“I was 16 years old, ordering a beer at McDonald’s.”

Hi, I’m Hannah Loewentheil, and as a Senior Writer at BuzzFeed I write about all things lifestyle, especially parenting, travel, and food.

"A bus driver will rush down a narrow cobblestone street with about a centimeter to spare between the sides of the bus and any parked cars, walls, ancient monuments, or playing children." 

"The waitress laughed, as she grew up there and in Canada. (I'm from Brooklyn, New York, where portions are huge.) She calmly told me to eat it and if I was still hungry to order another one. By the last bite, I was stuffed. That was my WTF moment: when I realized how rich and high quality the food was over there."

"Like in the UK, drinking in a pub that had been in the same spot since the 11th century or eating dinner at restaurant in an 18th-century cathedral. Or in Prague, staying in a hotel that had been operating since the 15th century."

"It also seems like [European] wait staff is never trying to force you out of the restaurant once you are done eating." 

"Also, the Dutch are easily the most graceful cyclists. The way you guys can weave through dumb folks standing in the bike paths is outstanding."

"Then I️ had to pay 10 additional euros for some painkillers, again with no insurance or anything." 

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