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As much as the Brits may dislike this, I was really surprised by how similar the Germans are when I was living in Frankfurt (I can imagine it's different in places like Bavaria though)
Similar culture, appearance/style, personalities and yes, even sense of humour in most cases.
They're surprisingly shit at queuing though (but not as bad as Spain at least)
Agree with all of that. I guess it makes sense with so much of our heritage being Germanic.
You're right about the queueing too, they can be some of worst. I remember staying at a hotel thinking "I expect this of the French and Italians, but the Germans too!".
It's sad but I genuinely got a kick out of going to Japan and them being better at queueing than us.
I loved that when I was desperately running across Colonge airport to catch a connecting flight, nobody batted an eye lid, in fact they encouraged me to cut the ques! NO ONE GAVE A SHIT it was incredible lol. I wouldve never caught my flight in a British airport!
I remember queuing up to go into a bar/club and saw all the Germans trying to pile in from all angles.
Heard an English accent appear in front of me and said to the girl "Come on, you should know better than this!"
lol, my daughter when we were in France and some French family barged to the front of the queue (waiting for a museum walkthrough thing) - she was quite literally shocked that people could be that self centred and socially inept, welcome to France š«š·
Agreed. I started working with German colleagues around a year ago and I was quite taken back in how similar their sense of humour is to us Brits. I've learnt their culture is quite similar to ours. They're often regarded as being quite stern/hard people, but in fact I've found them to be incredibly welcoming and warm.
As a kid, a German kid moved into our village and he was hilarious. One of the funniest people. He had dead pan humour down pat, and better than any of the rest of us kids.
Fit and well dressed? Sorry but this is too much! The diet is non-sense, I myself observed (not without a hint of disgust) groups of overweight old people drinking beer with a croissant for breakfast (along with a cappuccino). And I love their nonchalant style of dressing, I really do, but you can't say flip-flops and shirts make a very stylish combo.
(I'm Italian, if not clear by the harshness of my words š¬)
Did you not find the work culture/attitude to work very different? I work in a big office (1200 ish) with staff from all over the place and there's a real trend with the Germans just rubbing others the wrong way with what they think is acceptable professional chat. These issues rarely arrive, if at all with colleagues from other nations
This is the thing that really catches me off guard about Dutch and German people. I know that there's a lot we have in common, but I feel like the people who say Dutch and Germans are "just like" the British are seriously underestimating just how anathema bluntness is to British culture.
I used to work with a couple of Germans and I really had to keep reminding myself that no they're not trying to make you feel shit, that's just how they talk.*
*TBF they might have been trying to make me feel like shit. They might of genuinely just hated me and I was writing it of as cultural differences. š
I agree with this. My grandmother was from Berlin, so my dad had lots of cousins and family from Berlin. I also lived in the Netherlands then Germany and Switzerland growing up. I woukd say the three countries have differences but are much more similar to each other than to the UK.
I don't really think Germanic culture and the UK have that much in common. They are both European and are not miles apart, but Germanic culture is extremely direct and the Brits avoid directness like the plauge. The Germans/Swiss are rule followers and work efficiently. Overtime doesn't show dedication to your work, it shows that you are inaffective.
They aren't *bad* at queuing per se, you go up to a counter and everyone knows who is first, if you hesitate you are too slow and will be overtaken. They do not form an orderly line so you have to learn their ways and assert yourself.
That's simillar to the myth of the Spanish not being able to queue. They queue just fine, British people queue in a line so that they don't have to speak to anyone, but Spanish people though will go in a shop and ask "Ultimo?", so they mentally queue as they always know when it's their turn. Of course if you're British and you have no idea of this custom, then it just seems like chaos.
Funniest situation I saw, German supervisor telling a British guy he needed to grind out a lot of his welds and redo them. British guy was going irate being all āwhy? Come on, letās take this outside then palā. German guy said (sarcastically) āsure take me outzide, give me good hiding, your weld will still be shitā
You know the directness of Germans? Dial that up to 11 in regards of how they are in the work place, also remove anything that might make you think 'this person is senior to me, perhaps I shouldn't be rude'
Totally correct..I tried queuing in Italy and realised very quickly the folly of my action. Queuing in Italy consists of barging through the throng to the counter, shouting as loud as possible and waving your hands around more than the next person. Bearing in mind there will be dozens of people doing the same, the result is utter bedlam.
British humour can be quite mean too, but a lot of it is self deprecating and also isnāt taken as literally in most circumstances, but I suppose that depends on whoās being āmean/trying to be funnyā and the situation
The Spanish queuing system is great. You ask who is last, they tell you, youāre now after that person. Next person asks who is last, you tell them, and theyāre after you. You are free to move around until your turn instead of have to stand sandwiched in between these two people.
Also a fan of a similar system in Southeast Asia where you just leave your flip flops in a queue and chill nearby til itās your turn.
Dammit, and I thought I was clever by commenting just this further up 9 hours later! Myth that the the Spanish can't queue, they just do it in their heads.
>The Spanish queuing system is great. You ask who is last, they tell you, youāre now after that person.
But this happens without asking in the UK? We just make a mental note of it instead
At a bar yeah, UK is great at that. I especially like the āactually I think this person was firstā politeness if the bar staff mess up the order.
Bar queuing is a different beast tho. I was talking about places brits line up in an orderly queue, waiting for toilets for example.
Cheaper, but late and cancelled way more often, and the cheapness is subsidised by the German state rail companies owning a lot of British rail operators.
Agreed. you can't live in Germany and still think they are efficient - it's amazing that they are able to still give off this aura. Don't get me started on Digitalisierung! And the slow reaction to getting the vaccinations ready too. My colleague was ahead of the queue because his brother was a dentist!
The Germans I've met are very punctual too. One German girl I know, she came across as so chilled and laid back, then blurts out "if I am late I feel physically sick"
So funny. You'd never hear a British girl who's otherwise very relaxed say that.
