Ten cultural false steps to be avoided abroad part 1

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When traveling, it is better to know the habits and customs of the region visited in order to avoid certain vexations of the local population.

Among the mistakes not to be made, certain acts of non-verbal communication seeming to us harmless can constitute a real attack in a foreign culture. Remember the ten actions to avoid!

Do not say yes, and vice versa

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If one is accustomed to say yes with nodding and vice versa, this gesture has the opposite meaning in Bulgaria and in some parts of Greece.

If you spend a holiday there, be sure to avoid greeting someone by pointing your open hand (when you thank someone who lets you pass by for example), because this means you are sending him a curse.

Warning to your hands

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If in Belgium the thumb raised generally translates that one passes a good moment or that everything is in order, this is not the case on the side of Iran. In this country, the raised thumb is called "bilakh" and constitutes a veritable insult, which means that we send to the devil our interlocutor!

In the same way, if touching the thumb with the index finger generally means for divers that everything goes well, this gesture is considered obscene in Turkey and Brazil. So avoid this if you are diving in the waters of these two countries.

Keep your left hand in your pocket

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In Muslim countries, the left hand is used to clean, and also to the toilet. The right hand, on the other hand, is used to feed and greet one's interlocutor.

If you say hello to someone, make sure not to stretch your left hand because this gesture would be taken as an insult.

to be continued....

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