Cultural differences are aplenty in NUS, where people from all over the world study together and interact with each other everyday. I have been in NUS for less then 3 months and I have already come across many situations which proved to me how much a person’s culture influences his/her behaviour and thinking.
One of these situations happened in the girls’ changing room one night. It was after my cca training and my friends and I went to the changing room to shower and freshen up before heading home. Many of the girls in the shower area were Caucasians. When we were waiting for our turn to shower, some of my Singaporean friends and I were shocked to see the Caucasian girls taking off their clothes in front of everyone. They were completely naked!
They did not seem to think anything of it at all. That made me curious to find out more.
So, I went on to ask one of those girls, also form my CCA, if it was normal in their country (Australia) for everyone to take off their clothes before going into the shower. She said yes and that it was common throughout the Western world. She also said that she was surprised that over here, the girls were all so shy and hesitated to take off their clothes in front of other girls.
I got used to it and eventually did not think much of it anymore. It is just their way of life.
Through this incident, I learnt to appreciate that people from different places, have quite different thinking and practices.
We do not have to follow them, but we most definitely have to respect them to co-exist peacefully.
Hi Pavi,
ReplyDeleteYou are right. Girls from Western countries are usually very open.
Once a group of American students came to visit my high school and we had a friendly basketball game. Since they didn't have enough guys, some of their girls went to the court instead. The girls just took off their clothes in the public and changed into the guys's vests. I was really shocked when I saw them did that. Of course，it is all because of cultural difference.
Hi Pavi!
ReplyDeleteWoww! this is interesting. I have heard about it and roughly know about it from the comics and movies i have watched. But indeed, if i were to experience it first hand, i'd still be slightly shocked. If i come across it, i guess i'll just have to constantly remind myself about cultural differences. =)
Thanks for sharing this. see you around in class!
This is a very clear and concise description of a well focused observation, Pavi. You zoom in on one very telling act, girls taking a shower after the CCA, and you show how that differs from one culture to another. I like the fact that you sought an interpretation from one of the Australian girls, too. She told you that the behavior was common throughout the Western world, but I'm not sure how that applies in places like like Central and South America. I do know that it is true in North America, for boys and girls alike.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was in school, I had to take physical education, and I played sports, and after our classes, practices or games, we boys would all shower together. Of course, some of us were shy and we would manage to shower discreetly. But some guys would walk around butt naked as if they were on display! I found that weird, as did others, so there is some personal variation in the action.
In any case you've done a very good job with this post! Thank you!