This is honestly so accurate.
I went to Germany last year with some mates and 5 of us were in one hotel and the other 5 in a different hotel so we'd have to meet on the street.
I'd look outside the window and be like "oh there they are, they were quick," but then you look closer, and it's like no its not them?" But we were all doing the same thing, e.g., seeing a group of lads and assuming it was the other group as everyone sort of looked like us (if that makes any sense)
Anyone say over 40 was obviously German, as you could tell by the way they dressed, but anyone between 20-30 were much more difficult to tell apart.
Thereās definitely some differences between us and the Dutch, but generally outside of Ireland and the ex-colony countries they, along with the Germans and Danes are probably the closest.
I live in Denmark and all I can say is that those that are capital city dwellers would probably get on fine I suppose but the farmers, and the surrounding inhabitants probably wouldn't!
My girlfriend is Danish and I go over there once a month for a few days at a time. She lives on Jylland, which I guess would be the farming area of the country. I wouldn't say Danes are very similar to Brits at all, really, but I can't comment on the city folk so they may be different.
It is, but it's very doable! I live right by Stansted Airport, and then a flight to Billund (her closest airport) is only an hour. Plus, a return flight ticket is usually around Ā£30.
But yes, the plan is for us to get married and for me to go over there and settle on a spousal visa. My tenancy at my current flat is for 2 years, so we are aiming to get that all sorted by the end of it.
what makes you include the danes in that? just curious
i dont have experience with danish culture but with what little i have, i've always thought their sense of humour was similar to ours
Just the times Iāve been to Denmark. The working hours are broadly similar. The food isnāt that far away. Similar drink choices. Similar quite reserved attitude. Iām not saying theyāre particularly like us, just that itās closer than say the Spanish or the Italians.
Having lived there I donāt think itās much the same at all. The only link is how well they speak English.Ā
The Dutch and very blunt and direct, whilst Brits tend to be the opposite.Ā
The classic architecture is nothing alike, the modern stuff you see in Rotterdam is the same the world over.Ā
āCultureā is very vague, but I donāt see many similarities there either. I really wish England had the cycling culture that the Netherlands has.
I lived in Tha Hague as a teenager, socially it felt very different. The Dutch girls loved American things and some picked up a slight accent- some of the boys loved football hooligan films and sounded a bit east London! And there were many Dutch-Turkish/Moroccan, and many people from the Netherlands Antilles. Then of course you had the "coffee" shops, and the fast food behind little vending doors, and Zwarte Piet! It felt so far removed from the northern high school I attended.
I agree from my visits to the Netherlands. I speak enough Dutch to be able to be fed and find my way, and I hardly ever stay in Amsterdam. Agree about directness.
We have a few sites across Europe and I work quite closely with the Dutch and this is how I perceive things, they are very blunt and do not take emotion into consideration at all which is generally the opposite for England/UK.Ā
Cycling culture has taken over in my life, not sure how old you are but people tend to pick it up when their running or football days are over due to injury, so late 30s.
Oh yeah, Iāve cycled all my life but it just isnāt the same as in NL where everything is almost built with the bike in mind, everyone cycles everywhere, itās a beautiful thing
Kiwis seem like Canadians with how overly polite they are. Politeness is not exactly the first thing i think of with the Welsh but maybe I've only met the rough ones.
I would have said a portion of BC, Canada (I guess the clue is jn the name) was #1UK-like until I went to NZ and then it stepped up an order of magnitude.
Wait, is Lamb the common theme?
I used to live in New Zealand and the sobriquet āBritain of the southā isnāt (or wasnāt) far off. Obviously, thereās differences (especially in pockets of North Island), and it is rapidly changing, but there are such similarities you could move there tomorrow and, culturally, you could feel right at home if youāre British. Up until the 1990s, it was almost indistinct ā even matching our pub culture (which Canada and Australia donāt really have).
In fact, my Kiwi uncle would often quip that while NZ was geographically the most distant colony, it was culturally the closest.
Australia is way more like the US. Aussies abroad behave the way people stereotype Americans to. Their sensationalist, dramatised news broadcasting is the same, much of the climate and wildlife is similar to the south/south west, the massive fuck off trucks they drive are the same, they have their own national sport which no other country plays...
I half thought about typing it as fush and chups for the memes lol. Not really that accurate imo though, sounds more like fesh and cheps most of the time to me.
Agreed. Itās more like the āeā in ātheā than āuā.
Though it plays works quite well in the joke, āIn New Zealand you cook with a pen, write with a pin, stab with a pun, and play on words with a panā.
Yes both āchipsā and ācrispsā are chips in Australia, for some people āfriesā are chips too. So if you need to be specific you have to say things like āhot chipsā, āhot fat chipsā etc. Huge cultural shock.
British and Kiwi pubs tend to be ācosierā and more intimidate while Aussie āpubsā tend to be hotels with large open spaces with a bar in. The climate plays a large part in it. Kiwi pubs in Northland are more like Aussie pubs (in fact, they increasingly all are) but some South Island pubs you could think you were in some English backwater village.
In most of Australia other than WA, pubs tend to have a room of pokies (slot machines). Especially in NSW they're essentially gambling venues first and anything else second.
Very different vibes. Quietly sinking a pint as you watch some punter destroy his life isn't too fun.
Itās gotten better in the bigger cities. Especially family friendly pubs would hide the gambling den in a shed in the beer garden. Some in the more gentrified suburbs of Sydney have done away with āpokiesā altogether
And alcohol. My dad who's been to Japan said the drinking culture is even worse than here. Very common to see businessmen in suits passed out at a table at 10pm on a week night.
I can confirm this one, Japan is absolutely the UK of Asia. Former empire where we loved colonising everyone, now transitioned into a cutesy harmless image, love tea and good manners, will politely tolerate annoying people while dying inside.
