When you go to the food court in any of the fast-disappearing malls across America, you may find cuisine from many parts of the world.
Italy is epitomized by its delicious food staples, pizza, and pasta. Let's head to Sbarro's.
Craving Chinese food? Panda Express and other similar knock-offs using stereotypical names have got you covered.
But what is the taste of America? Is any food, distinctly American? Even hot dogs are a cultural import from Germany, as are hamburgers.
Maybe those tailgate party staples are distinctly American after they've been popularized in the heartland.
Expanding on the notion of the flavor of America, Redditor SalmonSoup15 asked:
"If American was a flavor, what would it taste like?"
Likening the flavor of America to condiments was the first thing that came to Reddtors' minds.
The Very Definition
"It IS a flavor: it’s how ranch gets named in some European countries."
– ToBePacific
"I was in the Caribbean when I found out Cool Ranch Doritos are called Cool American in some countries."
– BeTooLive
What's In It?
"Ranch dressing is an American salad dressing usually made from buttermilk, salt, garlic, onion, mustard, herbs, and spices mixed into a sauce based on mayonnaise or another oil emulsion. Sour cream and yogurt are sometimes used in addition to, or as a substitute for, buttermilk and mayonnaise. The dried version on chips is delicious."
– BreakfastTequila
The German Interpretation
"In Germany, American dressing is Thousand islands."
– BonScoppinger
Effect On Buffalo
"Buffalo is appalled to learn this."
"Edit: This comment was about blue cheese vs ranch. Go search "ranch" on any buffalo-related subreddit (r/buffalo, r/buffalobills)."
– fatloui
Let's Not Forget...
"BBQ"
–Senator_Chickpea
"With beer, whiskey and cigars!! Murica!"
– IrishWhiskey556
What U.S. teenagers haven't participated in this atrocious soda trend?
The Everything Elixir
"You know when you used to mix every drink at the soda machine as a kid?"
"Like that."
– juspassinby12
Washingtonians Call It:
"WA state here."
"We called them 'Graveyards.'"
– anon
It Does Sound Toxic
"We called them 'suicides'"
"Edit: love hearing all the different names. I wonder if it's a geography/generational thing? I grew up in the Midwest in the 80s."
– greenvillain
Candy You Can Drink
"We called it skittles soda."
– suckmytoes27
The taste of America wasn't necessarily thought of as anything that would be beneficial to our health.
The Ingredients Found In All American Junk Food
"Partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, milk solids, ascorbic acid, xanthum gum, red dye #5, MSG, marshmallow fluff, and hollow point bullets."
– GlitchyMcGlitchFace
Vegetable Oil Jacuzzi
"Deep fried."
– billybobjimmyjoe
"That deep fried bar and grill taste. Where it's good dipped in ranch, but after a basket of any deep fried food... it just tastes and feels heavy. Like way too much of whatever it is."
– zXster
Interestingly, having grown up in Los Angeles–where authentic Mexican food was in abundance–I associate the flavor of America with chili con carne in chili colorado sauce.
Additionally because of my Japanese heritage, I also associate teriyaki sauce–which my dad marinated chicken skewers in for our backyard BBQs–with 'Murica.
My American flavors are a kaleidoscopic mish-mash of different cultures. Because aren't we supposed to be a melting pot anyway? Or so I've thought.
Citizens can tout patriotism all day long, but that doesn't mean there are things about their country they're secretly ashamed of.
When comparing their homelands to other parts of the world, it's clear that there is always something that can be improved upon.
But how much power do people actually have to make significant changes to deep-rooted brutal policies and customs in various countries?
Curious to hear examples of these, Redditor UtTeR_cArNaGe asked:
"What do you find most embarrassing about your country?"

Corruption abounds.
Notorious Autocrat
"The most embarrassing thing about my country is that we allowed Putin to run it for twenty years. Ridiculous."
– the_amateon
Under Incompetent Rule
"Corruption in Croatia. On all levels. And they blame war, which ended 27 years ago, for a bad situation. Truth is, politic parties (left, middle, right, all of them) hired incompetent people to work high position jobs (and all other jobs), so with their incompetence they are destroying everything, from economy to will for living."
– oriontrail
South Of The Border
"The fact that drug traffickers basically own the country, having 8 of the most dangerous Citys on the World. Be only known for southpark jokes."
"The previous president bought a mansion that cost 800 years of minimum wage."
"Oh, And also because one guy of our country extinguished the eternal flame under the triumphal arch in Paris, with his pee..."
