【B1】 [br] 【B8】 [originaltext]If you were supposed to be at my house at 6: 00 p.m

If you were supposed to be at my house at 6: 00 p.m. for dinner, but you came at 8: 00 p.m., we would  probably think you were quite impolite. However, if you come from Brazil, the idea of being punctual, or "on time", might mean coming two hours late. In fact, being "early" or "late" depends on your cultural  background and no dictionary can give a clear  definition of "early" or "late" because these ideas reflect "social time" rather than real time.
Even more  amazing is how people from other cultures explain their lateness. American students might say they simply had not cared that they were late. In  contrast, Brazilians would go out of their way to explain their lateness in a number of ways--they were delayed by unforeseen or  uncontrollable problems, for example. Or they might  attribute the reasons of being late to reasons that you might never think of. Some American students might feel very guilty and blame themselves, but  Brazilian students wouldn’t blame themselves or feel ashamed.
Another surprising difference that researchers discovered was the way cultures view someone who is late. Americans tend to think negatively of people being late.  In general, if you are late for an appointment or a date with Americans. you can bet people will be artery at you. Or, at least, you will be viewed with some disfavor.
But in Brazil, if you are late for an appointment, the chances are you will be admired.  In the Brazilian culture of time. lateness is equated with success, because he or she is so busy with other tasks