10 Fun Cultural Shocks in China!

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When foreigners first come to China, they experience all kinds of cultural differences, from the language to the basic way of living. Here are some fun cultural shocks that you may have noticed already, and some you haven’t.

1

Umbrellas in Sunshine

While other people in the world go to the beach and wish to get tanned, most people in China wish they can be as pale as possible. In common Chinese standards of beauty, people desired to have pale skin instead of a tan. So girls or boys will carry umbrellas to prevent sunlight reaching them.

Fortune cookies

2

The first thing that will disappoint you when you first come to China might be the fact that we don't actually have fortune cookies. In almost all Chinese restaurants outside of China, the waiter brings you the bill and fortune cookies at the end. However, you won’t get these cookies in most restaurants in China.

3

Funeral

White is the color for funerals. In China, when people attend traditional funerals and grieve for their lost ones, they wear white clothes and white hats. In some places, they also march on the street with a full band or procession. However, most people who live in the cities will require guests to wear all black to funerals.

Public toilets

4

If you have been to some public toilets in China, especially those in tourist attractions, you might be surprised by its structure. This squat-style toilet has actually been passed along through thousands years of Chinese history. For foreigners though it might be a bit inconvenient as a lot of people cannot do the 'Asian squat'.

5

Map

In Chinese versions of World map, China is located in the West, while the Pacific Ocean is in the center. In the Western world’s version, Africa and the Atlantic Ocean are in the center, while China is on the far right.

Chinese Version

Other Version

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The stock market

6

In China, stock price colors are very different from other countries. If you see red on the screen, you might be pretty happy, because green means going down and red means going up in China. On the contrary, if you see red in America, you might panic. In some other stock exchange market, the color is the opposite; green means increase and red means decrease.

A shares

Nasdaq

7

The V sign 

If you have been to any tourist attractions, you will see a lot of tourists making the gesture “V”. In China, it means 'yeah', simply expressing the feeling of happiness at the moment. In other countries, there are vastly different meaning for this gesture. The V pose means peace in America, but it is an insulting pose in England.

666 and 2333

8

On internet, you might have seen two numbers often used by Chinese netizens, 666 and 233. 666 simply means that people think someone’s good at something, and 2333 just means something is funny. Conversely, 666 can have religious connotations in the West, and is often associated with the devil and bad luck.

9

Discount

In China, when you want to ask for a discount, you need to know how to ask for it. In English, you use the number of percent off, but in Chinese, you say the percent that you have to pay for. For example, 80% off in English is actually 20% "zhé" in Chinese.

Chinese version of 30% off

English version of 30% off

Hot water

10

When you come to China, you will find that there aren't many water fountains, and most people don’t drink cold water. Chinese people prefer to drink hot water and beverages, especially the older generations.  

Comment below to share with us other fun cultural shocks you have experienced in China.

Editor: CH

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