10) Don't drink the
water, rinse dishes without sanitizing them, or brush your teeth with the
water.
9) Prior to the
Beijing Olympics, protestors and concerned citizens were told to fill out forms
so they could protest legally. A few days before the Olympics the people who
filled out these forms were picked up and detained for questioning. When the
foreign camera crews were taken to the protest area empty. They were stunned to
find no protestors in China.
8) Many decisions
are based on will it give face or not. Face is the avoidance of
embarrassment (perceived or real) at any cost and to give face is to give
status to another (allowing them to help you, praise them in public, showing
respect, etc.)
7) When toasting in
China: Ganbei!!!! Make sure you put the rim of your glass lower then
than the other people you clink glasses as a sign of respect. Sometimes, a game
is made out of it this practice and friends will toast down at floor level.
6) Power, gas and
water need to be purchased before you use it and you don't receive a bill. And
if the prepaid amount runs out the service will just stop. You can't send a
check, and as of a year ago, you couldn't pay with online banking. A member of
your family or your maid needs to go down to the offices with a stack of cash
to put money on your card, then your card must be put into your meter
(gas/electric & water) so the credit for the payment can be registered.
5) While dining out,
most Chinese would never take home the left overs because that would suggest
you were poor. (I've horrified more than one Chinese friend by requesting the
leftovers be packed up).
4) Recycling of leftover
food in local restaurants isn't unheard of... meaning food served and passed
over by other customers could arrive at your table after it was reheated.
3) There's no social
security. Your child and grandchildren are your family's security, that's why
it's very rare to find an unmarried Chinese person. Usually women are married
by the time they are twenty-five and men maybe a little bit older. There are
still active marriage markets where the parents take the picture of their
children, along with a resume of talents and jobs, to share with potential
in-laws.
2) The word for
question in Mandarin is the same for problem, so to have a question is to have
a problem. Many people won't ask questions so work can be done wrong or not
done at all.
1) There is no gay
in China…. it's one of the reasons I chose to write Made in China: The Great
Wall. I wanted give some Chinese men a happily ever after even if they are only
characters in my series.
The Great Wall Blurb:
Destiny will be
decided by a battle between heart and mind….
Jun Tai “Styx” Wong
loves two things: playing the drums and his best friend, Jin. But being a good
Chinese son means he can’t have either—he’ll have to marry a girl of his
parents’ choosing and settle into a traditional job. His move to the bigger city
of Suzhou is both a blessing and curse, as living with Jin makes it harder for
Styx to suppress his desires. Nearly dying while trying to eradicate his
feelings serves as a wake-up call for Jin, who takes extreme measures to keep
Styx safe from harm.
When given a second
chance at life and happiness, will Styx be able to claim the future he wants
with Jin, his bandmates, and his music? Can love and hope grow with the
constantly looming threat of Styx’s parents ordering him home? Great things
await—if Styx finds the courage to break down the wall that stands between him
and everything he wants.
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