by Emi Rina
1. Respect for pedestrians:
People stopped their luxury cars to let pedestrians cross the street even when the traffic light indicated otherwise. And they did it respectfully and with a smile on their faces, without getting angry. This was truly unusual for me, in a happy way.
2. Punctuality: Everyone respects each other's time. Trains and buses, the preferred means of transportation, are mostly on time (99% of the time). I could predict my office time every day with near-certainty. Living in Bangalore definitely makes time uncertain. :P
3. Drinking habits: People drink beer at all hours of the day, in the morning, before lunch, and even before going to the office. I had this preconceived idea that drinking was associated with parties or usually in the evening/night. My bad! :P
4. Leftovers: We used to get emails at the office like, "Leftovers from a kitchen party. Please help yourself." At first, I was shocked to see this kind of email. I wondered why someone who works for a reputable company with all the resources and means would want to eat leftovers from a party? But then I discovered that leftovers are usually part of the fresh, untouched food. And people have no inhibitions about eating leftovers. I, too, joined in several times afterward to eat leftovers again and again. :)
5. Free things and gifts: I've seen couches and other luxurious-looking furniture outside a couple of homes many times. I thought people were probably having their homes remodeled or cleaned or something. Later, I saw a message board that said something like, "We don't need it anymore. Feel free to take it if you want." (Not exactly, but something like that.) Living in India, where people usually cling to things, even my family, seeing this attitude was a new sensation for me.
Living alone in a foreign country for about six months taught me a lot about every aspect of my life. And I recommend everyone do it at least once.
