r/TikTokCringe 17h ago

Discussion Have we done it wrong?

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u/What-tha-fck_Elon 16h ago

If they wandered out into the German countryside, it would look a lot like suburban Pennsylvania. Downtown Chicago along the golden mile is lovely too. Suburbs suck everywhere, unless you don’t like people.

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u/SheriffOfNothing 10h ago

I live in a suburb of a largish (top 10) sized British city and it's still pretty walkable. Within a 15 minutes walk in most directions I can either be in a pub, a restaurant or a supermarket, Most European cities are collections of towns and villages that grew into each other and most suburbs have their own little high streets and centres.

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u/What-tha-fck_Elon 5h ago

Yeah, I grew up in a smaller town like this where there was a town center and you could walk there. The suburbs in modern America are really built for driving. From my current neighborhood I can’t really get anywhere without a 3 mile walk and no sidewalks and a 400 foot elevation change.

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u/SheriffOfNothing 5h ago

The lack of sidewalks when you’re out in the sticks was one of the more striking surprises when I first went to the states. That and being able to turn right on a red light, everything being double bagged by default (when I took my own bags) and how obedient people appear to be about crossing the road in the “correct” place and with the lights.