OMB
Asians have heard westerners saying “Oh my God”, but they don’t have a god, as such. So they’ve rephrased it. From now on, when I’m surprised you’ll hear me say “oh my Buddha”!
Maps
Most SE Asians can’t read maps. You can tell from the panic on their face when you put one in front of them and ask where something is. It took a while for me realise that they can’t even tell where they are on the map. I wonder whether this is linked to general education and literacy – a privilege that we take for granted is still a dream for many here. Yet another paradigm shift for my first-world brain.
Grey hairs
I thought she was carefully picking out nits from the lady’s hair and reasoned that medication may not be available here. Turns out she was painstakingly removing grey hairs with tweezers and placing them delicately on her other hand. It explains why many older women here are bald.