25 Things That Immigrants Want You To Know About The United States

Showers and running hot water. I was born in the Philippines. Showers and hot water aren’t really common in older homes over there. Not having to fill buckets with water and boiling some over a stove top was such a big surprise for me.

Buildings and bridges are so…amazing, like the infrastructure is good; it makes you think, “wow, mankind DID THIS.”

I was young when we moved here, but my parents always said that from navigating the interstate to knowing where to shop, people would go out of their way to help us find what we needed or show us how to do things.

Thinking back to when I came with my family from the USSR: Grocery stores. Seriously. Where we came from, shelves were bare or at best stocked with drab, low-quality food.

Hot water doesen’t go out for a few weeks in the summer. In fact, there’s as much hot water as I want!

Your road directions are simple. To get to a city 2000 miles away, you get on I-80 exit to I-90 then exit 40.

Small talks. I really didn’t expect people to just strike up a conversation with someone they’ve never met before. I’ve heard some interesting experiences from strangers while waiting at airport

Ex-African here. I’m pleasantly surprised by The U.S. Postal Service. You can stick a cheap stamp on a letter, throw it in a blue mailbox in NY, and it will get to LA 99% of the time. It doesn’t get “lost” or stolen, it just gets there.

Air. You don’t really notice how REAL fresh air feels like when you’ve been breathing in polluted air all your life

People seem very courteous and open/friendly compared to northern Europe. I’ve grown to like strangers smiling at me for no reason or complimenting my outfit, my hair or my son or whatever it happens to be. It’s sweet, and it brightens my day very often. And it’s contagious! Now I do it to others. And when I go home, people there seem needlessly serious, closed up, rigid, and often rude.

Ramps. Growing up in a wheelchair in a small town in Colombia was difficult.

Want to know more about this beautiful country? Here are 25 Beautiful Places In The United States You Need To Visit Today.

Bribing the cops can actually get you into more trouble.

How hiking, biking, and camping is made so easy. Well marked trails, with clearly specified difficulty levels, park rangers to help you, documented rules to follow for a good experience, bike trails documented on Google maps, camping equipment you can buy at Walmart with crisp instructions every step of the way…and well-maintained national and state parks.

You don’t have to worry about bribing people to get things done, or getting cheated on with every little transaction.

Note: There is certainly corruption in the United States, but usually on a political level, as everywhere. This person was just pointing out that on a personal level, corruption and bribery are virtually non-existent.

My most pleasant experience is the constant assumption that I am American.

Moving to the Deep South, I was expecting to be met with the stereotypical racist KKK type of folks. Luckily, everyone at my school was super friendly and helpful, and I had a relatively easy transition.

I moved to the USA from South Africa when I was 10, and I was amazed by the availability of ice.

Clean public bathrooms.

How National and State Parks are even more beautiful than I imagined.

Canadian here. We’re polite, but you guys are downright friendly.

The seemingly endless rows of food in the grocery stores. And all the apples. Who needs 50 different kinds of apples?

Free public restrooms and how every establishment has air conditioning…

The amount of different races and cultures is extremely shocking when you actually interact with them, but that’s why I love living here now.

ATMs where you can deposit cash. Mind was blown.

Very seriously, free refills…

Want to know more about what surprises people when they come to the US? Check out 25 Things That Visitors Will Find Most Surprising About The United States.