WHEN IN ROME, SHOULD YOU DO AS THE ROMANS DO?

Submit Date
January 09, 2012

Table of Content

Introduction 3
Meaning 3
Examples 3
Origin 4
Traveling by Country 4
Don’t write a person’s name in red 4
Follow the correct rules when exchanging business cards 5
If you pass something to someone else, use both hands 5
Avoid strong eye contact 5
In the UK, the V-sign with the palm facing inward is extremely rude! 6
In Italy, eat your pasta with a fork, spoons and knives are rude! 6
In various countries, you may be asked to remove your shoes before entering a home. 6
In the UK, stand on the right side of the escalator 7
Summary 7
References 8

Introduction
We travel for enjoy, leisure, relaxation, escape, freedom, business, work and pilgrimage. So that, we must travel with open minds and engage with people in the destination because the travel make a differences to our experience and enjoyment. We live in a world of cultural and natural diversity, so we need to travel with respect and treat other people and their places and their environment with respect.
Always we need to be conscious of how we feel as "the visited", tourists cluttering our streets and squares, photographing us, peering into windows of our homes invading and denying our privacy, coaches, engines running, outside our houses, groups of tourists aware only of themselves oblivious to others. people behaving badly because they are away from home; forgetting their manners, acting as though they have bought the restaurant or park when they have only rented it, unaware of the others with whom they share it and of their enjoyment of it, uncaring about the disturbance they case to others, behaving not as guests but as invaders.
“When in rome, should you do as the romans do?(1997 The phares finder / Gary Martin)
Meaning
When in Rome, do as the Romans do mean that if you visit a foreign country you should try to understand the traditions and culture of the people living there. It's a proverb for being interested in what happens outside your own country and your own little world.
Examples:
Example: "I can't eat that."
Reply: "Oh, give it a try. When in Rome, do as the Romans do."
People from different places have different ways of acting, so it is important to try to do things the way people do who are from the place that you are visiting.

Origin
The story behind the famous saying “WHEN IN ROME, DO AS THE ROMANS DO” when St. Augustine arrived in Milan, he observed that the Church did not fast on Saturday as did the Church at Rome. He consulted St. Ambrose, bishop of Milan, who replied: "When I am at Rome, I fast on a Saturday; when I am at Milan, I do not. Follow the custom of the Church where you are." The comment was changed to "When they are at Rome, they do there as they see done" by Robert Burton in his Anatomy of Melancholy. Eventually it became "When in Rome, do as the Romans do."
Traveling by Country
Traveler must know about the good manners and treating the locals and respect their environment. We travel for fulfillment to satisfy our needs for enjoyment and experience but that enjoyment, our indulgence should not be at the expense of others. We should surely treat others as we would to be treated ourselves. As tourists we become travelers when we are able to accept a place truly experience it, as gusts.
When you travel you are take the responsible and learn the basics of the travel etiquette. What to do and what not to do when visiting remote countries and communities?

Don’t write a person’s name in red
In China, red is a positive colour: it is the colour of fire, of the sun, and associated with weddings, courage, loyalty, good fortune, success, happiness, honour, fertility…
In Portugal, too, people avoid writing in red. There, it is not just people’s names, but any text written in this colour that is considered offensive. In Christianity, red is the colour of the devil, of the Deadly Sin wrath, and of sin in general.

Follow the correct rules when exchanging business cards
It is in China that the business card began its prolific life in the 15th century. At that time it was simply a small paper card with your name printed on it. A visitor would announce his arrival to his host by giving his card at the door, which a footman would deliver to the nobleman or royalty in question, announcing the visitor’s wish to pay him or her a visit.
A Japanese business card is called a meishi.
In Europe, when the person you wanted to visit was not there, you would leave your card behind to show that you had stopped by. Women often wrote their “visiting days” on the card: the days and time when they would be at home to receive guests. Leaving behind a visiting card was thus also an invitation!
If you pass something to someone else, use both hands
In Vietnam, as well as in China and Japan, it is important to give and receive items with two hands. It is not enough to do so with the right hand – it must be both hands together. Using both hands at the same time suggests you are giving full dedication to the item or transaction at (and in!) hand.
In Asia, the exchange of business cards is particularly important – a kind of opening ritual. Not presenting your business card can be seen as a sign that you are withholding something or that your business is not completely genuine.

Avoid strong eye contact
In certain parts of the world, especially in East Asia, direct eye contact can cause major misunderstandings between locals and foreigners. In Korea, if you look someone directly in the eye, you are effectively saying that you consider yourself of equal status to them.
Maintaining direct eye contact with elderly people, for example, can come across as aggressive and rude – whereas in the West it is often considered polite and means you are paying proper attention to what they are saying.

Whereas in many cultures it is more modest and respectful not to look a superior in the eye, in the West this is often interpreted as a sign of ‘shifty-ness’ and the person can be suspected of dishonesty because ‘he would not look me in the eye’.
In the UK, the V-sign with the palm facing inward is extremely rude!
It means "up yours!". The index finger and middle finger form a "V". The palm is facing inward.
This gesture is often misunderstood by foreigners who see it as the V for Victory sign. The palm facing inward is the crucial difference, which changes the whole meaning of the gesture.
In Italy, eat your pasta with a fork, spoons and knives are rude!
If you want to fit in with the locals in Italy, eat your pasta with only a fork, not a fork and a spoon.
If possible, serve warm pasta in warm, shallow bowls instead of on dinner plates. The sides of the bowl aids in turning pasta noodles on the fork. You don’t have to use the spoon. Twirl the pasta with a fork keeping the fork tip in contact with the plate.
Some also feel that cutting spaghetti into small bite-sized pieces is not proper. However, it should be fine to cut the strands to shorten slightly before twirling. Slurping pasta is the only method that is never proper.

In various countries, you may be asked to remove your shoes before entering a home
In many countries, shoes are seen as means for spreading infectious agents and some people like to keep their carpets clean by asking their visitors to take their shoes of. Do not be offended, it does not mean your shoes are ugly, it is a custom… So, if you see a pile of shoes at the doorway, take off yours, it is polite and you might even be offered slippers by the host.
In Czech Republic, it is common to bring your own slippers. It is also a common practice in Finland (thanks to Jaui's feedback).
In Japan and in Canada, taking off one's shoes is very common as well.
In the UK, stand on the right side of the escalator
Escalators in the UK effectively have two lanes: one on the right for people who are stationary and one on the left for people who choose to walk up or down the escalator rather than just let it carry them.
There is nothing intrinsically better about standing on the right, but by establishing the convention it ensures that the left lane is always faster for people who are in more of a hurry. Think of it almost like driving on the wrong side of the road. It's not etiquette - it's survival…

Summary
Wherever you are in the world, consider the following:
• Visitors should be quit and respectful.
• Be flexible in your expectations because maybe your plan change and a chance for more learning cultural experience presents itself.
• Adapt yourself to the situation rather than trying to change the situation
• Act as an example for other travelers who are less informed than you!

References

• http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/when-in-rome-do-as-the-romans-do.html

• http://www.fastenseatbelts.eu/en/countries/7/China