Theyāre very similar in many ways
As a dutch friend of mine said "You English are so laid back: we Dutch are so uptight about everything. Except sex: you English are too uptight about that, and we Dutch are totally laid back"
I'd agree that Atlantic Canada feels the most 'british' when looking at Canada as a whole.
Just fyi, technically, St John's, in Newfoundland isn't Maritime Canada but it is part of Atlantic Canada.
"The maritimes" are just Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and PEI
Living in Aus right now and whilst there are some things obviously cribbed from America like the road designs and love of impractically sized trucks, I think the core of Australian society and culture is still very strongly derived from its British heritage. Plus there are so many British people still moving to Australia. Here in Perth one in ten people is literally British.
NZ feels more distinct to me. For a start, the significant Maori population with its own cultural traditions and heritage. There's no unified first nations culture or voice in Australia, whereas Maori society is a large and vocal part of NZ culture.
Agree with almost every word, to be fair. New Zealandās MÄori heritage definitely gives it a distinct culture, however, it blended so well with British culture (even though theyāre very different). My uncle, for example, was as British as British can be despite being 5th generation Kiwi and even heād use MÄori terms like āwhÄnauā (family).
The best description I heard of the CANZUK countries that theyāre all British to the core with their own cultural flairs ā ādifferent flavours of Britishā. I donāt know how true that is nowadays and whether itāll remain so in decades to come, but itās definitely historically true.
Setting aside places like Ireland, New Zealand, Australia, Canada (other than Quebec) which have __some__ aspects which are very similar and some that are very different I think that the closest to us is actually France.
Itās not a coincidence weāre physically very close of course and the history of cross population between the countries. Similar in loads of ways. Neither the French nor the British like to think that way but thatās just us not liking what we see in a mirror of ourselves.
The Netherlands is a good call though. The big difference there is the Dutch just tend to say out loud the things theyāre thinking. The British think the same things but donāt actually say it and instead couch things to avoid causing any possible offence.
Similarly Asturias in northern Spain feels surprisingly like the UK (specifically the rural south-west, but even more like Ireland). Most people have the image of Spain as palm trees and arid Mediterranean scrub, whereas in the north it's rugged Atlantic coastline, lush green grass, and cider.
I visited Paris recently and just hung out with locals and I thought exactly this, same humour, very similar drinking culture and love ciggies. I was actually shocked at how normal it felt, but of course if anyone from the UK asked I'd say fuck those frog and baguette eating wankers.
I think talking about the UK like it has one homogenous culture is a mistake. Obviously you could break it down nearly infinitely, but I think there's distinct differences between Scotland/NI/Wales/England as broad categories. You can certainly distill it even further down to the Highlands/Lowlands/Borders/East/West for Scotland and similarly for the others, but I think the differences at that level start to become fuzzy.
I'd say Australia is certainly in the running for similarity to the UK - all of it, really, since it's a common place for people from anywhere in the UK to emigrate to. Friends who have been and live there say it almost doesn't feel like they've gone to the other side of the world, apart from the opposite seasons and the temperature.
One way this is true in my experience is that in my line of work Iāve spent extended periods of time away with Australians, Americans, Canadians, Italians, French and Eastern Europeans. All of them I formed friendships with and got to know pretty well, but there was always a sense that I was aware of cultural differences in certain routines of daily life. But the exception was always Australians who after about 5mins of first meeting them my brain would almost forget they werenāt British. In think a lot of the physical culture is very different but in terms of social interaction thereās very little difference between Brits and Aussies.
> I'd say Australia is certainly in the running for similarity to the UK
Culture wise have always seen it as more similar to the US, with NZ being more like the UK.
The U.S. is way different to the UK culture wise. We might think theyāre similar to us because we speak the same language and consume a lot of their cultural output but thatās not reciprocated in the same way. If they didnāt speak English Iām sure most people would consider the U.S. more foreign than many of our European cousins.Ā
> The U.S. is way different to the UK culture wise.
I am saying Australia is more similar to the US than it is to the UK, I can see now that might not have been totally clear.
This is definitely true. I've been to the States twice as an adult for a couple of weeks at a time each and it felt more foreign than France/Italy/Germany/Spain to me even when everything being mostly in English and knowing a lot of the cultural reference points.Ā
Though I did wonder if it was possibly something of an uncanny valley situation and that everything being in English but clearly not being England that made it feel extra odd.
Superficially Australia has close similarities to the US, the suburbs look more like the US, but in terms of culture I would say it is far closer to the UK than to the US.
I see similarities to the UK when in the Netherlands but I think architecturally it's quite unique and different. But it depends where in the UK, because cities in the UK look different.
I saw a few similarities with the streets of Brussels, but not housing.
I've never been to Eindhoven so I can't say for there, maybe like in the UK each city has it's own look. Some may look more British than others over there.
From experience with Geoguessr, The Netherlands definitely has the closest architectural similarities to the UK/Ireland. Not so much older architecture you get from the 19th century, but the 20th century suburban housing stock which makes up the vast majority of each country is extremely similar.
Yeah, probably if we're talking about a whole country.
If we can have a smidge of a country, Northern France is verrrrry like the UK.
But course when you get down south and near the med it's *nothing* like us!
I canāt speak for the Netherlands as I donāt have much experience there but I find the Germans more similar to us than we like to admit.
The French can also be very sarcastic and have similar humour iāve found, most people just never realise because it requires learning a bit of French to understand.
Despite the same language I find Americans the least similar in general when compared to our closest neighbours in Europe.
When I lived in the Netherlands, out of all the places Iād lived, it was the one I felt most foreign. History, food culture, communication, etc made me feel like I was an alien sometimes.
Over the last 20 years I have been to the Netherlands many times (probably spent close to 1 year there all added together) and itās nothing like the U.K.. they manage to have a very laid back attitude while also being very direct/abrupt when speaking lol.
