Culture Shock! (Working in a Foreign Country)

Singapore: every day that October it rained very hard from 13:30 to 15:00; one could set a watch by it. One could have been be wet all the time, either from rain or from perspiration: 33degC ambient temperature during the day and no lower than 24degC overnight takes someone from the higher latitudes a little while to adapt to. The cleanliness and "no-nonsense" approach from the local authorities provided a high degree of confidence in personal security.

South Korea: a shipyard with 60 ocean-going vessels and 4 oil platforms all under construction - 'Meccano' everywhere! Korean society is very respectful, and it took a little while to get used to being bowed to.

There were very high levels of work ethic in both countries, and some valuable experiences were brought home.

I know about the hefty fines in Singapore a japanese colleaugue wore a t-shirt with all the fines in Singapore.

Did you try kimchi in Korea?

<...kimchi...>

The taste is very strange to the European palette.......

It's an acquired taste, i haven't tried (Japanese) Natto yet but the smell of those fermented beans make me wanna hurl

Very interesting topic. My wife is Japanese so I am well aware of Natto. My kids eat it (love it) and then sit in my lap to talk to me, their faces just inches from mine. After many years, I've learned to surpress the 'hurl' response. I haven't tried it yet. I also recall some squid paste thingy that smelled horrible. I gave it to my dog (the one that eats anything) and she wouldn't touch it.

And I am currently on a 15 month assignment in S. Korea. I have tried Kimchi. It's not bad. Most all foods here are quite spicy. Good thing I like spicy foods. However, I am not big on seafood and have a very narrow diet preference. Unfortunately, it doesn't match well with either Korean or Japanese cuisine. But I am adapting...or is it tolerating?

I'm a Texan, and I love kimchi... With Texans there is no accounting for taste I suppose.

The institutional corruption in Nigeria - never being able to instill any sense of urgency in the guys we were working with. Watching 5 guys in 3 dugouts refloat a sunk coral barge with 4 portable compressors (and a lot of hard work).

The laid back attitude in Venezuela where "manyana" takes on a whole new meaning.

Ar Rub Al Khali. The name comes close to saying it all really; The Empty Quater. Beautiful.

Driving across Poland from Gdansk to Berlin on a Friday night with a flight out of Tegel Saturday AM.

So many....

I am interested in your anecdotes.

well driving through Germany you atleast can increase the speed (if it wasn't still DDR)

It was a bit fraught really. I'd been up working for 4 days straight with a French trainee then a 5 hour boat ride to get back to the dock. That was my only change to sleep and a sea-sick frenchman in the same room was a little - annoying. To say the least. I then had to drive since he had to continue from Berlin to Copenhagen in the company car so despite 3 hours sleep (or so) I had about a 9 hour drive. Once out of Poland (crossed the border at Szczecin) made pretty good time. Arriving in Berlin at 02:00 and finding the airport closed was irritating but finding a coffee shop downtown was enlightening being filled with drug pushers, hookers and 2 mwd engineers. The staff settled down and talked to us for the next couple of hours till it was time to head to the airport again. Made a place in my heart for the whole city.

Finland.

Following is a list of shocks:

1. Fins take their drinking very seriously. It is normal in any gathering/ celebration to get drunk. The government tries to alleviate that by regulating alcohol content in drinks, taxing it heavily and allowing the sale of alcohol only through ALCO stores (only place you may buy alcohol legally, state-owned chain). Fins counteract this by consuming several bottles each, thereby meeting their original alcohol quota!

2. Sauna, a must-attend for all the guys. Sitting in extra-hot steam-filled room, everyone drunk and still drinking, butt-naked and actually making merry conversation and having good laughs. I actually found that very enjoyable.

3. After the sauna session we would parade our butts to the nearby lake (very cold) for a refreshing swim. Everyone being drunk usually, it doesn't matter if someone else may be watching.

4. Eat like there is no tomorrow. Very enjoyable too.

5. After lake+eating get back to the drinking. Repeat steps 2-5 a few times within a few hours.

_{(Being somewhat embarrassed for taking part in said excesses, you will excuse me for posting anonymously...)}

6. Did you know that there is such a thing as (explicitly) finnish tango? And a dance called Jenka. Provided that you pick a lady who is not too drunk for your partner, you can have a great time.

