American Shares Things About The UK That Seem Weird To Her Even After 10 Years Of Living There
"The British call their fanciest private schools public schools."
Some places win you over slowly, and some still manage to feel a little strange even after years of living there. For Jessica Rose, an American who has spent more than a decade in the UK, that mix of comfort and confusion is part of daily life.
She recently shared the British habits, quirks, and everyday differences that still stand out to her, and the post quickly drew huge attention. Other people jumped in with their own takes, turning her list into a bigger conversation about what feels normal in one country and odd in another.
Some of her observations are funny, some are relatable, and a few clearly hit a nerve. Read on.
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Jessica Rose is in her 30s and works in the IT industry. She lives in Birmingham and likes most things about her life in the UK.
She says that as an American, she finds the National Health Service "mind-bogglingly amazing."
"I also really love the public transport here and almost everything about Birmingham. Am I allowed to mention that it's the best city in the UK? I don't think there's much I dislike about living here; some things are just still weird after 10 years."
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But she still sometimes misses the American way of living. "It seems like a silly thing to miss, but as my days get really busy, I miss shops being open as late as they are in the States," she says.
Jessica also thinks that "a lot of the misconceptions and stereotypes about the British mistakenly group all of the UK into a homogeneous lump, while the UK is really a massively diverse group of people across our four countries (Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and England)."
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One of the best examples is the legendary English breakfast. "For example, people from outside the UK often think of the English breakfast as something singularly British, while overlooking the (far superior) Scottish fry-ups," Jessica said.
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She didn't expect to get so many likes and responses. "I half hoped a few people would see it, as I was quite proud of the phrase 'sugared houseplants.' I hope folks liked it!"
It’s a privacy-versus-honesty clash like the AITA where someone refuses to share their partner’s unusual meal preferences with friends.
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Wait, is it a jerk move to hide your special diet from a coworker who won’t stop prying? Read this AITA about keeping a special diet private at work.
