 Letters and Blogs
(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-07-29 07:29 Not necessary to parrot Westerners Every city that has hosted the Olympics has sought to give itself plastic surgery. As the Los Angeles Times reported, cities from Seoul to Athens have reinvented themselves overnight for the Games, so nobody should expect Beijing to do differently. However, you're going too far. It's commendable that Beijing wants to combat spitting, crowding around bus doors and remove Chinglish from signs, but banning dog meat? Encouraging locals to observe visitors' greeting customs? Part of visiting another country, even for an event such as the Olympics, is knowing that the people there have customs different from your own. You don't have to greet every American with "Hey man, what's up?" - a greeting many Americans don't use often or at all. Many Westerners love dogs, but they should bear in mind that in China they make good pets and good eating. Even I ate dog on numerous occasions when I lived in China, though I'll admit it was easier for me because I'm a cat person. By all means, be civil and polite, but don't parrot Westerners. Most Western visitors to China whom I've met, despite experiencing culture shock, actually appreciate Chinese culture and customs and can tolerate cultural differences. They would rather learn how to properly pronounce "ni hao" than have someone give them a rehearsed greeting. They might even be willing to try that menu item labeled "gourou huoguo " (dog hotpot). Alaric DeArment, New York via e-mail Old habit with toilet papers Comment on "Many things modern are great follies" (China Daily, July 24) I read with great interest your article on China Daily site titled "Many things modern are great follies". Part of your discussion is on the usage of toilet papers or tissues and its implication on the environment. As a foreigner living in China for almost one year, I came to realize that in public toilets, the users do not dispose their used toiled tissues/papers into the toilet dish and flash it down, instead dispose it in the bin provided. I have also seen this in my own room/apartment toilet when my Chinese friends use it. This is very surprising to me because the first thing our parents tell us is to flash down the toilet the used toilet papers. Please tell me whether this is part of Chinese culture. Or is it to do with recycling of the used papers? But the stain on the paper does not look good even for the cleaner the next day. With that, I always enjoy your writing, so keep writing. Mathew Yakai, living in Changchun, Jilin Province via e-mail Dear Mathew Yakai: Thank you very much for your e-mail. You've raised a very good question. Flushing toilets are really a recent addition to modern Chinese homes. Apartment buildings built in the early and mid-1970s in Beijing were furnished with squat toilets. I learned to dispose used toilet tissues into the toilet but also remember feeling embarrassed after I disposed the used tissues into squat or even some seat toilets, flushed it but the water filled to the rim of the toilet. The toilet paper back then was pretty coarse and thick. The sewage pipes were not made to handle those types of toilet paper. To make cleaners' work easier, we'd have to throw them in the bin. Today, the tissues/papers are really soft, but it is hard to change the habit. There is news that only recently there is a public campaign in Taiwan asking the locals to dispose toilet tissues/papers into the toilet. Li Xing via e-mail Readers' comments are welcome. Please send mail to Letters to the Editor, China Daily, 15 Huixin Dongjie, Chaoyang District, Beijing, 100029 China. Send faxes to (86-10) 6491-8377. Send e-mail to opinion@chinadaily.com.cn or letters@chinadaily.com.cn or to the individual columnists. China Daily reserves the right to edit all letters. Thank you. (China Daily 07/29/2008 page9) |