In all, I found the Finnish way of entertaining to be very very different than what I'm used to in southern Europe. It was a shock, but a pleasant one. My Finnish friends were excellent company, even when drunk. That said, that is certainly not a healthy lifestyle...

Regarding work, I found everyone to be very professional and amicable at the same time. Which was great. All in all, a good cultural shock from time to time helps broaden the mind. Perhaps even appreciate life more. Like medicin, in small doses (sometimes large) it is a very good thing, I think!

It seems that people in countries near the Arctic circle have an affinity with strong liquor.

In Japan there are (Japanese bathhouse's) onsen usual also with sauna but Japanese (when not drunk) are very tight-lipped (often they Amerikajin desu ka? "are you American?)

<....It seems that people in countries near the Arctic circle have an affinity with strong liquor.....>

What else is there to do when it is dark from the beginning of November to the end of February?

<..._{(Being somewhat embarrassed for taking part in said excesses, you will excuse me for posting anonymously...)}...>

It's OK. This is CR4!

A late addition:

At the cinema, before every movie one of the advetisements (state-sponsored) showed an animation of a car hitting an unsuspecting pedestrian crossing a road. It said something to the effect:

'please do not run over the pedestrians when drunk and driving!'

(I am sure it actually used a different wording, but I never got to understand Finnish well enough to tell the difference...)

By the way, the Fins have attrocious suicide rates during wintertime. Can't really blame them for drinking! -keeps their minds off worse things! The darkness really gets to them.

By the way, the Fins have attrocious suicide rates during wintertime

Any studies done on that? i wonder why? there are many interesting things you can do in the dark

Tokyo: trying to get some complex electronic equipment to work properly. After visiting the toilet "Come on, we're going home: their toilets are more complicated than our stuff".

Singapore: the technicians all spoke English (the official language), but I couldn't understand a word: I had to get the managers to translate from "Singapore English" to "English English".

Yes the high end toilets here have a zillion functions and some even have a remote (i don't get that one)

I've had the same language problem when going to the UK.

I've always wondered what it would be like to actually work & live for an extended period of time in a foreign country.Where you actually get to be part of the culture.

In my younger days I worked as a courier and visited many different countries but at the most I spent the night & usually only had contact with someone that spoke American English or English. I've never been able to afford to take a vacation to any other countries other than Canada or Mexico. And even then you don't get to really be part of the real culture.

I'm a good ol' southern boy from the US, and I am shuffling papers to line up a week long consultation project in Cairo, Egypt. Already I see there is considerable bureaocracy in applying to be an expert consultant under the Industry Modernization Program. I hope to see the pyramids, ride a camel and take a dinner cruise on the Nile while I am there. Can anybody offer anything about culture shock in Egypt or other suggestions?

WC- DON'T DRINK THE PAPYRUS JUICE! Did the Pyramids, saw the Sphinx, took the camel ride and ended up in a "gift store" completely dehydrated at which I was offered this seemingly benign fluid. Been to many places, India, China, Malaysia, many more but the worst case of stomach malaise/debility occurred as an after math of this tourist circuit. I didn't know which way to turn if you catch my drift! The beer is good!

I guess a good rule is "don't drink the water unless it contains enough alcohol to kill all the bugs!" Thanks for the heads-up!

<...don't drink the water...>

Get a tourist guide book on the locality for advice before arrival. Some places are OK, others aren't. If in doubt, boil it and use it to make tea or coffee, according to preference.

WC, Don't be fooled by the "alcohol kills the bugs" idea. Unless you are staying in an upscale hotel (and even there be suspicious), ice can bring disaster to your well being. Drink the beer and take your Jack Daniels (if you can find it!) neat.

And do NOT put ice-cubes into your drink...

