I was born and nurtured through childhood in the beautiful city of Beirut, Lebanon. Yes! "Baladi Loubnan" which means "Lebanon is my country". The word "Loubnan" acquired from the Phoenician language, meaning "white mountain", stands for its mountains that are partly covered with snow. I have always enjoyed the life in Lebanon even though the economical and political situations haven't always been stable.
Being a person who enjoys summer the most out of all the seasons, I visited the islands of Seychelles in January since during that month in Lebanon, the weather is freezing cold . My vacation in the islands of Seychelles, located in the Indian Ocean, was characterized by majestic seascapes, turquoise waters and lots of tropical drinks by the beach.
Once there, I've noticed numerous similarities as well as differences between my home country's culture and Seychelles'.
Knowing that communication plays a vital role in our lives, there are many ways for people to interact with each other.
In this article, I'm going to study various ways of communication across the different cultures of two particular countries: Lebanon and the islands of Seychelles
Language
Language is the most important form of communication between individuals who practice it.
Language in Lebanon
In Lebanon, Arabic is the official national language. The majority of Lebanese speak Arabic and either French or English fluently.
Language in Seychelles
In the islands of Seychelles, the official languages are Seychelles Creole, which is a mix of French and English, and French and English.
Greetings
Greetings in Lebanon
The Lebanese people are known for their amazing messages of kindness, and hospitality. "Marhaba" they would say with a warm and welcoming smile. They also greet their close friends with three alternating cheek kisses and spend some time checking up on them and updating them about their life (health, family..).
Greetings in Seychelles
When Seychellois people meet, they shake hands. They are very friendly and helpful. They are good host, similar to the traits of the Lebanese community.In the image at the right, the person in middle is called Donny. He was in charge of making our trip special. He took us to spectacular beaches and recommended us to taste the best seafood in traditional restaurants and beaches.
Food
Food in Lebanon
Lebanon is known for its cuisine. The local dishes are some of the world's favorites. The Lebanese is known for its cuisine. The local dishes are some of the world's favorites. The Lebanese love a chick pea dip called "hummus" as well as a mix of fresh parsley and tomatoes that constitute a salad called "tabboule".
Food in Seychelles
Dishes in the islands of Seychelles are mainly made of curry, rice and coconut milk. Upper-class Creoles eat meals that consist of both fish ans meat.
A typical drink is palm wine.
We can see that the two countries are very different in various ways, from historical backgrounds to their current situation. Intercultural communication skills are the skills that are required to communicate, or share information, with people from other cultures and social groups.
To improve our intercultural communication skills, we have to be open-minded, we have to learn about them and their differences before meeting with them. Most importantly, you have to deal peacefully and respectfully with whatever culture is exposed to you. This last skill is key to become a leader in our world.
If each of us succeeds in developing the numerous intercultural communication skills, the benefits are spectacular and make our life so much easier. First of all, an individual who has developed strong intercultural communication skills, interacts way better with other people and gets way more opportunities in the job sector.
One can argue that a person with those brilliant skills can easily cooperate with people since they have a higher tolerance level, better communication skills and a more positive attitude towards both the people and the work.
The fact that there are many differences in cultures as we saw with the Lebanon/Seychelles comparison, creates obstacles and impedes intercultural communication. For example, language might play a role in hindering communication, or even stereotypes can affect someone's point of view makes them more bias to the situation at hand.
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