So like Renae I spent about a month in Australia and I’m super shocked at the distance between places. Here where I live in Ho Chi Minh 🇻🇳 city a 1 hour drive with traffic jams is normal but in Australia it’s all highways and no traffic at all but the zoos and museums my family visited were all 2-3 hour drives from the central. Even to go get McDonalds is like a 10 minute drive away from the neighborhood. I guess it makes sense since the country is so big but it really caught me off guard
Poor Sew. I can totally relate to the experience because I'm British and even here in the UK we get American tourists just looking at us as if they can't understand us
Loved hearing about everyone's culture experiences. As a Chinese-American born and raised in NYC, I loved hearing about what was a culture shock to visitors! Haha, the subway system definitely has many surprises (usually not the good kind lol)! I'm always curious if people like NYC or not after a visit...? What did or didn't you like about it? Would love to hear about it if anyone wants to share!
chope culture in singapore for sure. when I was still a tourist here, i sat down at some table at food republic ion w/ a tissue packet (like 20% tissue left) thinking someone left trash there, then i started to eat my food. Then some working professional guy when to the table and took the tissue and gave me an angry stare. He eventually found a table near to my table and can literally see him talking to his friends and pointing at me, i told my sister about the incident and she told me that people "save" seats here by doing that. 😂
Had the same experience as Brenda! I went for a school exchange to Beijing when I was in secondary school. My teacher told me "If you're really full, leave some food on your bowl". But just like Brenda I don't want to waste food so I kept on stuffing myself with food, and the food kept on coming, to an extent that my host family asked me if they should make more dumplings hahaha. Thankfully I have another friend with me and he secretly told me in English like "Dude don't finish that last piece of dumpling at just put it in your bowl". Then they brought dessert and we finished our meal :P
To Adria, I heard this similar stressful story from my colleagues that were from China and even them whom lived there since young they still cant get used to it hence they always carry an umbrella along so can block while they pee
I love Japan and Taiwan culture for sorting their trash and recyclables properly 👏👏👏 It's horrible that Singapore don't have this culture and doesn't take sorting rubbish seriously. A lot of things not meant to be recycled are in the recycle bin, things meant to be recycled are in the trash bin 🤯 Now when I catch my hubby sorting it wrongly I'll scold him already. And when I get my new place, I'm gonna enforce this strongly so that my kids can grow up to be knowing these basics and not anyhow just lump everything as rubbish
for the taiwan thing, i was told before that it was due to low water pressure issues in the country... the water flush pressure aren't strong and any toilet paper will get choked...
they don't flush toilet paper because the drainage system is very old and toilet paper causes the pipes to be blocked, plus this is quite common in lots of places in europe too
Just started the video but I gotta say something about the recycle thing in Singapore. When I travelled to Singapore, I was shocked when my Singaporean friend directly threw his rubbish to the trash can instead of recycling it. I forgot what it was but I remembered it was plastic and it was clean (as in you don't need to wash to recycle it). 😂😂😂 When he threw it, I was like nooooo, I felt like legit heartache cuz it could've been recycled 😂 Ps I'm not Japanese. I just happened to be born into a family who practice recycling.
Aeres, sorting trash isn't hard. The Japanese even draw pictures of what you are supposed to put where, and as you rightly pointed out, even young children can do it on their own. It speaks to something where people can't even tell the difference doesn't it. In the British vernacular, a dustbin, which itself comes from the French word "Poubelle" (I leave it to you to find out why), is a receptacle with a lid usually kept outside on the street for rubbish, which is then collected by dustmen. However, the bins inside are not named so but are all called dustbins for ease of use. However, such items are called bins in English for all intents and purposes. North America named it the garbage can after the receptacle was given a metal lid and made the dustbin look like a can circa the 1900s. There you have it. Ultimately, this is a tale about ignorance and it stems from our own cultural background. Now I am a child of the 70s. Like most parents, told me to study hard and get good grades. Obviously, there are things in this world that we want to know about but our parents either refuse to tell us on moral grounds or they just can't be bothered informing us of what we want to know. Now take Singapore, there is a reason why there are certain rules in place that can be punishable by fines or whatever. No one questions it because of obvious reasons. Singapore has come a long way since the 1970s, I have seen it grow with my own eyes. However, culturally and socially, Singaporeans as a population are a bit, protected (I have thought about the word use precisely), especially in the present day where more and more Singaporeans travel and have their world view changed in front of them literally overnight. I leave you with a hypothetical. Let's say that I am a vegan and I invited Ms Sew and her partner to come for dinner but she doesn't realise my choice. So, the dinner I cook is obviously going to be vege-based. So, knowing how Ms Sew feels about vegetables, how do you think this scenario will play out?
