Beyond Bounds Blog

“When in Rome, do as the Romans do,” in other words go bulimic. In Rome it was polite to throw up so you could eat more food; doesn’t that sound like a tasty custom to adapt. How about smoking, eating fast food, or being an asshole to waiters and waitresses at restaurants. The quote’s origins are religious, but it seems that people have taken it to an entirely different level.

Going abroad is meant to RAISE your consciousness and BETTER your way of life, not take away from it. Going abroad just to fit in makes absolutely no sense as it doesn’t help anyone. It’s like a president surrounding himself with “yes” men – at the end of the day we are only seeing one side of things.

When in “Rome,” remember:

1) To adapt habits that are obviously good for your health and well being

Don’t go bulimic just because it’s cool. Don’t do the exact opposite and gouge yourself with the American diet either. Every culture has its own ways of killing itself. When you are abroad avoid all of those things. In China and many places in Europe, it’s smoking. In America it’s diet. In Macau it’s gambling. In Hong Kong it’s prostitution. In Thailand it’s a mix of both.

Instead, pick up the healthy habits of the locals. An Asian diet will cure your American one. Living in America will cure your smoking addiction – yes it is not “cool” to smoke cigarettes in America. Living in Hong Kong will kill your laziness. Living in China will teach you about patience.

You may not agree with exactly which habits constitute unhealthy habits, and that’s ok. Make conscious decisions to take the best of the country that you are in. You are a foreigner; you already don’t “fit in,” so keep a piece of yourself and don’t go along with everything the locals do.

2) Rome is not Vegas:

Too many people try to adapt the “what happens in Vegas” attitude to going abroad. The problem is that it is nothing like Vegas, unless you are in Macau or Amsterdam.

The attitude of Vegas is  commercialized, so when you go there the locals expect you to act differently than you would at home. The environment is set up for you to act like an idiot – it actually makes you spend more money. This is good for Vegas.

When you are abroad, the local people expect to see a typical person from your country. If you are courteous and friendly, whomever you meet in the local country will believe that people from your country are that way. If you are obnoxious and slutty, like many westerners here in Beijing, the locals will believe that this is a typical picture of your country.

Most people know this and still act this way because there are no personal consequences to poor actions while abroad; it’s an excuse to go crazy. If you are truly interested in international and intercultural communication, you will take this attitude out of the picture, because you will have more fun doing that in Vegas anyway. You can’t act crazy and communicate effectively with locals at the same time. Choose one or later find out that you actually know nothing about a country that you spent X amount of time in.

I see so many Americans that come to China and eat at McDonalds / KFC everyday, but then pick up smoking. I see equal amounts of Chinese that go to America and smoke everyday but then eat fast food. I see people who come to China to have an “international experience” but pretend that they are in Vegas. Make up your mind already! Are you going to fit in or not? Are you here to do a bunch of things that you’ll regret, or are you here for something more useful? If you are going to be picky about when you do as the Romans do, at least err on the side beneficial to yourself.

Take a hard look at yourself – in what ways have you changed since you moved abroad? Do you spit? Do you sleep around? Do you drink a lot? Do you smoke? Are you rude? Perhaps Rome got to you a little too much and it’s time to rethink things.