When my nephew was very young he once asked me why it was important to “be polite” and to say “please” and “thank you”. I explained to him that among its other virtues, “politeness is the lubricant” that lets people interact smoothly and with less friction. Politeness, I told him helped make things function “more easily and more efficiently”.
That was before I came to Uruguay. I submit the following call transcript for your consideration…
Caller: Good morning, how are you today?
Answer: Very well, and you?
Caller: Great! It really is a wonderful day isn’t it?
Answer: Yes, and not nearly as hot as yesterday.
Caller: You are right! I think I will go for a walk on the Rambla.
Answer: Good idea. I did that on my way in to work instead of taking the bus.
Caller: Do you know what the weather is supposed to be like this weekend? I am thinking of taking the family to Rocha.
Answer: Three of the four weather reports say it is supposed to be sunny and hot–only one is predicting partly cloudy.
Caller: Thank you, that eases my mind. Now, if it is not too much trouble could you please give me the telephone number for the Sheraton Hotel in Punta Carretas?
Answer: The number is 710-2121, and thank you for using Antel.
Can you imagine how long it would have taken if the call were about something really important like what time they were going to meet for dinner? Being a Southron, and therefore innately more polite than my northern cousins, I suspect that the requisite polite exchanges sit more easily with me than someone from Manhattan or Boston. But at times, I must admit that it even frustrates me.
What I really worry about is calling 911 and saying, “operator, I have an emergency,” and then hearing the voice at the other end say, “Wasn’t today just lovely, I went to the beach, what did you do?”…
Heh. That’s one of the things I love the most about Uruguay, everyone has time to chat and notices you’re a person and treats you as such. I’ll definitely take the polite chit-chat over some of the personality-lacking drones I’ve spoken to at other companies :)
Left by marcus on February 4th, 2007