One of this site’s savviest commenters (I’ll let him identify himself if he chooses to) has been kind enough to translate the 22 Habits of Chinese Tourists that need to be corrected if the world is going to eagerly embrace the PRC’s nouveau riche visitors. (See this post for reference.)
Here’s how the translator himself describes his mission, followed by the 22 Habits (sounds like a Steven Covey book, doesn’t it?):
The fountain of eternal wisdom that we mere mortals refer to as the People’s Daily has started a campaign to “bring an end to bad habits amongst Chinese tourists and improve China’s image in the world.” The following is a list of discouraged behaviors that I have translated for your reading pleasure (many of which I engaged in during my first trip to Hong Kong). Should anyone catch any Chinese tourists committing any of the following faux pas (particularly no. 12), please contact the nearest Chinese embassy immediately.
Some commonly-cited uncivilized behaviors observed amongst the people of our nation while abroad:
1. Showing no concern for hygiene and casually littering;
2. Spitting all over the place;
3. Trampling on lawns and damaging flowers, plants, grass, and trees;
4. Making loud uproars in public places;
5. Disregarding traffic lights, parking in an unruly manner, and generally ignoring traffic regulations;
6. Cutting in line or failing to line up at all at tourist spots;
7. Not flushing after using the bathroom;
8. Disregarding laws and breaking into tourist spots;
9. Dressing improperly and appearing unkempt;
10. Locking arms or giving each other piggyback rides, giggling, and generally ‘making a ruckus’
11. Doodling on or carving names in famous tourist spots;
12. Shitting and pissing all over the place;
13. Smoking and eating snacks in inappropriate settings;
14. Saying rude things;
15. Failing to get out of others’ way in crowded areas;
16. Climbing installations as one pleases and taking photos;
17. Answering cellular phone calls during conferences;
18. Unbuttoning or removing shirts in public, and generally appearing slovenly;
19. Wearing sandals an pajamas in public;
20. Crowding around to grab yummy foods and wasting foods at buffets;
21. Picking teeth and burping in inappropriate settings;
22. Arguing irrationally with airline staff and making a scene when flights are delayed due to the weather or other unavoidable circumstances.
Hey, don’t blame me – this is from People’s Daily. Anyone want to nominate any other Habits?
1
By Sojourner
How about …
sexually abusing Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse and Winnie the Pooh at Hong Kong Disneyland (it happened!)
August 28, 2006 @ 9:30 pm | Comment
2
By richard
Sojourner, where’ve you been? And did that really happen at HK Disneyland?
August 28, 2006 @ 9:32 pm | Comment
3
By michael
1. Pestering foreigners [especially those with children] to pose for pictures.
2. Stealing flora and fauna [eg flowers and ducks] from public parks.
3. Exposing shins and Buddha belly [men]
4. Wearing hats that look like lampshades [women]
5. Making V signs while posing for photographs
August 28, 2006 @ 10:29 pm | Comment
4
By Ivan
Walking forward with their faces/eyes turned 120 degress backward.
August 28, 2006 @ 10:58 pm | Comment
5
By Fat Cat
How about stop making loud denigrating comments about “foreigners” while they themselves are foreigners touring in a foreign country. It just happens that some of these “foreigners” can actually understand Chinese.
August 28, 2006 @ 11:18 pm | Comment
6
By Ivan
And please do not touch any ancient relics or monuments (especially any made of marble) with your bare hands. The civilised people of the world still want to preserve our ancient cultural relics – unlike what the Communist Pigs did to China’s.
August 28, 2006 @ 11:47 pm | Comment
7
By Fat Cat
And when visiting a vineyard, could the tour guide please remind the tourists not to consume the substance in that silver container called a spittoon.
August 29, 2006 @ 12:38 am | Comment
8
By chris
let’s just be grateful that millions of china’s farmers are not becoming tourists. this is the kind of behaviour i generally expect to see out in the countryside.
August 29, 2006 @ 4:43 am | Comment
9
By Ivan
Wow, I just had a flashback to the classic Ren and Stimpy episode where they play the board-game, “Don’t Whizz On The Electric Fence”
August 29, 2006 @ 7:12 am | Comment
10
By Ahmet
I guess 5000 years of history doesn’t necessarily equate to civilization. Perhaps if someone other than a few members of the elite (whether imperial, KMT or CCP) were allowed to develop and flourish in an open society, then being civil and respecting the rights of others could actually emerge as desirable behavior. Instead, we have in China, a nation teaming with self-serving, ignorant, newly rich (in some cases) peasants who have no idea how to behave in a civilized manner.
August 29, 2006 @ 9:28 am | Comment
11
By nausicaa
Hey! I resemble that remark! 😉 Ain’t nothing wrong with being peasants. And when I took my grandparents on a trip to Beijing three years back, they were perfectly charming and well-behaved.
I’m curious about the sexual molestation of Disneyland characters and the smuggling of ducks. Do tell, people…
August 29, 2006 @ 10:51 am | Comment
12
By Peter
I guess 5000 years of history doesn’t necessarily equate to civilization.
Chinese have a history going back thousands of years (they cheat a little on the 5000 years claim), yet they spit in the streets and can’t queue in an orderly fashion.
The people of Iraq are descendants of the most ancient civilization in the world, but they run around killing each other and blowing up their own mosques, despite being occupied by a foreign power.
Japanese civilization is fairly ancient, yet it’s also host to a flourishing subculture of peeping toms, subway gropers who publish their own magazines complete with train timetables, and the sort of perverted cartoon sex fantasies nobody else could imagine (space aliens with tentacles???)
Really, who needs an ancient history?
August 29, 2006 @ 5:55 pm | Comment
13
By chris
tentacle sex….haha. japanese are funny.
August 29, 2006 @ 6:08 pm | Comment
14
By Ivan
When visiting other countries adjacent to yours, please do not exterminate every last vestige of their ancient cultures just to replace them with ridiculous wafer-thin skyscrapers which will fall down in ten years. Also, please do not force ancient religions to subordinate themselves to the Communist Party.
August 29, 2006 @ 8:42 pm | Comment
15
By Fat Cat
nausicaa wrote: “Ain’t nothing wrong with being peasants. And when I took my grandparents on a trip to Beijing three years back, they were perfectly charming and well-behaved.”
Absolutely. Some of the most helpful, considerate and civilised Chinese people that I came across are from the farming communities. Those who left a dirty trail behind them wherever they visit are mostly city folks who somehow get their hands on some quick money.
August 29, 2006 @ 9:44 pm | Comment