I easily got a driver's license in the US, which is good since there are drive-thrus everywhere.

Long before my first visit to New Orleans, I fell in love with the city's historic culture. As an Australian, I never thought I'd get to call The Big Easy home, but now I split my year living between the US and Australia.

Adjusting to life in New Orleans was an eye-opening experience, full of unexpected surprises and head-scratching moments.

Here are some of the biggest culture shocks I've encountered as an Aussie in the US.

I never realized how serious Australians, especially Melburnians, are about their coffee. I'm used to a certain standard and flavor.

A handful of places serve great coffee in the States, but I emphasize the word "handful."

After five years, it still astounds me to see Americans embrace sugary, syrup-filled drinks that barely resemble what I consider coffee.

I also can't believe drip coffee is still a thing here. It's a rarity where I'm from in Australia.

In Australia, getting my driver's license was a drawn-out process involving learner's permits, over 120 hours of logged driving with a licensed driver, and a strict test.

Getting my license in the US felt like a breeze in comparison. I just had to sit in a theory class for a few hours and then spend eight hours behind the wheel with an instructor.

After that, my test involved driving around the block, parking, using my turn signal, and boom -- I had my license. The ease was both impressive and a little scary, considering they were letting me drive on what was recently the wrong side of the road to me.

Getting a license varies from state to state, and many Americans under 18 have to undergo a stricter process. But I was still shocked by how different my two experiences were.

Navigating the language differences between the US and Australia, especially with food, is like playing a guessing game.

Imagine my surprise when I ordered biscuits for the first time in the US and got something more closely resembling scones. I was expecting what I now know to call a cookie.

I wonder if I'll ever stop ordering some chips and realizing too late that I should've said "fries." In Australia, fries and chips are called chips -- we just differentiate by saying "hot chips" for fries.

My Australian accent has caused some wild misunderstandings in the US.

From getting "Greary" written on my coffee cup instead of "Ree" to a drive-thru worker at Taco Bell thinking I was attempting to order pizza when I just said, "I have a mobile order," it's a daily game of "Guess What I Said."

It keeps things entertaining, to say the least, but it's also why I love being able to order via an app whenever I can.

New Orleans' cuisine is an adventure for the taste buds. I've learned to embrace savory grits -- I'd usually add sugar and eat them as porridge back home -- and have grown to love gumbo's rich flavors.

I fell in love with Southern food shortly after I arrived in the States. Still, walking into a whole new world of gastronomy was an adjustment.

There are some dishes, such as white beans, that I just can't make my palate enjoy, and I have days when I long for the local fish-and-chip shop back home.

In New Orleans, like many cities in the US, you can pull through the drive-thru for pretty much everything, from coffee shops to bars.

The strange looks locals gave me while I was taking a photo of a drive-thru bank for friends back home were amusing, and the concept of picking up a daiquiri to-go initially felt wild.

Now I'm kind of hooked. It's the ultimate lazy convenience.

Compared to what I'm used to in Australia, everything is supersized in the US. A "small" soda feels like a bucket to me.

And I really don't understand why Americans love their drinks filled to the brim with ice.

Once you take that out, there's hardly any liquid, no matter how big the cup is.

The first time I came to the US, my biggest worry wasn't getting through immigration or having the right documents -- it was tipping.

It sounds silly now, but I still find the practice of figuring out what percentage of my total I should leave behind confusing.