Andrew Dvornyk

International business: Reflection on Culture

What aspects do you like about Canadian culture? What aspects do you dislike - or
prefer about your own culture? (250 words total)

When I just arrived to Canada, from my first day I was already able to experience
Canadian culture in different areas. Throughout my first 6 months I find out different
aspects of Canadian culture that I like. First of all, I really loved the tolerance and
kindness of Canadians. For example, they always apologize, if they did anything wrong
or just in any simple situations, that they thing they were not right in. I think this is a
very valuable and important cultural aspect, which most of the other nations do not
possess. In addition, I also really like the sport culture of Canada and how it is
important for all Canadians to support each other and their nation, especially in hockey.

My culture is very different from the Canadian. There are also many aspects that I like
and dislike about it. One of the things that I really appreciate about my culture, is that
the people in my country are very helpful and are always bonded together, no matter in
what situation they might be, even if it is a really tough situation. Another aspect that I
like about my country is our traditional rituals, as well as religious celebrations. One
example can be Easter, as we prepare and celebrate it a little bit differently than the
other countries in the world. We cook special cakes that are called “Kulichi” and go to
church to consecrate them. Moreover, I really love our cuisine, which plays a major role
in our culture and is well-known throughout the whole world. However, there also some
aspects that I do not enjoy about my culture. Depressive mood and negative attitude of
our citizens is one of them. It is really hard to find smiling people in the local subway or
in the streets of our cities. Social stress is one of the biggest problems in Ukraine.
Another thing I do not like about our culture is the corruption in all of our social
institutions, as it highly affects our living standards and the economy of our country.
Corruption is a huge problem in Ukraine. Therefore there are a lot of good and bad
things to discover in Ukrainian culture.