I went to Paris on business several years ago. Our gracious French hosts took us on a tour of the town sunday afternoon, and we stopped at a sea food restaurant. Our French host asked if we would like a seafood platter. Here in the South, we all know a seafood platter is piping hot, fried golden brown and piled high with fried fish, shrimp, oysters, clams, deviled crab and hush puppies. So of course we agreed to the seafood platter. Out came a 3-tiered tray with each tray layered in crushed ice. On each tray were raw oysters, clams, periwinkles and such. The Frenchmen chowed down, enjoying it immensely. We followed suit, not to be out-done by a mere Frenchman. The Frenchman said, "I tell you how we see if ze oyster ees fresh. We put a drop of lemon juice on heem. Eef he flinches, he ees fresh!" Sure enuf, the oyster flinched, so we figured he was good. Next day business went fine.We were all to go out for dinner that evening. As it neared time to go, I was feeling queasey and elected to stay in. I felt worse and worse, and finally it hit. I was so sick I didn't know which end to hang over the commode! Sometimes I sat on the commode with my head in a trash can. All nite long! I felt better as the sun rose. I was able to drink a tall glass of OJ at breakfast. My older buddy went to dinner and got sick after he returned to his room. He couldn't even come down for the meeting, so I carried on in his stead. It never bothered the Frenchmen. I guess they were immune.

You took the words right out of my mouth!

Don't drink the papyrus juice!!!!!!!!!!!

Flynn (Chester, NJ)

French sushi?

It also has to do with stomach, i mean the first time i ate sushi or Spanish olive oil saturated food, i was also hugging the toilet bowl.

I think it is a automatic safety feature, the stomach goes "i don't know this get rid of it!"

Basic thread by Epke, is talking about the culture. But surprisingly, most of the posts are talking about the food and drinks (and stomach problems) in various countries. Yes, food is also a part of the culture, but it is not only thing of the culture.

Talking about and putting many other things of culture should be more interesting.

I visited Shanghai few years back. Found people of Shanghai with smiling faces. Ladies were dominating in all work fields, including driving of huge transport vehicle. All were curious about me and my country India. I could chat with many people with no language. (Me not knowing Chinese and they not knowing English). It was intyeresting!

I always felt very safe to walk in any area of city till midnight, which I do not felt anywhere in the other countries I visited.

In hotels, there is strenge good custom of well coming customer with loud welcome call.

Huge bargen in road side markets.

No porno channels on TV at hotels.

Many more observations, I will put shortly.

Also I visited London, Paris, Amsterdam, Oslo...

I felt people in Europe in general little aloof, not so talkative, but helping if asked for.

I will put some more posts in couple of days.

Depends on where you are in Shanghai, How safe it is.

According my former Colleagues Shenzen was(is?) even less safe as they had a shuttle bus bringing the foreign workers from the Hotel to the factory

In Japan it is not only Hotels but most restaurant, welcome you with a loud "irrashamase!" (welcome). And when you enter a mall during morning opening all the workers stand in front of their shops and bow deeply, makes you feel like royalty

You mean lots of illegal copied software and fake brands wear

thats a bummer

Well in europa lots of difference between the countries peoples attitude

A) I had a friend who taught in Shanghai for couple of years and he felt it was very safe.

B) Shenzhen is definitely a 'don't go out alone at night' city. Ex-Pat's are almost always housed in secure compounds and shuttled outside of it. The director of the Black and Decker operation there told me gangs were aggressive and widespread.

C) According the the BSA (Business Software Association) 98% of all software in China is pirated.

D) The same Black and Decker manager told me his biggest problem was instilling the Chinese workers with a western quality (QA) attitude. He said if a new worker dropped a drill they would check to see it it still ran. If it did they would attempt to add it back on the line even though the case was scuffed. They just couldn't understand why a western consumer wouldn't accept it like that.

D) sounds familiar when i worked for an LCD company, we always had problems with quality in China, also management decided that our test equipment design/manufacturing should go to China, that was/is a costly operation, i don't how many faulty assembled, wrong components, plain broken test equipment we sent back to them

I have been fortunate to work for short periods of time (a few days to a few months) in a number of countries (Scotland, England, Belgium, Germany, France, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Taiwan, France) and and now am in the middle of a 15 month assignment in South Korea. I have to say I have enjoyed all of them. Okay maybe not so much Saudi Arabia (it was hot and humid most of the time and we spent most of the time either at work or on the compound). I won't say every minute of each trip was great, but I tried to take make the best of each one....even though I was working.

