The Cultural Faux Pas

A miscue on an uncrowded bus.

The Robersons hadn’t been in country long when they noticed wrestlers, the really large people in a land of not-so-large people. As a national sport in Mongolia, wrestling is where the large people excelled. Pinning an opponent was not the objective in Mongolian wrestling, bringing the opponent to one knee was. The task sounds easier than it looks, especially given there were no weight classes.

So, when thousands wrestled during the three days of national games in June, the single elimination competition always funneled down to the two heaviest men. If they locked heads for an hour while thousands watched and cheered in the Stadium, the wrestlers were considered evenly matched.

Mitch Roberson took the late night bus home to his apartment, something he wished he had a car for. No cabs ran that late at night. He and one other person were on the bus, a wrestler.

At night and on unfamiliar roads, Mitch got disoriented and had a hard time deciphering where he was. He stood on the moving bus, straining to see outside, hoping to see something he recognized. The driver took a corner quickly, which forced Mitch to stumble to the front of the bus where the wrestler was seated. Even the wrestler was jostled by the driver’s careless driving.

Mitch stepped on the man’s foot and immediately Mitch offered his hand.

Mongolian culture dictated that if you stepped on someone’s foot, you immediately offered a hand to show it wasn’t intentional and you’re sorry it happened. On crowded buses, this was an important gesture because you were always stepping on feet.

On an empty bus, however, what really were the odds this would happen?

The wrestler stood and he was easily 6’6” at 350 pounds. He shook Mitch’s hand as the bus slowed to its next stop.

When the wrestler stepped off the bus, he looked back at his foreign friend, smiled, and shook his head.

What were the odds indeed?

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