Weird customs around the world that don't change

[Reggie Dunlop]

In Edmonton, sweatpants are paired with quality dress footwear.

[activeStick]

It took getting used to when I lived in Montreal, but the greeting of people with a cheek touch and kiss sound is.... Interesting. And then to add more confusion to it, I had different groups of friends where it would be customary to either do it 2 times or 3 times, alternating cheeks. Led to some awkward almost lip on lip contact!

[Locke]

Originally Posted by activeStick

It took getting used to when I lived in Montreal, but the greeting of people with a cheek touch and kiss sound is.... Interesting. And then to add more confusion to it, I had different groups of friends where it would be customary to either do it 2 times or 3 times, alternating cheeks. Led to some awkward almost lip on lip contact!

See...people blame the Chinese but its really the wholly unsanitary French that were probably responsible for a Global Pandemic!

Asian cultures have to decency to wear masks and isolate themselves whereas the French kiss everything that moves!

[DoubleF]

Originally Posted by FlamesAddiction

My dad had all kinds of old world superstitions.

Never leave a knife laying flat on the counter because you are inviting danger from the direction that the knife is pointing. Somehow putting in the sink neutralized the danger though. There were a few others involving knives as well, like dropping one was a big no-no and they could cause nightmares if slept too close to one.

Single girls should never sit at the corner of the table.

Not having more than one window open because somehow the cross breeze it creates through the house is evil or bad luck, or something. Applied to cars as well.

Half moons are lucky and decisions involving money should wait until there is a half moon.

The knife on the counter one has stuck with me even though I know it's ridiculous. Kind of like knocking on wood. I can't help myself.

Many superstitions are actually rooted on an empirical observation and an attempt to address and avoid an unfavorable outcome.

Some are based on Murphy's law. If you're careless with a knife, sooner or later you may end up injured by one. This is more important in older eras where access to healthcare is more difficult. A cut/injury from a potentially dirty knife in a 3rd or 2nd world country (or era that is closer to that) is more problematic than a quick stitches + 1-2 week recovery in a first world country.

"Bad luck/evil" type superstitions sometimes make more sense if you substitute the idea of potential illness or injury. It's bad luck to walk under a ladder sounds like superstition. But statistically, you just realize the odds of injury are substantially higher walking under a ladder than around it. Same as in a job site situation.

You don't do certain things at a jobsite because it increases the odds something undesired happens. You may not want too many windows open at home because it may increase odds of illness happening (especially in situations where indoor heating isn't ubiquitous).

The knock on wood and full moon ones though... I'm not sure. But if I had to guess, they're kinda just silly/easy actions to do to slow down certain decisions. You assume you'd get a different perspective/time to reset and evaluation to ensure you're making a good decision before follow through.

Originally Posted by bluejays

Yeah, most weddings I've been to just give cash. It's easier and more mobile. And likely you said, it's to cover the cost of the wedding then some. To be honest I haven't seen many weddings where people have brought stuff. Must be a lot to carry at the end of the night.

Asians also know because the guestlist is usually very big that if they're carrying tons of physical gifts back, it becomes an ordeal. It's just easier for everyone. It's not superstition, but it almost functions basically like a registry to avoid duplicate gifts but also to ensure less complexities for clean up post party. I've seen weddings where the bridal party had to figure out 4-6 vehicles full of stuff ranging from gifts, equipment and other things to remove from the venue. I think physical gifts alone filled a little more than one vehicle top to bottom.

Another wedding custom I've still never fully understood... getting the groom drunk. Supposedly the logic is to decrease the chances of the groom consummating the marriage. I still don't fully understand the logic of that custom. Similar logic to what I recall a server say to us once, "I don't know if they like you or hate you, but I have half a dozen shots for the birthday boy."

[bluejays]

Originally Posted by DoubleF

Another wedding custom I've still never fully understood... getting the groom drunk. Supposedly the logic is to decrease the chances of the groom consummating the marriage. I still don't fully understand the logic of that custom. Similar logic to what I recall a server say to us once, "I don't know if they like you or hate you, but I have half a dozen shots for the birthday boy."

Yeah, getting the groom drunk seems kinda childish. It's one thing to do at a birthday party when you're 20, but on a wedding day? It's a classy day, no need for that.

[TrentCrimmIndependent]

Originally Posted by activeStick

It took getting used to when I lived in Montreal, but the greeting of people with a cheek touch and kiss sound is.... Interesting. And then to add more confusion to it, I had different groups of friends where it would be customary to either do it 2 times or 3 times, alternating cheeks. Led to some awkward almost lip on lip contact!

