Articles on Chinese Culture and History
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Culture shock is a term that is easily available out there. Well, it basically refers to the feeling a traveler gets when s/he visits another place or country and finds that local customs are quite different from his or her area of origin. Culture shock comes in a number of stages depending on how long a visitor decides to live in a foreign country. Most foreign visitors to China admit experiencing at least some form of culture shock. As far as I know, the best way to enjoy your travel abroad is to have a certain amount of tolerance stored somewhere in your mind prior to arriving in a foreign country. With tolerance and keeping an open mind, your experience abroad will end up being more fun and a great learning process.Most foreign visitors, especially visitors from western cultures, will be greeted by several dissimilarities in culture from day one of arriving China. Even more so if they are not visiting those highly developed and westernized cities like Shanghai, Shenzhen and the Hong Kong semi-autonomous region. On this site we have provided you with basic cultural tips and life in China, to make your experience a rich and rewarding one when you visit the country, or are in the midst of Chinese. Business travelers will find this especially useful as cross-cultural communication plays an important role, more than ever in the global world of business and travel. As you probably know, China is fast replacing the west as the most popular travel and business destination of the 21st century. In 2005 China was the world's 4th place, most traveled, with over 56 million visitors. There has been a geometric increase in the number of students, businessmen, job seekers and tourists heading towards China. With the upcoming Beijing Olympic games in 2008, the number of visitors is expected to quadruple before and after the games.
China is situated in the south-eastern part of Eurasia and the eastern and central part of Asia. The region totals 9.6 million square kilometers. From bustling metropolises to the grasslands of Inner Mongolia, China is characterized by a diversified culture. Whether you are following the Silk Road, sailing down the Yangzi River, or exploring the Dr. Seuss landscape of Guangxi Province, the cultural feast is its chief draw. However, standard tourist sights like The Great Wall, Forbidden City, and Terracotta Army are relatively few, considering the size of the country.
Contrary to popular perception, China has not done away with its Maoist past; the revolutionary fervour is balanced by economic pragmatism. However, the change of pace is visible in modern day China. Travellers who visit the country would be surprised to see how much China has opened up and how many liberal trends have materialized subsequent to the late Deng Xiaoping's free market economics. Whether travellers are attracted to the country’s rich history, architecture, culture, or politics, the speed with which things are changing ensure their vacations are unparalleled.
In the plains, villages appear to amalgamate while big cities are sprawling affairs with the majority of their inhabitants residing in uniform dormitory buildings. There are several regional discrepancies. Some areas of the People's Republic are not populated by the Chinese but by supposed minority peoples, of whom there are over 200 groups. Nevertheless, enduring images of China are fundamentally stereotypical Chinese ones: chopsticks, tea, shadow-boxing, karaoke, Dickensian train stations, smoky temples, red flags, and the aroma of frying tofu, in addition to the industrial landscape a person would expect from one of the world's largest economies.
Spring and autumn are the best times to visit China. Daytime temperatures range from 20°C to 30°C in these seasons but the nights can be cold and damp.
Learn Chinese Online : Survival Chinese Lessons as mp3 podcasts
With a simple listen and speak communicative language approach you will learn and become confident with using simple basic survival Chinese. Download the mp3 files and take along with you. Listening repeatedly to these lessons on your ipods and multimedia players will help you learn seamlessly and effortlessly while you travel. The following are some of our survival Chinese lessons. Right click and take Save as target to download the file.
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