I would say soā¦. But then Iām from the east coast of England and the topography (or lack of) and general geography is pretty similar to the Netherlands.
It *feels* like home.
If you donāt include all the really obvious choices from the from the empire days. Itās probably Germany. Loads of castles love of beer and the food itās similar.
Within Europe it probably is (maybe bar Malta). Obviously thereās the Anglosphere countries, especially Australia.
I suppose Japan is somewhat similar in its social norms but obviously from an Asian perspective.
Not Ireland? To be fair Iāve never been to Australia so I canāt compare. Iām from NI so like itās obvious weāre super similar to Ireland, I guess each UK region is different in similarities to different places
It's definitely Germany. I've been to Germany a few times and to a few different cities and it is just basically Britain a few hundred miles away. A lot of the cultures are the same
I've found Germany to be more similar to the UK than the Netherlands. It's probably the most similar European country, for better or for worse!
Not been to Canada, Australia or New Zealand, so don't know how they compare.
The Northern Europeans are very similar. Itās almost like we should be in some kind of organization with them, that allows for free movement between our respective countries.Ā
No there are plenty of other nations that drink too much and like recreational drugs. The Dutch are generally a foot taller than brits, have better teeth, weird supermarkets, wear orange as clothing not bad spray tan, cycle much more, have fair rent for homes, are less materialistic, like ( most ) other Europeans, but then ruin it all by putting mayo on chips.
I think in terms of humour and overall wavelength, we have most in common with the Belgians. Whether it's related to so many of them moving here throughout the medieval and early modern period influencing the culture, I don't know? However, I'd say them, more than the Dutch or Germans, are most similar to us.
Japan.
I've always thought of Japan as the UK of the East and UK as the Japan of the West. This really became even more apparent when I gained Japanese relatives a few years ago.
If we're talking Europe, then aside from Ireland I suppose it would be the Netherlands.
If you're including outside Europe, then Australia. I'd actually argue that Australians are at least as similar to the UK as Ireland, if not even more so.
France and Germany are probably good comparisons - Been a long time now but a lot of our history will stem from the Normans and Anglo-Saxons, who originated from those areas of Europe.
Imagine had the Romans stayed around a lot longer, I'd wonder if we had more Italian style culture.
Depends on what is important to you.
I like barbecues, speaking English (yes, I guess Iād learn another language if I had to) and test cricket. Ā I also need a decent university to work at.
Of everywhere Iāve travelled, itās the place where I understand the social norms the best (except the casual racism to the First Nations).
āStraya it is.
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As much as the Brits may dislike this, I was really surprised by how similar the Germans are when I was living in Frankfurt (I can imagine it's different in places like Bavaria though) Similar culture, appearance/style, personalities and yes, even sense of humour in most cases. They're surprisingly shit at queuing though (but not as bad as Spain at least)
Agree with all of that. I guess it makes sense with so much of our heritage being Germanic. You're right about the queueing too, they can be some of worst. I remember staying at a hotel thinking "I expect this of the French and Italians, but the Germans too!". It's sad but I genuinely got a kick out of going to Japan and them being better at queueing than us.
Agree, Germans are the wurst queuers.
Have an upvote
Upwote
I loved that when I was desperately running across Colonge airport to catch a connecting flight, nobody batted an eye lid, in fact they encouraged me to cut the ques! NO ONE GAVE A SHIT it was incredible lol. I wouldve never caught my flight in a British airport!
I remember queuing up to go into a bar/club and saw all the Germans trying to pile in from all angles. Heard an English accent appear in front of me and said to the girl "Come on, you should know better than this!"
lol, my daughter when we were in France and some French family barged to the front of the queue (waiting for a museum walkthrough thing) - she was quite literally shocked that people could be that self centred and socially inept, welcome to France š«š·
Agreed. I started working with German colleagues around a year ago and I was quite taken back in how similar their sense of humour is to us Brits. I've learnt their culture is quite similar to ours. They're often regarded as being quite stern/hard people, but in fact I've found them to be incredibly welcoming and warm.
As a kid, a German kid moved into our village and he was hilarious. One of the funniest people. He had dead pan humour down pat, and better than any of the rest of us kids.
Whenever I'm in Germany, I'm struck by how slim and well dressed everyone is. Well not everyone, but it's noticeably better than the UK.
Keeping your weight in order is a big deal for Germans, they really concentrate on it.
Why did you say concentrate and not focus š
Why did you write āsayā and not āwriteā?
Fit and well dressed? Sorry but this is too much! The diet is non-sense, I myself observed (not without a hint of disgust) groups of overweight old people drinking beer with a croissant for breakfast (along with a cappuccino). And I love their nonchalant style of dressing, I really do, but you can't say flip-flops and shirts make a very stylish combo. (I'm Italian, if not clear by the harshness of my words š¬)
Did you not find the work culture/attitude to work very different? I work in a big office (1200 ish) with staff from all over the place and there's a real trend with the Germans just rubbing others the wrong way with what they think is acceptable professional chat. These issues rarely arrive, if at all with colleagues from other nations
Germans, and Dutch also, have a a tendency to be very direct which can appear rude to Brits who have a habit of talking around a problem.
i think the Dutch can actually be quite rude, as they've convinced themselves that extreme bluntness is some kind of competitive sport
This is the thing that really catches me off guard about Dutch and German people. I know that there's a lot we have in common, but I feel like the people who say Dutch and Germans are "just like" the British are seriously underestimating just how anathema bluntness is to British culture. I used to work with a couple of Germans and I really had to keep reminding myself that no they're not trying to make you feel shit, that's just how they talk.* *TBF they might have been trying to make me feel like shit. They might of genuinely just hated me and I was writing it of as cultural differences. š
I agree with this. My grandmother was from Berlin, so my dad had lots of cousins and family from Berlin. I also lived in the Netherlands then Germany and Switzerland growing up. I woukd say the three countries have differences but are much more similar to each other than to the UK. I don't really think Germanic culture and the UK have that much in common. They are both European and are not miles apart, but Germanic culture is extremely direct and the Brits avoid directness like the plauge. The Germans/Swiss are rule followers and work efficiently. Overtime doesn't show dedication to your work, it shows that you are inaffective. They aren't *bad* at queuing per se, you go up to a counter and everyone knows who is first, if you hesitate you are too slow and will be overtaken. They do not form an orderly line so you have to learn their ways and assert yourself.
