21 Things British People Miss When They Go To America

Sorry, America, you just can't make tea.

1. Being able to order proper tea anywhere.

@NadiaKamil / Via Twitter: @NadiaKamil

The saddest thing about being a Brit in America is ordering a cup of tea and then being given a lukewarm cup of water with a Lipton (ew) teabag on the side.

2. Reasonable-sized portions in restaurants.

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Every British person makes the mistake of over-ordering while on holiday in US. And yes, we know you can get doggy bags, but that's not much use for a tourist in a hotel with no microwave.

3. Milk options that make sense.

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What is half-and-half? What is 2%? What is nondairy creamer and why would anyone want to drink that? Do I want cream? I don't normally put cream in my coffee but maybe I should. WHY ARE THERE SO MANY OPTIONS?!

4. Normal butter.

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That whipped butter you get on pancakes in the US is SO WEIRD.

5. Squash.

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Sometimes you just want something that isn't juice or fizzy. And no, Kool Aid is definitely not the same.

6. Flavoursome cheap cheese.

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There's nothing worse than biting into a baguette and finding it filled with rubbery American cheese. The only place square orange cheese belongs is on a burger, and don't get me started on that horrendous liquid cheese. (And yes we know you can buy fancy cheese in Whole Foods, etc. but IT'S NOT THE SAME.)

7. Sweets that taste nice.

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American sweets like Red Vines just taste like weirdly artificial flavoured wax to British people. Our sweets actually taste good.

8. Proper chips.

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American chips aren’t on the same level as delicious vinegary chip shop chips, they are just french fries.

9. Not getting so stressed about tipping.

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We're pretty used to tipping in restaurants, but how much are you meant to tip everywhere else? Is it rude not to tip baristas? Do I dip a hotel concierge? HELP.

10. And not having to deal with baffling tax in shops.

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Everything is the price it says on the label in the UK, it's great.

11. M&S.

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Sometimes it's nice to go to a shop that sells nice ready meals where you can also pick up a multipack of pants and a birthday card for your dad. There just isn't an American alternative.

12. Interesting street names.

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The US has a lot of bland streets called things like "West Avenue" and "Elm". We have silly ones that make navigating a hell of a lot easier.

13. Being fairly sure cars aren’t going to drive across a crossing on a green man.

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It's nice to know a car probably isn't going to drive in front of you at a crossing in the UK (unless you're really unlucky).

14. Being able to get around without a car.

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Have you ever tried to walk anywhere outside of a major city in the US? And Amtrak is no match for literally any British train.

15. Normal news programmes.

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Not loads of people shouting on screen, just people in smart jackets quietly talking about things. Oh and there are no adverts! (On the BBC, anyway.)

16. Bland daytime TV shows.

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There's something soothing about the lack of drama and excitement on British TV during the day.

17. Watching TV shows without having to sit through loads of recaps.

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We don’t have a “PREVIOUSLY ON” recap at the start and end of every segment of a TV show because producers assume our memories aren't erased every 15 minutes.

18. And watching TV without constant lengthy adverts.

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We have some adverts, but there definitely aren't as many. And there aren't any extremely long ones that look like they were made on Windows Movie Maker listing the side effects of prescription drugs.

19. The lack of terrifying wild animals.

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In the UK the worst you're going to get is a bite from an unfriendly neighbourhood cat. There are no wolves, no cougars, no bears, no alligators, and our snakes are small and cute.

20. Not having to live with air conditioning.

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We get that it's hot in the summer and you need it, but there's something nice about being able to open a window and get a nice summer breeze on a warm day. And there's only, like, three days a year where we need air con in the UK.

21. And the consistently bland weather.

David Robinson / Creative Commons / Via geograph.org.uk

We don't have to worry about hurricanes, we rarely have forest fires, the summer is usually alright, and it barely ever snows for months on end. Bless the grey skies.