"It's not that hard to find out what country it is ;)"
– trestristestigresy
Blame It On Colonization
"I come from India."
"The corruption is just aweful. We tend to blame things on colonisation but we aren’t evolving as people. Politics is the dirtiest thing in our country and fixing it could help with a lot of things."
– mrs_robpatt
The statistics are horrendous.
Caring About Our Veterans
"How everyone is all 'Support Our Troops!!' but as soon as they get home, no one gives a sh*t about them. Think about how much money is spent on the military and think about many veterans have severe mental health issues and/or live on the street when they get out."
"Also, many in the military don’t join for pride of country. They join because they’re targeted, recruiters going into schools and making all these empty promises."
– Odd_Sky7089
Treatment Of Children
"That children are being killed for the arguments and view points of previous generations. Yet no one can seem to understand that it is no one's land if the children in both sides are being killed before they can even grow up to inhabit it. Palestine."
– Mona_Moans
All About Perspective
"The fact that we're so focused on our differences with each other that we're not willing to look at how much we actually have in common with one another."
– TarheelTiger87
Immature Politicians
"That our politicians behave like children in kindergarden? 'Oh there was an illegal trade of 100.000.000€? I haven’t heard about it yet' 'What? I’m supposed to be the bad guy here? Look how bad the others are!' and this repeats every year. No content in their speeches besides ranting about each other."
– blanklikemybank
Highest Percentage Of Inflation
"You think 8% inflation is a lot? How about %60 and growing bigger inlation? That's what my country is facing. F'k anyone who's responsible for that f'k-up."
– yzrIsou
These Redditors discussed the unfair treatment of women in their countries.
Gender Disparity
"The fierce opposition to gender equality. We fall far behind our neighbors just in terms of legislation. I am a second class citizen in my own country and I get to live every day of my life knowing that the majority of people around me want it to remain that way."
– PonderingMyOptions
The majority of the complaints were about corruption.
Unsurprisingly we are not alone in that regard.
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Traveling beyond our border countries is a great way to experience different cultures.
While there are many things we have in common with people from around the world, there are as equally–if not more–customs and protocols that can be jarring.
Curious to hear from those who've seen how those in other parts of the world live, Redditor ElizaPaukova asked:
"Which is normal in your country, but strange in another?"Want to "know" more?

People's interactions with animals depend on where they live.
What's Hopping?
"Getting your car smashed in by a kangaroo one day, then having your suspension wrecked by a wombat two weeks later."
– QuantumTopology
Foul Fellows
"Being terrified of common neighbourhood birds every spring."
– Pseudonymico
Arach-NO
"Spiders the size of softballs that live in your house and are good at getting rid of bugs."
– I_hate_people69
A Tame Transport
"Bagged milk and riding a moose to the store."
– kotaska-
These foreign concepts may take a while getting used to.
Unattended Little Ones
"leaving babies outside!"
"It is common to put babies to sleep in a stroller and leave them in the garden or balcony, even outside a café (if you can sit next to the door or windows, so you can see the stroller)."
– PossiblyTrustworthy
They Tell Us When To Go
"Calling traffic lights 'robots.'"
– Upset-Sea6029
What's In A Name
"We call randoms mate and our mates c*nts."
– Skydome12
Effective Meds
"Custom meds. I recently found out that in most countries, you can't just go into a pharmacy / drug store with a prescription and have the pharmacist prepare a set of pills / ointment / cream for you."
"I used to have severe dandruff problems, went into a pharmacy and asked for something. The pharmacist asked how severe / for how long / what kind of shampoo I have and how greasy my hair is and told me to come back two days later. She handed me a container with a cream-like substance in it which just had a handwritten label on with saying '[My name] - Dandruff Shampoo'. I paid the equivalent of $4 and was told to use it twice a week for no longer than a month."
"Never had any problems with dandruff since. I made a post about it in r/tifu about how I'd been neglecting my dandruff problems for years while it had such an easy fix and people kept PMing me about the brand of the drug. Everyone was incredulous that the pharmacist made the shampoo for me, and I found out that this isn't the norm in a lot of countries."
– Corvus_Manufaktura
Bottoms Up
"Bringing the leftover alcohol you brought to a party home. I live in Norway and a beer is anywhere from £3 to £5. Hard liquor is atleast £40 per litre, but for something that doesn't taste like hand sanitizer it's around £50-60."
– jespersolost
Birthday Ritual
"Celebrating birthdays while sitting in a big circle in the living room, eating small blocks of cheese, little sausages and pickles, then going home on your bicycle."