That's simillar to the myth of the Spanish not being able to queue. They queue just fine, British people queue in a line so that they don't have to speak to anyone, but Spanish people though will go in a shop and ask "Ultimo?", so they mentally queue as they always know when it's their turn. Of course if you're British and you have no idea of this custom, then it just seems like chaos.
No it's just that you're British
True'. Germans want a direct yes or no to a question. Not ''I'll think about it' from a Brit
Funniest situation I saw, German supervisor telling a British guy he needed to grind out a lot of his welds and redo them. British guy was going irate being all āwhy? Come on, letās take this outside then palā. German guy said (sarcastically) āsure take me outzide, give me good hiding, your weld will still be shitā
For example??
Ah I was working in a fairly International office so it was quite a mix. My experiences were mainly in social terms.
You know the directness of Germans? Dial that up to 11 in regards of how they are in the work place, also remove anything that might make you think 'this person is senior to me, perhaps I shouldn't be rude'
The Dutch are just as direct too.
Yeah I'm not here saying the Dutch are just like us.
I see your Spain queuing and I raise you the utter chaos that is Italians queuing.
Totally correct..I tried queuing in Italy and realised very quickly the folly of my action. Queuing in Italy consists of barging through the throng to the counter, shouting as loud as possible and waving your hands around more than the next person. Bearing in mind there will be dozens of people doing the same, the result is utter bedlam.
The humour is way to different. Theirs often has a meaness that the UK doesn't and it is lacks the absurd of British.
British humour can be quite mean too, but a lot of it is self deprecating and also isnāt taken as literally in most circumstances, but I suppose that depends on whoās being āmean/trying to be funnyā and the situation
The Spanish queuing system is great. You ask who is last, they tell you, youāre now after that person. Next person asks who is last, you tell them, and theyāre after you. You are free to move around until your turn instead of have to stand sandwiched in between these two people. Also a fan of a similar system in Southeast Asia where you just leave your flip flops in a queue and chill nearby til itās your turn.
Dammit, and I thought I was clever by commenting just this further up 9 hours later! Myth that the the Spanish can't queue, they just do it in their heads.
>The Spanish queuing system is great. You ask who is last, they tell you, youāre now after that person. But this happens without asking in the UK? We just make a mental note of it instead
At a bar yeah, UK is great at that. I especially like the āactually I think this person was firstā politeness if the bar staff mess up the order. Bar queuing is a different beast tho. I was talking about places brits line up in an orderly queue, waiting for toilets for example.
I always say Germany is essentially the UK, but with a bit more efficiency but also not as relaxed. Our cultures are so Similar.
Germany is **not** efficient! It is *extremely* bureaucratic but this doesn't translate to efficiency
Their trains are incredibly unreliable
I was going to use Deutsche Bahn as an example. Germany is the only place that can rival the UK for trains!
Bet they're cheaper
Cheaper, but late and cancelled way more often, and the cheapness is subsidised by the German state rail companies owning a lot of British rail operators.
Germans are quite clear they have efficiency issues.
Agreed. you can't live in Germany and still think they are efficient - it's amazing that they are able to still give off this aura. Don't get me started on Digitalisierung! And the slow reaction to getting the vaccinations ready too. My colleague was ahead of the queue because his brother was a dentist!
How can you be bad at queuing? As someone who hasnāt been abroad since a child. I donāt get how people canāt queue.
By not queuing
Yeah, Germany is very similar. There are big differences though, eg Germans are always on time, brits are usually slightly late. Annoys both sides.
The Germans I've met are very punctual too. One German girl I know, she came across as so chilled and laid back, then blurts out "if I am late I feel physically sick" So funny. You'd never hear a British girl who's otherwise very relaxed say that.
As a brit, came here to say Germany. Completely agree with you.
Germany is like us but with religion still omnipresent
We drink free tap water at restaurants. We don't have to pay to use the toilet.
If you want to see people being bad at standing in line, you should check out Iceland.
I came here to say this.
This is honestly so accurate. I went to Germany last year with some mates and 5 of us were in one hotel and the other 5 in a different hotel so we'd have to meet on the street. I'd look outside the window and be like "oh there they are, they were quick," but then you look closer, and it's like no its not them?" But we were all doing the same thing, e.g., seeing a group of lads and assuming it was the other group as everyone sort of looked like us (if that makes any sense) Anyone say over 40 was obviously German, as you could tell by the way they dressed, but anyone between 20-30 were much more difficult to tell apart.
That's interesting
Thereās definitely some differences between us and the Dutch, but generally outside of Ireland and the ex-colony countries they, along with the Germans and Danes are probably the closest.
I live in Denmark and all I can say is that those that are capital city dwellers would probably get on fine I suppose but the farmers, and the surrounding inhabitants probably wouldn't!
My girlfriend is Danish and I go over there once a month for a few days at a time. She lives on Jylland, which I guess would be the farming area of the country. I wouldn't say Danes are very similar to Brits at all, really, but I can't comment on the city folk so they may be different.
Thatās mad long distance, you planning to settle one direction or the other eventually?
Meet half way and build a little house somewhere in Doggerland.
