Life is littered with awkward moments. Horrendous, traumatic, cringe-inducing moments that make you want to run headlong into a wall. But can we learn to embrace these moments when travelling?
Awkward turtle. Awkward giraffe. Awkward jetpack. ‘Awkward’ is a wonderful, beautiful word. Having taken on a sort of cult-like status in recent years, the word ‘awkward’ has become a shared celebration of conversations we thank God we aren’t involved in or badly-timed jokes that play out in slow motion before our eyes.
Cultural differences
British People Problems is an excellent example of this communal outpouring of awkward-ness.
The voice of a generation.
But is this phenomenon a singularly British experience? The word itself lacks an accurate translation into many languages – announcing ‘clumsy turtle’ to a room full of Russians just doesn’t carry the same weight. And it’s hard to imagine any self-respecting Dutch person being too afraid to ask who is last in the queue.
Regardless, many contributions are added by expats Brits living abroad, which made me think about awkward moments when travelling. Are they avoidable? Should we want to avoid them?
Awkward on the road
Of course, reading up on the culture of your chosen destination or having even a rudimentary grasp of the language will go far in helping you navigate the murky waters of social interaction. But there is something so perversely enjoyable about awkward moments abroad – it’s that feeling of having absolutely no obligation to know what you’re supposed to be doing. “How should I know? I’m not from round here.”
Don’t get me wrong – getting on the bus and not knowing where to stamp your ticket can feel absolutely mortifying, but after a while you just stop caring, and start feeling like an intrepid bus explorer.
Of course, there’s a very good reason for this – spending time abroad does have an effect on you. Clichés about broadening horizons aside, travelling does seem to put trivial social moments into perspective. And if you’re ever hoping to live abroad, or assimilate into a foreign culture, awkward moments need to be embraced, because there’ll be plenty of them.
And let’s not forget the fact that horrifically awkward moments make for undeniably hilarious stories, which is why I’ve shared some of my own personal moments of tortured agony here.
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