The European Way of Life

Ten Basic Differences Between the USA and Europe

---

Less is more, especially when we are talking about overall health. Europeans especially women in Central and Eastern Europe , dress much better than Americans in general. You will hardly see anyone in Europe go to a mall or anywhere outside wearing baggy sweatpants, big sweatshirt, bright white tennis shoes, out of style jeans or out of style clothes of any kind, and without makeup. Sure, this is a generalization, but its true. Kids at college dress up nicely, and girls really dress up, unlike many in the US who are OK going to class in PJ bottoms and over sized college logo sweatshirts.

Maybe its because Europeans can actually see each other more because they walk around that they dress up and don't look sloppy. Americans mostly see each other as heads behind a steering wheel, thus making what they wear less important. European cities are a lot more pedestrian friendly, leading to people walking around more and being active. In the US it is rare to see people walking on sidewalks, and if they are seen it is usually assumed that they have had their license revoked for DUI or they are too poor to get a car.

Americans don't consider just going for a walk to be exercise: This means power walking instead of just normal walking; riding race bikes wearing all the pro bike riding gear instead of just riding your bike to the store dressed normally; running for miles and miles and suffering through it whilst wearing the most expensive running shoes there are instead of just not eating so much etc.

Physical activity doesn't have to be extreme, it just has to be consistent and coupled with less consumption in order to work. Vast sprawling US style suburbs are not common in Europe. In the US you can drive for miles through developed areas which look like one large city when in fact they are several separate towns that have grown together into mega suburbs. The only way you know that you have passed from one city to another is by signs dumped on the sides of road which can be very hard to notice.

This type of sprawl is not common in Europe, where you can see when you have left one town and are entering another by the empty territories in between. It must be mentioned that of course all of the above are generalizations and that there are many exceptions. However, in essence these differences do exist between the US and Europe in general. Of course there are also differences between European countries too, but for the sake of brevity those have not been explored here. Sign in or sign up and post using a HubPages Network account. Comments are not for promoting your articles or other sites.

Im not dressing up everyday to please my fellow americans.. Your talking about ego, well that's vanity. Ive lived and traveled in different cities and see all types of people walking around. Regardless of how right it is it could be worded differently. While this is true, in general, I think there are areas where this isn't really the case. For instance, I live in a beach town just North of San Diego.

Most people here are in phenomenal shape, walk a lot, eat healthy food, and spend lunch breaks outdoors walking, surfing, or just relaxing at the park. None of us dress up though.

Getting people to dress up in San Diego is next to impossible. I guess what I'm saying is that it's possible to do those things anywhere, even in the United States. I have an aunt in Tennessee who walks her neighborhood all the time, cooks beautiful fresh, organic meals at home, and spends leisure time kayaking on a nearby lake or having BBQ's with friends. Europe does a lot of things right and as a culture, we can learn from them, but it IS possible to have just as beautiful life on this side of the pond if you make the effort. This is so true I'm actually sad for all of the "offended Americans" who can't realize they're not the center of the world.

Just read the comments below! First of all, most of the wars have been taken place in Europe so, in a bad way, we've learned. That's why our countries don't invest such big amounts of public money in defense by means, the Army and there's a very rigorous gun regulation. So, in Europe, taxes are sent to actual needs such as education or a well-working healthcare system.

Poverty is not that big of a problem such as in the US. That's why we get to live our "relaxed" lives. Another thing we have to take into account is the apparent "laziness" we Europeans transmit while working. We don't work for our "homeland", to serve the country, we work for ourselves so we can be proud of our labor and get paid for it.

Our countries have history and we've learned from it, and we are still, but the US just stays on that huge ego with no background.

America is full of ignorants, I'm sorry. Also, I would like to say that we Europeans are not boring, it depends on the country you go to. The southern zone, such as Portugal, Spain, Italy or Greece is full of warm and fun people, good parties, even better than those wannabe festivals such as Coachella. Dudes, we know how to have fun! Anyhow though, I believe America has also good things and many brilliant minds, it's just that they need so much improvement and less bragging about!! I live in America and this is so accurate. I'm a little sick of people who get so offended when you criticize the US.

The US ain't such a great place. It used to be. Those amazing inventions one person was commenting about happened around a century ago. Ever since, America has only gone downhill. I mean just look at this country's president. The US has a huge ego but nothing to back it up. I live in this country so this isn't coming from someone who's "never been here". This is fucking bullshit. The only trying that differentiates is sports. The rest is stupid. This list is incredibly bias. Americans have bad habits, just as any country in the world, but don't generalize an entire population of a few hundred million people.

Why do I have to complete a CAPTCHA?

You can't open up a discussion when you make such a point as that. These are the reasons Europe sucks lol. I live in Prague. They are lazy as hell, it's the truth. Everything is a disappointment here and Europeans secretly worship American culture. They are all Netflix addicts. The clothing thing is insecurity and vanity.