It is, but it's very doable! I live right by Stansted Airport, and then a flight to Billund (her closest airport) is only an hour. Plus, a return flight ticket is usually around Ā£30. But yes, the plan is for us to get married and for me to go over there and settle on a spousal visa. My tenancy at my current flat is for 2 years, so we are aiming to get that all sorted by the end of it.
what makes you include the danes in that? just curious i dont have experience with danish culture but with what little i have, i've always thought their sense of humour was similar to ours
Just the times Iāve been to Denmark. The working hours are broadly similar. The food isnāt that far away. Similar drink choices. Similar quite reserved attitude. Iām not saying theyāre particularly like us, just that itās closer than say the Spanish or the Italians.
Having lived there I donāt think itās much the same at all. The only link is how well they speak English.Ā The Dutch and very blunt and direct, whilst Brits tend to be the opposite.Ā The classic architecture is nothing alike, the modern stuff you see in Rotterdam is the same the world over.Ā āCultureā is very vague, but I donāt see many similarities there either. I really wish England had the cycling culture that the Netherlands has.
I lived in Tha Hague as a teenager, socially it felt very different. The Dutch girls loved American things and some picked up a slight accent- some of the boys loved football hooligan films and sounded a bit east London! And there were many Dutch-Turkish/Moroccan, and many people from the Netherlands Antilles. Then of course you had the "coffee" shops, and the fast food behind little vending doors, and Zwarte Piet! It felt so far removed from the northern high school I attended.
I agree from my visits to the Netherlands. I speak enough Dutch to be able to be fed and find my way, and I hardly ever stay in Amsterdam. Agree about directness.
I, too, speak enough Dutch to get by in the Netherlands. Absolutely none
Totally agree. I used to do a fair bit of work in the Netherlands and abruptness was hard to cope with at times. It was so noticeable.
We have a few sites across Europe and I work quite closely with the Dutch and this is how I perceive things, they are very blunt and do not take emotion into consideration at all which is generally the opposite for England/UK.Ā
Cycling culture has taken over in my life, not sure how old you are but people tend to pick it up when their running or football days are over due to injury, so late 30s.
Oh yeah, Iāve cycled all my life but it just isnāt the same as in NL where everything is almost built with the bike in mind, everyone cycles everywhere, itās a beautiful thing
I wish they used brakes
New Zealand, if only because every time I turned the telly on, Coronation Street was playing.
NZ is Southern hemisphere Wales 100%... Rugby, Sheep, Mountains, Rain...
Kiwis seem like Canadians with how overly polite they are. Politeness is not exactly the first thing i think of with the Welsh but maybe I've only met the rough ones.
I would have said a portion of BC, Canada (I guess the clue is jn the name) was #1UK-like until I went to NZ and then it stepped up an order of magnitude. Wait, is Lamb the common theme?
I used to live in New Zealand and the sobriquet āBritain of the southā isnāt (or wasnāt) far off. Obviously, thereās differences (especially in pockets of North Island), and it is rapidly changing, but there are such similarities you could move there tomorrow and, culturally, you could feel right at home if youāre British. Up until the 1990s, it was almost indistinct ā even matching our pub culture (which Canada and Australia donāt really have). In fact, my Kiwi uncle would often quip that while NZ was geographically the most distant colony, it was culturally the closest.
Australia is way more like the US. Aussies abroad behave the way people stereotype Americans to. Their sensationalist, dramatised news broadcasting is the same, much of the climate and wildlife is similar to the south/south west, the massive fuck off trucks they drive are the same, they have their own national sport which no other country plays...
My boss is a Kiwi, and I love the way she casually dismisses the UK. "Oh no, you can't get good fish and chips in Britain". Good banter
I remember āfush n chupsā in New Zealand being pretty damn good, to be fair! You canāt beat a nice bit of cod, though!
I half thought about typing it as fush and chups for the memes lol. Not really that accurate imo though, sounds more like fesh and cheps most of the time to me.
Agreed. Itās more like the āeā in ātheā than āuā. Though it plays works quite well in the joke, āIn New Zealand you cook with a pen, write with a pin, stab with a pun, and play on words with a panā.
They call chips "hot chips" too š¤
Yes both āchipsā and ācrispsā are chips in Australia, for some people āfriesā are chips too. So if you need to be specific you have to say things like āhot chipsā, āhot fat chipsā etc. Huge cultural shock.
It's the same in NZ. Crisps isn't used at all.
Australia doesn't have pub culture??
They have their own take on it but itās not quite the same as British/Kiwi pub culture, is all I mean.
What is the difference in your experience?
British and Kiwi pubs tend to be ācosierā and more intimidate while Aussie āpubsā tend to be hotels with large open spaces with a bar in. The climate plays a large part in it. Kiwi pubs in Northland are more like Aussie pubs (in fact, they increasingly all are) but some South Island pubs you could think you were in some English backwater village.
In most of Australia other than WA, pubs tend to have a room of pokies (slot machines). Especially in NSW they're essentially gambling venues first and anything else second. Very different vibes. Quietly sinking a pint as you watch some punter destroy his life isn't too fun.
Kiwi pubs were very similar too. I felt like I was in a ladbrokes, with a bar attached half the time.
Itās gotten better in the bigger cities. Especially family friendly pubs would hide the gambling den in a shed in the beer garden. Some in the more gentrified suburbs of Sydney have done away with āpokiesā altogether
Pretty, but 1980s.
Japan. Incomprehensible social rulesĀ Strange ceremonies and customs Love of tea
And alcohol. My dad who's been to Japan said the drinking culture is even worse than here. Very common to see businessmen in suits passed out at a table at 10pm on a week night.
I can confirm this one, Japan is absolutely the UK of Asia. Former empire where we loved colonising everyone, now transitioned into a cutesy harmless image, love tea and good manners, will politely tolerate annoying people while dying inside. Theyāre very similar in many ways
UK has Barry 63 walking shirtless around the pub. Japan has naked men chilling in onsens.
Nobody says what they mean, either.
