Last week we had a couple of Spanish people arrange to meet a group at my bookstore. I just happened to be out on the sales floor when the group of people came in. Every person greeted each of the others; men and women were greeting each other with a kiss on both cheeks. The men also shook hands and hugged each other, loudly slapping each other on the back at the same time. In China, when greeting you use a soft handshake and address the person by their family name.
Turks have their own style of greeting.
Our behavior, thinking and feelings can be learned, shared and transmitted by the collective mechanism of culture.
How about something to eat? Our choices of food also come back to our culture.
We all have a biological hunger drive. We vary in what we eat, when we eat and how we eat.
We eat different things to satisfy our hunger:
Alaskan Eskimos eat whale meat;
Japanese eat raw fish meat;
Turks eat raw meatballs (çiğ köfte);
French eat frogs legs;
Australian Aborigines eat dried root meal;
African Bushmen eat locusts, ants, lizards and ostriches;
The Malaysian Semang people eat bamboo shoots, rats and monkeys.
If you stop and think about it you could probably name a few cultures where they only eat twice a day and others that are definitely three-meal-a-day cultures. There are four-meal-a-day cultures. Can you think of any culture that snacks all day?
Even the time of meals is determined by our cultural upbringing. Did you know that the main meal of the day is usually taken at midday throughout all Latin American countries?
When visiting China, learning to eat with chopsticks was a messy ordeal for me. My hosts told me that the messier you leave the space around your plate indicates to the chef how much you enjoyed the meal.
China uses chopsticks. North America and Europe use metal utensils. Other cultures drink tea from large bowls and use flat bread, instead of utensils, to dip up the main dish -- all of these different practices exist because of culture.
Here are some replies to my article titled “Headed home,” published in Today’s Zaman on May 12, 2008.
Dear Charlotte, I can’t wait to return overseas again. I love living in different cultures. Life seems so much less complex. There is too much confusion here at home with all the choices of everything.
Dear Charlotte, I lived in the Middle East for four years and learned to turn my eyes way from those of the opposite sex with whom I was speaking. Now I find it hard to look men in the eyes. I am afraid people will think I am socially backward or have something to hide or am insincere. The effect of culture is a funny thing!
Hi Charlotte, I’ve been working in Tajikistan as a nurse for a few years. My family often comes to Turkey if we need serious medical attention. Of course, while in Istanbul we visit all the mega retail stores and markets and stock up on basics. During my last visit to Turkey I started reading Today’s Zaman on the Web. My question is why do we (humans) think we need all the material goods that are available? It is inundating when we go shopping in Istanbul. Back home the choices offered in restaurants and supermarkets are even more overwhelming. Do we really need so much when others have so little?
Each of these letters reflects the influence that our home culture and the culture around us have on us as individuals.
Learning and appreciating other cultures requires open-mindedness on our part.
“The born traveler -- the man who is without prejudices, who sets out wanting to learn rather than to criticize, which is stimulated by oddity... however strange and ludicrous he may be in dress and appearance -- has always been comparatively rare.”
-- Hugh and Pauline Massingham, “The Englishman Abroad”
Note: Charlotte McPherson is the author of “Culture Smart: Turkey, 2005.” Please keep your questions and observations coming: I want to ensure this column is a help to you, Today’s Zaman’s readers. Email: c.mcpherson@todayszaman.com
