Monday, April 23, 2012

The culture chasm: On the wrong side of the law


Dubai: Expatriates have found themselves on the wrong side of the law — jail terms followed by deportation for public indecency and obscene gestures. Alarming, worrying, yet true. The accused have been guilty of acts ranging from flashing a finger at someone to consensual sex in public.
The recent court cases reported by Gulf News not only illustrate this, but point to a far more insidious subtext — cultural misunderstanding.
An expatriate who considers the middle finger as a commonplace gesture in his country, now finds himself in an uncommon position — in front of a judge for the very act. He may also not realise — until it is too late — that apart from obscene acts, certain overt physical gestures overlooked in his home country are punishable in his host country.
Would you call this a case of misunderstanding? Or would it be fair to label expatriates as culturally ignorant?  Read more in  Gulfnews.com

Sunday, April 01, 2012

Vietnam's Halong Bay is officially confirmed as one of the New7Wonders of Nature


Bernard Weber: "The spectacular seascape of Halong Bay is one of the great treasures of our natural world."

Halong Bay is now confirmed as one of the New7Wonders of Nature. The Official Inauguration events will take place on 27 April in Hanoi and on 1 May at Halong Bay. Making the announcement today in Hanoi, Bernard Weber, Founder-President of New7Wonders, congratulated the people of the Vietnam and the fans of Halong Bay across the world for supporting the finalist in the international voting campaign.

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