Being
here for almost a month, I have picked up on quite a few cultural discrepancies
I did not expect, with the biggest being the energy consciousness of Europeans.
We’ve all grown up hearing how inconsiderately wasteful Americans are, but
living away from America, even for a short time, has opened my eyes. In our
flats we are fined if we recycle incorrectly, our lights are motion activated,
all of the power outlets are switch activated, we are expected to hand dry
whatever laundry possible, most everyone takes the bus or walks whenever
possible, and even the toilets have two water options. As I my time here grows
I will be able to expand more thoroughly on other differences, but for now I’ll
make a list:
- Energy consciousness
- Space: Americans take up lots of space which is made known to be rude here (I say as I type this blog entry while squeezed into a tiny corner of a café with my three other roommates)
- Clothing: Europeans are much more fashion forward than Americans, but it’s almost bland. Even though it’s winter, it seems that no one wears a lot of color around here. Also, I haven’t seen a single girl in leggings and Uggs thus far, which is truly impressive in this dreary weather.
- Business times: Most stores here are open on Sundays and choose to close shop on Mondays or Tuesdays, and besides the major super centers most businesses close down around 6.
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| haggis, neeps, tatties for dinner in celebration of Burns night |
- Food: bread, bread, and more bread. While Europeans tend to be a good bit healthier than Americans when it comes to food, but Scotland in particular eats a lot of bland, hearty food dishes like meat pastries, pies, potatoes and meat plates, etc. Fast food places aren’t quite as plentiful, and serving sizes are much more reasonable here. My roommates and I learned the hard way that to-go boxes are a very American custom.
- Daylight: During the winter in Scotland days are incredibly short. Thankfully, we’re passed the worst of it now, but when we first arrived the sun set every day around 3:30.
- Drinking: The Scottish drinking stereotypes are pretty on point here. Edinburgh alone has over 700 pubs and the university students very much take advantage of it.
- Accents: Of course I was excited to be surrounded by Scottish accents, but I didn't expect this area to be so incredibly diverse. Half of the accents I hear here are Scottish and the other half are Italian, Chinese, Spanish, Irish, etc. Back home we have very few foreigners and the main accent differences you hear are between northerners and southerners.
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| my roommates and I huddled together in hopes of reprieve from the incredible winds at St. Andrew's |
- Weather: It doesn't get too cold in Scotland, maybe lingering in the mid-20s to the mid-40s during the winter, but its overcast regularly and super windy. It’s the windiness that'll get you. It’ll chill you to the bone.