The Good, the Bad&The Ugly: 10 annoying things about America

Having been here a lil' over a month i can safely say America is not the promised land(i mean we knew that already if we've read our Bibles 

correctly), although some people tend to think it is, as a South African living here and adjusting to the culture, food and weather here i have seen some cracks already. Sure i got to see Adam Levine&the other people in Maroon 5 that no one knows, i got to see a bit of snow, got lots of complements on my braids/soft dread(in SA we are used to protective hairstyles) and i'm liking driving in this country because the road signs are more helpful than most in South Africa. Most things work properly e.g the other day i went to apply for a social security card(ID) and i spent less than 3 hours there even though i arrived a little later after they opened. I was very impressed. With that said, there are some things i've noticed that makes one shrug when someone says "America is the greatest nation in the world", maybe its great in terms of the freedoms and democracy that citizens here enjoy but the US doesn't take the trophy when it comes to lifestyle patterns. Here are 10 irritating things that i find about the US:
1. People complaining about CRIME

Not to say that there is Zero crime here but i've heard people complaining that they left their bicycles(unlocked) and went into a supermarket for a while and came to find it gone. Sometimes i feel tempted to give them a picture into my world about what real crime is. How does one get shocked in South Africa if they left their bicycle unlocked for 2 mins to find it gone?That's just giving it away with no hassle for the thief. At least the thieves here have the decency to wait till you get into the store.

          2. People don't often reciprocate "How are you?"
                

By the way you know how in the cities you can't say hi to random people walking on the street?, i used to hate this because in the village where i grew up you couldn't pass another person., especially an elder without greeting. I got over it when i moved to the city but hey, people here take it to the next level. So whether you know the person or its your first time meeting just know that "How are you?" might only be followed by "I'm good" and that's it! Don't expect " I'm doing well and how are you?". Nowadays i don't even bother because as an African i know that one sign that someone is trying to discourage a conversation from moving forward is if they don't ask you similar questions in response. So i take the hints America, you guys don't want to start a conversation with a greeting. 

          3. Extra large products/ food portions

          

America is trying by all means to attain their status as the Biggest nation in the world, they go big in all manners. Look at the size of this kitkat. The burger sizes are humongous. 

 And this takeaway that i bought to eat alone(coz friends dololo), it could be enough to feed three people. 

The clothes sizes are also huge. Even though i've hlatselad a lot of amafutha in the last few months, i'd still wear a size 32/34 in South Africa but here my jean size is 28, because everything is extra large. Which is good for boosting my confidence but also to discourage me from watching what i eat. Pray for my jean size because;

4. Too much food(sweet, fatty and unhealthy food)

Lets be honest....unhealthy foods are sinfully delicious. I am not a nutritionist or dietician, not even a health freak but the amount of food available in this country is astounding. They have restaurants, diners, food trucks, etc.  at every corner. And all different types of foods to munch on. They call this country land of the free but i think they should call it land of the FEED because there is an abundance of food.

5. Taxes on products

In South Africa, the total price has a Tax price included, in some American stores you might end up paying a higher price because they will only calculate the Tax after you take the item to the till. Apparently in some stores in New York you even pay Tax on clothing. Fiiine i'll sow my own clothes thank you. 

6. States(Provinces)  are too far apart from each other

Which makes it hard for people to drive from one state to another. It takes 2 days and 1 hour to drive from Washington state to Florida state.  That's even longer than taking a bus from Johannesburg to Lusaka(including waiting time at the border). 

7. Mandatory tipping 

Maybe its only where i currently live but i've been in 2 restaurants where the waitresses demanded to be tipped. Like get out of here! I am that dad from Everybody hates Chris, i am that cheap. I don't believe in being rude to waiters and waitresses but i also don't believe on tipping  at gunpoint. I guess if she'd given me the choice i would have NOT tipped...coz i'm cheap haha! 
And also, the restaurant staff here is super polite. Polite to an extent that you'd wanna ask them to stop(we are gonna pay the bill even if you don't smile Sharon!). I guess its something refreshing other places can learn from or maybe not. In South Africa we like our waiters indifferent and borderline rude- you could choke in front of their eyes and they wouldn't pay you attention..ok i'm exaggerating but the restaurant staff etiquette here is heart-warming. Except for the TIPPING! Ha!


8. American Flags everywhere

They do come in handy in case you are not sure which country you are in. They are everywhere which is something i'm not accustomed to seeing in my country. 

9. Consumer culture 

The American lifestyle often comprises of buying things on a daily. Its not necessarily bad because we all need certain products to use on a daily but i bet one can get away with being a shopaholic in this country than in most countries in Africa. 

10. You have an accent

Its not necessarily annoying to be asked, i mean Africans do have strong thick accents which is not a thing when you are in Africa but now i'm  the only one who speaks different in a group of people. Whenever i say it is a South African accent the follow up questions about other African countries come flooding in my ears. I not only realize how ignorant some Americans are about Africa but i realize my own ignorance as well about my own continent. 

Okay, that's enough dissing on dissing the free world. Overall i love staying here, i love the experiences and lessons i'm learning  daily. I'm probably still gonna frown about tipping for the next few months thou!