As an anecdote, while in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, my coworkers and I lived on a secured compound (8 foot high walls topped with bobwire, guards, etc). We felt pretty secure until we realized the guy walking around our car with the mirror on a stick looking under the car for explosives (or who knows what), wasn't actually looking at the mirror...he was talking with his buddies and looking at them. Upon driving past the front gate (where the guy with the mirror checks you out) you drive directly at a guy manning a 30 cal, then turn left behind his post and drive toward a guy with a 50 cal. As we approached the 50 cal gunner he was laid out in his chair, legs extended, leaning back, head to the side, mouth opened. He didn't move as we drove past him. The first thought was he was dead....then realized...no...just asleep (but I won't be tonight). All guards were locals as far as I knew. Then the compound security cheif briefed us on do's and don't's. When he mentioned CQAs we looked at each other..."huh? What's a CQA?" He explained, "it stands for Close Quarter Assinations....and we haven't had one for two years now in this area". Despite those things, we had no real problems.

I have driven in most all of the countries I've been to and noticed quite a variety of difference beyond just the left-side/right-side of the road differences. These are generalizations based on my experiences and not meant to put down any country or anyone from those countries:

Saudi Arabia:

• people take forever to change lanes.
• As I understand it, one of the worst driving records (accident wise?) in the world.....and not a single female driver (women aren't allowed to drive cars or ride bicycles).
• have the concept of the round-about backwards....they yield to cars entering the round-abouts.
• don't seem to want to get in a que. 4 lane divided highway. Guy want's to make a left (or u-turn) at the next median break and pulls over....butt hanging into the left lane. The guy behind him wants to do the same thing, so pulls around and blocks the first guy's view (this happens in the States too), but then everyone behind who wants to turn left there, try to go around and be the first in line....creating nothing that resembles a line and spilling over into the right hand lane, blocking all traffic.

Kaoshung, Taiwan -

• literally thousands of scooters on the road. Interesting to watch, not so much fun to be one of them. Too many car on scooter collisions (guess who wins). And saw a family of 7 on a single scooter (large on).
• cars in the left lane making right hand turns, cars in right hand lane turning left....never a dull moment

Jinju S. Korea -

• buses beating cars off the line at traffic lights.
• super aggressive bus drivers (and my car has the marks to prove it)
• so many people ignoring traffic signals....car from 6 vehicles back goes around the left of everyone (into the opposite direction lane) to run a red light.

Sorry if that was a bit of a long post.

I don't mind long posts some interesting insights

well at least S-Arabian drivers cannot complain about bad female drivers because you only have bad male drivers. In Holland we have two types of roundabouts one where the roundabout has the right of way and the other where cars coming from the right have right of way.

The scooters in S.Korea reminds me of Vietnam there also a zillion Scooters and no rules, the most gutsy guy gets right of way.

In Japan people like to run through red lights, driving slow on the fast lane, and are often unaware of their surrounding

Minor correction....the scooters were in Taiwan, not Korea. I actually expected to find them in Korea, too, when I arrived, but was surprised not to other than by food delivery people.

Funny thing about S-Arabia. The women have been petitioning the king to change the law and allow them to drive. They complain of being abused by taxi drivers and such. Reading the local news paper (English version) had an editorial about the topic where a Saudi male was opposing the effort and cited a recent accident in Cairo, Egypt (I think). Women are allowed to drive there and one woman was in an accident which resulted in a few deaths. The next day a woman wrote in and explained how absurd the arguement was based on Saudi's driving record with only male drivers. I had to chuckle. But then thought....would it get better or worse if they allowed the women to drive. Of course then slapped myself for having such a sexist thought.

I have not experienced the problems in Japan that you mention other than drivers not being aware of their surroundings. That might be mostly due to the fact that when I am in Japan, my wife usually does most of the driving (since, unlike me, she can read the signs).

Oops sorry about Taiwan off course, i have been to Taipei, not much congestion by scooters, but parked everywhere in the evening.

These days all signs in japan also have the name in western alphabet, except off course when you are in the middle of nowhere.

