As this week's blog entry is an open topic, allow me to share my experiences in Rome. In particular, the culture I experienced.
In the summer of 2007, I was in Rome for a 3-week leadership course held by the International Catholic Charismatic Services. While on my Europe escapade, I was privileged to be accompanied by my friend, Daniel. We left for Italy with great anticipation and expectations, having the support from family and friends in our community. Since the course was held at an international level, we met people from all over the world - Ghana, England, Spain, India, Australia, America and not forgetting Italy. Hence, it was a gathering of people from different cultures and background.
Being in a foreign country as well as the youngest participant in the course, I was rather intimidated. There were some occasions where I felt uncomfortable while interacting with fellow participants. There was this one occasion where we were encouraged to greet one another. As the saying goes, "When in Rome, do as the Romans do." (And in this case, it's taken literally.) I followed their way of greeting - cheek grazing. In fact, everyone in the room, regardless of where they came from, greeted each other in the same customary way. I actually found it quite amusing since all of us were doing it in different versions. For instance, some of us made the "muacks" sound while others just merely brushed their cheeks with one another. I guess I saw the funny side of it since some of the participants were rather klutz.In the light of professional communication, the proper way of "cheek kissing or grazing" is of paramount importance especially for global business correspondence. However, the tricky part comes in as "cheek kissing or grazing" differs from country to country and not executing it properly shows disrespect. For example, it is a social norm in the Netherlands to have a three-cheek kiss instead of two. Another difference in some cultures is when women make the discreet kissing sound when they "cheek graze" which is seen as a friendly or feminine gesture to further embellish the greeting. These cultural differences in different countries present an etiquette challenge. Therefore, given the importance of social norms and cultural differences in conditioning market transactions, one should delve on the proper greeting machination before entering into any face-to-face overseas business correspondence.
Hi Mario,
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing the interesting situation you faced during your trip. I believe it is quite rare for Singaporeans to be engaged in such a manner of greeting. You must have felt privileged to be able to experience a new manner of greeting which is radically different from our culture.
In my opinion, this situation you encountered teaches us an important lesson. Before traveling to a foreign country, we should anticipate having to interact with natives in that country. As such, it would be wise to research on and familiarize ourselves with their greeting practices in order to avoid any awkward situations. This will also prevent us from behaving in any disrespectful manner.
Greetings are important in creating good first impressions thus it is worth familiarizing oneself with another’s customary way of greeting. This would in term lead to good communication between people of different cultures. Moreover, it would be interesting to have the opportunity to try a new style of greeting, wouldn’t it?
Many countries have different styles of greetings, like the one you mentioned. Personally, I think it is fascinating to greet natives of a different country in their own manner but nevertheless, we should research on how the greeting should be done to prevent unintended miscommunication.
Regards,
Bryan
Hi Mario,
ReplyDeleteIt was most refreshing reading on your personal encounter with performing cheek-to-cheek "grazing" as a form of introduction. This has debunked my assumed impression that such an intimate form of greeting exchange was only carried out between parties who were more than mere acquaintances.
I have always held the belief that the handshake was the most convenient and recognised form of greeting exchange, one that was appropriate in all situations and for all cultures. Cheek-grazing was considered to be a liberal expression due to its intrusion into one's personal space, one that only our Western counterparts would be comfortable with; this impression was probably propagated into me via the mass media, i.e. movies and english dramas.
As the saying goes, 读万卷书不如走万里路 (reading ten thousand books is pale in comparison to walking ten thousand miles), it must have been a fruitful and enriching experience to embark on a cross-cultural exchange in another country! Nothing beats being able to experience personally the interaction with other people as well as the sights and scenery that pictures alone cannot do justice to.
Cheers,
Desmond
Hi Mario,
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this interesting experience and the nice photo.
I suppose Asians will generally feel awkward to greet in European manners, hugging and cheek kissing or grazing. A more comfortable way of greeting among us is distant nod and smile, or handshake. Even in America, handshake still holds sway in formal businesslike situations while social kissing is warm though, deemed to be slightly informal and more suitable in areas like sales.
It's cool if we are comfortable to follow their customs. But if not, a good practice is to initiating a handshake by sticking your hand firmly.
Cheers,
Nie Jing
Hi Mario,
ReplyDeleteIt must have been a unique and unforgettable experience to attempt cheek grazing!
It is fascinating to note that there are different forms of cheek grazing and it might differ in the number of kisses or even the sound accompanying it.
While some cultures prefer customary kisses, others may approach with open arms for a hug or just extend a simple yet firm handshake. Knowing social norms of different cultures would facilitate effective communication and prevent misunderstandings. Air kisses signifies insincerity in some cultures while we Asians view kisses between strangers as intrusive and offensive. This again emphasizes on the importance of understanding different cultures. Even if cheek grazing initiated by the other party might come as a surprise, it would be good to stay composed and appreciate the cultural difference.
I have learnt much more about cheek grazing after reading your post.
Thanks for sharing!
Cheers,
Jie Li