Tour Guides and Conmen

Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka, 2015

We recently went on a quick trip to Sri Lanka. The aim of the trip was to go get a first look at the country. It is a country that has been relatively inaccessible in the past; and now that it is open for business, we were curious to go see it before the tourist boom.

Although the country itself is gorgeous with beautiful landscape and wonderful wildlife, what really stuck in my mind is the people we met.

Beware of the tour guides

As our trip was a last minute adventure, we decided to hire a tour guide to show us around rather than plan out our own itinerary. BIG MISTAKE! Our tour guide was hands down, the most annoying person i have ever come across.

Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka, 2015

After 2 days on the tea plantations in Nuwara Eliya, on our way out of the region, our tour guide turns to us and says, "If you look to your left, you can see the people picking tea"

My thoughts: No Kidding. I thought they were out picking potatoes over there!

Galle, Sri Lanka, 2015

When we asked to stop at a market for some souvenirs, our guide took us to a 'mall'. My friend bought some tea for her family and colleagues. Later that day, we went to a supermarket and discovered that the tea (with the same packaging) was much cheaper! When we questioned our tour guide, his response was, "Ma'am, I can only say one thing - taxes! Supermarkets pay no tax while a small family store pays much more tax!"

My thoughts: uh huh... you mean the tour guide is friends with the shopkeeper tax. ;o)

Beware of the Conman

On our last day in Colombo, we decided to go for a wander around the harbour. Within seconds of walking out of our hotel, a guy saw us loitering around the parliament house admiring the old colonial building. He inched a little closer and said, "Hi, you cant take a picture of that building. Its parliament house and the police will harass you if they catch you taking a picture."
We said, "Thanks for letting us know" and started to move away - seemingly in the same direction. He fell into step with us and started making conversation. He mentioned that he recognized us from the hotel and that he worked at the hotel, had just finished his shift and was headed home.

As he walked with us, he asked us about our trip, how our experience had been in Sri Lanka and slowly gained our trust. He then casually said, "Best if you walk on the other side of the road - its safer, no pickpockets." So we promptly crossed the road. He then stopped us by a rickshaw and said, "today is the last day of the gem sale. Best bargains in the country. You pay me Rs 50 and i'll tell this guy to take you there." When he answer he got was a no thank you, he became quite angry and very forceful.... Shaken up, we just as forcefully told him to leave us alone! Less than 30 seconds later, cue the next conman - with a very similar 'pick-up' line.

We returned to the hotel and informed concierge about what had happened and that there were people out there claiming to work for the hotel. We found out that this was a problem they were aware of and had informed the authorities but hadn't noticed any improvement...!

This was my first experience with a tour guide - atleast in recent times. My patience has never been tested as much as it was with my Sri Lankan guide. By the end of the trip, everything about him got on my nerves; from his voice to his Limp Fish handshake! As for the conman, well, that's all part of the 'charm' in visiting a developing nation.
What has been your experience with tour guides?

Home is where the heart is? Stuff is? Mum is?

I remember hearing somewhere that it takes between 12 and 18 months to start feeling settled in a new environment. This makes me nervous. After all, I left Australia less than 12 months ago, I’ve been in Qatar now for less than 12 months and I’m gearing up for my first trip home as a ‘visitor’. I can’t help but feel nervous about perhaps maybe not belonging anywhere…

At the end of the day, I’m Australian; I don’t necessarily identify with being Australian mind you. For instance; I’m not crazy about bbq’s and lamb chops (Aussie) but I love curries (not Aussie). I love the beach (Aussie); but I’m not crazy about getting into the water (not Aussie).

I am an expat’s daughter and it is hard to deny that the time spent living in different countries, immersed in another culture and another language changes people. I love putting myself in uncomfortable new situations. The euphoria that comes with overcoming the situation and realizing that I have evolved in some small way is well worth the discomfort.

I have left my home base enough times to accept that the experience of living as an expat changes people in ways you don’t immediately realize. A fundamental shift in perspective and in thinking is inevitable. Ofcourse, because this is not my first rodeo, I know that this change has already happened and yet, not fully understanding the extent to which this has happened makes me a little nervous.

I’m nervous about driving when I visit home. Seems counter-intuitive when you think I’m going to a place where drivers are generally polite and follow road rules. But that’s exactly my point! I’ve gotten used to taking any small space available on the roads to keep moving forward.

I’m nervous about feeling lost and unsettled in Australia. I’m nervous about not fitting in anywhere and always being in a state of transition.

I’m nervous about not being able to converse with people and feeling like I have ‘lost touch’ with friends and local culture and that the ‘new’ me – the expat me will have grown away from family and friends.

Having said that, I’m excited to be going home! I can’t wait to get all my friends together again and discover Perth all over again! I can’t wait to see my sister and go shopping with her (like we used to do!). I’m excited to be a tourist in my own home town but most of all, I’m excited at the prospect of hugging my beautiful mum and my adorable dad; and it’s all happening in just a few…short…hours!

When you live abroad, you quickly realise that no matter where in the world you are, you will always be an expat. It’s a waiting game really, until you find a place that sings your tunes and makes you feel like you’re home ‘again’. 

For now, home is where wifi connects automatically. What about you? Where do you call home?

Photo Credit: @lovethispic.com

It's all Relative

What makes a good, strong relationship? I’ve been having a lot of these conversations lately with friends and colleagues. There was one common theme; in any solid relationship, someone has to take a step back and both partners cannot be uber ambitious go-getters.

