The case of three thank yous and a please

Scenario No. 1. A Malay boy slipped into a bookstore unnoticed. After a hurried rummage through the endless rows of reading material, he returned to the counter with a couple of revision books where a middle aged man greeted him with a smile and a thank you. The cashier quoted the price as the foreigner took out his Nike wallet and gave the man a few quids. "Thank you," said the cashier again. Several beeps from the cash machine later, he handed the boy some loose change and a third thank you was uttered as he beamed a wider smile instead of the usual good-bye.

Scenario No. 2. The Malay boy walked into a delicatessen one fine Saturday morning. "How can I help you, love?" the elderly lady behind the counter greeted her hungry teenage customer. The thought of calling someone you hardly ever met Love was still quite a strange concept to the boy even after a couple of months residing in this country. He asked for some jam doughnuts he knew would taste better than the ones sold elsewhere in packets of tens for 99p. "How many would you like, love?" she asked back, and the boy answered with a quick "Six". "Six, please," said the lady. Her reaction was met with a confused look on the boy's face, which was followed by a sheepish repetition of her exact words a split second later.

Lesson No. 1: Never underestimate thank yous - one is good enough but three is definitely memorable.
Lesson No. 2: Always end a request (in English) with a please, even if they don't teach you at (a Malaysian) school.

Unshockingly true, I had a bit of a culture shock when I first went to study in Wales and it's not all about 'sexual freedom'. We Malaysians always pride ourselves on being big on manners. Apparently my encounter of the Welsh kind made me think twice!

Jam doughnut - drool, drool, slurp..