I was at the airport, waiting for boarding. I sat beside a young woman from the Philippines who was working as a house maid for an Emirati family in Dubai. She was on her way home—for good—because she refused her boss’ request to drive the family around Dubai. She did not have a license to do so, and did not feel safe doing so, but her boss didn’t care. He insisted, telling her not to worry about her (lack of) a license.

Knowing that she would be in serious trouble if caught driving without a license, the woman declined, to be greeted the following day with news that she was being taken back to the placement agency. Without anyone hearing her side of the story, she was sent directly to the airport, with a police escort, and her working visa was canceled. She was not paid her salary for the last month, not given any cash for things like food during her journey home, and wasn’t even given her luggage. Her boss also confiscated her cell phone, so as to wipe the record of any contacts the woman had in the Middle East. She was literally thrown out of Dubai with only the clothes on her back, all for refusing to drive without a license.

Next time you hear someone cry out “Che!” while you’re walking down the street in Argentina, no, you don’t need to start looking around for the guy you’ve seen on all of those t-shirts and posters in your college dorm. Che Guevara has not returned from the dead, and you can probably just ignore it, unless, of course, that cry is directed towards you.

See, “che” doesn’t only refer to the famous 20^th-century Argentine revolutionary, and in Argentina, that association is made very rarely. Instead, “che” is used informally much in the same way native English speakers use “dude”, or ‘hey”, as an attention-grabber. Especially among friends or family, the phrase can refer to someone specifically or rhetorically, so while you don’t need to excitedly whip your head around looking for the real Che, make sure nobody is talking to you either before ignoring the call.

While the origins of the word to the Argentine culture (as well as neighboring Uruguay, where it is also very popular) is unclear—linguists often argue whether it stems from an indigenous language to the region or whether it was brought along with northern Italian immigrants—that it is hugely popular in Argentina today is not.

So you want to see the latest blockbuster. You’ve read the reviews, watched the previews, and stood in line early to get tickets to the opening show. Showtime as arrived, and you’re ready to go…but you better pay homage to the King, first!

That’s right. Before the film begins, there’s a video tribute to the Thai King, during which everyone in the audience is required to stand up and pay respects. I’ve seen this at sporting events before, well, national anthems anyway, but at recorded films? It was truly unique and interesting. The video itself features some “highlights” of the King spreading his good cheer, with a love song-style soundtrack in the background

Regardless of whether you’re a fan of Rama IX, however (and you better be, as making fun of the King can land you in prison), nobody can complain about the cost of moviegoing. A prime time show in a prime time theatre will only set you back about 4 USD. That leaves plenty for popcorn!

Imagine some of those perfect contradictions that make this world a better place—sweet and sour, fire and ice, kick and snare—the possibilities are endless.

Now imagine an actual city that works that way. That city is Amsterdam. The perfect contrast of order and disorder, organization and discord, beauty and dirt, righteousness and sin—Amsterdamers are not easy to classify.

To the uneducated outsider, one may easily mistake the Dutch for being incredibly laid back, grungy, and perhaps even a little wild. After all, this is the country known outside of its borders for marijuana and open-window prostitution. But spend 10 minutes talking to a local, and you’ll quickly see that your preconceptions couldn’t be further from the truth.

Here are your 12 tips to help you make sure you can fit in here in the Netherlands:

1. Be direct. Beating around the bush is not typically a part of communication here.
2. Respect everyone’s opinion—no matter what someone’s title or place on the hierarchy, everyone’s voice gets heard here.
3. Along these same lines, decisions are typically made in the spirit of group consensus.
4. In light of that, get rid of that idea that these are liberal people. Conservatism runs deep in many aspects of the culture here, and change is slow to come by.
5. They probably know more about your culture than you do about theirs. And they definitely speak your language better than you speak theirs.
6. Don’t be pretentious. It won’t make you friends here.
7. Of course the Dutch have a sense of humor, but refrain from trying out your new material in a business meeting.
8. You may be used to going to happy hour with your colleagues after work. They are not. There is actually a fairly strong separation between work and personal life.
9. You may be proud of your education, and that’s great. But they are probably just as educated as you.
10. If you are going to work here, don’t plan to hop jobs as one may do elsewhere. Continuing the theme of conservatism and slow change, Dutch workers tend to maintain loyalty to one company for a long time.
11. As such, employers are loyal to employees—Dutch labor laws make it difficult for them to get rid of unwanted workers.
12. Don’t let the conservatism intimidate you—it is common to address colleagues informally, by first name.