Did you notice in Japan, motorists turn off their lights at stop signals? Why?

It is a courtesy thing, they don't want to blind the motorist on the other side of the street (and it saves gas too)

SINGAPORE - Ditto on the heat and humidity! Had a few hours to kill one afternoon and went to Centosa Island. In 30 minutes I was completely drenched from sweating while the apparent locals were wearing sweaters.

Clean, safe and I loved the orchids hanging from the highway overpasses. Orchids, orchids everywhere!

I was working with a couple Chinese Singaporeans and I never worked so hard. Seven days a week 10-12 hour days. I asked him if everyone worked so much and he said "pretty much" because there is not much else to do. (I don't believe it though.)

TAIWAN -

Was consulting in an office just down the street from the 101 Building in Taipei. We were on the sixth floor with an awesome view of the world's largest building. There was a need for some electrical work and 'Mr. Chu' was called in. I watched as he fished new wire through the floor conduit, cut and stripped the ends, twisted the pairs together and then wrapped the ends with electrical tape. I was fully expecting him to reach into his kit to get the wire nuts to complete the task but he just pushed the taped-wrapped splices back into the gang box and screwed down the metal cover. I asked an associate to query Mr. Chu if that satisfied the building code in Taipei. Mr. Chu responded that it was OK.

Now I look at the box, then up to the 101 Building (101 floors), back down to the box, and again to the 449 meters of steel and glass and think "no, NO - you got to be kidding!

I think I will chime in about the Spanish! There is a joke about how many Spanish electricians it takes to change a light bulb! I can honestly say without any shadow of a doubt that the answer is more than 5! 1 to change the bulb and the others stand round talking about how to change it! In my 8 years sparking over here, no matter how simple a job, you will always be surrounded by most of the other sparkies or builders or passersby who will be giving advice, tell you a story about the time they changed a light bulb, how it should be done, how Juan, the sparkie in his old company changed it, or what would look nice in its place! If you are splicing cables in a man-hole you will need to ask everybody to stand back or all the various faces looking down the hole will obscure the sun and turn a normally simple job into a groping in the darkness operation! One more thing about Spain is....DON'T DRINK THE WATER! I was at deaths door for three days! I only did it once! Apart from that, the Spanish are very friendly people who like to talk about anything! I'm happy to be here!

Paris, 2003: our local host, a life-long, sophisticated 50-something Parisian and manager of our European robotic distribution, took us to a cozy restaurant near his apartment, for a "special", very French, delicacy. Turned out, after my American boss and I had already taken a few bites, to be a cow's large intestine! Merci, Jean-Paul!! :) - Larry

<-- Photo courtesy Wikipedia.

Next haggis?

My culture shock USA:

Careful with any food from fast food restaurants, it's awful. Americans have no sense for food quality, they eat any thing. Larger serving restaurants are all chains with fast food served in plates, slightly better quality, but still far from good. For eating well, look for small family owned restaurants in strip malls (shopping centers) like Mexican, Indian, Chinese, Italian, etc. most of them cook from scratch, good quality, at affordable prices.

You are dependent of a car and a plane. No public transportation is a difficulty for foreigners to find the way around. Buy a GPS and rent a car and you will be better off to get where you want. Do not drive around from city to city, the distances are enormous and the speed limit is relatively slow. You never get there without paying fines for speeding. Take a plane and rent a car, there is no other reliable system.

Coffee in the offices is tasteless, weak and burned. It kills your stomach. HAve tea or water instead. Look for good coffee shops for coffee, not even starbucks. Perhaps Caribou coffee, or small coffee shops have better quality.

Americans are easy going, friendly, but distant socially and slow in setting a friendship. It takes many years for them to feel you as a friend. Normally you are an "acquaintance". Meetings are for a reason and not just to socialize: people get together for a super bowl, for a grill, for a certain party, for a bike ride. They celebrate, meet with each other, do what was intended to do, such as eating, watching the game, or singing the happy birthday, and they leave back to their confinements at home in front of the TV or computer. Americans don't stay more to just get to know each other. Shy, introverted, socially lacking folk.

