Look beyond material pursuit

China has emerged as a fast-growing outbound-tourism market in recent years. The less-than-civilized manners of Chinese tourists once prompted some tourist destinations overseas to put up signs in the Chinese language that urged Chinese tourists to act civilized.

Today, when masses of Chinese travel overseas to embark on a luxury shopping spree, concerns remain whether Chinese tourists can restore the national image by demonstrating their civilized behavior, says an article in China Youth Daily. Excerpts:

The World Tourism Organization estimates that the number of outbound tourists from China will jump to 100 million by 2020, up from 70 million in 2011, with some foreign media even report that China will soon surpass the United States and Germany to become the country whose tourists spend the most money overseas.

The big-spending Chinese tourists are receiving a warm welcome, but that does not necessarily reflect an improvement of the image of Chinese citizens. In early September, two Chinese passengers brawled on an international flight from Zurich to Beijing, and as a result, the plane was forced to turn back. Less than one week after that incident, another fistfight took place between two groups of Chinese passengers on a flight from Saipan to Shanghai.

One swallow does not make a summer, and the behavior of a few individuals doesn’t represent the Chinese nation as a whole. However, it is still true that the improper manners of some Chinese tourists do to a certain degree undermine the national image, since many people overseas get their first impression of China and its people from Chinese travelers.

Obviously, China’s economic growth and the improvement of people’s livelihood far outpace the betterment of the nation’s civilized behavior. Many newly rich Chinese fix their eyes on getting wealthier, and they travel overseas, exporting cash and a brash Chinese image while failing to look beyond material pursuit to restore the tarnished national image.

Many Chinese people once despised the nouveau riche and described them as the poor ones who had nothing but money. However, many Chinese people today are likely to receive a similar comment from the rest of the world, and this is particularly true for those who travel overseas simply to drop big bucks in some luxury flagship stores, instead of spending a couple of quality hours visiting a museum.

Wealth can be amassed from nothing overnight, but civilization is accumulated over the course of centuries. China can be more than just an economic engine for the rest of the world and future generations, and the power of Chinese people should not be limited by the amount of money in their pockets.

Translated by Gao Zhuyuan from China Youth Daily