Truth hurts, bite me. I agree with everything you said! The Americans are more approachable and accommodating then the European. This articles written with a full biased. For example, the way writer describe the things towards American are negative description.

Quality of life in Europe - facts and views - overall life satisfaction

Some are true but most are all hypocrite and totally biased. I doubt writer has never seen or been to America. America, not to be rude or anything dose't have the history the many European countries do. This is a fact! Europeans generally are more cultured because they are sounded by other countries. I have lived here for 8 years and I have to say that there are some good aspects but Europe is so much better.

I would rather live there. Americans have to pay a lot for education where as Europeans don't. Thus, as students, we are poor and can't afford nice clothes. We also like to dress comfortably although I really don't like to see women in sweat clothes. We generally have to work our way out of poverty. We don't drink beer during work hours which is generally a reason for termination of employment.

Sports in US are generally not family oriented except maybe baseball. Pro sports have gotten so expensive that only the corporations generally have the tickets or people do ticket shares. Not many people can afford to take their family to a sporting event. The US is enormously larger than Europe. A car is a must, although recent generations are getting away from that. Earlier generations required a car for dating and attracting a mate.

Social event included cars. Young people used to take pride in how well they fixed up an old car. Most sports in the US involve your arms a lot as opposed to football. American see Europeans as mostly awkward and non-athletic, except for their ability to run. The diving on the football fields soccer in Europe is seen to be cowardly by Americans. That would cause fist fights in the US and there would be a lot of name calling.

Soccer football is mostly a woman's game and a Latino game in US. Tennis is mostly a woman's game. There are various reasons for sitting at lunch at your desk. I've never heard anyone think there is something wrong with eating lunch in the open. We have a lot of interests and typically catch up on non-work things at lunch. Picking up things we need or want. Some work through lunch as we normally work hours a day.

If we work through lunch, we go home earlier. Dining out is very expensive and is avoided during the workweek. Europe is densely populated. I live in a state where it's 2 hours to the beach and 2 hours to the mountains. To drive to California or take a bus would be mad. It takes me 8 hours to get there by jet.

It would take close to a week to drive there. I think we have more fun and Europeans seem grump to us. Europeans can say they are happier, but they don't appear it. It's easy to make an American smile. Our social skills, for the most part, are friendlier. Most people eat fairly well and exercise. But in poorer areas, that may or may not be true. Most of eat some junk food, but don't eat a lot. There are fewer very overweight people any more.

Very few people smoke anymore except weed. I'm not sure they even smoke that either. There are areas in the US that are way more dangerous than Europe because of poverty I think we discuss movies more than tv shows. More and more Americans don't even watch network tv. There's plenty of things to entertain us on the Internet and there is a large variety, so many people don't even know of the shows that others are watching.

We generally don't eat when we drive, but it does happen. Normally we stop and eat and then resume driving. Some stop and get fast food. When you are driving to work every day, time is everything, so stopping to get food, takes up time. Church is probably less than thought and certainly less in the north. The south is called the bible belt and there's at least one church on every street that isn't in a residential area neighborhood.

The country is rapidly changing and the culture is changing though. So by the time any of you read this, it could all be different. I've never been to Europe but we get a lot of Europeans here. Which is basically the same thing, but America is much worse. I noticed from working with people from places like Afghanistan, Turkey, Jordan, and other places, that people from these places have much richer conversation. Number 5 on this list is what I'm sick of in this country, I hate working with Canadians. Americans do work more, but where did the plane, the car mass produced , the computer, the internet, the mobile phone, etc.

I also don't mind the work, super rewarding. Are you saying drunk men at a "Football" game is better than a family atmosphere at an MLB game? The TV thing in America is pathetic as are the food portions, the clothes especially women people wear. Oh, yeah, and traffic is silly, but only in the big cities.

I'm 34 and I've never had more than a minute commute. The points you made may be somewhat accurate, but not without giving off a slightly pretentious vibe. To state that all Americans are stressed and hate their lives, enslaved by their jobs is simply false. Many Americans enjoy their lives and are well adjusted to the quirks of daily American life, the stressful things and the relaxing things.

You mentioned that Americans typically discuss television because it is a thing that everybody can engage in. I have never discussed television when I worked in America before. You portray Americans as dull witted and stupid, unable to comprehend and discuss things like their own lives and world issues.

2. Vacation

I also would like to note the falsity of the highly stereotyped idea that Americans are fat and lazy. Yes their food portions tend to be bigger, but to simply suggest that Americans do not monitor what goes into their bodies and do not limit themselves is false. Americans have just as much temperance as Europeans, and the recent surge in push for healthy food options is a strong American market. Yet another falsity is the idea that Americans are not bound to their sports teams. Teams that are city bound rarely move, and yes, if they are not making money, they may move, but if they are not making money, that means that there are fewer fans, and thus less people care about them.