– Vonne_F
Varying states of undress do not phase certain people in other countries.
Barefootin'
"Doing P.E barefoot, I'm from South Africa and moved to Scotland 3 years ago as I left the changing room they were like 'you forgot your shoes my guy' and I was like 'oh yeah, you guys wear shoes for p.e?' And the guy said 'Uhm of course' then I realised they were indoors majority of the time which was f'king bonkers to me because p.e in South Africa is done on the grass, outside and stuff and shoes were optional unless you were doing a sport or something."
"I mean even during sports events some people do that sh*t barefoot like long jump or high jump or even running and I feel like I run faster barefoot than with shoes so if I did a race I would always go 'alright well I'm up time to get my shoes off.'"
–jaknuggetf'k
Comfy In The Buff
"Nudity among strangers."
"I'm Finnish."
"#sauna"
– LupusCutis
Shoe-Free Zone
"Walking around bare foot, or in your pyjamas."
– Genderless_mystery
Not tipping will still be very confusing to me when traveling abroad.
I caught myself leaving a tip for the excellent service at a restaurant in Japan, and remembering the country–and most other parts of the world–do not accept tips.
Yet, their service was exceptional compared to that of the servers at some establishments in the US–where service is incentivized with the promise of a tip. Go figure.
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People Around The World Confess Which Historical Events Their Country Won't Speak About
Just because people are patriotic, it doesn't mean they are embarrassed or ashamed about a specific historic event in their country.
They will just feign ignorance or pretend certain events never happened.
But here on Reddit, where participants are under the veil of anonymity, strangers spoke freely about the things in their country's history that left them feeling a deep lack of pride.
Redditor CloudsExpert asked:
"What are the 'we don't talk about these things' history of your country?"
European countries are rich in history–but not everyone recognizes these regretful events.
Romanian Peasant Uprisings
"In Romania we don't talk about the pre WW1 and interwar peasant uprisings that have been violently put down. Everybody gives the image of a perfect Romanian state and society in this time, but many forget that in our Independence War we had more frontline deaths from diseases that should've been relatively easy for us to treat at that time than from enemy gunfire. Not the mention the 1907 peasant uprisings."
"Also the Second World War and the politics in our country at the time."
– El_scauno
Romanian Holocaust.
"Romanian people deny that we had mass murders during WW2, that Jewish and Gipsy were killed and that we sent lot of them in concentration camps, like Auschwitz."
– Wooden-King-7949
A "Neutral" Country's Child Slavery History
"Switzerland: We don't talk about 'Verdingkinder!' it's basically child slavery as recently as 1960! You cant imagine the horror of poor people's children being sold to farmers for fieldwork, getting abused in the richest country in the world! Yeah, we don't talk about that!"
– Fripser ·
Sweden And Eugenics
"People in Sweden get really uncomfortable when you point out that we, as a country, were really into eugenics. The Race Biological Institution was founded in 1922, supported by every political party and the king at the time. It existed until 1958 and, as you might expect, did some really f**ked up things."
– PanickingTastefully
The South American war–also known as the War of the Triple Alliance, which lasted from 1864 to 1870–is not a topic that is frequently brought up by Brazilians.
So Much Bloodshed
"Brazil DESTROYED Paraguay, killing almost every man and a lot of its women and children. It was a proper massacre."
– heitorrsa
Another Member Of The Alliance
"Argentina was involved, too. Paraguay ended up with a 7:1 women-to-men ratio. But it's taught openly in Argentina, as far as I can tell."
– Tinchotesk
An American's Perspective
"American who lived in Paraguay for a couple months here! The truly, truly disturbing thing is that many Paraguayans don't really know this either..."
"I had read up about the Triple Alliance War (la guerra de la triple alliance) before I went to Paraguay for the summer, and knew historians considered it a bloodbath, mostly caused by (f'k him) Francisco Solano Lopez, dictator of Paraguay. He did in fact order that they start sending male children into battle near the end when they were losing. He was a f'king idiot. F'k that guy."
"So imagine my surprise when I got to Paraguay and TONS of stuff was named after him. I asked my host dad about it and he said it was because he 'won Paraguay the war'. He called him a hero. I was pretty horrified."
"Fwiw, I checked with the local high school principal to see how far this miseducation rose and he said Paraguay was 'annihilated' in that war, so at least the true history isn't completely buried. Fascinating, terrible war."
– toast_is_ghost
Are these topics relating to the following Commonwealth Nations taught in their classrooms?