The amount of waste and contamination created in the US is outrageous. Every meeting, there are tons of waste from plates, cups, plastic silverware, food, everything! with no remorse for the environment, no intent for recycling, reduce, or reuse things. Do not feel bad at damaging their environment because they don't either. Americans don't care for having a large landfill close by, for burning tons of fuel in large engines driving 60 km/h, or throwing the cigarette butts from the car. Accept that.

Ouch!

Sometimes it hurts to hear the truth. But you are excatly correct in your estimation of most of us in the USA.

Otto,

It's good to hear a perspective on the US, even if it's not flattering. By the way, where are you from? Your location says Atlanta, GA, but I take it that's where you are not, not where you are from.

" You never get there without paying fines for speeding. "....here's a hint...if you obey the law and drive the speed limit, you can avoid paying the fine. I don't think it's fair to complain about getting fined for breaking laws. I didn't particularly care for the laws in Saudi Arabia, but I wasn't about to break them (reckless driving resulted in a monetary fine, loss of driving priviledge and 20 lashes).

To travel long distances the alternatives are to drive your own vehicle, rent one, take a plane, Amtrak (train), or bus. I prefer car as it gives one more independence on the trip. If I want to stop to rest or attend to nature's call I can. If I see something interesting along they way, I can do so. But that's me and I can certainly understand why a visitor to the country may not find that appealing.

While I don't actually drink coffee everyone I work with seem to. People in my office seem to think the coffee is quite good, they have several blends to choose from and always have a fresh pot going. It has amazed me how much people drink throughout the day. I don't think I could even drink that much water in an 8 hour period. Many offices I have been in also have numerous pots around the office do to each small group of preferences (decaf, strong/weak, flavored)....so perhaps in the office you can make your own. If you go to a specialty shop, what is the cost per cup (time spent getting their, cost of the coffee) compared with that in the office? Most places I think the ratio is quite high ($4.00 to $0.50?). Does that fall under the you-get-what-you-pay-for category?

I took my English '8 cups of coffee a day' habit to Spain and after a few days I was a gibbering wreck! But boy oh boy, the coffee is good and strong here. I'm now down to 1 cup a day and have at last got rid of the shakes!!

I have worked in: Germany, training people on how to implement injection molding machines India, Turkey, steel mill. Czech Republic, sewing machines. Italy, blow molding machines. Austrailia, Ireland, saw mills England, extruder for coating wire. Been to many more if you count sales. Japan, veneer mill chargers. Nothing really bothered me. The attitudes and customs of Japan took the most to adapt too. I find the attitude of the people in India strange. They have a funny way of wobbling their head that we can confuse for a yes or a no. I think it means get lost, I don't care. I study the history of the Turkey on the flight over. The Turks were impressed that I made the effort. I was the only westerner at the steel mill that was invited to join them at their morning tea ( chai ) which IS VERY good. I didn't like Turkish coffee though. There was no need for an alarm clock. A load speaker on a minaret would wake me at 5 am. They had good food and beer but not the variety. It is very much like Greek food but don't tell them that. In Japan, at a formal sit on the floor dinner where we celebrated a successful installation. I was asked by the mill manager what I thought of Kimonos. I told him that I thought they were great and much better suited for the Japanese weather than the British ( western ) business suits. I went on to say that I don't understand why the Japanese insist on copying the western clothing that is clearly meant for colder climates. The mill manager probably didn't expect that answer but he smiled as he nodded and apparently accepted my comment. I have know idea what he really thought. In Japan you need to take shoes off when you enter the computer room of a mill. Japanese slippers were not big enough. I wore our many pairs of socks. Young girls would knock on the computer room door, bow and ask permission to enter the computer room to bring us coke, tea, etc. I didn't really know what they were saying, I just waved them in and said domo arigato. Eventually I would meet them at the door and accept the tray so they wouldn't need to take off their shoes and return their bows. I don't know if was proper for me to do that. The Japanese love to party, drink, after work. I don't know how they do it. I didn't know if they did it all the time or just when I or we were there. I am big. They would always ask my height and weight and marvel at my shoe size. One person asked me to take my shoe off so he could try it on. Before I knew it the whole bar had tried my shoe on. Fortunately the bar was very small with only the bar and two tables. Mostly I learn to keep quiet unless someone asked me a question. Often I was told what to say in Japanese. Since I am big the hardest part was sitting on the floor. I had the weirdest conversation with a Japanese man on the beach. I couldn't speak or understand much Japanese. So we drew pictures and maps in the sand. After about 30 minutes I realized that the Japanese man couldn't speak and it was never clear to me if he could hear. He did seem to appreciate the effort to communicate drawing pictures in the sand. I like to go for long walks. I got lost once in Japan. I had to get a taxi and point to a box of matches with the hotels name on it to get back. India was the strangest. I have a few stories about that. NZ, Oz,Ireland and England are too much like the US to think of these places as really foreign. Driving is the biggest adjustment. Does any body really consider Canada a foreign country?

