What do you miss about your home country when you go abroad?

[rlk]

I did initially miss have electricity 24/7 while in some lodges in Tanzania and Kenya. After I relaxed about the thought of all my devices not getting fully charged overnight or not having a wifi connection, it was pretty freeing. Not so much for my two teens, although it allowed for great conversations and to really appreciate our surroundings.

 

[Scifidiner]

Being armed. lol

 

[jiminyC_fan]

The only time I missed something while traveling was having electricity 24 hours a day in some of the tented camps we staye.

We went to the first McDonalds that opened in Hungary while we were in Budapest. It was beautiful inside, with a separate area for desserts. As I was taking pictures, a large security guard came over and sternly said "no pictures" and then stood close by to make sure we complied.

We went to a McDonalds in Stockholm and they had a separate area for desserts, as well. Though it very odd.

 

[minnie56]

Winnipeg

Ahhhhhh ....Winterpeg

 

[firecracker725]

When I lived in France for two years, I missed Mexican food and American breakfast food (bacon, pancakes, sausage) the most. That was pretty much it, honestly. I soaked up as much culture as I could and went into it with a spirit of adventure. Soon as I landed back in the US though, I beat a path to the nearest Mexican place for some enchiladas.

 

[izzy]

When I’ve been to various places in Europe, I’ve missed:

Washcloths (to the point where I bring my own)

Ice

AC when I was in England and France during a summer heat wave where temps were about 95 every day

Elevators that will hold more than one suitcase and person at a time - assuming the hotel even has an elevator!

American-grade toilet paper


Having said all of that, I love traveling in Europe and am willing to put up with those minor inconveniences.

 

[jiminyC_fan]

Washcloths......good one! I've learned to pack a few now, LOL.

 

[AurumPunzel]

Proper fryups for breakfast, Marmite and having AC outlets and plugs that are the safest in the world. Even our influence in the US wasn't enough to cure the problem of how unsafe those NEMA outlets are. Even my American friends can vouch for that.

 

[nicole88s]

In Europe I missed big glasses of water with ice at restaurants! My family all just gets tap water at restaurants (because we that's what we like to drink). In London, when we ordered water they brought a small carafe (no ice) and 4 tiny glasses. At least it was free. In Switzerland they brought the tiny carafe and tiny glasses, but it cost $5! Which is is funny because on the streets in Switzerland there are fountains with free spring water that you can fill up bottle after bottle. We went to the Hard Rock Cafe for one meal and they had full size water glasses filled with ice (and straws!) and it was heaven.

Believe it or not, I missed the standard American bathroom stalls with the short door! Someone else mentioned that bathrooms were almost always downstairs in a random, dark place (which I found true as well) and then couple that with a hot, boxed in, usually very small stall and I felt claustrophobic! And also slightly scared I would be attacked down there and no one would know. Weird, I know!

I also missed air conditioning.

 

[angie7911922]

Really nothing. I like to soak up the culture of where I am. I love to see how other people live.