I’m talking about countries like Luxembourg, Lichtenstein, and San Marino. I understand the deal with Monaco. But as for those guys?

I’m absolutely baffled about the everyday workings of countries like this. Wouldn’t they be insanely expensive to live in? How do they maintain distinct cultural/linguistic/political identities with so few people? How do resources get produced when the territory is so limited? How do they even have independent economies? What exactly keeps the populations stable?

How often do people go to see your country’s legislature in action?

Like, a word that means "pine forest" or "birch forest"?

And why?

The question may seem strange, but in my country young teachers started to appear only after 2020, before that only 40+, always and everywhere, as if they are allowed to work in schools only from this age. But maybe this is only our anomaly, but you catch them young?

1) Businesses 2) Government entities

Please don't forget to mention which country that is

In German-speaking Switzerland, the one I've heard the most is "Azelle, bölle schele, chatz god uf Walliselle, chond si weder häi, hed si chrommi bäi, piff paff puff ond du bisch ehr- ond redlech doss", which roughly translates to "Counting up, peeling onions, cat goes to Wallisellen, she comes home again, she has crooked legs, piff paff puff and you're out frankly and honestly".

After watching some political posts on Slovak Facebook I have noticed that many people commenting struggle with basic grammar concepts which are learned during the first 5 years of the basic school.

Is it also common in your country that people have problems with the grammar of their own language?

Some context, my highschool in the US had a section of our PE class dedicated to working our way up to running a mile.

Just out of mild curiosity, if this was done in your school, was there a set distance you were ultimately tested on? 1 mile is about 1600 meters, which is surprisingly easy to translate to a 400m track, so was it just that? Or was it a rounder number like 1 or 2km?

I'm mostly coming at this curious about the distance, but I'm also interested in hearing a bit about if PE works the same way in Europe or exists in the way I'd recognize it at all.

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just want to learn about

Is it possible?

Currently Poland for the weekend, and It seems like the average pole is either „military buff fit“, or „cyclist endurance fit“. I mean even the dudes with the plumber-bodies despite having a beer-belly, have arms that could lift trucks. That type of „farmer-strength“ build

If Europe ever was to do a similar version of that Netflix show in South Korea „physical: 100“, it should definitely take place here.

“They should Pokemon GO to the polls” Hillary Clinton 2016

I'm from Spain and I'd say: how late we apparently eat. I'm used to having lunch at 14-15h and dinner at 21-22h, sometimes later if I don't have to wake up early the following day. Every single time I travel to another european country and I have to eat dinner at like 19:30 or earlier my stomach gets so confused, because that's usually the time I'm eating merienda (a snack before dinner time). It's not easy to adapt!

I think in Portugal they also have dinner at 21h or so, shout out to my Iberian siblings :D

Tell me how your country differentiates from others, I'm curious!

I think this question is for teenagers only. Does the education system in your country have ruthless competition and heavy workload? Do you stay up at night just to get into prestigious Universities?How is it compared to east Asia like Singapore or South Korea? Do you wish to study more or less?

I'm a contractor working on a project a European institution in Brussels. At work, sometimes I need to call out a European official because I haven’t received some information I needed, or because they didn’t do something in the way I needed it in order to carry out my role. Most of the time, I explain my problem, they apologize, and we move on. But with some people — from a certain European region (in my experience) — the conversation usually goes something like this:

Me: Hi, we agreed that you would stop doing X and start doing Y, but I’ve noticed you’re still doing X.

Them: stare off-camera with no expression whatsoever.

Me: Hello, can you hear me? Do you know what I’m referring to? I really need you to do Y instead of X, would that be possible?

Them: sit completely still and silent.

Me: (raising my voice) Hellooo, can you hear me? Is my mic working? Is the video frozen?

Them: (rolls eyes) Of course I can hear you. I don’t know why you Spaniards are always so loud, it’s irritating.

Me: Oh, great. So do you need help implementing Y? Do you want me to talk to your director general?

Them: silent, won’t look at the camera.

Sometimes this is followed by a strongly worded email from the official to my supervisor, complaining that I am “not respectful” or that I “don’t respect other people’s boundaries.” If I decide to bring up that email in our next call, the cycle repeats:

Me: Hi, it seems like there’s something about the way I work that you don’t like. Could you tell me what it is, so I can see if I can change it?

Them: stare silently without answering.

And so on, forever.

The couple times I've experienced this, it's been with people from a certain region. I mentioned it to my supervisor and they said, "oh they're like that, they avoid confrontation". But this is the exact opposite of avoiding confrontation. I was taught that there's nothing more impolite than ignoring a direct question, and I find it extremely triggering.

Is this a common communication technique where you're from, and if it is, what's the expected response to other people's lack of response?

I’m Australian and in Australia, expectant mothers commonly celebrate with a ‘baby shower’ prior to the arrival of their newborn baby. This is where the Mum has a small party and is ‘showered’ with gifts from friends and family. Generally entailing, food, pregnancy related games and socialising (big day for the pregnant person). My friend is French-born and has only been in Australia for a few years. She is having a small get together/ baby shower. Though she had said to me that in France, they don’t really have the same cultural tradition like in Australia. I would only assume it would be incredibly difficult not having parents and loved ones close by, so I want to make sure I get her something sentimental and heartfelt. What is something that French gift women prior/after the birth of their baby? Or something I could make/ create/ order? Any advice would be appreciated!

In America, we have many cities that primarily focus on regional American tourism - Pigeon Forge, Branson, Wisconsin Dells - which primarily target people who can drive from a few hours away. Do these exist in European countries? Not necessarily the driving part, but targeting people who live in the country instead of international tourists.

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Welcome to our daily scheduled post, the Daily Slow Chat.

If you want to just chat about your day, if you have questions for the moderators (please mark these [Mod] so we can find them), or if you just want talk about oatmeal then this is the thread for you!

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Example: Car brackets based on engine displacement, used for calculating insurance/tax. I'm not sure if it made sense when it was introduced, but it definitely doesn't make sense today. Because what originally was an emission related regulation, today it can cause situation, where more environmentally friendly cars can be charged more, just because they have bigger engine.

I have no idea if these kinds of programs exist in other countries, let alone how popular they are.

In Spain, we have two main ones: 'El Hormiguero' and 'La Revuelta'. The former is the older and more established of the two, while the latter is a more recent addition, starting out as a more niche and less casual alternative, though right now both are really "family-oriented" shows.

Both programs have a similar structure: they interview a popular guest, which is the main part of the show, and then mix this with comedy sketches, science experiments, and so on.

In Poland according to UOKIK (Office of Competition and Consumer Protection) says that client is required to have exact amount for purchase in cash and cashiers, if have a valid reason (which is for example not having enough to give to the client), don’t have to give client the change, how does it work in other countries around the europe?

Hello there!

Welcome to our daily scheduled post, the Daily Slow Chat.

If you want to just chat about your day, if you have questions for the moderators (please mark these [Mod] so we can find them), or if you just want talk about oatmeal then this is the thread for you!

Enjoying the small talk? We have a Discord server too! We'd love to have more of you over there. Do both of us a favour and use this link to join the fun.

The mod-team wishes you a nice day!