It is now my fifth day living in Berlin and I have now become comfortable with using the two or three sentences I learned on the plane. As I have become familiar with the surrounding businesses I have become sociable with a local bar/lounge owner. His English is slightly better than my German; however our friendly demeanor seems to go a long way in attempting to communicate which has encouraged my repeat business. Last night, I made my usual visit to the establishment and came upon a large gathering of locals. After ordering a round of drinks I took notice of some of the drinks they were ordering and attempted to inquire in my best German, I was quickly interrupted by a young Palestinian who spoke fluent English. He kindly served as a make shift translator for his friends and so a seemingly endless session of questions and answers followed. Two hours later, I had discussed everything from politics to advertising and had a unique insight into the level of advertising that catered to minorities in Berlin.
Through the satellite television they have connected within the lounge he often gets together with cousins and sibling and watches programming from all over the world, the United States in particular. His perceptions of what is considered a norm in our country is astounding, I initially found myself trying to convince them that much like the city they live in, there are a variety of truths and fallacies, but I digress. Their exposure to western advertising that depicts what they agree to be minorities in the United States leaves them feeling their representation in their local advertising much to be desired. As a minority who speaks both his native language, English and German, he prefers to be advertised to in German. As he put it, he is more susceptible to purchase German brands that acknowledge his cultures existence in Berlin, yet he prefers to purchase brands that are originally from his country.
In retrospect I am embarrassed in my apprehension to venture out of my comfort zone. Through my interactions with these particular locals I have gained a very personal insight into not only my own language barriers but also in the ones existing within the local population. Luckily I was able to befriend an intelligent and open minded individual who was as curious about my world as I was with his.
The most difficult part of going to a foreign country and not knowing the language is to venture outside your comfort zone. I’m not going to lie that even though I could speak the language through attending a German High School, I was hesitant because I did not know the city and the area we were living in. I have friends that live in the city of Berlin, but I had no way of contacting them, well at least for the first few days. The public transportation was also an adjustment form Miami where we are heavily reliant on driving. Also, traveling with my fellow FIU students I was not sure how my comfort level would translate in the city once I began to get the hang of it and wanted to venture out on my own. All in all everything works out. I was able to adjust to the area around the hostel and that around IMK. There are a few more places of interest that I can navigate too without my very touristy looking map.
ReplyDelete-michi
I think your post is an good example that even though language barriers exist, open-mindedness and intelligence go a long way. Even though you may not be able to completely understand one another, you are open and eager to learn what the other has to say. Although you both shared the commonality of having misperceptions of one another's culture, the only way these truths would be discovered or fallacies eliminated is by speaking with one another. Many times we shy away from conversations where we feel we will not be completely understood. However, like you mention stepping outside your comfort zone allowed you to see a different perspective. Now we have an understanding that just like people of different ethnicities who stay connected to their culture though satellite programming or through channels distributed in their native tongues in the U.S. this happens in other countries as well. This individual prefers to buy brands from his own country. This is similar and true of Hispanics residing in the states who prefer to buy food brands from their countries of origin as well. This is a very important factor advertisers need to keep in mind, because they should look to the future of becoming globalized. By becoming globalized they can reach more consumers as well as build stronger perceptions.
ReplyDeleteThat spot right there is a perfect example of cultural exchange !!!!
ReplyDeleteyes, drinks do help, but as you I feel like eventhough we all have different backgrounds, in this position I understand that.
Politics, religion, social life and even liquor testting from around the globe is what has tought us about experiencing a random country.
Wally