Spicy.

Was it the same regardless of gender?

[Shazam]

Originally Posted by photon

I knew someone from Korea that said they wouldn't sleep with the fan on overnight as they'd suffocate. Very weird, supposedly the fans even come with warnings.

Yes my parents still believe this.

Also Koreans point with their middle finger.

Also blowing your nose in public is considered extremely rude.

Also you're not supposed to ever approach women you don't know (if you're romantically interested). You must always be introduced.

[GirlySports]

Originally Posted by activeStick

And for those that are curious, banging on the plates, cups, etc at a Chinese wedding is what you do when you want to have the bride and groom kiss for the guests.

Typically, someone will start it, the rest of the tables join in, and they don't stop until the kiss happens. As you can imagine, it can get pretty annoying and out of hand!

The best is to do it when the bride is away getting changed. Then the groom has a decision to make.

[GirlySports]

Originally Posted by Locke

See...people blame the Chinese but its really the wholly unsanitary French that were probably responsible for a Global Pandemic!

Asian cultures have to decency to wear masks and isolate themselves whereas the French kiss everything that moves!

we've been social distancing since birth, the pandemic was nothing

[CliffFletcher]

Originally Posted by activeStick

And for those that are curious, banging on the plates, cups, etc at a Chinese wedding is what you do when you want to have the bride and groom kiss for the guests.

That isn’t just a Chinese thing.

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by CliffFletcher

That isn’t just a Chinese thing.

Yeah, that is pretty much every wedding I have ever been to.

[activeStick]

Originally Posted by TrentCrimmIndependent

Spicy.

Was it the same regardless of gender?

I've only seen female-female, male-female. Also, it's not just a French thing, it's also a middle eastern thing.

[GGG]

Originally Posted by activeStick

And for those that are curious, banging on the plates, cups, etc at a Chinese wedding is what you do when you want to have the bride and groom kiss for the guests.

Typically, someone will start it, the rest of the tables join in, and they don't stop until the kiss happens. As you can imagine, it can get pretty annoying and out of hand!

I don’t think this is limited to Chinese weddings. It’s at least prominent in rural Saskatchewan.

[Street Pharmacist]

Originally Posted by Bill Bumface

I don't know how universal it is, but the social expected transaction of "How's it going?", "Good", regardless of how it's going is actually pretty strange.

If anyone answers that honestly, it's often super awkward and unexpected. But if you don't ask, you're also a jerk.

Before the internet was really a thing and cultures all got blurred, I worked for an English company in France doing self camping. One of the first guests was British and said "Are you alright?" In the intonation British questions are asked and it completely threw me off.

I thought "is this person actually asking me if I'm ok?" As it hadn't occurred to me that's just their "how's it going?". They were in fact, completely ambivalent to my well-being

[bigrangy]

In finland almost everybody covers their face or otherwise tries to hide when they get shown on the jumbotron

[TrentCrimmIndependent]

On north sentinel island we attack all forms of attempted human contact from the outside world with spears and bows until it stops moving.

Sorry I mean they. They're easy to associate with.

[TrentCrimmIndependent]

Originally Posted by activeStick

I've only seen female-female, male-female. Also, it's not just a French thing, it's also a middle eastern thing.

Yeah, I just didn't realize this was a regular thing in Montreal/Quebec, which is it's own subset of French culture.

[surferguy]

The hen and doe party is Manitoba thing.

[icarus]

Originally Posted by Snuffleupagus

Of the 195 countries on planet earth the USA, Liberia and Myanmar are the only countries that use the archaic imperial system of measurement? like really?



I'm thinking all three don't do well in math.

Canada isn't completely off the hook: how many of you know your height in centimetres, or weight in kilograms?

I've lived abroad so long I know mine in both measurements so when I'm asked about my height (thankfully I don't get asked about my weight often), I tailor my response to the person asking the question, if they're North American or not.

And the British still describe their weight in stone.

[GGG]

Originally Posted by icarus

Canada isn't completely off the hook: how many of you know your height in centimetres, or weight in kilograms?

I've lived abroad so long I know mine in both measurements so when I'm asked about my height (thankfully I don't get asked about my weight often), I tailor my response to the person asking the question, if they're North American or not.

And the British still describe their weight in stone.

The mixed metric system is the best of both worlds. You call things in imperial units which in general have a human sized scale to them and you measure and do any calculation or construction in metric. A 2.4m 2x4. A perfect system