Day 21, Shenzhen China

Cultural Differences

Here are some cultural differences that I have noticed between us Americans and the Chinese.

Big noise, little people

The Chinese are loud. I always used to think that Chinese people were quiet. But maybe that is because they are a little more timid when they speak English, but get 6 Chinese around a table in a meeting and it is a Mandarin shouting fest. Actually they seem to prefer having 4 or 5 conversations going at once. And it doesn’t stop there, if the cell phone rings, they will talk over it for a while and then, “Wei. Ni Hao...” (Hey, Hello) right in the middle of the meeting. Additionally they repeat the same thing many times. All the time I hear “doi doi doi” witch means something to the effect of “yes yes yes.” Or maybe, “right right right.”

Milky White (or as I say, melky)

Another thing that was initially confusing is the use of umbrellas on nice days. Basically, the Chinese women will bring a parasol with them to protect them from the sun and heat. I was later told that it is considered very attractive to have lighter, pale skin. So, on hot sunny days you can see everyone hiding under their little umbrellas. Which basically means I am pretty damn attractive here because I’m quite pale. Oh yeah. I just think it’s an interesting change from the US where the popular belief among pop culture is, the tanner, the better.

Is it raining?

Rice or Ice Cream?

Order of operations at restaurants are also confusing. The seem to bring the food out when ever they have it ready, which is fine, except when you order dessert with your meal and it comes out first. Also, white rice, the American-Chinese staple is not nearly as popular here. In fact, you almost always have to request it special. And who knows when it may come out; probably when you would be expecting dessert. I really found that surprising. I am just so familiar with the American-Chinese restaurants that give you piles and piles of white rice, so that there’s no room for much else in your stomach.

Road Rageless

Even though the average driver in china leaves much, much, much to be desired, there seems to be few occurrences of road rage. In the US if driver so much as looks at you wrong you flip out. Here, a driver can basically cross a four lane highway going the wrong way, and no one looks twice. Except for once, I did get a driver who was ready to throw a water bottle into someone else’s car because he cut the driver off. So, it’s not completely nonexistent but it is severely reduced. Maybe they are just numb to it.

You're beautiful

Karaoke is very popular here in china. They have karaoke bars all over the place. Now, the difference here is not that everyone is amazing at Karaoke, because trust me they arn't...that is exactly the same as the US. Most everyone is terrible. The difference is that Karaoke is so tame here. Sooooo tame. Every song is a ballad. Often they are in Chinese, but the most popular song here is "Beautiful" by James Blunt. And they sit down on a chair while singing it. They take it kind of seriously, which is exactly why I had to show them how to sing. Pearl Jam-Better man, Chilli Peppers-Under the Bridge, Radio Head-Paranoid Android. By the end I was grinding them out as loud as I could. Half of them were dumbstruck at the end...and the other half were also dumbstruck. I quietly got down from the Karaoke stage and handed the mic off to someone who sung "beautiful" by James Blunt, again.

Here are some more pictures

This is like an icecream, except instead of a cone it's seaweed, and instead of icecream it's salmon chunks.


MSG coated salt, just what I wanted.


mmmm, chicken feet.


Is this made from real kids? I just can't stand when they use artificial fillers.


Breast Cream...I can only assume you apply with the Breast Stroke.


Stand on others' shoes...Why not? I'm sure the customer will love that.