permafrost Loc: Minnesota

What surprises Russians when they visit the United States?

Russian, living 2 years in small city in USA. So, what surprises me in real America:

Almost no public t***sit in most areas
Houses are made of wooden boards and drywall but still are not cheap (But mortgage is affordable)
Colleges and education process is very nice
Strangers are friendly, but some still can be rude (like at airport checkpoints)
Some areas are 100% safe to walk anytime, some areas just around the street are 100% unsafe to even drive thru.
Almost no dirt (does not apply to NYC)
Crazy taxes (filing, not rates)
Crazy medical insurance (rates too)
Parks are nice, museums are great
Most food is bad (but most restaraunts are good)
High salaries but people live paycheck to paycheck
Internet is expensive and bad
Cheap things, expensive services
Great road system, especially interstate
Communities are great. Fundraises, volunteering, etc. People DO care.
You have to drive 15 minutes to a grocery store. Store is huge. HUGE.
And there you can buy ammo next to paper towels but not cigarettes
List will be all different if you are tourist in big city for a week.

P.S. I really have to add this:

18. Crazy measurements system

JR-57 Loc: South Carolina

Why not share where you copied your post from and provide the name of the original author? I wonder what Eugene Varnavsky would think of that.

https://www.quora.com/What-surprises-Russians-when-they-visit-the-United-States

permafrost Loc: Minnesota

Would have if I coulda... came via e mail just as I posted it.. If you know the origin, go ahead and add it..


From Quora.. yes, should have figured that from the format.. I skim quora a lot..

JR-57 Loc: South Carolina

“……. If you know the origin, go ahead and add it.”

If you look at my response, I already did.

permafrost Loc: Minnesota

got it, thanks..

proud republican Loc: RED CALIFORNIA

Believe me when I tell you, as ex Russian immigrant.. Most Russians would do ANYTHING to come and live in the GREATEST country in the world..

Coos Bay Tom Loc: coos bay oregon

I believe you most emphatically . My niece went to an industrial city in Russia on a student exchange program . The pictures she brought back showed the poverty of that city and the people there . Most of the buildings there were red brick stained black with soot from the factories . Her host family was very proud of their apartment as it was one of the nicest there. It looked like what a slum lord here would rent . She brought back some chocolate bars that had a picture of a cosmonaut on the label and some sausages . She told us most Russians were too poor to buy these items. The chocolate bars had dry powdered cocoa all over and were just plain lousy quality. The sausages when cut open were mostly fat oozing inedible grease . Russia is a poor country .

proud republican Loc: RED CALIFORNIA

Your niece most likely lived in the country, NOT in the city... I don't know what it's like now, but when I visited Russia, Moscow in 1997 it was different.. Moscow has great restaurants, hotels, museums.. Chocolate is pretty good too.. Beautiful nature, and very friendly people.. Also public t***sportation such as busses, trolleys, trains and subways.. Still when it comes to freedom, freedom of speech nothing beats United States of America... at least for now..

Canuckus Deploracus Loc: North of the wall

Oddly enough, no...

proud republican Loc: RED CALIFORNIA

No what?

Canuckus Deploracus Loc: North of the wall

Most of the Russians I've met have had little interest in immigration to the US...
Europe is popular.. As are parts of Asia...
Very few have expressed the wish to move to the US or Canada...

proud republican Loc: RED CALIFORNIA

Well maybe now, but it was different back in late 1990's..

Canuckus Deploracus Loc: North of the wall

I can certainly believe that...
Russia was a very different place then...

Coos Bay Tom Loc: coos bay oregon

The photographs she brought back were of a city . I can't remember the name of it . She was in a real sh#t hole . this was in 1994 .

JR-57 Loc: South Carolina

Not like we don’t have our share of those.