Honor System

Intercultural Analysis blog entry # 4

Throughout my trip, especially in German, I encountered many things that caught my attention. Among these things was the honoring system which is implied by some European cities such as Berlin and Vienne.

Viapianos, Berlin

In Berlin we visited a local restaurant called “Viapiano.” This restaurant used the honor system by providing their customers with a plastic card to charge their meal. When the costumer is done with their meal they proceed to the cashier to pay for what was charge to the card. Also we attended a bike tour around the city that did not request any type of payment until the end of the tour. The public transportation rarely checks for payment.

Fat Tire Bike Tour, Berlin

What most impacted me was the way this honor system was implemented in Vienne. The newspapers in Vienne are placed in plastic bags which are hung in different types of posts, along with a plastic container where money is deposited for the newspaper, around the city. It would be possible for someone to simply reach in a newspaper bag, grab a copy, and just take it without paying a cent, but the culture has been raised to honor their system and pay for their copy of the newspaper like honest citizens.

I would not think this system would work in the Americas because the Americas culture is taught to be some how dishonest to be able to survive in society.