amanda, not only tw, prc and rok also like that😅 and also in thailand, tw,roc and tw, i was confused with the squat toilet but with half round at the end. in indonesia, once went to squat toilet with half door and half wall. can peek each other if standing🤣
1. the recycling thing is also in Korea, too many things need to be sorted so it's really troublesome 2. the toilet paper thing is cos most building structures in sg is relatively not too old and quite new, unlike in many countries overseas, some buildings can be reaallllly old so the flushing system and piping not very good, so if u flush down toilet paper, it will clog very easily
5:19... and that kids, was how I met your father. Anyways, regarding the different terms or pronunciations... it's our fault uh I believe. We were colonised by the British but heavily influenced by the Americans in the media. So we need to learn how/what to say when visiting other countries.
Yea I find that not allowed to throw toilet paper in the toilet bowl quite a turn off. When in USA initially I was also not used to canteen server calling me hun. I was like wah so close until call me honey wor, i guess this will be considered rude or even sexual harrassment if in asia haha. then also i learned that sausage can also be in burger patty form.
Call me paranoid but the barista who took Sew's order at starbucks might be racist, as my sister had such an experience during her trip to New York. I know y'all will come for me that the east and west of US is diff, but is racism any diff across all states in the US?
LMAO zhin.... the worst part of balut to me wasnt the fetus but the juice/soup in it!! that juice/soup was the most gaggable part for me... balut egg/fetus itself was just a hard boiled egg that looked gross... but u didnt eat the feathers u plucked them out... even some filipinos dont eat the fetus and just eat the yellow yolk part only... zhin im caucasian and i can eat balut so if i can u can also!! try it next time
Share some culture shock moments you've experienced here!!!
So like Renae I spent about a month in Australia and I’m super shocked at the distance between places. Here where I live in Ho Chi Minh 🇻🇳 city a 1 hour drive with traffic jams is normal but in Australia it’s all highways and no traffic at all but the zoos and museums my family visited were all 2-3 hour drives from the central. Even to go get McDonalds is like a 10 minute drive away from the neighborhood. I guess it makes sense since the country is so big but it really caught me off guard
Poor Sew. I can totally relate to the experience because I'm British and even here in the UK we get American tourists just looking at us as if they can't understand us
Loved hearing about everyone's culture experiences. As a Chinese-American born and raised in NYC, I loved hearing about what was a culture shock to visitors! Haha, the subway system definitely has many surprises (usually not the good kind lol)! I'm always curious if people like NYC or not after a visit...? What did or didn't you like about it? Would love to hear about it if anyone wants to share!
chope culture in singapore for sure. when I was still a tourist here, i sat down at some table at food republic ion w/ a tissue packet (like 20% tissue left) thinking someone left trash there, then i started to eat my food. Then some working professional guy when to the table and took the tissue and gave me an angry stare. He eventually found a table near to my table and can literally see him talking to his friends and pointing at me, i told my sister about the incident and she told me that people "save" seats here by doing that. 😂
Had the same experience as Brenda! I went for a school exchange to Beijing when I was in secondary school. My teacher told me "If you're really full, leave some food on your bowl". But just like Brenda I don't want to waste food so I kept on stuffing myself with food, and the food kept on coming, to an extent that my host family asked me if they should make more dumplings hahaha. Thankfully I have another friend with me and he secretly told me in English like "Dude don't finish that last piece of dumpling at just put it in your bowl". Then they brought dessert and we finished our meal :P
To Adria,
I heard this similar stressful story from my colleagues that were from China and even them whom lived there since young they still cant get used to it hence they always carry an umbrella along so can block while they pee
Oh shits that’s smart thinking
I love Japan and Taiwan culture for sorting their trash and recyclables properly 👏👏👏
It's horrible that Singapore don't have this culture and doesn't take sorting rubbish seriously. A lot of things not meant to be recycled are in the recycle bin, things meant to be recycled are in the trash bin 🤯
Now when I catch my hubby sorting it wrongly I'll scold him already. And when I get my new place, I'm gonna enforce this strongly so that my kids can grow up to be knowing these basics and not anyhow just lump everything as rubbish
I had the same experience with Sew. I told the people there I had some stuff in the car boot and they were like, we call that trunk here.
