Interesting International Incidents

Having lived in Germany for 10 years as an Outdoor Recreation Director for Americans living overseas; I have had many humorous international incidents while leading trips and training throughout Europe and Asia. These tips are meant to save you from the same moments of truth I encountered when traveling abroad.

In Japan I was met with odd glances when I would say ”hi” to those I greeted on the streets. I found out that “hai” in Japanese means “yes”!

In Germany my friend ordered a pepperoni pizza and it came out with green pepperoncini peppers and not the round meat that Americans think of as pepperoni.

Facilitating teambuilding training in Korea; I decided to use active involvement instead of requiring much conversation during teambuilding activities. I also decided to go with an activity in which they made animal sounds - thinking cows, dogs, and cats and sheep sound similar all over the world. Wrong! Korean’s represent dog sounds as “mung, mung” instead of bow wow, bark, or arf. Korean cows say “maaa” instead of “moooo” and the Americans thought they were making sheep sounds instead of cow sounds. Riotous laughter and pandemonium ensued. Who would’ve thought that there could be a language barrier with animal sounds. It was a terrific teambuilding experience as I processed the miscommunication amidst chuckles and snickers. At least laughter is an international language.

I was looking for Inari Sushi in Korea (soybean curd pockets in which you stuff rice) and was told by my Korean students that the Hungal word was Yubu. When I went into stores asking for Yobo (mispronouncing it) I got giggles and strange looks. It seems that Yobo means sweetie/sweet-heart/darling/baby/honey!

February 16 the Koreans celebrate the Lunar New Year and my American friend who lives in Oijongbu told me a Hungal phrase to say to her Korean colleague which she told me meant “very nice to meet you”. I proudly announced my new phrase of the day as he smiled and bowed. She later burst out laughing as she realized she had told me to say “happy new year”...at least it was the right time of year! Her friend had been very gracious with my misunderstanding. I have found if you smile and give it your most sincere try, then most times you will make it through international situations.

In Egypt the sign on the restaurant stated: “Don’t miss our billey danc show evry munday thursday and friday at med night at the cotton club disco”. One must read between the lines to try and understand things in a different country.

At a ski resort atop a mountain in Val Senales, Italy; each person got an envelope at their place setting on which they put their name. We were to place our napkin in it so we used our same napkin our entire weeklong stay. Needless to say - things became quite disgusting when people started sabotaging envelopes with condiments and food crumbs. Evidently it was to save water and washing being situated on top of the mountain.

In German all the following words sound very much alike to a foreigner: kuh, kuche, kuchen, kirche, kirsch. But mixing them up can mean the difference between asking for a cow, a kitchen, a cake, a church, or a cherry. Keep your multi-language dictionary handy!

There is variable toilette ettiquet and experiences throughout the world and always be prepared for squatty potties in many countries and bring your own toilet paper. Some have porcelain-lined holes in the ground which flush, some are troughs which flow in one direction, some have foot pedestals, some have waste baskets for the tissue, some have barrels of water for your left hand to refresh yourself, some have pigs outside the outhouse to ingest the compost at the end of the pipe. There are also a variety of flushers that can amaze and astound with every push, pull, twist, knob, lever, chain, button, electric eye, motion sensor device imaginable. Toilet paper also comes in may varieties making you homesick for squeezeably soft Charmin. From wax-paper-like squares to cardboard-like unbleached paper towels. Bring your own just to be safe or better yet - bring along the moist towlettes to keep fresh anytime.

I’ve learned to be aware of local holidays and political happenings in the country you visit. I arrived in Nepal just 3 days after communism was voted in and was in Turkey on the day a religious fundamentalist candidate made a surprising narrow victory. I viewed the ensuring action on the streets from a safe distance. A friend was also on a tour bus in Moscow during the unsuccessful takeover of the Kremlin and government. The tourguides would never answer her questions about the tanks rolling down the street. They simply focused the tourists’ attention to the other side of the street. On my recent trip to Korea to facilitate a course for Koreans and Americans; the training was scheduled over an American Holiday which was bad enough, but once we arrived, we found out that the course also covered the 2 days of the Lunar New Year - one of the holiest holidays in Korea. We made arrangements to take a one-day break in the schedule to try to make up for the poor scheduling on our contact’s part. On another occasion, I once visited a boyfriend in Turkey over Valentines Day and came prepared with chocolates and champagne. I was in for a surprise when I found out that the Muslims celebrate the Ramedan during that time. During this holy time alcohol and romance are forbidden and you cannot eat during the day. Besides the 5am prayer calls from the towers, there are drummers marching through the streets at 3am to awake everybody so they can prepare and eat their meal before sunrise. Know before you go.

Different cultures react differently to your humorous presentations as well. In some Asian countries; spontaneous applause, laughter, or other public display is frowned upon. A speaker needs to realize this and drive on in their presentation and not let lack of response bother them. Sometimes it takes them a while to assimilate what you have just said. Smiling, laughing at yourself, and finding humor and adventure in your international events goes a long way in coping with unexpected occurrences.

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