Peter,

Very interesting about your experience in Japan. I am not all that big....average by American standards and like to sit on the floor, but have difficulty doing so for long periods of time. So that's a problem for me when we visit my wife's family. Another thing I have difficulty adjusting to there is not being direct. According to what I have been told, it's not usual to say no when someone is asking something (as in business asking if it is possible to change a specification). Instead, the answer may be 'we will consider it'. Which to me, and probably most Americans (if I may speak for all of us), is a positive response leaving me to believe there is some hope. But apparently, it's closer to 'don't count on it'. But the Japanese won't just say 'no'. If they don't say 'yes', then you can assume the answer is 'no'.

I, too, did some reading on Turkish history before my first trip over. I was fortunate to sit next to a Turkish woman (who lived in the US and was going home to visit family) on the long flight over the Atlantic. She filled me in on all sorts of tidbits that aren't found in most books. Such as 'never say anything bad about Mustafa Ataturk or you might be in for a fight'. And like you, the Turkish guys I worked with were very impressed with my effort to learn about their country. I developed some very good friendships with many of them. Playing chess during breaks, chai, and being invited to their homes for dinner from time to time. They seemed to have a different perspective on time though. Eventually, I got to joking with them about 'Turkish time'. I would ask them how long something would take....the answer would be 'one hour'. Two hours later, I would ask again and get the same answer after a twelve hour day of this, I finally asked them if they used a different clock and they all laughed and said it's a Turkish hour. So from that time on when they would say '5 minutes', I would ask if that was a Turkish five minutes? They would laugh and say, 'yes yes, Turkish 5 minutes'. Once I had adapted to that way of thinking, my stress level went way down and I was able to better manage working with and around their crew.

John

Interesting that you should mention Mustafa Ataturk. His history was what I studied the most. Perhaps that is why the Turks were so impressed.

I never thought it was Turkish time that made the steel mill start up sooo sloow :) I thought is was just the nature of steel mill startups. Actually I think we were on steel mill time. The mill was just south of a little town on the Black Sea called Eregli.

41°15'59.93"N

31°25'37.93"E

It seemed to me that Ataturk was quite a visionary for Turkey and very successful at bringing them into a more modern age (from third world to second world?).

Often Going out with the boss is obligatory if you want to move to the ranks in Japan.

And the ladies who brought you drinks in the computer room were probably O.L's (office ladies)

Having worked in 30 or so countries it is hard to know where to begin....

Recent trip to Yulin China I was surprised that not one place would take my Visa credit card. If it was not issued by a Chinese bank they did not want it. I was also surprised by the number of people on the street that wanted to take my picture. Not too many white boys visit I suppose.

Guy taking a dump along the side of the road in Jamnagar India.. Men peeing in the streets across most of the world (Don't do it in the USA folks, you'll likely get arrested). Guy driving a cart with a camel in Jamnagar India.

The general assumption in Malaysia that if a cop pulls you over he is just hungry and needs a meal 50 MYR and you are on your way. (BTW don't do this in the USA either folks. Might get away with it in Louisiana, but in most place in the US offering the police money will land you straight in jail).

The tremendously fantastic super model beautiful girls in Sakhalin Russia. And the fact that they dress in only their finest clothes for work. Really, going into the office is like attending a fashion show.

People standing in the electronics stores in Manila Philippines and spending hours doing Karaoke with the floor model Karaoke machines (In every store in the mall!).

