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Read the travel blog for lutz 
The cultural lens
One thing that I always find interesting when I am out of my own element, is trying to be aware of how I am being perceived versus how I think I am being perceived. I guess that this really has two sides to it, as if you think about it you also have the reflection of this. Is how you are perceiving others, how they are perceiving themselves?
Spending time in another country is a great way to become more aware of this, as in hindsight you either realize that it wasn't how you thought it was, or someone makes you aware that what you thought wasn't really the deal at all. It seems like the further you step away from your own culture, the more extreme the differences are. Leaving the States and going to Australia most likely wont bring on the same drastic differences in perception that going to somewhere in Asia would. It can really be an interesting excersize of staying in that present moment, and really trying to be aware of that, and every second, that ticks by..
I notice examples of this almost every time I step foot in a tourist area in Thailand. I have spent a lot of time in the Kingdom, speak the language, have more Thai friends than non-Thai within the Kingdom, and think that I have a better grasp on the culture than most, however I'm sure that I still let plenty slip by unnoticed. In Thai culture, as in most Buddhist countries, being in control of your emotions is considered a sign of an aware and intelligent person. You can be book smart, but allowing your emotions to dictate your actions, and reactions, will reduce you to a child in most eyes. The corner stone to the religion, as the Monks try to teach, is awareness. Being aware of an emotion as it enters your thoughts, recognizing it as only being an emotion, and then calmly acting in a way that shows personal control is normally regarded as being "smarter" or more civilized than simply being book smart.
I can't even begin to think how many times I have noticed a difference of opinion between a Thai and a foreigner. Almost every time, as the foreigner voices their side, emotion creaps in and voices get louder, blood pressure rises, hands start to move around more in a whirlwind attempt to make their point. Most of the time, the Thai on the other hand is just calmly observing all of the emotion on display, as they sit there almost expressionless. The foreigner will normally take this as a sign of confusion, and assume that the Thai is just not getting it. At about this point in the interaction, what we have here are two people, looking at the other one like they are an idiot. The foreigner is looking at the Thai, assuming he just doesn't get whatever he is going on about. The Thai on the other hand, is just seeing lots and lots of unchecked emotion.