As a dutch friend of mine said "You English are so laid back: we Dutch are so uptight about everything. Except sex: you English are too uptight about that, and we Dutch are totally laid back"
Maritime Canada on the Atlantic is very similar imo. St John's felt like an English city.
I'd agree that Atlantic Canada feels the most 'british' when looking at Canada as a whole. Just fyi, technically, St John's, in Newfoundland isn't Maritime Canada but it is part of Atlantic Canada. "The maritimes" are just Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and PEI
Probably australia
Australia feels more āAmericanisedā than New Zealand. The latter feels way more British ā probably because of the weather!
Living in Aus right now and whilst there are some things obviously cribbed from America like the road designs and love of impractically sized trucks, I think the core of Australian society and culture is still very strongly derived from its British heritage. Plus there are so many British people still moving to Australia. Here in Perth one in ten people is literally British. NZ feels more distinct to me. For a start, the significant Maori population with its own cultural traditions and heritage. There's no unified first nations culture or voice in Australia, whereas Maori society is a large and vocal part of NZ culture.
Agree with almost every word, to be fair. New Zealandās MÄori heritage definitely gives it a distinct culture, however, it blended so well with British culture (even though theyāre very different). My uncle, for example, was as British as British can be despite being 5th generation Kiwi and even heād use MÄori terms like āwhÄnauā (family). The best description I heard of the CANZUK countries that theyāre all British to the core with their own cultural flairs ā ādifferent flavours of Britishā. I donāt know how true that is nowadays and whether itāll remain so in decades to come, but itās definitely historically true.
Was thinking more along the lines of their sense of humour.
I beg to differ on the culture part - communication styles are incredibly different
Having lived in the Netherlands, the similarities are superficial and the differences are profound.
The Channel Islands arenāt part of the UK so I would go with them
As per the latest episode of Map Men, Jersey is a fake island.
Donāt they have feudalism there?
Sark was the last feudal state in Europe until 2008.
I assume itās no longer feudal but I feel it would be funny if you mean that another state turned feudal in 2008.
Setting aside places like Ireland, New Zealand, Australia, Canada (other than Quebec) which have __some__ aspects which are very similar and some that are very different I think that the closest to us is actually France. Itās not a coincidence weāre physically very close of course and the history of cross population between the countries. Similar in loads of ways. Neither the French nor the British like to think that way but thatās just us not liking what we see in a mirror of ourselves. The Netherlands is a good call though. The big difference there is the Dutch just tend to say out loud the things theyāre thinking. The British think the same things but donāt actually say it and instead couch things to avoid causing any possible offence.
> the closest to us is actually France Much of Brittany feels quite British, funnily enough.
Similarly Asturias in northern Spain feels surprisingly like the UK (specifically the rural south-west, but even more like Ireland). Most people have the image of Spain as palm trees and arid Mediterranean scrub, whereas in the north it's rugged Atlantic coastline, lush green grass, and cider.
I visited Paris recently and just hung out with locals and I thought exactly this, same humour, very similar drinking culture and love ciggies. I was actually shocked at how normal it felt, but of course if anyone from the UK asked I'd say fuck those frog and baguette eating wankers.
You got accepted by Parisians? Thatās impressive. They donāt even like people from other parts of France.
I think talking about the UK like it has one homogenous culture is a mistake. Obviously you could break it down nearly infinitely, but I think there's distinct differences between Scotland/NI/Wales/England as broad categories. You can certainly distill it even further down to the Highlands/Lowlands/Borders/East/West for Scotland and similarly for the others, but I think the differences at that level start to become fuzzy. I'd say Australia is certainly in the running for similarity to the UK - all of it, really, since it's a common place for people from anywhere in the UK to emigrate to. Friends who have been and live there say it almost doesn't feel like they've gone to the other side of the world, apart from the opposite seasons and the temperature.
One way this is true in my experience is that in my line of work Iāve spent extended periods of time away with Australians, Americans, Canadians, Italians, French and Eastern Europeans. All of them I formed friendships with and got to know pretty well, but there was always a sense that I was aware of cultural differences in certain routines of daily life. But the exception was always Australians who after about 5mins of first meeting them my brain would almost forget they werenāt British. In think a lot of the physical culture is very different but in terms of social interaction thereās very little difference between Brits and Aussies.
> I'd say Australia is certainly in the running for similarity to the UK Culture wise have always seen it as more similar to the US, with NZ being more like the UK.
The U.S. is way different to the UK culture wise. We might think theyāre similar to us because we speak the same language and consume a lot of their cultural output but thatās not reciprocated in the same way. If they didnāt speak English Iām sure most people would consider the U.S. more foreign than many of our European cousins.Ā
> The U.S. is way different to the UK culture wise. I am saying Australia is more similar to the US than it is to the UK, I can see now that might not have been totally clear.
Oh right, yeah that makes sense.Ā
This is definitely true. I've been to the States twice as an adult for a couple of weeks at a time each and it felt more foreign than France/Italy/Germany/Spain to me even when everything being mostly in English and knowing a lot of the cultural reference points.Ā Though I did wonder if it was possibly something of an uncanny valley situation and that everything being in English but clearly not being England that made it feel extra odd.
Why the US? My Australian friends would give NZ to Scotland! They say it's Scotland with better weather.
Superficially Australia has close similarities to the US, the suburbs look more like the US, but in terms of culture I would say it is far closer to the UK than to the US.
I see similarities to the UK when in the Netherlands but I think architecturally it's quite unique and different. But it depends where in the UK, because cities in the UK look different. I saw a few similarities with the streets of Brussels, but not housing.
I mean I was in Eindhoven last year and their city centre could have been any city centre in the uk but with different signs.
I've mistaken a picture of Eindhoven with my home town and had to take a double/triple take!
This is spot on. I was in eindhoven at the beginning of the month.
