- Hind and Mckenna
Monday, May 6, 2019
Blog 5 Hind and Mckenna
Time for us depends on the situations that we are in. For an interview or something important we are on time and are annoyed if others are not. But, in casual social event like shopping or going out to eat, we are quite careless with time and don’t mind being a couple minutes late. Being on time is over all important for us but majority of the time we are not there exactly on time for everything. Here in Europe what we have found is that you have to be at a place at the EXACT time indicated. For example in Hungary when we did the parliament tour they would not let us start entering at 2:56pm even though our tickets indicated we start at 3:00pm. At 3, they started letting us in, we found it quite crazy that we could not enter 4 minutes earlier. Usually arriving early and being ready is a positive thing in Canada but here it is irrelevant as long as you arrive on time. There is no exceptions for being late, it is considered your problem and the tour or whatever is going on that day will start/leave without you. In Austria as well if we had a dinner reservation you were meant to arrive at that exact moment indicated on your reservation. Canadians also seem more selfish with their time. They will go out for a couple hours a couple times a month and that is about it. We have such hectic lifestyles it is difficult to dedicate our little free time to a 4 hour meal at a restaurant. In Central Europe they seem very generous with their time. They will go out every day for something as simple as coffee or a meal and stay for 4 hours and that is perfectly normal. Every dinner we had in Austria took around 3-3 1/2 hours to complete. We personally do not like that. We don’t like being rushed but we also don’t like wasting major parts of my day sitting at a restaurant. If you want quick food in Central Europe your best bet is Burger King or McDonald’s. Time for us is special and the little free time we have we dedicate to what we believe it should be dedicated too. Time in Central Europe is liberal and should be spent on simple things. Do you like spending 3 hours plus in a restaurant or is 2 hours the maximum amount of time you’d spend? Why?
- Hind and Mckenna
- Hind and Mckenna
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Normally, we would not enjoy sitting in a restaurant for longer than two hours. During our many dining experiences in Central Europe, longer waiting times have formed part of the typical experience and would be enough to make most western patrons irritable. Another major difference we noticed related to time orientation when paying the bill. In Edmonton, the local convention when customers ask for the bill would involve an immediate response from the server although European servers assume that some time within the next thirty minutes would be fine. During our visit to the Café Central in Vienna we were surprised by the overall duration of the dining experience and the time investment required to pay. Considering, the competitive nature of the ensuing scavenger hunt, we experienced some anxiety knowing how much time was lost during the dining excursion. However, we have adjusted to this process throughout the trip and wonder how this will influence our dining experience back in Canada.
ReplyDeleteAnother difference in time orientation between cultures that surprised us related to the length of time people were willing to stand in line for specific restaurants. In Canada when customers experience long wait times for access to restaurants they simply go somewhere else unless it relates to a special occasion. However, when in Austria, we patiently waited in line for nearly thirty-minutes and were the only ones noticeably agitated by the wait time. Basically, we prefer prompt service because it allows for greater productivity throughout the day. Conversely speaking, when attending restaurants where fine dining, spectacular views, and relaxation are expected, such as at the Donatrum Tower in Vienna, reservations and longer waiting times are considered acceptable. However, three hours is considered too long regardless of the dining experience or social context. Another point mentioned within the blog referred to the Canadian preference for timeliness and punctuality with respect to appointments and we strongly agreed with that point although we may discuss that in another future blog response.
Cassidy and John.