Now you’re all set to navigate a social or business situation in the Netherlands like a local!

Ghanaians love to celebrate. Weddings, christenings, birthdays, funerals—doesn’t matter. It’s a celebration. And yes, you read that correctly. It includes funerals, which are usually the loudest, longest and liveliest of them all.

You’ve heard the term “wedding crasher” before—popularized by Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson in the film of the same name, it is the idea of strangers dropping in on open-food, open-bar wedding receptions because there are so many guests coming together anyway that nobody will notice an extra few faces. In Ghana, that term applies just as much, if not more so, to funerals. This is especially popular among students, who will always keep their eyes open for free food and drinks.

For most people in the world, death is something to be feared and funerals have an eerie somberness about them. Ghanaians take a different approach, however. Rather than mourning the loss of someone, they try to festively celebrate his or her life. Rich or poor, families invest a huge sum of money into sending their departed loved ones off appropriately. Just about everyone is invited to the weekend- or week-long extravaganza, sometimes not even mattering if the guest knew the deceased or not, and coffins can often times resemble themed chambers (think soccer star getting buried in a huge soccer ball casket).

Forget weddings, for Ghanaians, the funeral is likely the biggest single expenditure they will ever have, and how grand and successful a funeral is can influence a family’s social status. As such, guests are typically expected to make a donation to help cover the extravagant costs, though many do not.

If you’re lucky enough to get invited to a funeral here, don’t try to think of any excuses to get out of it. Go, and you may find it was the most fun you had in Ghana!

Today is the 14^th, and you know what that means! There is something special going on in Korea!

As one of the world’s most advanced and bustling consumer goods economies, Korea has, more than anywhere else on earth, mastered the art of creating demand. And one of its most effective tactics has been to create artificial holidays designed to move products off shelves.

Today happens to be Diary Day. On this special day, couples exchange for the upcoming year with each other. Clever and convenient, right? This way, they can mark each other’s birthdays, anniversaries, and other special plans they may have together in the upcoming year.

Happy diary-ing!

Germans are sticklers for time. This, you can tell, by the prevalence of clocks everywhere. No matter where you walk, it’s likely you’ll see a clock proudly displaying its hands as if to say: “Be on time!” This is a mantra Germans live by, except, of course, when they don’t.

Never Far from a Clock in Germany

See, the whole idea you may have about Germans and timeliness is likely to be shattered within a few days of being here. Culturally, it’s safe to say that people still generally keep appointments punctual; if it’s a business meeting, this is especially important. But unlike Japan, where people are on time but so are trains and other services, Germany hasn’t quite followed suit.

I’ve taken Deutsche Bahn trains several times to connect between cities here, and I don’t think I’ve arrived at my scheduled time yet. Granted, it’s not likely you’ll get to your destination too late—delays of 20 or 30 minutes are the norm—but it was certainly counter to what I expected upon arriving here. In the case of the trains, a comedy of errors have been the culprit for DB in recent years, ranging from axel problems to lax track maintenance to disgruntled employees.

Don’t get me wrong—I’m not advising you to come here and ignore any concept of punctuality. I just think that it’s about time Germans reconsider the seemingly national sense of pride they display in regards to timeliness, as these days it is more myth than reality.

