YoU Cut ME??? NO! I CuT YOU!

Have you ever been in a line at the grocery store, in America when an Asian person just kind of sneaks their way in front of you? Well, this is pretty normal practice in Mongolia. Lines are, as my classmate Tori put it, “a suggestion”.  I finally learned (yesterday) that if you want to get something behind the counter at a store (Delgore) you yell it out (eventually the clerk will get you the item) or people will continue budging you. This happens EVERYWHERE.  People here talk about ATM’s machines and how people will just walk up and budge in front of you. This will happen at banks as well.  Imagine American banks, how long the waits can take. Now imagine one computer, one clerk, a bookfull of account information and no ATM machine, at all. This is what our Soum bank looks like in Shaamar.  It takes at least 15 minutes to get through one person and if someone budges, well…you get the point. So from here on out, this lady is going to adapt. So, when I get back to the states and start budging people, kindly remind me that I am NO LONGER in Mongolia ;-)