CHAPTER TWO - Cultural awareness  

When you arrive in a new country, it is not just very handy for yourself, it is also a question of cultural respect, openess and interest, if you learn bits and pieces of the local language. At least that's my point of view ... and by the way learning especially south asian languages with a german tongue is kind of fun, too. For both sides. 

But apart from the fun learning a new language, there are everytime some cultural faux paux that you just can't have any idea off. In one of my first weeks in Sri Lanka I've got taught how to say 'Thank you'. Naa, that's not kind of right. I asked, how to say 'thank you' in return, when you receive stuff. I've got taught 'estuti'.

Weeks later and with a change of location, I've got irritated. Every time, when I said 'estuti' I've got an excusing smile. Something wasn't quite right here. I asked my land lord, a burgher lady, who grew up in Sri Lanka, and she finally unrevealed the mistery of 'estuti'.

'Estuti' is one of the old remnants of Sri Lankans colonial heritage. During the time of the British settlement the singhalese language that got thaught to the European settlers, was a highly formal language. Most of those words havn't even been spoken in daily conversations. One of those remnants is 'estuti'. If you use 'estuti' in our days as a gesture of action, when you receive something, than the Singhalese people take your try of being polite as an offence. With thanking them in the way you do, e.g. 'estuti' you actually take their 'goodness' out of their action.

Be polite and say 'ping' instead.