Social faux pas meaning how to#

If you don’t, you’re in for trouble – seven years of bad luck to be exact! And, just to add to the pressure, remember to avoid crossing arms as you toast around the table. As you clink, be sure to make eye contact. When raising your glass in Germany or Switzerland, it’s customary to toast everyone at the table. Instead, your well-meaning gesture will be interpreted as derogatory, much like the middle finger in many Western countries. Flash a thumbs-up in parts of West Africa, Russia, Iran, Greece or Sardinia, and you won’t be telling your friends that it’s all good in the neighborhood. While we often think of a thumbs-up as representing approval – or these days a Facebook like – not everybody in the world shares this interpretation. Luckily, many hosts provide their guests with slippers because no one wants a pair of cold tootsies. So if you’ve been invited to a private abode, be prepared to leave those cute booties at the door. In many parts of the world, including Germany, Switzerland, Scandinavia, Japan, Korea and Turkey, removing your shoes before you enter a home not only shows your host respect, it also keeps the floors clean.

In case you are planning a trip abroad, here’s a quick list of the most common cultural faux pas and a few tips on how to avoid committing them. While none of these infringements landed me in serious trouble, I certainly wasn’t earning any gold stars for excellent expat behavior. I vacuumed on Sundays (not allowed!), ate without wishing my fellow diners a good meal (rude!), and addressed my elderly neighbors by their first names (it’s always Herr or Frau!).

As a new comer in Switzerland, I committed many a social crime. Now that we’re all grown up it’s easy to assume that we have a handle on all those social rules that keep the world running on a civilized note.īut if you’ve ever found yourself in a foreign county, you probably noticed that customs don’t always translate. As children we learned to say please, thank you and to keep our elbows off the table.

Social faux pas meaning how to#