While some nonverbal behaviors, particularly facial expressions such as happiness, sadness, disgust, fear, anger, and surprise are universal and cross-cultural, many are tied to our cultural influences. The meaning attributed to these expressions can vary drastically. Kinesics; such as facial expression, body movement and gestures vary between cultures. In Italian culture, the use of hand movement is commonly accepted, as is body movement while speaking. The movements are much less pronounced in Japanese, Chinese and Northern European cultures, which do not use as much kinesics. In the United States, people believe that smiling reflects a positive aspect of our personality, openness, pleasant and outgoing personality, and direct eye contact shortens the distance, while the absence of eye contact increases the distance. Here, however, other cultural influences influence whether we maintain eye contact or avoid it. In some cultures, the lack of eye contact represents respect for the other person. In others, on the contrary, eye contact reflects recognition of the other person, willingness to interact, openness, interest in the person. Not understanding such cultural differences can lead to many misunderstandings. As a nursing major, I had gone on a trip with Fairfield University to Nicaragua to work on a Santa Maura coffee farm in the Jinotega region of the country. We went there to screen all incoming seasonal workers (most had never seen a doctor) for diabetes, hypertension, and to provide emergency care. The most surprising thing for me was that none of the workers I came into contact with looked at me. I felt ignored, irrelevant, useless. I felt they didn't want to interact with me and probably ignored everything I said. I was surprised to learn later, after complaining to one of the teachers, that in their culture it was a sign of respect. I felt relieved. Knowing this information changed how I felt during my interactions with workers, making it much more positive. Silence is another aspect of space. In many cultures, particularly Western ones, in the United States, in Northern Europe, silence makes us uncomfortable. People get nervous when there is silence during a conversation; In other cultures, silence is viewed very differently. Especially in eastern cultures where silence is a form of reflection, respect and consideration for others. Talking non-stop is associated with a deeper lack