I’m an American – here are seven ‘weird’ things I would change about the US after living in the UK, from the food to the TOILETS
Americans probably think their country is perfectly normal.
But Florida expat vlogger Kalyn Franke has news for them: After moving to the UK, she realised there are a lot of things about the US that are “a little bit strange”.
In a video for her YouTube channel Girl Gone London, she reveals seven things about America that she would change now that she’s lived in the UK.
The list includes sanitation, food and fences that make the United States “look like a prison.”
She told MailOnline that they are ranked ‘in order of importance’. Scroll down to see if you agree with her suggestions for improving her home country.
Florida expat vlogger Kalyn Franke realized after moving to the UK that there are a lot of things about the US that are ‘a little bit strange’
ADVERTISING SIGNS FOR DIVORCE LAWYERS
Kalyn says: ‘When you’re in America it doesn’t seem like a strange idea, but like many things, you don’t realise it’s strange until you leave.
‘I think it is not wise for society as a whole to promote cheap divorces.
“I mean, you’re arguing with your spouse while you’re driving on the freeway and you see a sign with a phone number for a $90 divorce. Should we be tempting people like that?”
AMERICAN SHOWER FAUCETS
Kalyn says, “I literally don’t know what to do with American shower faucets half the time. You never know which way to turn. You never know if you’re supposed to pull something or push something. There’s no standardization.”
US DOMESTIC FLIGHT FEES
Kalyn points out that domestic flights in the US are often more expensive than international flights
Kalyn says: ‘It’s often cheaper to fly internationally from America, to fly from America to the UK, than to fly to certain places within the US.
“I’m not saying we don’t have cheap deals… but it’s still a lot more expensive to travel domestically on airlines in America than you would expect.”
BATHROOM BENCHES
Mind the gap: Kalyn is not a fan of American public toilets
Kalyn says, “The space between the floor and the door, and also between the sides of the doors, is insane.”
OREOS
Kalyn says: ‘We don’t really do single-sleeved Oreos like they do in the UK.’ She explains that in America, Oreos usually come in packs of three. ‘I think that’s great, because of the amount of Oreos I get from them – but I think single-sleeved Oreos should be an option in America. It’s easier to transport and American packaging just looks greedy.’
SWITCHING FENCING
America’s abundance of chain-link fencing makes the country ‘look like a prison’
Kalyn says, “We have a lot of ugly fences in the U.S. It’s cheap, I think, and America is often built cheaply and we have less existing structures from the past and we’re always building and changing and whatever… but a chain link fence just doesn’t look right – it looks scary. And it doesn’t look pretty. It looks like you’re in a prison.”
READY-MADE MEALS
Kalyn says: ‘American ready meals are not as good as British ready meals, which you wouldn’t expect because you would think Americans like convenience and therefore like frozen meals, but the food is not as good. The British ready meals are much better.’
Kalyn told MailOnline Travel that this listing was a big surprise.
She added: ‘The quality of British ready meals has surprised me the most. Compared to America, you wouldn’t necessarily think of the UK as a country that is very keen on quick meals or takeaway meals. But it’s good that the quality of food in the UK (which is better than America) has continued into the ready meals sector.’
Are there any British ready meal brands that impress her?
She said: ‘I usually get my ready meals from the supermarket own brands and find they are usually very good. M&S have some great ready meals that I like.’
For more from Kalyn visit www.youtube.com/@GirlGoneLondoofficial And girlgonelondon.comTo see the original YouTube post, click here.
