My Experiences With Other Cultures
My Experiences With Other Cultures
Why this may help you understand the other party better and prevent misunderstandings.
In today’s Singapore, we have become more multi-ethnic than ever. Thanks to globalization, we are likely to interact with many other races at home or abroad. Each race has its own inherent culture so sometimes we may misunderstand each other as our perspectives, manner of doing things, and even expressing ourselves are quite different.
Let’s talk about footwear. My experience is that overseas western friends tend to walk right into the house with their footwear as they do in their own homes where the ground may be cold. In tropical countries, we are used to going barefooted. But these days, I urged my western friends to change into slippers if they are not comfortable with bare feet.
If you visit a traditional Japanese home, the tradition is to remove your shoes and align them facing the main door and then change into their guest slippers. If you use their washroom, there is another pair of slippers which you should change into and must never wear out of the washroom.
I was always forgetful about this protocol. Once, in a Japanese friend’s house, I left my guest slippers under the…
