travelwoman

I read that in parts of Asia you never touch the top of a person's head or in Puerto Rico, you never say the Spanish word bicho(which means bug). In Europe never handle produce at a outdood market. Any other strange or interesting customs that you discovered while travelling?

nibblette

Never say fanny pack in the UK unless you want to get lots of giggling and laughing. A fanny pack refers to part of a female's anatomy. Say bum pack instead.

cmt

In Turkey and Crete, don't flush toilet paper down the toilet because the plumbing can't handle it.

Take off your shoes when visiting a mosque or someone's house in Turkey.

Speaking of no-nos, there were two things I learned about saying "no" in Greece and Turkey. In Greece, "ne," which sounds a lot like "no," is actually "yes." It was very important to know that. In Turkey, shaking one's head from side to side will not signify "no" (I have no idea whether it means anything). People indicate "no" by tossing their head upward and making a brief hard "nttt" (a little like "tsk&quot sound, and the word for "no" is "hayir."

In Italy, even though I know the custom, I just find it very hard to remember to say "buona sera" rather than "buon giorno" as early as 4 p.m., or even earlier, even on a bright sunny day.

One annoying thing that many American friends, acquaintances, and I have learned, not during travels, but afterwards, is that generally (with exceptions) Italians don't send thank you notes or any written acknowledgements for gifts, so if you send something to someone, it may remain a mystery forever or until you see them again whether the item was ever received.

suze

Well they're not strange or unusual but:

Don't read the magazines at a news stand.

Don't walk on the grass in parks in Paris.

fehgeddaboudit

I learned not to reply to travelwoman or fluffykitty or muffin or nellyanne's posts. They're all the same dork playing games with us.

P_M

I have been told that in some parts of the world our "thumbs up" signal is a nasty sign, like extending the middle finger in the US. Does anyone know if this is true, and where that would be?

cmt

P M: See, e.g., http://slate.msn.com/id/2080812

Sharelle

Americans seem to be huggers while other countries have the custom of giving a peck on both cheeks(Europe) or just a hearty handshake. interesting It was always hard to figure out how many kisses to give in France!!

crefloors

Sharelle: if you read din's trip report you will know exactly how many kisses to give, depending on the region.

mebanese

Going barefoot inside one's home is considered sort of 'common' in Lebanon.

Neil_Oz

During an extended visit to the United States of America I discovered that sharing the front seat of a taxi with the driver is not, as in my country, regarded as a sociable and indeed democratic practice but as eccentric and perhaps even threatening.

I was also told, but thankfully could not confirm, that the common (to me) practice of stepping outside one's car to converse with a highway patrol officer in a more friendly and egalitarian manner may not be seen in that light and indeed may cause the officer to threaten one with his firearm. My informant, despite being a soldier by profession, found this alarming.

Lastly, after many days I discovered the reason why my initially amicable encounters with waiters and waitresses (known as "servers&quot, taxi drivers and certain hotel employees had a way of cooling as soon as I paid my bill. It seems that in America these people are often very poorly paid, presumably because their employers are themselves suffering financial deprivation. As a result many have been reduced to relying on donations ("tips&quot by their clientele to keep body and soul together. I was now able to make sense of the remark of a taxi driver in the city of New York, who had shouted after me, "Rockefeller, hey?". In my ignorance I had assumed this to be a puzzling case of mistaken identity. Once the true situation became clear I found that my relations with members of the server class improved markedly.

I came away from this interesting and hospitable country much enlightened. Oddly, I was later to discover that in the exotic land of China it is common to sit alongside one's taxi driver, and that "tipping", being equated to the giving away of free money, is seen as the act of a lunatic. I was unwilling however to gauge the attitude of Public Security Bureau officers to exiting one's car.

walkinaround

in the US it is:

-frowned upon or even illegal to drink alcoholic beverages in public. for example, even enjoying a bottle of wine or a beer in a park or even at the beach is illegal in many places!!

-you will be made to feel like a cheapskate or "low-class" if you linger too long over a drink in a bar or chat for too long after you finish your dinner. kind of like you are trying to get something for nothing.

clairobscur

Just to point outthat it's not a no no to walk on the grass in Paris park. It depends on the park, or even sometimes you can walk on some lawns but not on some others in the same park.

hansikday

oz, I think somebody has been pulling your leg about people who work for tips.

I used to do it and believe me that's the way to go rather than a straight salary. The more you hustle, the more you make.

And I'm not sure what you mean when you say all the employers are in dire financia straits - that is painting with a rather broad brush.

Its also hard to believe you did not know enough to tip a taxi driver - that's pretty standard around the globe.

Sharelle

Actually, Hansiday, I have a guide book for Mexico and evidently, you don't tip there for taxis. I've hearf of other places where its not necessary to tip drivers. hard to believe, eh? So maybe Neil didn't know any better. And they tip less in Australia.

walkinaround

hansicday...

i dont think he said that he didn't tip at all. perhaps the tip was not what the driver expected and therefore was called on it.

in most places, the expectations are not so strict and the driver/waiter/ect accept what they are given with no complaint. getting a rigorous "shake down" for a tip that meet some sort of strict formula is certainly not only an american thing but it is far from being the norm around the world.

Sharelle

I went on a tour of Los Angeles a few years ago. The guide-driver told in no uncertain terms that it was customary in North America to leave a 15-20 tip. Oh really, for a guide? I thought yes, a few bucks but 20% He was so obnoxious anyway that we left a few bucks but not how much he wanted. The tours was $45. I think that should be enough with a few 3-4 but not 20%!!!

Neil_Oz

Just hold it a sec while I drag my tongue out of my cheek...

For the record, you're not expected to tip cabbies or anyone else in Oz/NZ. It can happen in restaurants, but it's the exception rather than the rule. Depends how mellow you're feeling. Having a corporate credit card helps. When my daughters were waiting table while at university they'd have starved if they'd relied on tips to live (or more likely, arrived on our doorstep).

In China only foreign tourists who don't know any better tip. Restaurant staff have been known to chase diners down the street to hand them back what they assumed was forgotten change. Haven't been to Japan, but I've been told that tipping isn't common there either.

OK, I know this is the Europe board, so maybe someone can tell me if, Europe-wide, there's any rule-of-thumb for tipping? I'm talking about what the locals expect, not what visitors assume.

walkinaround

neil, in short, no there is no europe-wide rule for tipping. what is expected varies greatly among the countries.

sfowler

In Macedonia it is considered bad luck to place your purse on the floor -- it stands for death. So we always pull up an extra chair for the purses!