[04] Evaluating Intercultural Behaviors

Food is culture. The food we eat not only represents our traditions, history, geography but also our cultural adaptability. And through food, we can explore one's culture. In light of that, my friends and I arranged for a food festival when on an overseas community involvement project to Cambodia last December. We prepared some of our local delicacies such as chicken curry and bak kut teh for lunch while the villagers prepared dinner for the cultural exchange.


The villagers prepared a well balanced spread and were excited to see our response after tasting their dishes. There was this dish that stood out amongst the rest. It was some stir fried vegetables which was so bitter that it numbed our tongues. We thought we should be polite and should not show that we are picky and choosy especially when the villagers were standing around us, watching us as we eat. We divided the vegetables into six portions for each of us at the table and at the count of three, we finished our portions.

Then, a nice lady replenished the vegetables immediately. We wanted to stop her but did not know how we should go about doing it for fear that the villagers might think that we did not like the vegetables.

From the interesting episode, we gathered that in Cambodia, the hosts will try not to leave plates empty. It was different from what we had expected. It did not occur to us that they would replenish the food. My guess was that the nice host misinterpreted our smiles when we finished the vegetables. Nevertheless, it was an interesting experience which not only introduced us to their food, but also the way the Cambodians eat their food.

[03] Business Letter Critique

I received this letter about a week ago from the National Library Board (NLB), informing me on the changes to the library policy.

Click on image to view letter

Courtesy

In the letter, the You-attitude was adopted and readers were provided with benefit materials. Courtesy is important in this context as the NLB seeks the cooperation of library members to provide and promote responsible use of public library resources.

The letter was sent about 2 months before the new policy would be in place from 1 April 2009. This allows members to clarify any doubts and also to make arrangements to settle their fines and fees.


Correctness

While there were no errors which distracted the reader from focusing on the message, the claim that "if you return items on time, or do not accumulate fines and fees, then you will be unaffected by this change" might not be entirely true as the new policy of the renewing items for free would affect members who return items on time.


Conciseness and Clarity

In the letter, important information was clearly highlighted with appropriate bolding and underlining of the some part of the text. This helped readers to identify the main points by adding weight and clarity.

Click on image to view letter

An additional point to note was that a comic strip was included at the back of the letter. It presented the library policy changes in a concised and humorous manner.

Coherence and Cohesion
The writer informs the reader of the rationales behind the changes to current policies throughout the letter. The rationales were mentioned as an introduction at the beginning of the letter and was mentioned again after the changes to the policies were shared. However, the line "If you have already paid, please ignore this letter." suggests that NLB is more concerned with members paying their fines on top of all the rationales.

Concreteness
Specific and relevant information, such as the date in which the new policy will be in effect and the exact amount of fines and fees in the receipent's account, was provided. Also, the elaboration on the renewal of different type of library resources helped readers to better understand the new renewal charge system.

Completeness
In general, the letter is complete to a large extent. Members were informed of the changes to the library policies and on a personal note, it urged me to clear my fines. Perhaps members could be reminded of the various means of paying their fines and of how convenient they are in addition to the current content.

[02] Resolving Interpersonal Conflict

Last lunar new year, my family planned to watch a movie together. We got ourselves some popcorn and nachos and were looking forward to the movie. But just as I was about to enter the gantry, I was stopped by the movie theater attendant.

"Excuse me, can I check your I.D.?"

I was shocked for I was the only one asked to do so and my younger siblings had went in. Unfortunately, I left home in a hurry and was not carrying any I.D. for the NC-16 movie. My parents tried to explain and asked if it was alright to let me pass for once. However, the attendant insisted that she will not allow me in. She suggested that the rest of my family could watch the movie without me

My father was furious and told the attendant, in a pique, that all of us will not watch the movie then. The attendant responded immediately, offering to help us refund our tickets in a sharp tone. It fueled my father's anger and he started calling her an idiot repeatedly and that told her that she had spoiled our mood on the first day of the lunar new year. The attendant remained very calm but told my father to mind his language in a sharp tone.

We did not manage to watch the movie and decided to head back home instead. Before we left the box office, my father asked for her name but he did not do anything with it eventually.

If you were the attendant, how you have reacted to the furious customer? And on the other hand, what would you do when one of your family or friends was denied entry?