Some believe that once you have kids, mum needs to stay home and make her life ‘all about the children’. Others thought it was good for mum and dad to work to make the kids more independent. Ofcourse this only needs to be thought about once you have kids. What about before you had them? Were both partners highly career oriented? Or, was one of you already starting to gear up for the ‘pause’. And who made the decision on which one of you was going to take a step back? Was it your partner? Was it you? Was it the extended family? Or was it your employer?

Photo Credit: @managementlink.wordpress.com    

Nepotism. It’s that 8-letter word that makes any human resources person sit up and take notice. Quite often, employing husband and wife into the same company is to the company’s advantage. It’s like getting two for the price of one! Single recruitment fee, single relocation package etc. But what do you do when both husband and wife have the same qualifications and the company has two vacant positions in the same department? Should the company hire them both or hire best of the two citing ‘Nepotism’?

Let’s say they hire both parties and some months down the line, they say, “Oops! Sorry. We’ll keep one and have to move the other to a different department. Not because of your performance, but because of ‘Nepotism’ ”. Even though the couple works as team in most aspects of life, in the workplace, they are competitors. That’s the harsh reality.

Ofcourse, you are happy for your partner. But how do you then feel? How do you not feel like one of you has won and the other… has lost? And carry that feeling back home?

This got me thinking, “Where did the term nepotism originate? A quick search in the Merriam Webster dictionary led me to the explanation, “the unfair practice by a powerful person of giving jobs and other favors to relatives”. This is ofcourse something to be avoided. But to what degree? It makes sense in politics and business. But what about low level jobs? How do you then quantify the risk of nepotism?

According to a study by the anti-poverty charity Oxfam, the wealthiest 1% will soon own more than the rest of the world's population. Is nepotism something that really only applies to the wealthy and the top performers or is it something that every individual has to think about; no matter their position in the workforce? Where do you draw the line? Does this extend to good friends? What about the partner you’ve been with for a few years but haven’t yet taken the step of getting that piece of paper signed? Does one single 8½ in × 11 in piece of paper really have so much power that it makes the world sit up and take notice? And are you really trying to tell me that the wealthiest 1% are not good friends? Almost ‘like family’?

In this day and age where couples meet in university, either employers are going to have to start getting more intelligent about how they define nepotism and less selfish about how they practice the policy or risk looking very foolish later on down the line.

What about rejecting somebody because they remind you of that nasty bully in high school? Isn’t there a rule against holding a grudge somewhere too?

Thoughts?

Photo Credit: @tinacourtney.com

French / Parisian Stereotypes?

We recently visited Paris. My husband planned the trip as a birthday present for me. Personally, I wasn't too fussed about the place. Of course, I had never been there before - but it also was not on my top 10 places to visit! My husband however, had been there before and was convinced I would love it if I gave it a chance. So while we were waiting to board the flight to Paris, I began to wonder, why am I not excited about visiting one of the most talked about cities in the world?

I realized then that having grown up watching the 101 Dalmatians, I had built up more than a few stereotype 'images' about the French and in particular, the Parisians. I was expecting to see glamour, style and fashion from the moment we landed. Not to mention, encountering the famous Snobby Parisian Attitude! What I found however was something completely unexpected.

1. Parisians are rude.
This is definitely not true. I did not meet any rude Parisians on my trip. This could mean one of 2 things; I either did not meet any Parisians, or, not all Parisians are rude. I choose to believe the latter.
I do however think they are very direct and to the point. This can sometimes come across as rude. But this is all part of the Parisian charm!


2. Parisians are all uber stylish!
Not really being much of a fashionista and generally preferring to blend into the crowd, i was horrified at the idea of standing out like a sore thumb and although this stereotype isn't exactly wrong, it isn't entirely correct either.

How a Parisian would dress to
go shopping

How I would dress to go shopping

Paris is one of the fashion capitals of the world and it being October, I was expecting to see Mink Coats, Chanel Handbags and Louboutin Shoes on every street. What I noticed in my short time in Paris however is that Parisians are not necessarily setting out to be stylish but in fact, aiming to 'not look sloppy'. Regardless of age or gender, Parisians like to put their best dressed foot forward every time.


3. Parisians are impossibly thin.
To me, French women in general seem to be on the skinny side of the weight scale. But when you think about their lifestyle, its not that much of a surprise. From an early age, children are introduced to a variety of cuisines and healthy meals. Schools provide parents with a menu that shows them what their child will be eating for lunch at the school cafeteria on any given day. Many schools even go one step ahead and provide parents with meal suggestions for dinner which complement the lunch provided!
When you consider this life long healthy eating diet with the amount of exercise an average French gets, it is no wonder they are so slim!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovO18E-hgew


4. Parisians do not speak English.
This is totally untrue. Not all Parisians refuse to speak anything other than French. I found the young, and or the professional are happy to practice their English. If you do encounter someone
that refuses to speak English, it is more than likely they are uncomfortable speaking the language. The French are perfectionists; if they cant speak the language with perfection, they wont speak it at all.

5. Parisians (and the French in general), drink wine all the time.
Yeah... I found this one to be mostly true. And with French wine being so earthy and light and just yummy, who could blame them?

What was your experience? What are some of your stereotypes about French people?