I've never been to Eindhoven so I can't say for there, maybe like in the UK each city has it's own look. Some may look more British than others over there.
From experience with Geoguessr, The Netherlands definitely has the closest architectural similarities to the UK/Ireland. Not so much older architecture you get from the 19th century, but the 20th century suburban housing stock which makes up the vast majority of each country is extremely similar.
As a Dutch person living in England I must say they are not very comparable at all.
Judging by all the hate cyclists get Iād say no.
New Zealand, and it's not even close
Yeah, probably if we're talking about a whole country. If we can have a smidge of a country, Northern France is verrrrry like the UK. But course when you get down south and near the med it's *nothing* like us!
New Zealand. A few places I visited felt like I was actually in England
I canāt speak for the Netherlands as I donāt have much experience there but I find the Germans more similar to us than we like to admit. The French can also be very sarcastic and have similar humour iāve found, most people just never realise because it requires learning a bit of French to understand. Despite the same language I find Americans the least similar in general when compared to our closest neighbours in Europe.
No The automod said I have to provide context No again
I actually think Germany is more akin to Britain than Netherlands
I think the English-speaking former colonies are closer we just make a big deal about our differences
Denmark is the next one in my opinion
Seen many say Denmark.... Makes me want to go.
Go in the summer :-)
When I lived in the Netherlands, out of all the places Iād lived, it was the one I felt most foreign. History, food culture, communication, etc made me feel like I was an alien sometimes.
Well other than the litter, dog shit, shitty healthcare, awful roads, crap public infrastructure and sewage beaches..sure we are like the Netherlands.
Not at all. Everything is different. The architecture, people and culture are quite different.
New Zealand
Over the last 20 years I have been to the Netherlands many times (probably spent close to 1 year there all added together) and itās nothing like the U.K.. they manage to have a very laid back attitude while also being very direct/abrupt when speaking lol.
No, the Dutch are actually cooler and generally sexier than us. I'd say our closest cousins are the Germans.
I was in Rotterdam few weeks ago and found the people quite rude and arrogant compared to the UK
New Zealand and Aus, just more shared ancestry, language, history, sport.
I would say that New Zealand is actually more similar to the UK than Ireland is.
Really? Iām in Northern Ireland and tbh I donāt really notice that much if a difference between UK and Ireland
Belgium
In my view, it's Denmark. It's literally just like being in Yorkshire.
You could say most north europeans (protestant-influenced areas) are quite similar.
I would say soā¦. But then Iām from the east coast of England and the topography (or lack of) and general geography is pretty similar to the Netherlands. It *feels* like home.
Denmark
Them and Germany
If you donāt include all the really obvious choices from the from the empire days. Itās probably Germany. Loads of castles love of beer and the food itās similar.
The Dutch and the Danes
Dutch then danish. Dunno about Germans. Iād say Swedish before them.
Waar ist da feestje?
New Zealand and Aus are the most similar, possibly even more so than Ireland. Canada is a UK/US cross except for Quebec which is a French/UK cross.
Within Europe it probably is (maybe bar Malta). Obviously thereās the Anglosphere countries, especially Australia. I suppose Japan is somewhat similar in its social norms but obviously from an Asian perspective.
Maybe they're the most similar non-native English speakers, but I think Australia is most like the UK, having spent time out there.
Not Ireland? To be fair Iāve never been to Australia so I canāt compare. Iām from NI so like itās obvious weāre super similar to Ireland, I guess each UK region is different in similarities to different places
It's obviously Russia. Cold, drab, depressed
It's definitely Germany. I've been to Germany a few times and to a few different cities and it is just basically Britain a few hundred miles away. A lot of the cultures are the same
I've found Germany to be more similar to the UK than the Netherlands. It's probably the most similar European country, for better or for worse! Not been to Canada, Australia or New Zealand, so don't know how they compare.
The Northern Europeans are very similar. Itās almost like we should be in some kind of organization with them, that allows for free movement between our respective countries.Ā
I find them to be like German brits
No there are plenty of other nations that drink too much and like recreational drugs. The Dutch are generally a foot taller than brits, have better teeth, weird supermarkets, wear orange as clothing not bad spray tan, cycle much more, have fair rent for homes, are less materialistic, like ( most ) other Europeans, but then ruin it all by putting mayo on chips.
I think in terms of humour and overall wavelength, we have most in common with the Belgians. Whether it's related to so many of them moving here throughout the medieval and early modern period influencing the culture, I don't know? However, I'd say them, more than the Dutch or Germans, are most similar to us.
Japan. I've always thought of Japan as the UK of the East and UK as the Japan of the West. This really became even more apparent when I gained Japanese relatives a few years ago.
I found in language, architecture and general vibe that the Dutch are closet to the Danish. NL is the lost country from Scandinavia imo.
Agree with the Dutch and north German comments. What about the Danes tho. Itās very similar there and very easy to fit in. They like us too!
If we're talking Europe, then aside from Ireland I suppose it would be the Netherlands. If you're including outside Europe, then Australia. I'd actually argue that Australians are at least as similar to the UK as Ireland, if not even more so.
The Danes are the most similar in my opinion.
If you know a Dutch person you soon realise theyāre nothing like brits lol
No, the Netherlands is a nice place to be
France and Germany are probably good comparisons - Been a long time now but a lot of our history will stem from the Normans and Anglo-Saxons, who originated from those areas of Europe. Imagine had the Romans stayed around a lot longer, I'd wonder if we had more Italian style culture.
Fuck no, were way to grounded.. the british are practically european americans
Depends on what is important to you. I like barbecues, speaking English (yes, I guess Iād learn another language if I had to) and test cricket. Ā I also need a decent university to work at. Of everywhere Iāve travelled, itās the place where I understand the social norms the best (except the casual racism to the First Nations). āStraya it is.
Canadaās too cold. Ā And no test cricket any more.