Comparing China and the USA

[kuranes]

Different ( and similar ) choices of common search terms
http://news.yahoo.com/s/mcb_china/20071214/wl_mcb_china/commonchineseinternetsearchtopics;_ylt=Apen4mpPcLyhMrDeTfGT_oOruYd4

"Can-do" attitude
http://news.yahoo.com/s/mcb_china/20071210/wl_mcb_china/carryingaheavyburdeninchina;_ylt=Ar6V9.CMDYuG5qLJeDdZfZKruYd4

New Trojan
http://news.yahoo.com/s/mcb_china/20071115/wl_mcb_china/informationinsecurity;_ylt=ArrYQos_b8wD5kIaj7We1z.ruYd4

Regional Differences
http://news.yahoo.com/s/mcb_china/20071108/wl_mcb_china/chinasregionaldifferences;_ylt=ApQln9LmEmlP5Hj9PwRx3KWruYd4

Any experiences while in China ( or while communicating with China ) from our audience ?

[Meliora]

"Can-do" attitude
http://news.yahoo.com/s/mcb_china/20071210/wl_mcb_china/carryingaheavyburdeninchina;_ylt=Ar6V9.CMDYuG5qLJeDdZfZKruYd4


Haha, that last picture was great. Nice reads, too.

[Zephyrian]

Can't beat those cardboard stuffed pork buns.

[fripping]

basically, my chinese girlfriend and i can't stand living in each other's countries. we're devising some kind of rotating schedule to spread out the pain.

[kuranes]

Can't beat those cardboard stuffed pork buns.

That was funny. It was later shown to be a hoax, wasn't it ? Designed to show the limits of Western gullibility about different cultures of the world. Although I guess there were periods of starvation in China and North Korea where people ate shoe leather and stuff like that.

[kuranes]

basically, my chinese girlfriend and i can't stand living in each other's countries. we're devising some kind of rotating schedule to spread out the pain.

How did you meet her ?

[fripping]

How did you meet her ?
college. she's still interested in making money here, just doesn't care for much else.

[kuranes]

college. she's still interested in making money here, just doesn't care for much else.

What things does she like doing in China ? Do you ask her to whisper "Tai-Pan" in your ear late at night ? :smooch:

[fripping]

What things does she like doing in China ? Do you ask her to whisper "Tai-Pan" in your ear late at night ? :smooch:
well, in china she's explaining all of the laws, behaviors, in-jokes, and puns to me instead of the other way around. also, she prefers the food, the clothes, the people. . . mostly everything. she's the tai-pan, not me. kind of a lady macbeth figure.

[kuranes]

well, in china she's explaining all of the laws, behaviors, in-jokes, and puns to me instead of the other way around. also, she prefers the food, the clothes, the people. . . mostly everything. she's the tai-pan, not me. kind of a lady macbeth figure.

I'm interested in what kinds of specific behavior and objects she ( or anyone who is not immersed in USA culture ) prefers from China.

Someone told me that they don't feel there is enough public face to face interaction in the USA, so that we've lost that "town hall consensus" advantage, with church and sporting events being the only main exceptions, where people are focusing on God or ball games etc. there vs. politics or other random priorities.

A man from Vietnam told me he thought it strange how Americans could use the word "love" in relation to a consumer item they covet. I laughed when he said "the verb ' to get ' can mean so many different things in the USA."

Has she found any Chinese groceries or restaurants here that are up to her standards ? Does she like some things here better than in China ? Some people dislike stoop/squat toilets or open air food markets with flies crawling on raw meat overseas etc.

Does she notice any lack of leisure time issues ? In Europe people have more time to be "on vacation" I'm told.

[monocyc]

Cardboard picked up off the floor and dissolved in caustic soda. 60% cardboard and 40% pork.

youtube - cardboard siopao

[fripping]

I'm interested in what kinds of specific behavior and objects she ( or anyone who is not immersed in USA culture ) prefers from China.

the main issue is just familiarity and comfort. but things she DOESN'T like include greasy, processed, oversweetened american food (sure it's not all that way but way too much is), fat people, overfrankness, and overemphasis on rules and regulations (comparatively).



Someone told me that they don't feel there is enough public face to face interaction in the USA, so that we've lost that "town hall consensus" advantage, with church and sporting events being the only main exceptions, where people are focusing on God or ball games etc. there vs. politics or other random priorities.

yeah, something along those lines. with her the main thing is the lack of a public space and pedestrian-friendly areas. the mall is the closest thing and it's still way, way more artificial than china's ubiquitous public markets.



A man from Vietnam told me he thought it strange how Americans could use the word "love" in relation to a consumer item they covet. I laughed when he said "the verb ' to get ' can mean so many different things in the USA."


she's gotten used to faux emotional gushiness i guess. doesn't care for it, just use to it.



Has she found any Chinese groceries or restaurants here that are up to her standards ? Does she like some things here better than in China ? Some people dislike stoop/squat toilets or open air food markets with flies crawling on raw meat overseas etc.

yes, there's a few asian or chinese places here and there she likes. unfortunately her favorites are in san francisco which she's only reached on vacation. she's from a pretty rich area in china (shenzhen) so america isn't a gigantic leap in some respects.

she's gotten pretty homesick recently so she doesn't favor american stuff much at the moment, other than sweet, sweet money. i'm probably due for some time overseas with her sooner or later and i've got very mixed feelings about it. in retrospect i mainly went to china before to get away from school and family, not because there was anything in that particular country that i really sought after.


Does she notice any lack of leisure time issues ? In Europe people have more time to be "on vacation" I'm told.

chinese high school was basically study hell, so even though it takes her longer than a native language speaker to crank through dickens she's still got more free time than she used to. her main problem is figuring out what to do with it.

[kuranes]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080111/ap_on_bi_ge/china_raw_capitalism

[thod]

Those search engine results were interesting.

China "what is" is about money/tech
English "what is" health/tech

China "how to" is about money/vanity
English "how to" solitary activities/skills.

So China is full of greedy vain people.
US is full of hermits with too much free time.