Phrase: “lime”- to hang out

Example: “When we liming?” means “when are we hanging out?”

Steups- noisily and disrespectfully sucking your teeth

You do this when you’re annoyed/ upset. The longer and louder the "steups" is, denotes the severity of annoyance or frustration.

Thanksgiving/ Prayers - Religious people (mainly christians and hindus) have this to celebrate achievements. Most commonly, people have thanksgivings for birthdays, job promotions, building a new house or if they just feel like giving thanks. They would invite friends and family over, have a short service and then eat. The food often referred to as “prayers food” would usually consist of roti, anchar, curry goat, stew chicken and pumpkin. In Hindu prayers it is sometimes served on a huge banana leaf.

Trinidadians are always late

If an event is supposed to start at 6pm, 95% of the time it will start at 6:30pm. I’m a pretty on time person so I feel like I don’t fit under this.

Trinis are always ready to party

This is very true and “fetes” (huge outdoor parties) are thrown very often. It is not like American parties with Taylor Swift or Drake playing in the background and people trying out trendy dance moves. Fetes are a lot more intense, very physical with vulgar music and a lot of alcohol. That being said, I’ve never been to a fete.

That we go to the beach everyday or every week

I live in South Trinidad and the prettier beaches are up North or in Tobago. I go to the beach like twice a year, although the closest one is like 20 minutes from my home.

Families are huge

Long ago, it was common to have like 8 or more kids but in my generation, most families are a lot smaller. I have one sister.

When we say hi to each other, we say ‘You alright’? Its just a common way of saying hello and not a deep question, yet when I’ve said it in America I get some weird

If you do a peace sign (v) with your palm facing you, it is considered vulgar as it means that you’re flipping someone off.

A common social gathering is someone’s birthday. Often we will have a big meal with close family and then a party afterwards with lots of friends

A stereotype is that British people are rude. This is not true especially for me, but if we don’t agree with something or think somethings off we will be very truthful even if it comes off as rude. Americans often joke about British people having bad teeth, however this is not really true among younger people, I had braces for 3 years and my teeth are good. A lot of people think that English people can only speak English, however I am partly fluent in French.

“Se puso la 10” (He wears the 10^th) we say this when someone is doing something good for a group, like cooking something really good in a meeting, paying for his friends, etc.…

“Dale!” (okey! hurry up! Common on!) as you see, it has many different meanings, that is the reason why we say this word all the time!

“Boludo” this word also has many different meanings, sometimes you use it to catch your friend’s attention, other time to emphasize that someone messed something up) we – adolescents – say this word all the time!

“¡Qué quilombo!” (this is a mess!)

“Que rata que sos” (you are a rat) We use this phrase when someone doesn’t want to spend money at all

“Haceme la segunda” and “Que ortiva”

We are really affectionate. In addition, every time we see a friend or we meet a new person we kiss their check. Another nonverbal example, comparing to United States’ culture, when you offer something (food for example) to people, and they say “No, thank you,” you should ask them again and insist because they might want it, but they feel embarrassed to say yes. (So if you talk with an Argentinian, believe their expressions more than their words!)

The most common social gathering is when we share and drink mate in a group (2 people or more). Everywhere you go in Argentina, there will always be people carrying their mate to share with the rest of the group.

少壮不努力，老大徒伤悲//

If you don’t study hard at a young age, you’ll be crying in your old age

We do handshakes, not hugs! People in my culture do not like to touch intimately, it is more common in just a friendly way. The most common love language, is acts of service. The most common act of service is a parent cutting fruit for you, they never say “love you”/“sorry”/“thank you”, they just bring you fruit or your favorite food.

Some of the most common festivities are family gatherings like one of the largest being Chinese New Year, and we eat a lot! For birthdays, we also feast and we eat noodles. For weddings and even funerals, we also eat. I am unsure of the exact reason, but it’s just symbolic in our culture.

One of the most common stereotypes that I do not fit under is the academic expectations. I am not good at math, I don’t have a 4.0, and I can’t get into Harvard. In other words, I am not at the level of intelligence most people expect.

“Eh, kita makan apa nih?” Which is using a lot of slang term to say “hey what are we eating?” Us Indonesians are very keen on food.

We only receive things, give things, or shake someone’s hand with our right hand, never using our left hand for any of those actions.

Ramadhan is a huge holiday that includes social gathering, where extended families come together to eat food and spend family time. It’s a Muslim holiday, where the younger children receive something money from married couples, a tradition also found in Chinese culture.

I do not practice Islam, which is the largest religion in the country, with over 85% being Muslim. Another stereotype that is made about Indonesia, that I do not fall under, is that us Indonesians live in villages and we are uncivilized and are not as advanced as other countries. I grew up in a nice suburban town, near a city of 7 million people, with the greatest number of malls in the world in one city.

“Haba na haba hujaza kibaba – Little by Little fills up the measure.”

When elders walk in the room the younger must stand to greet them then if it calls for give up your seat. When giving an older person a handshake place your left arm over your right to show them that you honor them; must do this always.

Any gathering is a social gathering; Kenyans love any reason to have a good time. But one that happens occasionally is the gatherings after church. The women of the church would make food and those who would like to join are invited to sit and have a meal. One thing that you will hear is laughter, stories, and deep conversations about God’s Word. The ladies will sit together, then the men on the other side followed by the younger people in a place where they can make noise. It is not surprising to hear singing or music, it is the reason Kenyans are the happiest people you will ever meet. Although, our weddings are a big social gathering that bring all generations together.

People from the same tribes should marry each other. The bigger and curvier a woman is the more beautiful she is. Removing your shoes before entering a home is respectful. Never calling someone older than you by their first name.

“I reckon”

“I’m sweating like a sinner in church”

“If it had been snake it would have bitten me"

Death stare

Pulling a wooden spoon out of a purse

Eye roll

College Football Saturdays, we watch football and eat a lot.

A common stereotype is the idea of a Southern Hillbilly/Redneck who loves hunting, fishing, wearing camo clothes, only listens to country music, is not super intelligent, and has a thick Southern drawl. Personally, I do not really fall under this stereotype. Granted, I can have a Southern accent at times, I occasionally enjoy fishing, and I can also enjoy country music; however, overall I don’t hunt, I don’t think I own a piece of camouflage clothing, and I am fairly intelligent.