SOUTH KOREA & JAPAN - Table Manners & Etiquette

Our final two countries that we will be sailing to before we head to Anchorage Alaska are South Korea and Japan. Busan will be our port of call in South Korea and if you checked out your itinerary and sailing the 32 Day Cruise we stop twice! Our first stop will be shorter time frame then our second by the way.  Then onto Japan, Nagasaki/ Hiroshima, Osaka/Kyoto (32 Day cruisers)  and Yokohama/Tokyo (32 day Cruisers)....
hope these links have helped you to understand 
a little more of each of the Asian cultures we will 
be visiting.

South Korea - International Dining Etiquette

http://etiquettescholar.com/dining_etiquette/table-etiquette/pacific_dinner_etiquette/south_korean.html

The Do’s & Don’t, Dining Etiquette & Table Manners in South Korea

http://ingenira.hubpages.com/hub/The-DOs-and-DONTs-in-Korea

Korean Table Etiquette

http://koreanfood.about.com/od/koreanfoodbasics/tp/Korean-Table-Manners.htm

Japanese Table Etiquette

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2005.html

About.com- Japan Travel

http://gojapan.about.com/cs/tablemanners/a/tablemanner.htm

http://goasia.about.com/od/Customs-and-Traditions/a/Japanese-Dining-Etiquette.htm

Japanese Table Manners

http://suite101.com/article/japanese-table-manners-a197103

Photos provided by english.visitkorea.or.kr  and chef taro.com                   

VIETNAM & CHINA -Table Manners & Etiquette

Sailing along we head to two ports in Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City & Nha Trang and then for China, we will visit Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing and Dalian China if you are joining Roger and I on the 32 Day Cruise. Enjoy the journey of preparation, I do think some times the anticipation of our cruise is just as exciting as the port of calls we will be visiting....


Vietnamese Food Ettiquette

http://vietnamfoodtour.com/foodculture_q3_vietnamese-cuisine-traditions-and-etiquette.html

Vietnamese What & Where to Eat

http://www.asiarooms.com/en/travel-guide/vietnam/what-and-where-to-eat/index.html

Vietnam Cuisine

http://www.asiarooms.com/en/travel-guide/vietnam/what-and-where-to-eat/index.html

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China - Customs & Etiquette in Chinese Dining

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_table_manners

Chinese Table Manners

http://www.travelchinaguide.com/essential/chinese-etiquette/table-manners/

China Flavors

http://www.destination-asia.com/china/about/taste/

Photo provided by the hungryhoss.com

THAILAND & SINGAPORE - Table Manner & Etiquette

Whether you go off on your own or if you are on a shore excursion that may serve a meal. It is important to know a few helpful hints to not represent yourself as the Ugly American. So in this upcoming couple of days I will be posting by countries some links that you might want to read and be aware of. Here are the resources for Thailand and Singapore that I thought you might appreciate....

Thailand Food Etiquette - Do’s & Dont’s

www.phuket.com/dining/howto.htm

Thai Language, Culture, Customs & Etiquette

www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/.../thailand-country-profile.html

Table Manners - Guide to Thai Culture & Customs

thailandculturecustomguide.org/thailand-etiquette/table_manners.html

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Singapore - International Dining Etiquette

http://etiquettescholar.com/dining_etiquette/table-etiquette/pacific_dinner_etiquette/singapore.html

Table Manners in Singapore

http://www.vayama.com/etiquette/forum/singapore-etiquette-discussion/table-manners-in-singapore/

Singapore’s Etiquette

http://library.thinkquest.org/05aug/00723/index_files/Page531.htm

Photo provided by Amazon.com

Easily Misunderstood Abroad

etiquette |ˈetikit, -ˌket| , noun

the customary code of polite behavior in society 

or among members of a particular profession or group.

As a kid, our parents hopefully  taught us this important life lesson about manners. We learned to be polite, pay attention, be gracious, kind, considerate. We learned to shake hands and say “please and thank you”. It seems simple, doesn’t it? And it is here in America because it’s what is familiar to us. But now, what about the countries we will be visiting. In Asia, is it all the same? Is Thai the same as China or Japan or Korea? Then what about Singapore Malaysia where there are three major different cultures Chinese, Malay and Indian as in India, oh my! 

The term “Ugly American” derives from the 1958 political novel of the same title by Eugene Burdick and William Lederer as well as a 1963 Movie starring Marlon Brando. “The Ugly American”, is fiction based on reality, alluding to Americans losing political presence in Southeast Asia because of their failure to understand local culture. The novel quotes a Burmese character as saying,

For some reason, the [American] people I meet in my country are not the same as the ones I knew in the United States. A mysterious change seems to come over Americans when they go to a foreign land. They isolate themselves socially. They live pretentiously. They’re loud and ostentatious.

As best shared by my Japanese cousin on a past visit to Tokyo, he said “...of course we don’t expect you to know all of the customs, culture and ways of Japan as a tourist...”

But I still couldn’t help think that I certainly did not want to be THAT Ugly American! 

My cousin is right. We as tourists, aren’t expected to know everything, but I also don’t believe we need to be ignorant and not aware either. With a little effort, preparation and lessons from our parents we don’t have to be Ugly Americans. 

Let me leave you with this final quote:

“Treat everyone with politeness, even those who are rude to you, not because they are    

                      nice, but because you are...”     Unknown 

                                                                                                                                                        

So following are quite a few links to help you explore and prepare to create a better "International Relations" as you sightsee, dine, and shop in our various visiting ports of call.

    

International Etiquette Guide

10 Common Gestures Easily Misunderstood Abroad

Customs & Courtesies

Thai Etiquette

http://thailand.angloinfo.com/moving/country-file/customs-etiquette/

http://asiatours.net/thailand/info/customs.html

Vietnamese Etiquette

http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/vietnam.html

http://www.asiarooms.com/en/travel-guide/vietnam/culture-of-vietnam/vietnamese-etiquette.html

Malay Etiquette

http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/singapore.html

http://library.thinkquest.org/05aug/00723/index_files/Page531.htm

Chinese Etiquette

http://library.thinkquest.org/05aug/00723/index_files/Page531.htm

http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/china-country-profile.html

http://www.travelchinaguide.com/essential/etiquette.htm

http://www.etiquetteinchina.com/

http://chineseculture.about.com/od/businesseconomy/a/Chinese-Culture-Learn-All-About-Chinese-Etiquette.htm

Korean Etiquette

http://library.thinkquest.org/05aug/00723/index_files/Page531.htm

http://kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/south-korea-country-profile.html

http://kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/south-korea-country-profile.html

http://www.vayama.com/etiquette/south-korea/

Japanese Etiquette

http://www.247travelguides.com/937/japanese-customs-tips-things-to-know-before-your-trip-to-japan/

http://library.thinkquest.org/05aug/00723/index_files/Page531.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etiquette_in_Japan

SOME USEFUL WORDS ANYONE?

It was brought up to me by one of our fellow cruiser that since we were visiting six different countries. That perhaps, knowing some useful words would be a great blog article that she would love to read as well as learn from. 

Well, fellow cruisers, my job just took some simple exploring and if you would direct yourself to the blog article called “Princess Cruises‘ PORTS OF CALL”, week of 6/17 - 6/24 and drill down to the section where I directed you to check out the Princess Cruise PDF information on each port. You will see that Princess Cruise had done this for me. Within this handy document, on an interior page there is a section titled, “SOME USEFUL WORDS”. Indeed worth a check if you haven’t already done so....

“Domo Arrigato” Princess Cruises! 

Photo provided by: Flickr: w4nd3rl0st (InspiredinDesMoines)