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Hilarious Stereotypes of Foreign Countries Held by Chinese People

Posted: 01/30/2015 9:21 am

usa  paradeStereotyping might not be politically correct, but it happens nonetheless. If you ask anyone about China, you’re likely to get a variety of answers about what Chinese people tend to be like.

But what do Chinese people think about your country? Yes, the stereotyping goes both ways. A travel agency in China has compiled a list of national stereotypes to try and help Chinese travelers get beyond them.

Here’s what the article, reasons why foreigners don’t match your initial impression of them, all here for you to discuss, says:

Hey everybody; have you ever brought up a country only to have a strict association with it? For example, talking about South Korea will remind you of plastic surgery, talking about Thailand is to talk about ladyboys, and talking about Japan is to bring up perverts…

The following lists foreigners by their stereotypes; what’s your response?

Canadians: everything they say is boring, and life is depressing there

Maybe you’ve thought that since Canada is so cold and icy that there’s nothing to do there. In fact, in Canada you can go snowboarding, kayaking, and do other extreme sports. What’s more, absurdist comedy star Jim Carrey and Friends actor Matthew Perry are both Canadians, and are they boring? They’re hilarious! Therefore, don’t say that Canadians are boring!

Americans: Liberated thinkers, are tolerant of everything

Actually, European countries are more liberal minded than the USA, as seen in the more acceptable attitude towards nude beaches. Additionally, there are 16 states in the US that have not yet legalized gay marriage. That’s why it’s not that fitting to say that Americans are not that liberal.

sleepingSpaniards: Lazy, and love to sleep

Every day, Spaniards enjoy a three hour lunch and an afternoon nap. This is why other countries believe Spaniards are lazy and don’t want to work. However, Spain has seen a 2.8 percent annual average growth in its GDP, beating Germany by one percent.

Italians: Passionate, undisciplined, inefficient

The success of the textile and chemical manufacturing industry of Italy, its fine cuisine of pizza and pasta, the culture and historical architecture from the Renaissance era –these things all prove that Italians are not the least bit undisciplined and inefficient.

English: Soccer hooligans, and the fact that English men love soccer more than they love women!

In fact, more fights happen over soccer in Sweden than they do in England.

French: Arrogant

It’s been said that the French don’t like to smile at strangers and have an air of superiority, but this is just the culture of France. To them, they don’t like to display any hypocritical expressions. The French consider smiling to have nothing to do with etiquette, just as arrogance doesn’t.

Irish: Drunk every day

Any time the subjects of drunks or bars are brought up, many people think of the Irish. However, in an 2004 international study about the use of alcohol, Ireland ranked behind Luxembourg and Hungary.

Filipinos: Barbaric, backwards islanders

In 2003, the average Filipino sent 2,300 text messages a day, making it the most prevalent users of text messages in the world. At the same time, the Philippines is the blogging capital of Asia, therefore the Philippines is not backwards by any stretch of the imagination.

Indians: Narrow thinking, are all poor bastards

Although many Indians still live in poverty, this situation has improved in recent years. India has become a world leader in software, and is one of the fastest rising economies in the world. Have you seen the 2009 comedy 3 Idiots? The number of films produced by the Indian film industry is the highest in the world, as is its box office! Therefore, how can one rationally say that Indians have a narrow scope of thinking, and are all poor bastards?

Cultural stereotypes are something that slowly but imperceptibly affect our thinking. It’s the same with foreigners that all think Chinese can perform kung-fu like Bruce Lee, something that makes Chinese speechless. Therefore, you shouldn’t have any stereotypes towards foreigners or else they’ll think us and our stereotypes to be silly and naive…

Photos: Travel 163

Haohao

China’s Decision to Keep a Blacklist of Misbehaving Tourists Sparks a Lively Online Debate

Posted: 01/26/2015 8:00 am
passenger fight airline

A fight caused by a crying baby on board a Hong Kong flight.

It has been a rough couple of months for the reputation of China’s tourists. First there was the couple who threw boiling hot water at a flight attendant and threatened to blow up the plane, then there was the impatient passenger who deployed the plane’s emergency slide on the runway, and then another passenger who decided to do the same. With all of the airline mayhem making the reputation of beleaguered Chinese tourists even worse, China’s National Tourism Association (NTA) has finally stepped in with a solution.

The NTA has announced that it will start keeping tabs on Chinese tourists. The association plans to document, and rank misbehaving Chinese, storing their names in a central database. The information will then be passed on to inquiring travel agents and tour operators to keep them apprised of just who they’re dealing with.

The reaction among netizens has been mixed. While many welcomed the NTA’s decision, expressing genuine concern that China’s reputation is being tarnished abroad, not everyone agrees. In a report in the Observer, one commenter in particular, Shelbycobra, described another method for “dealing with Chinese tourists”:

I’ve traveled abroad extensively and have learned how to treat Chinese tourists, especially the large groups. Look them right in the eye, walk right into them and knock them down, even the old ladies. That’s what they understand. If you don’t you better just stand back and let them take advantage of you. I knocked an old Chinese lady down in Turkey who ran under me to get at the head of a line. She didn’t try it again.

