These ‘Regional Quirks’ Set the Midwest Apart from Rest of U.S.

When you've lived in the same part of the world for all (or most) of your life, you might not realize that the things you are accustomed to on a regular basis are actually considered quite unusual by folks visiting from other parts of the country.

Recently, BuzzFeed asked their online community to weigh in on the 'regional quirks' that are most prevalent around America.

As for the Midwest, they featured anecdotes from three contributors.

The first has to do with what's known as the Midwestern Goodbye':

'It takes forever! You visit a friend and let them know you've got to leave, so they walk you to their door to say goodbye. But the conversation continues for at LEAST another half hour! There will be pauses in the convo where I think, 'Okay, this is the end, and I'm leaving now,' but nope! Still more talking to be done. Longest goodbyes I've ever experienced, but at least it shows they like talking to you.' - Maggie

The other two have to do with driving, both from what you encounter when behind the wheel to how you refer to the roads you drive on:

'In California, they say THE freeway number, but in the Midwest, they just call it by the number. So, for example, in California, they say, 'driving on the 66,' but in Ohio, they say 'driving on 66.' - Katie

'In the Midwest, where I’m from, traffic lights are vertical. In Texas, where I moved for school, they’re horizontal.'- Tom