Using a HSBC poll, the World Economic Forum have recently published a report in which they list the least friendly countries from around the globe. According to a section of the report which talks about the “attitude of the population toward foreign visitors,” the countries are listed in the following order, number 1 representing the “least friendly”:
- 10. Mongolia
- 9. Bulgaria
- 8. Slovakia
- 7. Pakistan
- 6. Iran
- 5. Latvia
- 4. Kuwait
- 3. Russia
- 2. Venezuela
- 1. Bolivia
Friendliness clearly comes down to a subjective opinion, but this report and the ranking of countries in such a way could potentially be very damaging. What exactly was this report based on? Stories from travellers who have actually visited all of these countries and met enough people to compare each destination and then make such a bold judgement? Cultural differences can often mean that the population conduct themselves in a more reserved manner than the home country of the tourists – could it be that this reservedness or different customary behaviour was misconstrued as being unfriendly? Language barriers can also make some situations seem less “friendly.” As anyone who speaks a foreign language knows, it can be difficult to word things in a tactful, embellished way – the way we do in our mother tongue. It’s also interesting to think about Great Britain as a tourist destination – It’s highly unlikely that Iranian tourists are greeted in Persian when they arrive at their hotel or that London cab drivers usually have a working knowledge of Kuwaiti Arabic – does that mean we could be perceived as unfriendly?
If people took notice of such an ignorant listing, the reputations of these countries could suffer undeservedly. It’s all a question of respect – just because things aren’t done in the same way as at home, it doesn’t necessarily mean you are being treated in an unfriendly way. If everything was the same everywhere you went, what would be the point in travelling anyway? If you can’t accept that, maybe you should forget travelling and stay at home.