Friendly Frankfurt Airport Reminders

As any of you who have been to the Middle East know, it’s not unlikely that you may be wrestled from your first-morning jet lag by the croons of an imam with the first of his five daily azan, or calls to prayer–at least if you’re anywhere within earshot of a mosque (which you probably are). That served as my alarm clock on my first visit, and though it’s not exactly hummingbirds singing to the daisies, there’s a certain romantic, haunting quality about it–certainly a great way to remind you where you’ve awoken. Given that the call of the imam, or muezzin, is considered an art form, it’s usually somewhat melodic, albeit a bit tinny depending on the quality of the speakers…

Apparently, not everyone’s experience is so pleasant. Istanbul’s head of religions affairs has responded to complaints by setting up singing lessons to make sure that all 3,000 of the city’s mosques have a pleasant tune for the

neighbors. And for those voices that are just beyond repair?

The loudspeaker in the mosque will be linked to a central recording system that will broadcast a professional voice! Which begs the questions–why not just do this to begin with, and who exactly determines what the threshold of being able to sing vs. not sing is?

I’ve gotten a lot of questions as to why I included a skull in the IDmalaysia banner. I have no intention of portraying Malaysia in a negative, gory or violent light, but I was simply fascinated upon visiting Sarawak and learning about the headhunting culture of their native Iban people.

An early-1900s Iban warrior displaying his catch of two skulls

While it is perhaps now considered to be a dubious distinction, depending on who you ask, the Iban people are known as being the pioneers of the practice of headhunting, which was prevalent amongst fighting tribes in the 19^th century. The story is that during their peak, their native lands became overpopulated. As such, when enemies infringed upon their territory, there was no space to keep them alive. With confrontation being the only way to survive, killing those enemies and displaying the skulls as home décor (literally) was considered a badge of honor. It was believed that beheading the slain enemy was the only way to completely kill off his spirit for good.

While the culture of headhunting is now a thing for the history books, there have still occasionally been ethnic conflicts that have broken out in Borneo and brought back chilling memories of the past. As recently as the late 1990s, for example, 500 Madurese immigrants (from Indonesia) were killed—many decapitated—and tens of thousands were forced to flee when conflict broke out.

The sample interior decor of an Iban Longhouse

Sarawak proud of its heritage

Every country and every culture has its heroes—those individuals, whether politicians, athletes or entertainers that we elevate onto a pedestal, making them bigger than they actually are. America has Bill Clinton, Michael Jordan and Lady Gaga, while England swoons over Prince William and Kate. Brazil elevates its football stars from Pele to Kaka to Neymar, while Nelson Mandela, Charlize Theron and Oscar Pistorius sit high atop the South African psyche. But nowhere on earth is anyone more unanimously embraced and revered than the Philippines’ very own national hero: Manny Pacquiao.

Supporting himself from the age of 14 by winning chump change in street fights, Pacquiao fought his way out of poverty and became one of the most successful boxers in the world. While his professional career has hit some bumps in the past year, which tends to happen with age, he was the world’s “Fighter of the Decade” in the 2000s, earning hundreds of millions of dollars in the process. His success in the ring has led to a cult following outside the ring, as he was elected to the Philippines House of Representatives in 2010, and has also enjoyed success as an actor and a recording artist.

While all national heroes and icons obviously enjoy popularity, you would be hard-pressed to find any figure in the past 50 years who has reached the cult status that Manny has reveled in. If you know anyone who is even of Filipino descent, then you know what I mean. When Manny fights, it’s like Christmas—entire families, friends, cousins, friends of friends, cousins of cousins and friends of friends of those cousins gather to watch. And cheer. Loudly.

It just so happens that Filipinos are also among the more religious people in the world—it seems that everyone is Catholic, proudly attending mass every Sunday, from Manila to California. But I’ve always joked that if Manny Pacquiao—himself a devout Catholic—decided to break from the church and start a religion of his own, the pews of those Catholic Churches would be empty within a week. Instead, everyone would flock to the new Church of Manny to get their fill of the spirit.

Before you get all bent out of shape, relax. I’m just joking. Well, unless Manny actually decides to do it!

Chalk up another one for The Champ

Make ’em swoon, Manny