I have done some travelling in my life and, although the big differences between countries had an effect… often it was the smaller differences that actually weirded me out. For instance… when I was in Australia, the first time I heard a Chinese person (for whom English was not their first language) talk with with an Austrailian accent really threw me for a loop. “Dim sum, mate?” In my mind I just thought that they always spoke English with a Canadian accent. :rolleyes:
Any similar experiences out there?
Chinese people speaking English with a Canadian accent? What??
Posting short; I have places to be. S’ya!
Very similar occurance for me, vl_mungo. I was introduced to a lovely Japanese woman, with an equally lovely Japanese name (which I have since forgotten). I turned to meet her, smiling and with a hand extended, and she said, “Smashing to meet you, luv, but I’ve just now got to run to the loo.”
I am told that my reaction was to peer pointedly into my drink.
I once met the most adorable, charming guy from New Zealand, who spoke with a bizarre mix of accents – New Zealand, British and French. Very disturbing, at first, but ultimately charming. Just wish I knew where to find him, again… (sigh)
Weird thing is, I met him in a bar in southern Indiana. And he was a great dancer, too.
One of my good friends grew up in Hong Kong speaking whatever flavor of Chinese they do there. He really didn’t learn English until he came here to go to school. Now he speaks Chinese accented English with an acquired Texas drawl.
Another minor disconnect occurred with a software rep from Oklahoma with whom I spoke many times over the phone. Lynn was in Tulsa, and she was a native, and twanged like it. I was just a little surprised when I finally met Lin, and realized she was a Tulsa born and bred product of Chinese parents. That was a couple of decades ago, though. I’m no longer surprised by the face that goes with the voice.
Spanish with a Swedish accent. Very strange to hear. A foreign exchange student living with my aunt took Spanish, and it was her first Romance language, so she had a hard time with the accent (she spoke English beautifully, with a lovely accent–but she’d learned English in grade school).
Another type of culture shock I’ve experience is differences in foods just here in the U.S. Like the Southern habit of putting milk gravy and everything. First off, I’m not used to grey gravy, second, I’m not used to gravy first thing in the morning, and third, I like to be able to tell my eggs from my ham. But then, I grew up in a family where a tuna sandwich was a perfectly acceptable before school breakfast, so what do I know?