Household Habits and Customs to Borrow From Other Countries
Discover why salt is the perfect house-warming gift, how to clean rugs in the snow, and why you should invest in a pair of 'toilet slippers'
One of the best things about travelling to foreign lands is learning about cultures different to your own. But unless you step inside a local’s house while you’re there, getting a true picture about how people live can remain elusive. Until now. Journey with us to Japan, Russia, Bali and beyond as we explore surprising, intriguing or just downright sensible household habits. You might find yourself adopting one or two of them at your house.
Gift giving
Global customs vary widely when it comes to visitors taking homeowners a gift. One German Houzzer explains it’s traditional to give a small cup of salt and a loaf of bread as a present to someone who’s moved into a new home. Salt and bread are considered staples that symbolise lifelong prosperity.
In Russia, bread and salt are given by the groom’s parents to their son and his bride during the wedding ceremony as a way of wishing the young couple wellbeing, prosperity and hospitality. One of the Russian words for “hospitable”, khlebosolny, translates literally as “bread-salty”.
Meanwhile, a user in Japan advises against arriving empty-handed when you go to someone’s home for dinner. Just don’t expect your hosts to open the gift in front of you: The Japanese take as much joy in the wrapping as they do in the gift, after all.
Giving the wrong gift can be as insulting as not bringing one at all in some countries. I’ve heard that in China, some people warn against bringing your dinner hosts flowers, as they are associated with death and funerals.
In Afghanistan, it’s customary to bring nicely wrapped fruit, sweets or pastries when invited to someone’s home for dinner, but it’s important to leave the gift discreetly by the door or eating area rather than handing it directly to your host.
TIP: Always check which hand is appropriate to eat with. For example, in some countries, it’s customary to use your right hand to eat; your left is reserved for business in the bathroom.
Global customs vary widely when it comes to visitors taking homeowners a gift. One German Houzzer explains it’s traditional to give a small cup of salt and a loaf of bread as a present to someone who’s moved into a new home. Salt and bread are considered staples that symbolise lifelong prosperity.
In Russia, bread and salt are given by the groom’s parents to their son and his bride during the wedding ceremony as a way of wishing the young couple wellbeing, prosperity and hospitality. One of the Russian words for “hospitable”, khlebosolny, translates literally as “bread-salty”.
Meanwhile, a user in Japan advises against arriving empty-handed when you go to someone’s home for dinner. Just don’t expect your hosts to open the gift in front of you: The Japanese take as much joy in the wrapping as they do in the gift, after all.
Giving the wrong gift can be as insulting as not bringing one at all in some countries. I’ve heard that in China, some people warn against bringing your dinner hosts flowers, as they are associated with death and funerals.
In Afghanistan, it’s customary to bring nicely wrapped fruit, sweets or pastries when invited to someone’s home for dinner, but it’s important to leave the gift discreetly by the door or eating area rather than handing it directly to your host.
TIP: Always check which hand is appropriate to eat with. For example, in some countries, it’s customary to use your right hand to eat; your left is reserved for business in the bathroom.
Household cleaning
In Russia, giving the rugs a good cleaning outdoors is a custom worth adopting if you live in a place where it snows. “It was so much fun to clean the carpets in the snow in the courtyard before the New Year’s celebrations,” says Houzzer Olga Odintsova. “The children would run around on the spread-out carpets and shovel fluffy snow onto them. Then they would pick up their brooms and beaters and sweep away the year-old dust along with the snow. It was such fun! The air in the household would be fresh and clean in the New Year.”
Houzzer Natalya Popova agrees. “I remember how fresh the house would feel after [the rugs] had all been beaten out in the snow. The small children absolutely loved to play around on the carpets outdoors.”
The days leading up to New Year’s Eve are a good time to give your home a thorough cleaning in many Asian countries. As well as beginning the year with a sparkling abode, the idea is to rid your home of bad energy. Cleaning at the beginning of a new year is a no-no — it’s thought to sweep away the fresh, positive energy flowing into your home.
