Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
SITUATION 6
A colleague has invited you to his home for dinner. You want
to make a good impression, so you dress carefully and bring
along a nice box of chocolates. You arrive 20 minutes late, as
is the standard, only to find that you are the first one there.
It is clear that your host and his wife are busy in the kitchen.
Your colleague shows you into the living room, which is large
and beautifully decorated, with several other intriguing rooms
opening off to the sides. Your host gestures to the couch and
says to make yourself comfortable. You:
Sit down and stay there until either other guests arrive or
your host indicates otherwise.
Take a quick peek into the other rooms, which look so
beckoning, then sit down.
Roll up your sleeves and offer to help in the kitchen.
Browse around the living room, helping yourself to the
aperitifs and snacks that are sitting on a table nearby.
Comments
First of all, please be assured that you have done nothing wrong
by arriving 20 minutes late. You made an effort to conform to
the cultural norms of your French hosts; unfortunately, even
though you arrived late, it wasn't late enough for these people.
This is one of those situations where you just have to make do.
Once you have arrived at your colleague's home, however, you
should sit down where indicated and stay put. You may look at
books on the coffee table (if any), the view or the pictures on
the wall (and comment about them nicely afterwards), but you
should not help yourself to any food or drink unless you have
been asked to do so. Thus
is the best answer. The important
thing to remember, no matter what you do, is to respect the
privacy of your hosts. Answers
,
and
would, as a result,
make you seem intrusive and ill-mannered.
SITUATION 7
At the home of an acquaintance, you accidentally brush up
against a case holding some beautiful china figurines. One of
them falls and breaks. Naturally, you apologise...
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