Countries Where It's Considered Rude And Repulsive To Blow Your Nose In Public

"Do you need a tissue?" The offer is nice, but it's also kind of a reprimand. By offering someone a Kleenex, we're also saying, "Your nose is obviously running, and I can't stand to hear you sniff, over and over. It's not healthy, and it's pretty offputting, and it would be great if you just cleared out the old ducts." In many countries around the world, we think nothing of blowing our noses in public; we might not even notice, except to say, "Are you feeling okay?" We raise eyebrows only at the loudest, most repetitive honks.

But that isn't the case in France. By and large, blowing your nose near other people is considered pretty gross, like chewing with your mouth open or leaving the restroom door ajar and continuing a conversation as you relieve yourself. (Actually, the French aren't fond of open restroom doors, period). You may think you're innocently clearing your lungs and nasal passages for better breathing, but to a Parisian, you are vociferously ejecting mucus into a thin sheet of paper and forcing everyone around you to witness it. Where were you raised, in a grange? (That's French for "barn.")

France is not the only nation that cringes at this habit. Flagrant nose-blowing is also considered rude in Japan, China, South Korea, and many Middle Eastern nations, such as Saudi Arabia. You can probably get away with it in a wide-open street or public park, especially if you're afflicted by a cold or hay fever, but you're wise to avoid the practice when other people are in close proximity.

But what if you have an important business meeting in Osaka and your nose can't stop running? What if you're doing a homestay in Seoul and you're about to sit down to dinner with your host family, but the pollen in the air has turned your nostrils into faucets? How do you handle that French cooking class you've been dying to take when the sneezes won't stop coming? You've taken all the advice for not getting sick while traveling, and still you've become a phlegm factory. What gives?

The best you can do is excuse yourself and blow your nose in private, preferably in a restroom, even if you have to return repeatedly. Now, there is some disagreement as to how sensitive the French — in particular — may be to public use of tissues, and many may shrug it off. In Japan, marketing people often hand out branded tissue packets on the street as a way to advertise products, so it's not like blowing your nose is some kind of shameful secret. Everyone knows that people get sick, and when they gotta blow, they gotta blow. But you never know who might gawp with revulsion, so it's wise to err on the side of caution. While you're bracing yourself for culture shock, here are 14 things tourists should never do in Paris, as well as 13 things tourists should never do in Japan. In the meantime, feel free to grab as many tissues as you need.