Cultural Differences

Moving here - there were obvious cultural differences that we expected to encounter. We had some minimal cultural education - and read a lot about arab and muslim cultures. No matter how much education there was, there are some surprising differences that I just wasn't expecting. Like:

1. How to "nod" your head. In India, they have a little head "bobble". Kind of side to side. At first, I interpreted this to mean "whatever" or "if you insist" - instead it means "Yes." I still find this a little confusing in a conversation and have to remind myself that it means "yes."


2. What to do with toilet paper. In many of the older buildings with traditional plumbing - you are expected to throw your used toilet paper in a bin and not into the toilet. There are no signs instructing you to do this - it is just expected that you will. If you forget - you run the risk of serious plumbing clog. New buildings and plumbing are now built to handle toilet paper - but if in doubt, best to not flush.

3. Using a toothpick without covering your mouth is considered extremely rude and disgusting. You might as well be cleaning the toe jam from between your toes as far as people here are concerned.

4. Honking your car horn is a subtle message that means, "Hey, just to let you know I'm here." Even though I know it's not meant to be rude I still cannot stop myself from responding with ire. "YES - can you not wait 10 seconds for me to get out of my taxi?!?"

5. When we moved to England, I discovered that Baked Beans was a common pizza topping. For that matter, so was sweet corn. Hmmm - just had never really considered ordering a baked bean pizza. Here, pizza toppings are limited to non-pork options (for obvious reason). So, really difficult to order Pepperoni or Sausage - and if you do it's some sort of beef pepperoni or sausage which just doesn't have the same flavor.

6. You would think that answering the telephone and saying good-bye would be the same around the world. I mean, you can pick up your phone and call anyone in the world, so why don't we have the same telephone curtesies. In the UK, at the end of a telephone conversation, I never figured out what I was doing wrong, but it always felt like I'd say good-bye and then they'd say good-bye, and then rather than hang up - they'd hang on the line. Finally, I learned to say "Cheers, bye" at the end of the call - and that seemed to work, they'd hang up. Here, when people answer the telephone they always say, "Tell me, Julie". If they can see me on caller ID, that's how they answer the telephone - not even Hello. Or if after they say hello and I identify myself, then they will say "Tell me, Julie".

7. Tassels on men's dress shoes is 100% American. I cannot think of one single culture where the men have tassels on their dress shoes. If you see a man anywhere in the world with tassels on his dress shoes, you don't even have to ask - he's an American.



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