What was your most shocking culture experience?

Question

such as different country, going to the hood, living with homeless people, ect...

Answer 1

It isn't so shocking as it is comical.

My wife and I were hosting two foreign exchange students for the year, a 16 year old boy from South Korea and an 18 year old boy from Thailand.

At the end of the first week I came home to discover that they decided if would be a nice gesture if they cleaned the bathroom, which is was. Unfortunately, they had never cleaned a bathroom before... and certainly never a western style bathroom in a wood frame house.

There was half an inch of water on the bathroom floor. I paniced when I saw it. "Why haven't you mopped up the water!? You are going to ruin the floor," I yelled.

I grabbed the nearest towels and through them on the floor to soak up the water. The boys protested in unison, "No! We could have done that but those are not the correct towels to use on the floor. Where is the floor towel?" followed by "We are never ever ever going to use those towels again."

I said we'd wash them with Tide and everything would be fine. They disagreed.

Apparently in Asia there is a designated towel for using only on the floor. Body towels are only for drying humans.

I took a poll at work to see what people thought. 50% (mostly women) agreed with the boys that there should be a separate towel. 50% (mostly men) said Tide will clean anything.

I praised the boys for sticking up for each other and trying to do the right thing. I suggested that next time they inquire into how things are done in the USA before trying something new.

Answer 2

i'd be curious to carry close what magla bob has to assert about the actual issues that should be custom wonder. i'm curious how multiculturalism is in a unique way taken between both countries. i'd hesitate to assert that because that's 'English-depending' u . s . a . there would not be custom wonder. This genuinely relies upon on how a lot the fellow has travelled earlier going to Australia. likely the wonder should be a lot less if any if that individual experienced some thing completely diverse earlier like midsection East- or eastern countries or maybe Africa. nonetheless the fashion of shocks that would ensue should be from diffused issues, per chance like procedures of greeting or eating conduct/ingredients, social expectancies, etc.

Answer 3

When the muslims first started coming to my town (Detroit) in the mid-eighties. Some azzhole started screaming at me and calling me a whore because I didn't cover my hair. They are all over the place now, and they act like that - then wonder why we can't stand them.

Detroit always had a large Arab population, but the muslims didn't start coming there in large numbers until later. News for folks: Its not Arabs per se - the problem is that religion. I had plenty of Arab friends who weren't muslim.

Answer 4

When I moved 140 miles away from a really big city to a really really small town.. my new teachers called it "culture shock" it's really different here..

Answer 5

i had gone to my cambodian friend's house for dinner. they had a table with chairs and stuff, but we sat on the floor and there was a HUGE bowl of food in the center, and we all sat around it and started eating from it...i guess it was part of their culture.

Answer 6

marrying my spanish husband,came to live in spain with him and his family, and oohf,what an experience, the spanish pple are savages,ignorants,primitives and ofcourse their country is a second world country so they are still backwards. it was horrible, they talk so loudly, they gossip too much, and the mother in law was so hateful with her daughter. everywhere they go it has to be the entire family and it sucked. thanks i moved out now and im happy to be away from them,.

Answer 7

when i found out that the white man is white only on the outside and black inside

Answer 8

I'd have to say that it was becoming a single parent.