Biggest cultural shock you have come across?

[hibbledobble]

What have you encountered while travelling that was your biggest cultural shock?

I'll go first: in Poland I saw families/extended families living 10+ in a 2 bedroom home. The concept of having a bedroom or even a bed to oneself is seemingly unheard of. Everyone sleeps in different beds each night, and beds are often shared. Having visitors in this set up is no problem either: everyone just rearranges. Water also came from Wells, lots of homes had no bathrooms. Ovens were these metal beasts that were plugged into the mains.

People talking about Europeans constantly trying to speak English to you when they find out you are English even though you might be trying your hardest to learn the local language, it's reminded me when we were students living in Italy for a while. We obviously stuck out as foreign and would get asked all the time "parli italiano (do you speak Italian)?", and they would expect us not to be able to reply and then would start talking in English. We got so fed up with this and the general assumption we couldn't speak Italian that we decided to reply with the longest, most fluent answer we could come up with, such as "non l'ho mai studiato e non so neanche una singola parola (I've never studied it and I don't even know a single word)" etc. which would completely throw the person asking but then sometimes they'd still continue to speak in English

We really wanted to immerse ourselves but it was so hard with everyone trying to practise their English constantly.

That used to be the norm in cinemas in the U.K too. A lady used to sell ice creams down the front in the interval.

Drs having their offices in residential buildings is very common in France. Same with dentists.

I've noticed that in France actually. Though there are loads like that in Edinburgh too, especially towards the city centre. Much more likely to have a dr/dentist in a converted townhouse than in a purpose built facility.

yummycake, my American mother never fails to tut at the fact that my DCs don't see paediatricians as a matter of course. (And yet somehow they miss a lot less school for illness than my American nieces and nephew .)

Crowshay, I know how frustrating it is when you're trying to learn a language and the natives you're speaking it to want to practice their English. When I was a student in Vienna, every time I went to the post office near the Stefansdom the git behind the counter would (deliberately, I'm sure) mumble how much I owed in German. When I would ask "wie, bitte?" because I just hadn't heard him he would take off his glasses, sigh theatrically and say "sixtiseven schillinks please" or whatever. I had fantasies about telling him in perfect German to save his English for the thousands of tourists who came there daily - I was not one of them!

Visiting German in laws and seeing Sil in the shower, mil brushing her teeth at the sink and bil sitting on the toilet IN THE SAME ROOM!!!
Also, naked saunas and no " towel dance" when getting changed at the lake and nipples in tv shower ads

Speaking of nakedness, seeing billboards on the Paris Metro with completely naked women being used to sell - what else, clothes!

FreeNiki, why would Birdz be expelled? She didn't say she organised the kidnapping. I'm surprised at people being surprised about this. Not that it happens in my world, but in some people's universes consequences have actions. They didn't break the guy's legs, just told him the outcome of pestering Birdz. I am faintly envious of Birdz having men who care enough to stand up for her.

So you'd be happy for your teenage son at uni to be kidnapped by a pack of thugs and threatened?

If she had problems with a guy in university halls, she doesnt state the nature of the problems. Could have been noise etc.

She should have spoken to the hall warden. Nope tell her violent brother. She said it was a common way to sort things out in her area so she knew full well her brother would do it. She deserved kicking out of uni.

She also said she had no idea you bought salmon in tesco. There is a difference between being working class and being a total imbecile. Im struggling with how before Uni she apparently either never went to supermarket or if she did walked around it with her eyes shut. Meat, counter, cheese counter, fish counter. How can you not see?

Drs having their offices in residential buildings is very common in France. Same with dentists.

I'd say it's common in the UK, too. Both my dentists have been (I've only ever been registered with two dentists, so not a comprehensive survey.) It's only my last two Hampshire doctors which haven't been, so that's two out of 8. (Actually, I can't remember the Bournemouth one's building, so maybe it's 3 out of 8.)

