If you are among the 21% of people across the globe who has ever left their home country (yes, the number really is that low!) you’ll know of the unfamiliarity that often strikes when you least expect it while travelling. You might have been traversing the world for a while when suddenly the deep, gut-wrenching feeling of culture shock strikes. It’s not a sign that you want to go home necessarily, it’s just a bodily reaction to everything seeming very different all at once.

And it can happen anywhere. For some it happens in Times Square, for others it might be in a remote village in which the language and the culture seem incomparably different. But whatever it is that gets you, it’s all okay – and part of the realities of travelling. Because there’s no question about it: when you go to a different country, even the smallest things can feel quite different. And that’s mostly exciting, but sometimes it can elicit other emotions too.

The guy in this story was hard at work at a cell phone kiosk in a Canadian mall, when he came across a foreign customer experiencing the unfamiliarity of a different land first-hand. But instead of keeping his shock to himself, the customer took it out on the employee.

Read on to find out what happened.

“That’s not how it works in other countries!”

I work at a small cell phone kiosk in a mall in Canada, and recently a guy came in and asked for a $20 pre-paid top up card.

As I checked him out I said, “Alright, with tax it’ll be $22.60,” to which he replied, “But the phone card is $20.”

I confirmed, “Yup, then with tax it comes to $22.60.”

The guy insisted, “You should have told me there would be tax!” I said, “Uhm. Sorry. It’ll be $22.60.”

But the man wasn’t about to just agree quietly.

He told me, “I’m not paying the tax on a $20 phone card! In other countries, they put the tax in the advertised price!”

I continued, “Ok. So it’ll be $22.60 today,” to which he yelled, “I’m only giving you $20!”

I stood my ground saying, “Ok, then I’m afraid I can’t sell you the phone card. Have a nice evening.” But he just continued to shout, “YOU SHOULD HAVE TOLD ME THERE WAS TAX BEFORE I ASKED FOR IT.”

Yikes! Still, this cashier stayed patient with the guy.

I tried to explain to him, “Ok… Most things have tax and usually here in Canada, the tax is calculated at the checkout. So it’ll be $22.60 today if you want the phone card.”

But the guy just said, “That’s not how it works in other countries!” To that, I explained, “But that’s how it works here, sir.”

The guy told me, “I’m not leaving until you give me the $20 phone card for $20! It’s false advertising!” So I said, “Then we’re done here. Have a nice day.”

He stood there and stared at me for a good ten minutes while I assisted another customer, then stomped away muttering about how “other countries do it differently.”

When you travel the world you have to accept that other countries and cultures do things differently to what you might be used to.

And sure, this can be frustrating at times – because you are used to your own way of life.

But what you can’t do is expect others to make an exception for you, because in doing so this guy showed just how entitled he is.

If you enjoyed this post, check out this story about a grocery store employee who is fed up after months of going above and beyond for no monetary return.

Let’s see what folks on Reddit made of this.

This person made the perfect joke.

While others were sick of entitled tourists.

Meanwhile, this Redditor agreed that adding tax at checkout was a frustrating system.

Sure, it would always be nice for the price on the shelf to be the price paid at checkout, because the cost of goods after the tax has been added can be something of a shock at times – especially if you’re not expecting it. And for tourists, that initial confusion can be quite upsetting, especially if you’re on a budget. That’s why it pays to do your research so you know exactly what to expect when you arrive in a new country. It also helps you to be polite in an unfamiliar culture too.

But if you have a problem with something, you need to be campaigning to government officials, not taking it up with some random guy working in a cell phone kiosk. Because let’s be real, there’s nothing he can do about it – you know that, and he knows that. So in dragging him about it, all you’re doing is taking your frustration out on some innocent guy. And that’s not very nice at all.