Cleanliness takes top priority in many homes around the world all year round. A friend of mine who lives in Malaysia pointed out to me once that he sweeps and mops the kitchen floor as part of the clean-up routine after dinner each evening to ensure that the area is pristine for the next day.
In Russia, giving the rugs a good cleaning outdoors is a custom worth adopting if you live in a place where it snows. “It was so much fun to clean the carpets in the snow in the courtyard before the New Year’s celebrations,” says Houzzer Olga Odintsova. “The children would run around on the spread-out carpets and shovel fluffy snow onto them. Then they would pick up their brooms and beaters and sweep away the year-old dust along with the snow. It was such fun! The air in the household would be fresh and clean in the New Year.”
Houzzer Natalya Popova agrees. “I remember how fresh the house would feel after [the rugs] had all been beaten out in the snow. The small children absolutely loved to play around on the carpets outdoors.”
The days leading up to New Year’s Eve are a good time to give your home a thorough cleaning in many Asian countries. As well as beginning the year with a sparkling abode, the idea is to rid your home of bad energy. Cleaning at the beginning of a new year is a no-no — it’s thought to sweep away the fresh, positive energy flowing into your home.
Cleanliness takes top priority in many homes around the world all year round. A friend of mine who lives in Malaysia pointed out to me once that he sweeps and mops the kitchen floor as part of the clean-up routine after dinner each evening to ensure that the area is pristine for the next day.
Daytime sleeping habits
It isn’t just the Spanish who embrace the daytime siesta. People in parts of Mexico, Italy, the Philippines and other countries also enjoy an afternoon rest to escape the heat, particularly when they’ve just indulged in a filling family lunch.
“Yes! The siesta! It is sacred,” says Elena Kindtner, a Houzzer living in Spain. “Everyone works in two shifts: from early morning until 1:30pm, and then in the evening from 5pm and on. From 3pm until 4:30pm or 5pm is siesta time (sometimes even longer in the summer heat).”
In China, workers typically toil for such long hours that taking a nap during the day makes serious sense – 60-hour-plus working weeks are commonplace. It’s often thought that when someone falls asleep during the day, it’s a sign that they work very hard – something to be admired in Chinese society.
The Japanese, too, engage in inemuri (napping on the job) when fatigue sets in. Far from a sign of laziness, workplace napping shows how exhausted a person is from working so hard.
Whether you work from home, or can find a spot for a snooze at work, now you have the perfect excuse to have a siesta. Plus, research also shows that a quick nap increases brain function and productivity.
FUN FACT: Leonardo da Vinci would sleep for 15 minutes every four working hours. Napoleon, Margaret Thatcher and John F. Kennedy were also fond of naps.
It isn’t just the Spanish who embrace the daytime siesta. People in parts of Mexico, Italy, the Philippines and other countries also enjoy an afternoon rest to escape the heat, particularly when they’ve just indulged in a filling family lunch.
“Yes! The siesta! It is sacred,” says Elena Kindtner, a Houzzer living in Spain. “Everyone works in two shifts: from early morning until 1:30pm, and then in the evening from 5pm and on. From 3pm until 4:30pm or 5pm is siesta time (sometimes even longer in the summer heat).”
In China, workers typically toil for such long hours that taking a nap during the day makes serious sense – 60-hour-plus working weeks are commonplace. It’s often thought that when someone falls asleep during the day, it’s a sign that they work very hard – something to be admired in Chinese society.
The Japanese, too, engage in inemuri (napping on the job) when fatigue sets in. Far from a sign of laziness, workplace napping shows how exhausted a person is from working so hard.
Whether you work from home, or can find a spot for a snooze at work, now you have the perfect excuse to have a siesta. Plus, research also shows that a quick nap increases brain function and productivity.
FUN FACT: Leonardo da Vinci would sleep for 15 minutes every four working hours. Napoleon, Margaret Thatcher and John F. Kennedy were also fond of naps.
