http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/...2004081000290200.htm&date=2004/08/10/&prd=mp& Beyond the Blue - II Here are some dos and don'ts once you land in the U.S. Falling in line in a new country is the best way to survive. YOU ARE on terra firma, filling your lungs with fresh air, which feels wonderful after breathing in the stale air in the aircraft. As you take in the bustling scene around you, clichés such as "melting pot" fill your head. In reality, the country is more a salad bowl than a melting pot. Everyone here is a hyphenated American; African-American, Indian-American, Irish-American... get the point? From the Atlantic to the Pacific coast, the people are proud of their ethnicity and heritage; but there are strong basic weaves in the cultural fabric that make them all one when it comes to expectations about interpersonal behaviour. As Maria Von Trapp would say/sing, "Let's start at the very beginning"! Courtesy counts Please get used to saying, `Please' and `Thank you' frequently. Any request needs to be prefaced with a `please', and upon receiving it, a warm `thank you' is the absolute expectation. You come from a country where you have heard scores of times the words "Don't be so formal", making you believe that the closer the friendship, the lesser the formality. Perish this thought, instantaneously. You are going to a place where even a two-year-old cannot ask his mom for a glass of water, without being gently prompted, "Didn't you forget something?" Apologising comes in this list too. So start practising. Americans are fussy about personal cleanliness. Body odour makes them shudder in disgust. Personal care products such as shampoos, deodorants, dental floss and mouthwash are multi billion dollar industries. Put these down on your shopping list and use them liberally and frequently. Start thinking in pounds, quarts, gallons, inches, yards and miles. They really don't see the necessity to join the rest of the world, which uses the metric system. It is a similar story in respect of temperature too. It is Fahrenheit in the U.S. and not Centigrade! Here are a few more quirks. This time it is words that you have always used that meant something, but don't make any sense or the wrong sense in the U.S. A lift is an elevator and you fill gas in your car, not petrol. Start thinking of a gas station, instead of a petrol pump. You rent an apartment and not a flat; you mail something, and not post it, using the right zip, not postal, code. There is no STD code (acronym for sexually transmitted diseases), only area code; your car has a hood and trunk and not a bonnet or a boot, or a dickey. Jelly is Jell-O and jam is jelly! Don't be shocked if someone asks you, a college kid, about your school! If you are in your Master's programme you are in Grad school, otherwise you are an undergrad. There are no freshers, only freshmen; no boys and girls but young men and women! Don't ask for a rubber, what you want is an eraser. One takes a shower, but relaxes in a bath, and clothing is not generically referred to as "dress". Only women wear a dress, the rest of the items are mentioned by their specific names. And the list goes on; this is just a peek! First come first serve Make sure you always stand "in line". They strictly go by the concept of first come first serve, no matter who or what you are. Do you remember the picture of Bill Clinton (during his Presidency) standing in line at a McDonalds hamburger joint, waiting his turn? As informal and friendly as they are, be prepared for direct, honest communication; absolutely no ambiguity here. If you are invited to someone's home for a meal, do take a small gift with you and offer to help with the clearing and cleaning of the dishes. Punctuality is a must. It is not fashionable to arrive late. Brush up your table manners and be silverware savvy. You might find people there quite ignorant about their own part of the world. Don't be shocked. You are going to a country, where an impressive number of people wonder if they need a visa to go to New Mexico! If you are wondering about the same thing, find the time in your busy preparation schedule to look at the map of the U.S. of A! Happy journey! --------- Isn't that just awesome. I guess that answers the body odor thread...
nice find..... it's just funny to see how little things are so different in each country and how pepole can look at you wierd for the slightests of differences and you might not even know it.
I found this part a bit offensive. I bet there are quite more than an impressive number of Indians that haven't the first clue about their own states and provinces. Despite a few successful & prosperous areas, India is after all a country with pockets of the worst poverty and lack of education in the world.
I Think that is the case with any other country to be honest with you. Americans look at other countries with a bit of arrogance and they think they are ignorant to a lot of things becuase they don't relaly know much about it. Just as this country is probably ignorant in some ways of thinking towards the US. It's something that will go one forever and i don't think people should take offense to it when so many countries and their population does it to others.
I'll give you ignorance. But I really dislike this "arrogance" angle that a lot of non-Americans will paint us with. If Americans think that their country is the greatest, then it's no different than any nationalistic pride that pretty much everybody has for their own country.
This one cracks me up because every IT dude that comes here from India is telling me how they made this mistake. "Do you have a rubber?" "Say what?!"
SUJATHA: Maybe we should stop off on the way and get a bottle of wine or something. CHITRA: What for? SUJATHA: These people invited us for dinner. We have to bring something. CHITRA: Why? SUJATHA: Because it's rude, otherwise. CHITRA: You mean just going there because I'm invited, that's rude? SUJATHA: Yeah. CHITRA: So you're telling me instead of being happy to see me they're going to be upset because I didn't bring anything. You see what I'm saying? KAPPAN: The fabric of society is very complex CHITRA. CHITRA: I don't even drink wine. I drink Pepsi. SUJATHA: You can't bring Pepsi. CHITRA: Why not? SUJATHA: Because we're adults? CHITRA: You telling me that wine is better than Pepsi? Huh, no way wine is better than Pepsi. KAPPAN: I'm telling you CHITRA, I don't think we want to walk in there and put a big plastic jug of Pepsi on the table. SUJATHA: I was just thinking. The four of us can't show up with just one bottle of wine. CHITRA: Oh, here we go. Why don't we get them a couch? Bring them a nice sectional. SUJATHA: We'll get some cake. Can you stop off at the bakery? CHITRA: Why don't you just get some Ring Dings at the liquor store? SUJATHA: Ring Dings? CHITRA: Hey, Ring Dings are better than anything you'll ever get at a bakery. SUJATHA: CHITRA, we can't show up at someone's house with Ring Dings and Pepsi. CHITRA: I got news for you. I show up with Ring Dings and Pepsi, I become the biggest hit at the party. People be coming up to me, "just between you and me I'm really excited about the Ring Dings and the Pepsi.
I do wish we'd switch to the metric system. It's a much easier system to deal with. I wonder what it would take for us to nationally embrace it. -- droxford
What is that from Codell, it is freaking hilarious? At first I was taken aback at the non-bathing thing, but you know, the practice of regular bathing is still relatively new. You also need running water and an abundance of it which I imagine isn't the case in the majority of India.
Corporations to want it It is a bit protectionist . . . .. of making americans buy american not much . . but some Rocket River
There is a difference between courtesy and formality. I get this. I suppose if you are used to body odor, it seems kind of prissy for others to demand you eliminate any of yours. Where did they get this from? I've never called Jell-O anything other than jello. Jelly and jam are almost synonomous with me. Anyone? Freaking hilarious, codell.
I think they're referring to the fact that Indians say "jelly" when they're referring to Jell-O, and they only say "jam" when referring to the thing that we all know as "jelly or jam". Thus, the word "Jell-O" (which is really a corporate name) does not exist in India and they'd look pretty foolish asking for some "jelly" in a cafeteria, and all they would end up with is smuckers... not the watermelon flavored green jell-o we all crave at lunchtime.
