Let Me McHelp

I'm going to tell you about one major cultural difference between Australia and Hong Kong – tray etiquette at McDonald's.

I was always, always told to clean up after myself back home. Unless my memory fails me, it is considered pretty rude in Australia to leave all of your mess on the table after finishing your meal (although throwing pickles onto the roof is perfectly acceptable). In Honkers, on the other hand, if you clean it up by yourself you are considered a freak. Perhaps even, “very diiiirty la”. There are people employed specifically to do that job and if you take that away from them, perhaps that is the height of rudeness. I don't know. All I know is that this morning after finishing devouring my Sausage McMuffin and hot coffee, I cleared the table and the staff stared, looked confused and eventually laughed at me!

I just hope I don't get too used to it. I don't want to get back to Australia, go to Maccas and spurt out things like, “It's not gonna clean itself, darling. Now come over here over and wipe my mouth.”

If I tried that, chances are I'd cop a pounding from a toothless sales assistant called Shazza. “Wipe this!” Smack.