The Everyday Life Similarity & Differences Between the US and UK.

One man’s trash is another man’s rubbish.

The excitement of going to a new place, surrounded by the unfamiliar is life in itself. The opportunity to learn how the new way of living differs from where you’re coming from is one of the most valid reason why many people travel. Call it “The awe of the unknown”.

I’ve had my fair share of experiences visiting the UK from the US. One time I spent almost thirty minutes trying to figure out how to turn on the lights in the room. I thought the bulbs were dead but apparently you have to plug your key card into a socket on the wall to activate the lights. Very simple thing but if you haven’t been exposed to it, you’d never know.

There’s also that day I spent a long time trying to figure out the sorcery behind the shower knobs. There was hot and hotter, no cold or warm. And at a different place, their bathroom had temperature on the knob “20°, 30°, 40°” when all I wanted was a warm shower, in and out, rather than seeking textbooks and calling reception staff for a tutorial on how to work the shower.

The below are some of my observations between the US and the UK, it might not be true through out the whole Kingdom but it was true for me.

Here goes:

The bathroom in the US usually has only one knob. Turn knob to the right for cold and left for hot water. In the off chance that the bathroom has two knobs, the left knob would be for hot water and the right knob would be cold water.

In the UK, the bathroom usually comes with two knobs. The one on the left turns on and turns off the water flow. The knob on the right adjusts the temperature of the water, going from cold to very hot.

In the US, the toilet knob to flush is usually attached to the toilet back rest connected to the wall.

In the UK, the toilet knob or handle to flush is attached to the wall, few inches away from the toilet seat.

In the US, a “twin bed” means a bed smaller than a queen sized bed
In the UK, a “twin bed” means two different beds.

In the US, a double bed means two different bed to sleep two people.
In the UK, a double bed means one full sized bed to sleep two people.

In the US, queen size bed is generally the standard — giving both people some/enough space.
In the UK, a smaller bed is generally the standard eliminating too much space between both people.

In the US, “Hey” gets the person’s attention.
In the UK, “Hello” or “Excuse me” gets the person’s attention.

In the US, when you say “Thank you” the common response would be “You’re welcome”.
In the UK, when you say “Thank you” the common response would be “That’s OK”.

It’s common for the US to say “you know what I’m saying?”
In the UK its common for them to say “you know what I mean?”

The US has a lot of Hispanic population.
The UK has a lot Middle Eastern population.

The US show mostly US shows.
The UK show mostly US shows.

What the US call a Bottled Water
The UK call Still Water.

What the US call Soda Water
The UK only call Sparkling Water.

What the US call French Fries
The UK call chips.

In the US, we put ketchup on our fries
In the UK, many people put mayo on their chips (fries)

What the US call “to go” or “take out”
The UK call “take away”.

When driving in the US, you will see the “Yield” sign
In the UK, it is “Give way”.

What the US call Thrift Store or mostly “Goodwill”
The UK call Charity shop.

When the US buy Polo shirts and Jordan shoes
The UK buy Superdry brand.

What the US call panties,
The UK call pants.

What the US call pants,
The UK call trousers.

In the US, a pant would most likely have a zipper
In the UK, a trouser would most likely have buttons.

In the US a hoodie/jacket would most likely have only one zipper.
In the UK a jacket most likely has two zips. One goes up, the other stays down.

What the US call Bathroom
The UK only know as Toilet.

There are no fees to use the bathroom in most US bus stations and airports.
The UK bathroom at bus stations and airports usually cost 30pence.

Shopping in the US, you pay tag price plus tax. So 7.99 end up being 8.15.
When shopping in the UK, you pay tag price. 7.99 remain 7.99.

US postal service is called USPS
UK postal service is called Royal Mail.

When the average US person would dress casual,
a UK person would dress business casual.

When it’s noon in US,
it’s 5pm or 7pm in UK.

US is close to Latin America.
UK is close to Europe.

When you eat out in the US, many establishments expect you to clean after yourself. Putting your tray up before leaving.
When you eat out in the UK, the establishments expect you to leave the tray on the table for them to clean up.

What the US call trash
The UK call rubbish.

In the US, two people can make love numerous times without a name tag or considering it a relationship.
In the UK, for many people, making love to a person more than a few times is automatically assumed as an exclusive relationship.

In the US, the traffic light goes Green, Yellow, Red.
In the UK, the traffic light goes Red, Yellow, Green.

In the US, most department stores have public bathrooms.
In the UK, McDonalds’ is where most people refer you to for public bathrooms.

In the US, retailers would quote you their price, buy it or leave it.
In the UK, retailers could offer/refer you to a competing store that has cheaper price than they do for the same product.

In the US, retail prices are mostly fixed.
In the UK, some small shops offer wiggle room to bargain prices.

Two similar places but subtle differences. Knowing these little differences could make the shock of a new land more bearable and the journey of a new adventure more enjoyable.

With Love,

Famous Steve.