Shelbycobra was not alone. A number of netizen comments expressed a similar sentiment, suggesting Chinese all too often display a poor sense of character abroad. Others were only too happy at the suggestion that a foreigner knocked down an old Chinese woman for cutting in line:

气人草根V:
(referring to old woman who was knocked down) Well deserved!

631225059jt6s:
Those that don’t comply with rules of etiquette should be punished.

穹其:
Well deserved. If there weren’t any civil liability laws in China, I’d like to beat them up too. Because there’s too many of these kinds of people, there is neither waiting or cutting in line. Dear me.

工农兵皇帝:
If only these types of people from our country could be beaten to death, China’s citizens could lead a happy and blessed life.

Others offered a more classist explanation:

CSSN7:
The majority of Chinese have become cultured, it’s just a few people who need adjustment. This loss of face though is on an international level…

dajiahao:
These are all priviledged and spoiled people. There aren’t any examples of common folk doing (bad things), and what’s more, they wouldn’t dare do it in the first place.

苏苏啊_希:
Some people have gotten rich, but their inner quality hasn’t followed.

Not everyone was in agreement with the NTA’s decision. A number of Chinese netizens outright rejected the notion that Chinese tourists are capable of misbehaving at all:

北京朝阳望京健康教育:
Foreigners murder and set fires all over the place. They are always using one small vice in order to denounce an entire country; isn’t this an example of even worse behaviour? If you are of exceptional quality, or if your opinions aren’t so vile, then we would be willing to examine ourselves in accordance with our foreign friends to determine the shortcomings of our country. Also, you don’t have anything (special) to be proud of.

龙三三三三:
Laowai are speaking utter nonsense. They probably mistake old ladies who are actually Japanese and South Korean as Chinese (and knock them down again).

风过人生:
This is just another ridiculous trick to smear the reputation of the Chinese people.

朱健 (responding to above)
No one is smearing anyone. Cutting in line, spitting and littering all over the place have all become standard habits for our countrymen.

And then this netizen that offered a more extreme solution:

妖孽白、づ Yoon A:
I propose sending an atomic bomb to those idiot laowai.

妖孽白、づ Yoon A:
Screw inner essence. Chinese simply like to spit everywhere, jaywalk, and not comply with public decorum. Not only that, but Chinese would like to set fire to the Louvre and the Fontainebleau. Chinese cause trouble on board airplanes [because they just like to]. If you want to forbid Chinese from entering your borders, oh you sacred people, then go ask the descendants of the Eight-Nation Alliance (a group of foreign nations involved in a military intervention in northern China in 1900).

Given the frequency of media reports lambasting Chinese tourists, it will be interesting to see what, if any, effect the NTA’s new program will have.

Photo: People’s Daily Online

Haohao

Poll: 70% of Hong Kongers Say Homophobic Attitudes are Okay

Posted: 01/12/2015 11:41 am
hong kong gay pride

Sign: “God loves gays too”

A new poll suggests seven out of ten Hong Kong residents are absolutely fine if people hold homophobic attitudes.

Fifty-seven percent of respondents to the survey said schools should not be forced to teach students that homosexuality and heterosexuality are both “beautiful”. Furthermore, fewer than half of those polled were in favor of extending work benefits to partners of LGBT workers, while 28 percent were in favor.

However, attitudes towards same-sex relationships have evolved when it comes to hiring practices. Sixty percent of respondents said that not hiring someone based upon their sexual preferences was discriminatory.

Just over 600 adults were surveyed in the poll carried out by Hong Kong Polytechnic University last November.

The survey was commissioned by the Family School Sexual Orientation Discrimination Ordinance Concern Group. The group’s leader Roger Wong said, “Residents hope that society will tolerate different opinions, including anti-gay opinions, and the authorities should not forcefully push legislation that will deprive freedom of speech.”

Photo: SZ Online

Haohao

Visiting Three Gorges Is Free… Unless You’re a Foreigner

Posted: 09/26/2014 10:04 am

three gorges attraction touristIf you ever wondered if there is a price for not being Chinese in China, you can now pay the difference with your wallet.

Starting from September 25, the Three Gorges Scenic Area will be completely free for Chinese, but non-Chinese visitors will have to pay an admission fee of RMB 105 (around $17).

No explanation for the change was given by the China Yangtze Three Gorges Associated Company and the local government of Yichang when they made the announcement on September 24.

The new policy isn’t just a “thank you” shout out for people lucky enough to hold lifetime membership to the People’s Republic of China. It also waives the fee for compatriots in Hong Kong, Macau, and anybody of Chinese ethnicity living anywhere.

three gorges china news networkFor those people unwilling to pay the price of being a foreigner, the following is what you’ll be missing out on at the Three Gorges Scenic Area:

three gorges attraction touristthree gorges attraction tourist

Non-Chinese tourists, you’ll just have to decide if paying RMB 105 for admission is worth it.

Photos: China News Network, China News Network screengrab

Haohao
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