{"id":30637,"date":"2021-12-20T20:21:45","date_gmt":"2021-12-20T20:21:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mircorp.com\/?p=30637"},"modified":"2021-12-20T20:21:47","modified_gmt":"2021-12-20T20:21:47","slug":"good-manners-in-central-asia-at-the-table","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mircorp.com\/good-manners-in-central-asia-at-the-table\/","title":{"rendered":"Good Manners in Central Asia: At the Table"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Here
Here Jake and his wife dine with his host family in Tashkent, Uzbekistan; notice that neither one sat at the head of the table. Photo credit: Jake Smith<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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MIR\u2019s Jake Smith<\/em><\/a> has lived and worked in several <\/em>Central Asian<\/em><\/a> countries, observing \u2013 and learning by experience \u2013 the art of what can be complex and confounding good manners in this part of the world. Here Jake offers his \u201cbest behavior at the table\u201d tips in two of his favorite countries: <\/em>Uzbekistan<\/em><\/a> and <\/em>Tajikistan<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"Jake
Jake Smith lived in Central Asia for several years, learning local good manners through trial and error.\nPhoto credit: Jake Smith\n<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Know Your Place<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Around a dinner table the seat of honor is always the head of the table opposite to and furthest from the entrance. This seat is typically reserved for the oldest person present, or for special guests. Others sit in descending order of importance or age. Women may sit in a separate room, though that is becoming less common. You should not start eating until the person in the seat of honor has started, generally after saying grace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whenever visiting friends or going out to a restaurant in Tajikistan or Uzbekistan, there would inevitably be a short period of awkwardness before the meal where hosts and invitees alike would debate over who should sit where, with everyone being as polite as possible by trying to bestow the honor of head-of-the-table on another. I quickly learned to ignore the commands instructing me, as a foreign guest, to take the honored spot. As a younger person, my place was further down the ranks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"None
None of these good-mannered MIR travelers grabbed the \u201chead of the table\u201d spot in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.\nPhoto credit: Lindsay Fincher\n<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Bread Is Sacred<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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If you are served traditional naan flatbread in Uzbekistan or Tajikistan, make sure that you keep your piece right side up. Turning the bread upside down is viewed as disrespect towards a staple of the local cuisine. If a local finds a piece of bread on the street he or she will often pick it up, kiss it and touch it to his or her forehead three times, and then place it up high on a ledge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before this rule was thoroughly explained to me, and even after, when I was being forgetful, my host-mother in Tashkent had a penchant for lightly smacking the back of my hand whenever I left my bread the wrong side up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"Many
Many Central Asian breads have a distinctive \u201ctop\u201d side, stamped with decorative designs.\nPhoto credit: Devin Connolly\n<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Tea Is a Ritual<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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If a fresh pot of tea is set down next to you, you can\u2019t just pour yourself a cup and then pass it down. You are first expected to help the tea cool and steep by pouring some into your cup and then back into the teapot three times successively. You then serve the others, from oldest to youngest, putting your left hand over your heart while extending the cups. Only then can you pour your own drink.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The amount of tea you serve someone also has meaning. A full, brimming cup is a sign that the recipient may have overstayed his or her welcome, whereas a very small pour is an indication of respect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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