Clothing customs
Where we live determines many of our household habits, not least how we treat our clothes and shoes. Some Houzzers advised us that in Australia, a country where numerous species of venomous snakes and spiders reside, shaking out your boots and shoes before putting them on is a smart idea. In remote parts of Australia, people also make it a habit to shake out their clothes before putting them on to make sure there are no creepy-crawly surprises hiding inside.
Curiously, habits we take for granted can be considered unusual in other parts of the world. Australians tend to hang their clothes outside on the line to dry, for example, but it’s a custom considered unusual in many other countries, where hanging clothes in a drying cupboard or spinning them in a dryer is the norm.
The more humid a location, the more prone clothes and shoes are to mould and mustiness. In Bali, for example, washing can take several days to dry. Clothes are then hung in well-ventilated closets and liberally scented to disguise the smell of damp fabric.
Scents of all kinds are encouraged in Bali for another reason – evil spirits are said to be scared of strong fragrances. “Household routines focus on keeping the spirits happy,” says Elina Gordeeva, a Houzzer in Indonesia. “If you displease the spirits, you should expect trouble. This is why the Balinese never dry their laundry higher than head-height or on the second floor. It’s also considered a major sin and an insult to the spirits to hang your underwear or swimsuits up on display.”
IT’S YOUR TURN
Tell us about some other household habits that have surprised you in other countries! Share your experiences in the comments section below.
Where we live determines many of our household habits, not least how we treat our clothes and shoes. Some Houzzers advised us that in Australia, a country where numerous species of venomous snakes and spiders reside, shaking out your boots and shoes before putting them on is a smart idea. In remote parts of Australia, people also make it a habit to shake out their clothes before putting them on to make sure there are no creepy-crawly surprises hiding inside.
Curiously, habits we take for granted can be considered unusual in other parts of the world. Australians tend to hang their clothes outside on the line to dry, for example, but it’s a custom considered unusual in many other countries, where hanging clothes in a drying cupboard or spinning them in a dryer is the norm.
The more humid a location, the more prone clothes and shoes are to mould and mustiness. In Bali, for example, washing can take several days to dry. Clothes are then hung in well-ventilated closets and liberally scented to disguise the smell of damp fabric.
Scents of all kinds are encouraged in Bali for another reason – evil spirits are said to be scared of strong fragrances. “Household routines focus on keeping the spirits happy,” says Elina Gordeeva, a Houzzer in Indonesia. “If you displease the spirits, you should expect trouble. This is why the Balinese never dry their laundry higher than head-height or on the second floor. It’s also considered a major sin and an insult to the spirits to hang your underwear or swimsuits up on display.”
IT’S YOUR TURN
Tell us about some other household habits that have surprised you in other countries! Share your experiences in the comments section below.
If you tend to unlock the front door and stroll inside without thinking twice about it when you get home, take a moment to consider another way. In many countries, removing your shoes before entering the house is expected. But why stop there?
One Houzzer tells us that in Japan, it’s customary to offer guests a pair of slippers at the front door once they’ve removed their shoes. “To enter a Japanese house with street shoes on is unthinkable,” says Anna Semida, who discovered this custom when she was studying in Tokyo for some years.
Don’t be surprised when you see some extra pairs of slippers or rubber thongs (also known as flip-flops) by the bathroom door, either. When anyone goes to the toilet in a Japanese home, they’re expected to remove their house slippers and put on a special pair of “toilet slippers“ instead. “All for the sake of cleanliness,” says Semida. This custom stems from a time when squat toilets were common in family homes – it was a simple matter of hygiene. An added bonus of such a custom is that house slippers sitting beside the bathroom door make it obvious to everyone that the room is occupied!
In Thailand, homeowners don’t just remove their shoes, they wash their feet the minute they get home. And why not? Your house will be cleaner, and you’ll feel instantly refreshed.