Moving them to a different city may result in spark of support for these teams. Another issue that you pointed out was that American families attend games as a family. Why this is an issue to you is a question to myself. This attendance of sports allows a bond of kids to a team, and can result in a close deep bond with a sports team, associated with memories of family.

Americans tend to love the team that their parents love, and this is a good reason why. Europe is a great place to live if you want a change from the American lifestyle, but the culture in Europe cannot be compared to America in that it is up to each individual person to decide whether they wish to live in America or Europe. I have already arranged for a my relocation to Madison, Wisconsin next year. I was disappointed to see this article seem so stuck up, and it is clearly written by somebody who does not know America as an American, rather by a person who sees America through the steriotypes that dominate the European view of America.

How true these are! Here in the San Francisco Bay Area, we are lucky enough to have above-average public transportation, at least. But, when the rain clouds close in which they do a lot in Vancouver , the roads become choked with gas guzzlers and bikes are put away in the garage.

What about Amsterdam, at any time of year? Bikes are so common that every home has two or three parked outside. Our friend Harriet, who spends her work day taking meetings all over town, does it by bike. Yes, even in the rain. Even in a hailstorm. And this is normal behaviour. In Copenhagen, there are so many bikes that bike traffic is becoming a problem all on its own. Even in London, where the infrastructure is still weak and the roads are narrow and twisted, two-wheeled warriors are starting to take over.

Almost no one rides a bike. Special shout out to Portland where people move house by bicycle and happily cycle around in a snowstorm. Even in Nanaimo, a tiny city, everything was at least a minute drive away. The close-quartered, super-social, apartment living in Paris makes our sprawling suburbs — where everyone has at least 4 bedrooms and spends 1. Because public transport is properly funded, properly run, and it really works. This makes it super simple to travel without a vehicle and still see the sites or get to your business meeting on time. Have you read about our adventures on the public bus system in India?

Because of our driving-focussed society, Americans and Canadians still seem to have a bigger is better mentality when it comes to cars. In Europe, cars are all about practicality. In Torino, the home of Fiat, every other car seems to be a tiny Fiat of some kind or other. Smart Cars are taking over in London and Paris. Even the familiar models from back home come in a diminutive version for Europeans. Picture by Nathan Wong. North Americans are waging a vehicle arms race , armouring ourselves with heavier and heavier vehicles.

In Europe, one study suggests , the premium on gas has influenced the move to smaller cars, while the cheap gas prices in the U. Last year when we lived in Canada, I noticed that when I told friends we lived in an apartment, they reacted with… surprise? Think how much money and commuting time could be saved in North America if only we stopped mortgaging our grandmothers for a 5-bedroom house in the suburbs and just lived in city apartments a few minutes walk from everything?

Communal living is one area where European culture has really got it right! Speaking of 5-bedroom houses… In North America, real estate has really gotten out of hand. A three-bedroom house if you can find one that small also must have three bathrooms, at least. A much simpler solution than installing one bathroom for every person in the house. The English, along with most other Europeans let nature or the radiator dry their clothes.

Despite their tiny apartments and small houses, almost all of our friends also employ someone to take care of the house cleaning, the ironing, and even the laundry. Admittedly, most of our friends in Europe are middle class and work in full-time professional jobs. Plus, you will be hiring another person, supporting their entrepreneurial spirit while helping their small business survive — win win.

Main navigation

This one is a rather self-serving… but we love it. Too right, since our streets, and by association our shoes, are covered in bacteria and toxic crap. Instead, they pull out a big basket of slippers and allow us to take our pick. What do we North Americans know that European culture is missing out on? At My Five Acres, our mission is to inspire you to live your most adventurous life and help you to travel more and more mindfully.

European Culture: Social Life

Things to do in Turin Italy in One Day: Laura Martin-Williams Reply February 3, at 5: Staggering showers is sometimes impractical. Also, late one summer, in Paris, the weather took a turn for the worse and I wanted to purchase some leather gloves. I like the French idea better, it just takes more planning. Jane February 8, at 9: Showers in Europe do leave a LOT to be desired but they are getting better — or maybe I now compare the to showers in Southeast Asia which are even worse!

I always hated the US way of putting out clothes for the coming season so early.

• Cabalistic Keys to the Lords Prayer
• An Enquiry concerning Human Understanding (Oxford Worlds Classics)
• Wisdom in a Traffic Jam: The Secrets Nobody Tells You About Owning an Amazing Successful Business
• Digital Culture, Play, and Identity: A World of Warcraft® Reader (MIT Press)
• They call Me Fero