South African Natives
"Here in South Africa the true native people, the Khoikhoi, are the most politically and economically disadvantaged people and NO ONE gives a sh*t. Not locally, not internationally."
"When the remains of Saartjie Baartman, a Khoikhoi woman (read her story, it's pretty awful), were returned to South Africa not only were Khoikhoi people not invited to her burial, they were actively kept out."
– Wahooney
A Shameful Legislation
"New Zealand very nearly had legal eugenics. In 1928 a bill nearly passed parliament that forced sterilisation for 'the mentally defective' and the Ministry of Education was required by law to give names of 'defective' children to the Ministry of Health. A separate part of the law said that such people weren't allowed to get married."
"The Opposition lobbied for these sections to be cut out, not because Eugenics was immoral and insane, but because there was no evidence that it changed the gene pool in any way."
– LampWickGirl
When I was a kid, I learned about the Japanese concentration camps from my great uncle.
I thought his story about him and his wife relocating to live in barracks located in Heart Mountain in Wyoming during World War II wasn't real.
Here's why. As a California student, I was never taught in my school district about President Roosevelt’s Executive Order 9066–which was drafted out of fear of espionage on American shores following the attack on Pearl Harbor.
This led to the cruel eviction of 120,000 innocent Americans of Japanese ancestry–including my great aunt and uncle– from their homes.
Countries have their shameful secrets. But until they can recognize and own mistakes from the past and make reparations, we are doomed to living in a perpetual cycle of fear and uncertainty.
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We take a lot of things for granted in our lives. Look at where many of our readers live, after all. America is the land of freedom, comfort, and all services provided to us by the click of a smartphone possibly all of us are using to read this.
However, when you look at the state of certain countries, even those considered to live in "poverty" stateside have it much better than some in third-world countries. It's all a matter of perspective, and sometimes a luxury in one country can be considered uninspiring in another.
Reddit user, HanzeeeeDent, wanted to know how our countries differ when they asked:
"What is a luxury in one country, but a common item in another?"
Food is the easiest way to notice the discrepancies between the nations. What might be a dish of high-class value in one country can be seen as street food in another.
The Right Kind Of Fruit
"Japanese seem to be amazed at how abundant melons are outside if japan. It’s like they’re a luxury over there"
KentuckyFriedEel
"They have auctions where they'll pay thousands of dollars for the most perfect looking melons over there. They give them as gifts and display the melon for people to look at"
Monicabrewinskie
"I live in a city where Japanese executives and their families come to live for a year or so as part of their corporate culture. It is funny AS HELL to see them the first time in the grocery store. Whole cart full of melons. Hilarious."
The_Patriot
Quick! Hurry, Millennials!
"Avocados. I went to Belize and they grow naturally and just saw a pile of like 50 avocados just rotting on the ground because there was just way more than anyone’s ever going to eat. It was crazy."
Old-Research3367
"When I was living in Peru it was basically all fruit in this manner… mangos, pomegranate, passion fruit, citrus, you name it, thered be an old lady on a street corner with a pile of them hocking them for basically nothing."
"I live in LA now and what’s blown my mind is the amount of fruit trees used as decorative landscaping that just let them drop and toss them while the same stuff sells for $ at the store… passionfruit is something like $10 per lb. Meanwhile my neighbors have the vines as decoration on their side wall and just let them roll into the street"
JoefromOhio
Bag It Up!
"Soda cans. Here in the US are cheap af, but in my country they are a luxury. We buy usually a 2 liter bottles and we have to make it last."
Mariuxpunk007
"I lived in northwest Africa for a time, as well as Thailand. If you wanted a soda, you got a bag with a straw. Cans or small bottles were almost non-existent."
Shroom4Yoshi
"Philippines too. But only in very small stores. Reason is that they do not want to give away the bottle. For example, if you buy beer in a small store, you pay a small deposit. Then when you return the bottle, they give you the money back. For recycling."
sinus
Sounds Like A Good Time
"poppy seeds, pork, and alcohol"
"come to Slovakia, it is all legal, cheap and everywhere here"
"we also have legal foraging in any forrest that has no fence and is not part of national park....so year round practically free mushrooms, bear garlic, various berries, rosehip, herbs and tree fruit (for free fruit trees location there is an app)"
"leather products are not that expensive,too....actually, eating lamb is a luxury, owning sheepskin rug is quite common"
applesandoranges990
Societies are built on what we expect from one another, along with the expectations we carry for the people around us. When those assumptions are shifted, that's when you see the real differences in our home countries.
