Habits That Might Get You in Trouble Around the World

1. Eating with your hands in Chile

In Chile, you’re better off eating without ever touching your food. Chileans consider it distasteful to use your hands to eat anything, even snacks like French fries. That’s why they always have knife and fork ready for every meal.

2. Starting to eat before the eldest person at the table in Korea

Respect for elders is very important in Korean culture. Besides waiting for the elder person to start eating, you’re also expected to stay there until that person is finished. Also, when anyone older offers you a drink, you must accept it by lifting your glass with both hands.

4. Asking for extra cheese on your pizza in Italy

Italy is known for its tasteful and delicious cuisine. There, it’s considered rude to ask for anything that doesn’t already come with the dish that was served. So if you would like to add some parmesan on your pizza, but don’t want to displease the servers, you better do it when they’re not looking.

5. Eating everything that’s on your plate in China

In China, it has been long considered rude to clean your plate. It’s an indication that the host didn’t offer you enough food. But this custom has been changing with movements like ’Operation Empty Plate,’ which aims to reduce food waste.

6. Not eating all of the food on your plate in India

Unlike what we discussed previously about the customary Chinese rule, in India it is polite to finish your entire meal. You are expected to eat everything on your plate as a sign of respect toward the food, which is considered sacred.

7. Nodding the “usual” way in Bulgaria

Nodding is a bit different in Bulgaria where shaking the head left and right actually means “yes” and shaking it up and down means “no.” You better be careful when answering a question there with nonverbal communication. Just for safety, you might want to stick with the words “da”, which means “yes” and “ne”, which means no.