche like you do. Born and raised in California. 40 years old and I never heard niche with a hard "ch" until like a two years ago.

[@TheGlobalExpats]

Fair, I only heard it the other way a few months ago. I guess each to their own 😅

[@newgrl]

Then there is the South, where not only are the colloquialisms colorful, but the pronunciations are made up on the spot. Unless you're talking about the pronunciation of "Pecan"... then it's family against family and it might lead to a fight.

[@Spazzmatazzz]

Hell, I knew you were Italian as soon as I saw your hands waving around when you spoke. I'm in NY and see it a LOT! ☺

[@TheGlobalExpats]

Classic, you are correct Spazz 😂

[@Regimeshifts]

You covered most of my main shocks. But one that I found surprising was not getting wifi in a lot of places! (Although this was 8 years ago so things might have changed since - and it was in Minnesota). I guess also how everyday life is so tied to political parties. It was the first time I heard people say I am a liberal/conservative. Something that I have never heard anywhere else

[@TheGlobalExpats]

I think most places in the big cities have wifi nowadays, so thank the Pope that changed 😅 It is crazy how people tend to hang out with other people that share the same political views, you are totally right, I forgot to mention that!

[@AnnaMarie66]

Good Lord WHY would you go to Chicago of all places?? 😳

[@TheGlobalExpats]

Hey Anna, Michelle studied at Loyola there so all her friends and contacts were in Chicago 😅

[@ricardorodriguesrr18]

Why chicago is nice lol. I visited a couple of times

[@maruskaehrensdorfer]

I agree. Chicago isn't even on my list of places to visit in the US, LOL.

[@mbacheler]

Here if someone uses your card without your permission the bank will cancel transaction. Plus if you pay with a card they already have your info. Whether they take it away or not.

[@dstanhope]

Your wrong about the currency here being the same color, yes there are colors on the bills for example the ten dollar bill is yellow, the five dollar bill is purple and have you seen the 100 dollar bill lately? It's not all green. There exist one dollar bills FOR THE STRIP CLUB HOMEBOY!!! THATS WHY

[@newgrl]

Regarding motorcycle helmet laws, actually quite a few states do not require helmets for adults, just for younger/newer riders or passengers. And if you think that's messed up as far as state-by-state laws go, try having a concealed carry license to carry a handgun on your person. Those laws vary WILDLY from state to state. Some states are reciprocal, meaning if you have a concealed carry license in your state a reciprocal state will honor that license and allow you to carry and other states will not honor your license and require you to store your weapon... while other states do not allow concealed carry at all. It's your job as a motorcycle rider or a gun owner to know the laws of the state you are visiting.

[@originalbillyspeed1]

Some states allow you to carry, concealed or otherwise, without a license!

[@russellfisher2853]

Don't take it wrong, you enjoyed your visit to the US? With the exception of 85% of it being not your liking, or right to you or for you. It seems the first half or more of this video, is all complaints or things you don't like or agree with. I guess it's good you enjoyed a couple things. LOL, there's quite a few things you have wrong on this, but I don't feel like listing them. LOL

[@christypriest30]

I could go on forever if I didn’t try and condense it but in my opinion we love our flag and hang them everywhere, simply because we’re proud of it and proud to be American! No matter how cliche that sounds

[@maureenjackson2041]

Nothing Special about the Divided states

[@AGirlNamedVan]

I so can't wait to visit someday soon.... Hopefully to visit Alabama though.

[@ridesharegold6659]

3:57 - penny from English pence. Nickel because that's what they were made from. Dime from the abbreviation for decimal. Quarter because it's . . . 25% Credit cards? Yeah, I have a Southwest Catd. I get mad rewards points . . .and I pay my bill in full every month. It's really not CCs that most people are using, though. It's debit cards. If you had one it would solve your cash problem.

[@rexracer3221]

The USA tried to learn the Metric System in the 1970's (in order to eventually switch to it), but Americans are very stubborn... We do have two different one dollar coins, but Americans don't want to use them. Most transactions are digital (debt or credit) now anyways. Plus carrying coins around is a pain... I strongly agree that US bills need to have different colors to avoid the confusion and taxes should be figured into the price of goods & services. (It would make people more aware of how much they are paying in sales tax).

[@LB-mj7ph]

Metric system.

[@rexracer3221]

@@LB-mj7ph Thanks. Corrected.