Call The Butler To Help The Maid
"Domestic helps."
Lonlolsm99
"What is domestic helps?"
Zenty3
"In many countries normal people have drivers, maids and other people working for their families. It isn’t a sign of wealth. It is more of a sign of people working for next to nothing."
NoChatting2day
Get Them Good Learnin'!
"Foreign Language classes before high school"
KhajitCaravan
"It is for a lot of people. Countries like France and Japan have their kids speaking at least 2 languages by the time they get to high-school. In America, most of us don't get exposed to a foreign language until high-school and that's why most people don't remember or even use their other language after graduating. It's taught to us at the worst time possible. My sister is the only person I've known [I went to three high-school so I've know a few people] who is "painfully fluent" In Spanish that she learned in high-school."
KhajitCaravan
We'll Never See Eye-to-Eye On Anything
"Let's just take the US and Russia for comparison, because it's most close to home for me."
"Ice making double-door fridges - pretty common in the US. Definitely a luxury in Russia."
"A second out-of-town property called a dacha. I have been told it's a luxury for Americans. In Russia, I would say, it's pretty normal to have a dacha - a summer home for vacation, out in the rural area. Maybe I'm wrong on this one."
"5G speed internet. Unlimited data. A luxury in Russia, pretty much the norm in the US today."
"Avocados. Canadian maple syrup. But that could be said for any imported foods. They are ridiculously expensive in the RF."
"Some construction equipment. I watch HGTV regularly and what they use could be considered a luxury in Russia, at least some of the equipment and materials. However a log cabin, I'd say, seems to me as more of a luxury in the US than Russia, because the most common type of construction in the US is the wood frame construction."
Not-a-Russian
When You Need To Smell Like A Star
"Deodorant. It’s an uncommon luxury in some East Asian countries where most people just don’t need it."
vivianmay02
And then there's these, pieces of life and society which show your rank, class, and social status without intending to the people of the world. You might think of them as commonplace, but to someone else they might be worth more than gold.
As Stated Before, Perspective Is Everything
"I remember when I was little McDonalds was quite a luxury for me. I was getting it 2-3 times a year and it was expensive for me and I guess for most common folks in my country. Not so much anymore, it have become something like the typical fast food. Times are changing. Wish you all good fellow Eastern Europeans."
YoghurtPower24
We Don't Even Think About It
"Air conditioning"
fattest_rattlesnake
"In the U.S. it's very common and we're always changing it. We go to Mexico and the whole house it hot af and everyone wants to stay in the one room that has AC."
V0rt3XBl4d3
"Hell, when I lived in East Asia, people would just hang at the local mall, because they had AC."
"In Vietnam, even one AC in a house was a serious status symbol. Which is awful, because it gets hot af during the hot season."
ACaffeinatedWandress
What We Need To Exist In This World Has Changed Drastically
"A bed."
"I’m from the Philippines and I’ve never had a bed. My family has slept on either a thin mattress on the floor or a “Banig” (a handwoven mat with no cushion so you might as well be sleeping on the floor) for most of my life and this is how it is for majority of the people in the country due to poverty"
"To the people asking why I can afford internet and a computer, but not a bed…"
"I don’t have a computer, I’m using an old secondhand phone and internet service can be around $20 while a bed is $100-$300, if you’re lucky (we don’t even have space for a bed, that’s why we use foldable mattresses and mats we can roll up). From what I’ve seen, $50 can get you just the frame or just the mattress."
"Internet is more of a necessity because 3 of us here are students and we have families abroad to stay in touch with. The money you can buy with a bed can cover all of our bills and get a few groceries. I can sleep on the floor if it meant having electricity, water, shelter, and food."
meispissed
It's All Relative
"cars. A new lowest spec Toyota corolla may cost upwards $100k in singapore. That’s equivalent to an approximate 1.5 years average income."
s1vaaeyy
"Bur you have some of the best public transit in the world. In the US that is a luxury. Density and walkability are also luxuries."
dharmabird67
Not A Drop To Drink
Water. Specifically, clean potable water.
In some countries people die for the want of water.
In my country we use clean water to flush away piss and sh-t. We leave the tap running while we brush our teeth.
Nuffsaid98
So, Where Do We...
"Indoor plumbing."
HolyMolyArtichoke
"It’s incredible something that’s existed hundreds of years is still so alien to some people."
HanzeeeeDent
Never take what you have for granted. Odds are, there's a multitude of people out in the world who think of what you have as a king's fortune.
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