To Lery: I really don't think anyone wants to see your kuku bird lol. It's all just in your mind...😅😆
the tikopeks will make you reconsider your life choices
Hiyah Ppl don’t see his but he will go peep at ppl
For Sew, I think it's more about British vs American English. Rubbish is British. Same with serviette which is British (and french) vs table napkin.
for the taiwan thing, i was told before that it was due to low water pressure issues in the country... the water flush pressure aren't strong and any toilet paper will get choked...
To Amanda: I just went to Taiwan recently and I had the same experience 😢😂
they don't flush toilet paper because the drainage system is very old and toilet paper causes the pipes to be blocked, plus this is quite common in lots of places in europe too
Just started the video but I gotta say something about the recycle thing in Singapore. When I travelled to Singapore, I was shocked when my Singaporean friend directly threw his rubbish to the trash can instead of recycling it. I forgot what it was but I remembered it was plastic and it was clean (as in you don't need to wash to recycle it). 😂😂😂 When he threw it, I was like nooooo, I felt like legit heartache cuz it could've been recycled 😂
Ps I'm not Japanese. I just happened to be born into a family who practice recycling.
Aeres, sorting trash isn't hard. The Japanese even draw pictures of what you are supposed to put where, and as you rightly pointed out, even young children can do it on their own. It speaks to something where people can't even tell the difference doesn't it. In the British vernacular, a dustbin, which itself comes from the French word "Poubelle" (I leave it to you to find out why), is a receptacle with a lid usually kept outside on the street for rubbish, which is then collected by dustmen. However, the bins inside are not named so but are all called dustbins for ease of use. However, such items are called bins in English for all intents and purposes. North America named it the garbage can after the receptacle was given a metal lid and made the dustbin look like a can circa the 1900s. There you have it.
Ultimately, this is a tale about ignorance and it stems from our own cultural background. Now I am a child of the 70s. Like most parents, told me to study hard and get good grades. Obviously, there are things in this world that we want to know about but our parents either refuse to tell us on moral grounds or they just can't be bothered informing us of what we want to know. Now take Singapore, there is a reason why there are certain rules in place that can be punishable by fines or whatever. No one questions it because of obvious reasons. Singapore has come a long way since the 1970s, I have seen it grow with my own eyes. However, culturally and socially, Singaporeans as a population are a bit, protected (I have thought about the word use precisely), especially in the present day where more and more Singaporeans travel and have their world view changed in front of them literally overnight.
I leave you with a hypothetical. Let's say that I am a vegan and I invited Ms Sew and her partner to come for dinner but she doesn't realise my choice. So, the dinner I cook is obviously going to be vege-based. So, knowing how Ms Sew feels about vegetables, how do you think this scenario will play out?
amanda,
not only tw, prc and rok also like that😅 and also in thailand, tw,roc and tw, i was confused with the squat toilet but with half round at the end.
in indonesia, once went to squat toilet with half door and half wall. can peek each other if standing🤣
Does Lery mean urinal?
1. the recycling thing is also in Korea, too many things need to be sorted so it's really troublesome
2. the toilet paper thing is cos most building structures in sg is relatively not too old and quite new, unlike in many countries overseas, some buildings can be reaallllly old so the flushing system and piping not very good, so if u flush down toilet paper, it will clog very easily
5:19... and that kids, was how I met your father.
Anyways, regarding the different terms or pronunciations... it's our fault uh I believe. We were colonised by the British but heavily influenced by the Americans in the media. So we need to learn how/what to say when visiting other countries.
6:07 then just lean forward what, why so hard?
Yea I find that not allowed to throw toilet paper in the toilet bowl quite a turn off. When in USA initially I was also not used to canteen server calling me hun. I was like wah so close until call me honey wor, i guess this will be considered rude or even sexual harrassment if in asia haha. then also i learned that sausage can also be in burger patty form.
Hi
give the editor a raise!
anyways is adria an actress ive been watching mediacorp dramas and theres this girl that looks like her🙄🙄
Lery.... urinal... not cubicle 😝
Call me paranoid but the barista who took Sew's order at starbucks might be racist, as my sister had such an experience during her trip to New York. I know y'all will come for me that the east and west of US is diff, but is racism any diff across all states in the US?
LMAO zhin.... the worst part of balut to me wasnt the fetus but the juice/soup in it!!
that juice/soup was the most gaggable part for me... balut egg/fetus itself was just a hard boiled egg that looked gross... but u didnt eat the feathers u plucked them out... even some filipinos dont eat the fetus and just eat the yellow yolk part only...
zhin im caucasian and i can eat balut so if i can u can also!! try it next time
oh btw balut is originally a chinese thing... also eaten in vietnam :) philippines adopted balut from the chinese immigrants in 1920's
Hehe