How to Be a Good House Guest in a Foreign Country

Sometimes it is hard enough being a good house guest while in your own country, but being a good house guest in a foreign country is one of the biggest challenges you could ever face. You have to be able to follow their culture rules and their own personal family lifestyle. This can be either a good experience for both you and the host or a very bad experience.

While you cannot control the host's attitude and the way they treat you while staying with them, you can do your best to be a great guest. If you have a bad attitude toward them and their differences, they will never be very accepting of you and your differences. Always allow yourself to be willing to morph to their lifestyle while you are with them. Things will go much smoother this way.

Before you become a foreign guest in someone's home, it is best to learn about the culture before you go. Learn what is appropriate and inappropriate to do. What is okay where you are may be frowned upon in the country you will be staying at.

Learn of the type of gifts are most accepted in the country you will be visiting. Maybe the country you are visiting is more welcoming of some kind of food gift. Maybe the country you are visiting enjoys a certain plant or something. It is best to read up on gif-giving customs before going so you are prepared.

Another thing you need to take in consideration is how long you should stay in your host's home. In some cultures it is required to be polite and ask you to stay longer, but it is best to limit your stay to a couple days. And do not keep extending your stay when you have given the host a day when you will be gone!

Try to follow lifestyle rituals. Go to sleep when the family goes to sleep. Eat when the family eats. Eat what the family eats. Get up when the family gets up. Clean up after yourself. Keep yourself neat and tidy. If the family does not wear shoes inside the house, neither do you. Do as they do.

Make sure to offer to pay for gifts and household items such as groceries. Your host may turn down your offer numerous times before accepting, but make it known that you want to help in this way. You can also bring items with you such as tea, coffee, spices, etc that you can leave behind for your host family to enjoy when you are gone.

You can take plenty of pictures of you with your host family and sights while you are staying with them. When you get home, you can have those pictures developed and make a photo album for the host family. Send the album to them and a personal letter telling them how much you enjoyed their country and staying with them. Make sure you do not just leave them empty.

Little things do matter. Do whatever you can do to make it easy on your host family and try not to be a burden on them. Show them that you are very grateful for them allowing you to stay in their home.