Asians are somehow addicted to Karaoke, although here in Japan they would never use a karaoke machine in the electronic store, but would go to a snakku or karaoke club.

Singapore:

My colleague and I were sent to Singapore to attend a conference. This was our first time out of the country but my friend kept acting like it was all old hat to him. Took several beers on the plane and, by the time we landed, he was bursting. When we found our guide, my friend desperately asked him where the "C.R." was. It took a while to get the guide to understand what he needed.

Note:

"C.R." in the Philippines is the colloquial term for "toilet" or "rest room". The letters stand for "Comfort Room"

India:

At Hongkong, lining up to get into the plane to New Delhi, I overheard this conversation between a woman using a radio talking to some unfortunate subordinate.

"I need you to find seats for my friends on this flight."

"Yes, I know that it's fully booked but just find seats for them."

"Don't panic, don't panic. I know that you're doing your best. If there are no seats, there are no seats. But I want you to find seats for them."

Singapore and Switzerland:

Taking a walk after attending seminars all day, I wander around taking in the scenery. An hour or two later, I feel hungry but the sky is as bright as 5 pm in the Philippines. I check my watch and am surprised to find that it's almost 7 o'clock in the evening.

Mysore, India:

Supervising the installation of instruments at a new factory, I come upon a contractor installing a vertical pipe. The pipe is anything but vertical, however, so I take him a few steps away and pointed at the pipe.

"Does that look straight to you?" I ask.

He tips his head to the side and says, "yes." This was uttered with all seriousness.

regards,

Vulcan

Due to daylight saving time it can be sunlight until very late in europe

It is not really daylight saving.

As you go on more and more to north, the duration of day light will be more and more during May/ June/ july

At 66.5N (and up on north) on 22nd June, the all 24 hours there will be light

Well for us Europeans it gives more light in the evening, because we are used to normal duration if day light

In Karachi, Pakistan, public restrooms have an attendant stationed outside who dispenses toilet paper (for a price). Hotels have an attendant who unlocks your door upon entering for the night. You don't get a key. I recall seeing my room attendant leaning against the wall outside with a glazed stare. On the balcony railing next to him was a spoon and a needle used for heroin? On the dining terrace of that same hotel, rats the size of cats scurried across the floor as we dined and this was the best hotel in town. Two weeks after I left the airport, it was bombed by terrorists. A thoroughly unpleasant visit to say the least. One can also observe cultural shock right here at home. Just visit the rural areas of our country, like Appalachia. The first time I visited the South from New York City back in the 50's, CS abounded, at least from a Northerner's perspective. To have a colored person step into the street as you approached them on the sidewalk was very strange to me. The Jim Crow laws were well enforced back then. I couldn't wait to get out of there. Thankfully, things have changed since then. I now live in Ms. and when I visit New York City or any other large metropolitan area, I sense a reverse CS.

I would not go into a hotel were i cannot lock my room door.

PS what is CS?

CS = Culture Shock

He may not have had a choice. Generally, when my company sends me some place (especially somewhere we have not been before) there are many surprises. When one flies from the US to Pakistan, after many long grueling hours on the flight, getting through immigration, customs, getting luggage and grabbing a taxi to the hotel, checking in to the hotel......then is when you are told you do not get the key to your room. I doubt the hotel has that sort of detail on it's web site (if it has a site). And it's not like you really have a choice at that point. Sure you can leave....but it's not likely there is a flight leaving anytime soon. There are many surprises one doesn't discover until you are in the midst of a situation. That's what makes traveling (especially internationally) interesting.

Oh i see

When my company sends me on a trip, the department secretary makes the appointments, i always makes sure to check what kind of Hotel she booked

I try to do the same when our travel department books the hotels for me, too. But sometimes all they know is that it's a 5-star hotel (or whatever) and some amenities, but doesn't usually include details such as "you have your own private door man who is paid in ounces of herion (or whatever unit it's sold in) to lock and unlock your door for you".

Probably mentioned as "man"ual door lock

Once inside the room, I could secure the door. but couldn't open the door from the outside.

get in/out via the balcony?