Travel with the Cultureman

Divesh and Divya were watching their favorite superhero show on television. They enjoyed watching the show and liked the superhero who was called “Cultureman”. He was a character who introduced kids watching the show to different cultures. Both Divya and Divesh enjoyed watching him and had imagined going on a cultural ride with the Cultureman.

After watching, they both went to sleep. One day, while asleep, Divesh had a dream – when they were watching their favorite show, suddenly a light came from the television, and Cultureman, their favorite superhero appeared in front of them. They were surprised and excited to see him. The Cultureman said, “Appreciate the diversity and avoid the divide… for this let’s go on a culture ride!!!” Hearing this, Divesh and Divya said together, “Culture ride! Let’s go!” They both hopped on his CultureShip and the Cultureman flew them to various culturally diverse places.

First, they teleported to the land with beautiful shrines and a great wall. Divya asked, “Cultureman, where are we?” Cultureman replied, “Kids this is China, the people here speak Chinese and most of them follow Buddhism.” Divesh asked, “How do Chinese people greet each other?” “By saying ‘Ni Hao’ which means hello in Chinese,” said Cultureman. They both were wowed looking at the uniqueness of Chinese culture.

Next, they teleported to the most technologically advanced country in the world, Japan. The Cultureman said, “This is Japan, the people here are called Japanese. They have made great technological developments and still have a prominent cultural identity. And if you want to greet someone in Japanese, you say ‘Konnichiwa’.” Divesh and Divya were amazed after knowing about the Japanese culture. 

From there, they teleported to a place where they saw animals they had never seen before. As they were looking at zebras, girraffes, and wild elephants roaming in groups, Cultureman stated, “This is the land that the Africans call their home, Africa. It is a mix of countless diverse groups, and people in different parts of Africa have different looks, languages, and cultures.” Divesh said, “Is this the place where the great Sahara Desert is?” Cultureman said, “Yes, and the climate here gets very hot.”

Suddenly, Divesh felt that someone was jerking him. He opened his eyes and saw Divya trying to wake him up to go to school. And the beautiful dream in which he, along with his sister and Cultureman was exploring cultures, came to an end. 

What we learned

We should try to explore different and unique cultures to build cultural intelligence, so that we can appreciate different people and adapt if we travel to different places.