I'm visiting home in America for the month of December, and I've imagined how neat it would be to bring someone back with me. I'd especially love to bring a student back and show him around and watch his reactions and listen to his questions. It won't happen, but if it did I would offer him the following advice before we got off plane.
1. Do not not simply turn your back to people and urinate whenever the urge arises. At best, people will think you're disgusting. At worst, you'll be arrested.
2. You may not just toss your wrapper or Coke can on the ground. It's illegal. We don't even make piles of trash to burn in America. There's always a receptacle somewhere that you're supposed to place it in.
3. In Sesotho it is not disrespectful to address someone with “Hey you!” It will, however, probably earn you a black eye if you do so in America.
4. When you meet a pretty girl for the first time your custom is to let her know that you would like to marry her. You will only get laughed at if you do this to a girl there.
5. Digging in your nose in front of people is considered bad manners. Do it only in private.
6. I know that you are used to eating ‘papa’ (stiff cornmeal porridge) and ‘moroho’ (cooked leafy greens). I’m used to it too. But we won’t find it in America, at all, anywhere. Further, we will encounter a wide variety of other sorts of food cooked with much more spice, so we ought to take it easy or I’m afraid our stomachs will explode.
7. Finally, people probably won't greet you when you pass them on the street, but it's not because they're angry or don't like you. It's just what they do. And you'll probably think they're walking really quickly too, but it's not necessarily because they're in a hurry to get somewhere. It's just what they do.