Completar frases Peaches and coconutsVersión en línea Read the text and complete it with the words: por casha yurchyk 1 offended it talk hit off put my in small foot awkward it appropriate enthusiastically It was my first dinner party in France and I was keen to make a good impression on the host couple . All was going well until I asked : " How did the two of you meet ? " There was an silence , and my ( French ) husband shot me a look of horror . Asking A French stranger that question , he later explained , is ? like asking them the colour of their underpants' . I had completely . But I'd learnt an important lesson about what questions are or aren't to ask someone from another culture . The mistake I'd made was a classic example of what is know as ? peach and coconut' divide . This theory , popularized by culture expert Fons Trompenaars , suggests that the world is divided into ? peach' and ? coconut' cultures . Peach cultures , such North Americans and Brazilians , are' soft on the outside : they smile at strangers , share information about themselves , and ask personal questions of those they hardly know . But after a while , you may hit the ? hard stone' in the middle when the peach is suddenly is not willing to share any more . Coconuts , on the other hand , such as Russians and Germans , have ? a hard shell' . They rarely smile at strangers , and generally listen and talk less than peaches . Once you get past the shell , however , coconuts gradually become warmer and friendlier . Relationships are built up slowly , but tend to last longer . An example of a misunderstanding between a peach and a coconut happened when a Russian colleague of mine sat next to an American stranger on a flight to New York . The American gave very personal information about himself , including information about his relationship with his wife . In turn , my Russian colleague shared his personal story , thinking he had really with this guy and made a new friend . After all , their conversation had been more than . He felt quite when , at the end of the flight , as he was preparing to swap phone numbers , the American just stood up and with a wave of his hand said : ? Have a great trip ! " .
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