A Smile Can Make Your Day
June 6th 2011 14:44
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Malaysia's Friendly People
Today I was talking to a couple of women in one of my classes at the gym. This is the first time that we have actaully had any kind of conversation. One person was from Swaziland and the other from Hungary. After we told each other where we were from, the discussion turned to why we came to Malaysia and what we like about Malaysia. I told of how I got here and the reasons why I like Malaysia, which can be found elsewhere in this blog. My story naturally was different from theirs. Both of these women were here because of their husbands' jobs and were quite happy to have made the move.
The big differences came when these two women described what they liked about Malaysia. The Hungarian woman said that the one thing she loved about Malaysia was the fact that everyone smiled at her and pleasantly greeted her. She went on to explain that in Hungary and in Europe in general she never received a smile or friendly greeting from strangers. She loved the fact that everywhere she went, children and adults alike smiled and greeted her and often offered assistance. To her this was the complete opposite of what she had experienced back home. I agreed that the local people here are quite friendly and helpful, as I also thought they were back in Boston. We both agreed that the locals are more friendly than other expats, mainly Europeans.
I was quite surprised when my friend from Swaziland explained that she never got any of this kind of friendly attention from local people. She said that just the opposite happens with her. She said people ignore her and many times don't want to deal with her in the market place or on the streets. She also said Europeans also don't treat her very friendly. She had recently lived in the US and found people she dealt with there to be much more friendly and helpful. Upon thinking I remember another friend relating the same type of behavior he had experienced here in Malaysia. The three of us came to the same conclusion to explain this. The one common thread with this woman and my friend was that they were both Black.
It is difficult to understand that people in Malaysia, with three distinct ethnic groups being represented, plus thousands of caucasians, can treat people of African origin differently. I hope it is not racism, but only that Malaysians are not used to seeing many Africans among them, and thus unconsciously treat them differenly. Let's hope everone can experience the smiles of Malaysia.
The big differences came when these two women described what they liked about Malaysia. The Hungarian woman said that the one thing she loved about Malaysia was the fact that everyone smiled at her and pleasantly greeted her. She went on to explain that in Hungary and in Europe in general she never received a smile or friendly greeting from strangers. She loved the fact that everywhere she went, children and adults alike smiled and greeted her and often offered assistance. To her this was the complete opposite of what she had experienced back home. I agreed that the local people here are quite friendly and helpful, as I also thought they were back in Boston. We both agreed that the locals are more friendly than other expats, mainly Europeans.
I was quite surprised when my friend from Swaziland explained that she never got any of this kind of friendly attention from local people. She said that just the opposite happens with her. She said people ignore her and many times don't want to deal with her in the market place or on the streets. She also said Europeans also don't treat her very friendly. She had recently lived in the US and found people she dealt with there to be much more friendly and helpful. Upon thinking I remember another friend relating the same type of behavior he had experienced here in Malaysia. The three of us came to the same conclusion to explain this. The one common thread with this woman and my friend was that they were both Black.
It is difficult to understand that people in Malaysia, with three distinct ethnic groups being represented, plus thousands of caucasians, can treat people of African origin differently. I hope it is not racism, but only that Malaysians are not used to seeing many Africans among them, and thus unconsciously treat them differenly. Let's hope everone can experience the smiles of Malaysia.
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