When I was at Uni I had a friend from America and her parents were due to visit. She was running late so asked me to go to the Halls carpark to find them. I had never met them but she told me they were driving a "small green car"
I couldn't find a small green car in the whole carpark but then I saw a family of Americans emerge from a HUGE green car, can't remember the make but to them it was a small car!!

Biggest culture shocks I've had have been right here in Britain. It's always been 'multicultural' between the rich (defined as anyone with more than me and I'm not alone in using that), the poor and a few hanging around in the middle. Other places I've been might do things a little differently, but there isn't thehostility and aggression between different native groups that you get here.

(European traveller only! Slightly alarming that having re-read my post I think of African tribal wars!)

Other places I've been might do things a little differently, but there isn't thehostility and aggression between different native groups that you get here.

Really?

There is no blatant hostility and aggression between black, white and hispanic in the USA?

It only happens in Britain

I see you didn't get my postscript Niki... but I don't see American social inequality and violence levels as something to aspire to, do you? At least they have more physical room for it.

Something I've read about on mumsnet that blew my mind was the idea of job hunting by contacting employers even if they haven't advertised, and sending a CV etc. Or walking from business to business handing in CVs. You just can't do that where I live, they wouldn't even accept them to be polite.

And as for getting an interview for a job even if you don't meet all the criteria, that just wouldn't happen here either. If they had 30 criteria and you only met 29 of them, you wouldn't get an interview, no matter how enthusiastic you were about learning the 30th one.

Hopping we once hired a car in America - the guy was soooo apologetic because the one we'd booked wasn't available and they only had a "small" one. It was a huge luxurious saloon like a wealthy exec would drive in the UK :o There was lots of forecourt confusion as we scanned it for the "small car".

Flower I agree. I think it goes with what I have posted before - the class system in the Uk and the snobbery and inverse snobbery that is so present in the uk.

It certainly not a side that I enjoy living here I have to say.

I'm late to this thread but I visited Thailand nearly 20 years ago and I was truly shocked to see the amount of prostitution everywhere we went.
It really has put me off returning.

Me neither Peppers, we need rapprochement on both sides somehow

There is so much pontificating on this thread by some people who have spent a matter of days in a place. Not so much about sights , but "Germans do this" or "Americans do that" .

Reminds me of when I was sandwiched at a dinner party in NY (as one is!) between US investment banker about to buy house in Hamptons and Dutch model on other. Boy, what a mutual admiration society . But I didn't care about that, what made me was that over my head they were talking about how he had just been to the UK and they were discussing Britain and how Brits did this and how the weather was always awful and how British food was disgusting and how Brits spoke and that British women were fat and drunks etc etc.

I'm sure many nationalities would be spluttering at reading this thread.

Actually they might have had a point about being drunk and fat

Very much agree with goldilocks about the patriotism and flag waving in the US. I really like it, actually, but remember being in Boston just after 9/11, when the display of flags was something else; a neighbour had a 10ft one hung outside his home, and floodlit

Also recall the diner in Annapolis, where at 11am each morning everyone stands up and recites the Pledge of Allegiance

I am pretty immune to shock but am still appalled by how here in New Zealand it is apparently quite acceptable to express blatantly anti Asian views. Anti Chinese, Japanese opinions are mainstream, comedians use Asians as the butt of their jokes and in schools no one bats an eyelid when kids make the kind of remarks which were unacceptable in the UK in the 1970's. I am not saying Britain is not racist but racism in Britain is largely frowned upon.

Yes I was at an open mic comedy night in London and a NZ guy came on and was not v. good - he was (mildly) heckled by someone who looked possibly Chinese or Japanese. He used a racist term to the man as a comeback. The whole pub GASPED and looked daggers at the guy on stage who had no choice but to slink out. He obviously thought what he said was fine and amusing.

I found the racism in New Zealand shocking as well. People always say New Zealand is like England 40 or 50 years ago. I agree, but it includes the bad bits as well as good bits.

FreeNiki

If the police force in your home country is ineffective then people learn to deal with problems themselves.

As for the salmon comment I am sure there are many other foods that could be specialist imports to a country