[@blacknap0le0n56]

Want to know a secret? For every one flag that you see owned by an American.... means he owns two guns... if you see a guy flying an American flag, POW☆MIA flag, and "Don't Tread on Me" flag (Libertarian)... means he owns at least 6 guns guaranteed. True story

[@dbelezi2157]

One can just look and see if it's a 1 dollar bill or a hundred. I never mistook 1 dollar with a hundred dollar bill.

[@peepla7]

MLK Day and 4th of July are two separate days two separate holidays. MLK day is Martin Luther King's birthday...which is treated like an independence day by some of us, the 4th of July is Independence Day....for the whole country.

[@NurseEmilie]

Most people don't carry around a hundred dollar bill. And why should I carry around heavy change when money is so lightweight. That's crazy ! And we don't need your advice about using the metric system.

[@smallsparry]

Bro..... We have flags everywhere because we have ALOT to be proud of.....you would have to be American to understand. Clearly. I guarantee you no one has given a $100 mistakenly over a $1. Also.....why would we want to carry around a pocketful of coins, weighing u down?

[@waz3128]

If I recall correctly it was pretty normal to give your card to the waiter back in the day, It was only when card machines became mobile ( little over 10 years ago), did they bring it with the bill to the table

[@Emmanuelk_]

Everyone else: One thousand five hundred Americans: Fifteen hundred

[@leewest356]

Really agree about the utter stupidity of the culture of suing over every little thing. Here In México, the sidewalk might have a half meter deep hole in it and you just walk around it. But on the green money, just look at the numbers on it. I’ve never heard of a person confusing a one dollar bill with a hundred, plus hundred dollar bills are pretty rare. Twenty is much more common for daily transactions.

[@licklack159]

"What country in South Africa?" I'm dead XD

[@TheGlobalExpats]

😂😂😂

[@markjackson1970]

We are idiots here in America for the most part. But, “why would I want to carry around a bunch of $1 bills? Just make it into a coin”. Well I’d rather carry around a bunch of 100 $1 bills than a pocket full of change pulling my pants down and clanging when i walk.

[@poeticjustice4552]

We love our flags, part of our culture Coins in the pocket is annoying, the jingling and the buldge...no thanks. We don't mimick our currency exchange to others, we do what suits us. We hate carrying coins. As for the sales tax, I actually agree with you. I'd prefer they include it together as a whole. Every employee has to ask for an id when purchasing alcohol or cigarettes....if they don't ask and get caught, the company can be fined or lose their liquor license. So bring identification.... nobody wants to be fined or lose their job to please someone who finds it annoying to ask for id. The medical ads are annoying, yes they are everywhere. Wish they weren't.

[@blitzkrieg459]

Also as to the gaps in the bathrooms, I always hated that and I don’t know why that is.

[@PaleMist]

Without going into a dissertation, the metric system was based upon 10's whereas the imperial system was based upon fractions; you can look up the history yourself, but the imperial was not intended to be about conversions, but certain divisions and representing the needed length for said professions. Long story short: Many old societies were based upon counting by 12's and that is why there are twelve inches in a foot. There is more to this issue than that and I could suggest a KZbin video, but I will end here.

[@g.g.hochstetler2286]

Debt isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Debt you can’t afford or control is a bad thing. Are you going to pay rent for $20 years just to save up to by a house? That 20 years of rent is far higher than interest on your mortgage.

[@AGirlNamedVan]

🤣 LOL the disappearing with the card situation.... Heck here in South Africa if they just move out of my peripheral vision I freak out 😂 and if they can't bring a machine..... We get up and follow them to the paypoint lol.

[@theallyshow9185]

The reason American money is all green is because it’s widely available, and it also signifies stability in our country. The reason that we have quarters, nickels, dimes, and pennies is because A quarter is $.25, 1/4 of a dollar. A dime is 1/10 of a dollar, a nickel is 1/20 of a dollar, or five cents and a penny is 100th of a dollar. this makes it easier to divide if a person doesn’t need the entirety of a dollar. Just like in South Africa how you have your different denominations of a South African rin. money is made out of a mix of different materials, this is so it’s not easy to fake an American dollar bill. People have made counterfeit or fake money in the past, So the government made it harder for people to fake our money.

[@EEVOL]

To be honest, if you still carry cash and you buy lunch here and there, chances are you’re gonna need a denomination that requires a dollar. Yeah you can give them a $10 for a $6.99 meal, you’re gonna get some dollar bills of change. They’re still the most widely used bills to be honest. With most Americans today a credit card is used more than cash. I rarely use cash today to be honest.

[@kabelom7091]

Trevor Noah did mention about the airpots security in America.