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Cultural Etiquette
Dos and Taboos in Social Settings
Generally, the East Timorese people are known to be friendly and hospitable to visitors, typically offering food, drinks and other refreshments to guests. In this poor country, such generosity should be graciously accepted; failing to partake of offered food and drink would be viewed as impolite and ungrateful.
If you are invited to an East Timorese home, taking a small gift is good practice. A souvenir from one's home country would be most appropriate.
Visitors can take photographs of locals, however, it is polite to ask before acting upon impulse. Greetings
Greetings in East Timor are relatively Westernized. One should shake hands with people upon meeting for the first time and again upon each subsequent meeting. Women may "cheek kiss" although this must be done European-style on both sides of the face.
Typical verbal greetings are as follows:
Good morning is Bondia; Good Evening is Botarde; Good Night is Bonoite. Goodbye is Adeus; How are you? is Di'ak ka lae? and Thank you is Ha'u di'ak.
Dress
East Timor is a conservative country where visitors should show modesty in their dress despite the warm temperatures in certain regions. Most important is the practice of being well dressed and clothed conservatively when visiting churches. Outside of church, the equivalent practice of dressing modestly should be maintained. Shorts on men and revealing dresses on women are simply not acceptable. Swimwear should be worn only at the beach. People should also try to appear clean and well-groomed. Although the people of this country are not wealthy, cleanliness as well as neat and tidy self-presentation are the norm.
Supplementary sources: The Maubere Culture -- http://www.uc.pt/timor/culture.html; Solidamor -- http://www.solidamor.org, East Timor, the Nation -- http://www.sjc.uq.edu.au/projects/East Timor project/nation; Timor Today -- <http://www.timoraid.org/timortoday>.
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