Social Cakewalk

SCapitalist said...

Interesting post. I wan't aware of this cultural difference. It amazes

me how different cultures can be, which often makes it hard to navigate

through the "unspoken" rules that most take for granted.

Well, what this gentleman says makes a lot of sense. It also reminds me of the first time that I traveled to US. I was simply terrified. Unlike most people I knew that in real life Americans don't run on streets with guns in their hands. I am quite proud of the fact that I had quite a lot of insight into the American way of life that went beyond understanding their language. But I was always afraid of a social or cultural faux pax because I didn't know what was expected of me.

Consider this, it's my second trip to US. I fly from Delhi, stopover in Europe, land in Detroit. I was supposed to go to Philly so in my mind this was still a stopover for me. As I am walking out of the restroom, (that's what they call the men's room), the guy ahead of me, holds the door open for me. And immediately it strikes me, "I am back in US!".



Fortunately for me, I was able to learn small, subtle differences like this over time in my first visit, with help from some nice colleagues in Philly and didn't make a single faux pax that'd humiliate me or my friends.