Americans share 31 awesome things that can only be found here in the States

There is no place on earth like the United States. From American culture to American food, people who visit the United States often come away bewildered. But for Americans, these everyday items and nuances give us our identity. Although America has many European roots, there are just some things Europeans can’t relate to because they’re purely and totally American. On Reddit, Americans chimed in about the things that America offers that cannot be found in Europe. From specific foods to household items and one-of-a-kind nature, these are 31 American things they listed off. Everyday items only Americans have “Garbage disposals, apparently. An English guy once asked, ‘Is it true you have a little blender in your sink to chop up the food bits and send them to the sewer because you’re too lazy to walk over to the trash bin?’” – Walmartian_Beta “Yellow school buses! I’ve had a lot of European friends ask me if they’re real or just something from the movies, apparently a lot of them think they’re on in movies or shows. I’ve had friends from Asia ask the same thing as well haha!” – mrthalo “Forced air hvac systems.” – Timely_Title_9157 “Screens on our windows so we can open them without letting the bugs in.” – Captain_Moose “Big *ss trucks and big *ss grills.” – teteAtit “Full size clothes dryers.” – Pugamus Nature you just won’t find in Europe “The Grand Canyon. It really is that grand.” – JackC1126 “Similarly the Great Lakes are pretty great.” – valthonis_surion “Giant Redwoods. The Redwoods National Forest in northern California is one of the most mystical, beautiful, majestic, ancient places I’ve ever visited. It felt SACRED like there really were forest elves and tree ents protecting that place. Breathtaking. I simply wanted to walk until I got lost, then just stay lost forever. It transformed me to a time of innocence, wonder, open to curiosity about the world. Around every bend in the trail, we’d buzz with anticipation. Because any grand adventure could waiting ..even a fairy tea party.” – GingerFaerie106 “Yosemite.” – Grandmakk13 “Joshua trees and Sequoias.” – Ten2none “The Pacific Ocean.” – DejectaMemora “Free refills.” – Cast_Last_LA “32 ounce soda cups at restaurants.” – The_Truth_Believe_Me “Ranch dressing.” – g00nt3r “Ice in the complimentary water at a restaurant.” – AmigoDelDiabla “Biscuits and gravy.” – dma1965 “Massive portion sizes as the default, not the exception.” – Repulsive_Look4179H “Mexican food.” – steff7474 “Like really good fall of the bone bbq. ” – bad_wolf1 “And Cajun food!” – doyer_bleu Cultural icons that feel American “Florida man.” – Ill_Self_8964 “ADA cities.” – PKspyder “One thing that always stands out to me is how obsessed Americans are with credit scores. It affects everything here, renting, phone plans, even jobs sometimes. In a lot of Europe it’s way more chill and not this giant number hanging over your life.” – ClaireBlack63 “Football, not that one, but the weird shaped ball one!” – Fritzkreig “Don’t have to pay to use restroom.” – mincemuncher “Tipping culture.” – Equivalent_Smoke_608 “World Championships that only involve teams from their country.” – BigBlueMountainStar “A robust general aviation culture and system. Ok I know it’s a bit niche, but there it is. It’s live in the middle of nowhere east Texas and there about 3 places within an hour where I can take flying lessons or just rent a small airplane if I want to go fly and have a pilots license and we have hundreds, maybe even thousands, of public and private airports.” – poser765 America, in all its excess Reading through the list, a pattern emerges: bigger portions, bigger cups, bigger trucks, bigger everything. Whether that’s something to celebrate or roll your eyes at probably depends on who you ask, but there’s no denying it gives America a flavor all its own. Love it or find it a little much, these are the small, strange details that make the country feel unmistakably itself. This article originally appeared in February. It has been updated.