Three international students

Scene: Three international students — Maria 🇮🇹, Hannah 🇩🇪, and Anya 🇷🇺 — are sitting in the university cafeteria after a joint seminar on intercultural communication. They’re sipping coffee and laughing about social norms in their home countries.

Maria:So… tell me girls, how do people actually talk in youth groups in your countries? Because in Italy, we basically speak like we’re in an opera. Loud, dramatic, hands everywhere. You sneeze? Someone will write poetry about it.

Anya:Haha, in Russia, if someone sneezes, we just grunt and say «будь здоров». No drama. No opera. Just survival.

Hannah:In Germany, if someone sneezes, we say „Gesundheit!“, very politely. But no emotions, please. Save that for… never. 😅

Maria:Ohhh, come on, davvero? Even in friend groups?

Hannah:Well… okay, maybe a bit. But still structured. Like, we don’t interrupt each other. Every person waits their turn. It’s like social chess. One move at a time.

Anya:Wow, must be peaceful. In Russia, if you wait your turn, conversation ends before you begin. You just jump in like «а я говорю!» — boom, your turn.

Maria:Haha yes! Same in Italy! We interrupt because we care. If someone doesn’t interrupt you, it means they’re bored or dying. 😄

Hannah:„Unhöflich!“ In Germany, we call that rude! Like, really rude. If someone cuts you off mid-sentence, it's like stealing someone’s bread.

Anya:красть хлеб – у нас это нормально, if you bring vodka and a good story.

Maria:Wait, wait. Do you actually bring vodka to hangouts?

Anya:Not always. Sometimes tea. But strong. Like philosophy-tea. You drink and discuss Dostoevsky’s pain at 3am.

Maria:Oh my God. In Italy, 3am is for gelato and complaining about love. We say “che disastro!” like twenty times in one night.

Hannah:That sounds exhausting. In Germany, 3am is for... sleeping. Or finishing a group project due at 9am. „Effizienz!“

Maria:Okay, okay, let me guess — your idea of fun is making a schedule for fun?

Hannah:„Natürlich.“ Fun is even more fun when it’s planned. 😎

Anya:That’s why Germans are good at engineering. They plan their fun like they build bridges.

Hannah:You’re not wrong! But come on, tell me the weirdest phrase you’d hear in a group of friends?

Maria:Oh! We say “Ma che figura di m***!”* when someone embarrasses themselves. Literally: “What a figure of sh**!” — poetic, no?

Anya:Nice. In Russian, if someone’s awkward we say «опозорился на весь район» — you embarrassed yourself in the whole district. Very public shame. Like medieval.

Hannah:That’s terrifying. In Germany we just say „Das war peinlich…“ Very dry. But the judgment is strong. Silent but deadly.

Maria:So we have Russian guilt, German shame, and Italian drama. We should start a podcast.

Anya:Name it «International Trauma Hour».

Hannah:Only if we make bullet points for each episode.

Maria:And dramatic music! I’ll sing the intro.

[They all laugh and clink their coffee cups.]