Chapter 5
CULTURAL DIFFERENCES
How would a Brit, a German or an
American interpret this gesture?Imagine this scene - you are inspecting a house with the pos-
sibility of purchasing it and you open a bathroom door to see
a woman sitting naked in a bathtub. How would you expect
the surprised woman to react? A British or American woman
would cover her breasts with one hand and her genitals with
the other, while a Swedish woman would cover only her geni-
tals. A Muslim woman would cover her face, a Sumatran
woman would cover her knees and a Samoan only her navel.We Were Having Pizza at the Time
As we are writing this chapter, we are in Venice, Italy speaking
at a conference on cultural differences. If we had never travelled
to Italy, we would have been shocked by what we'd experienced.
All cultures walk on the same side of the pavement as they drive
on the road. This means if you're British, Australian, South
African or a New Zealander, you drive and walk to the left. The
consequence is that you'd find the Italians constantly bumping
into you as you walk on the pavement because, as they approach