Personal experience with cross-culture interaction

Multicultural cities are the most eye-opening in matters of experiencing cultural diversity and wealth (Danso; Traindis). According to Triandis, one of the major ways of experiencing social and cultural difference and diversity is to travel and interact with people outside one’s normal culture and associated domains. Despite the harmony in culture that is sported in the city, I found myself facing some difficulties associated with a difference in culture. Despite the challenges, I was able to fetch some knowledge on cultures and their dictates, which enabled me deal well with the challenges. In the current paper, I aim to present cross-cultural experiences that I had in the city of New York and how they impacted my life in terms of interaction with cultures outside of my own.

My culture is strict, such that intricate taboos and norms are set in place and must be observed. In New York, I encountered an ‘open culture’ approach to life. An open culture is one where minimal concern is placed on other people’s choices and preferences. One of the most interesting things is the approach of the people in New York on sexuality. My cultural dictates of sexuality present that only people of different sexes should sport romantic relationships. As globalization grows, more people from different cultures are interacting and exchanging ideas, which is surely leading to a shift in the way people approach culture (Danso 415). Through my experiences, I have confirmed that it is important to be flexible when dealing with different people, so as to accommodate their beliefs, practices and preferences as influenced by culture.