Etiquette & manners.

It's crunch time for China as Beijing tries to educate its citizens about the horrifying disgustingness of spitting anywhere and everywhere. Can you imagine if the Sydney Olympics had not gone to Sydney and had gone to Beijing instead... would the world have been horrified at that very strange Chinese culture?

There are a zillion articles these days about how China is trying to educate the masses on a number of things but how spitting is the number one issue. I suppose it is the number one issue because it's the first thing that makes an impression, but I wonder how Beijing is going to educate the masses on respect for the athletes of other countries... namely Japan.

I remember that footie game between China and Japan. It is remembered not for the game itself but for the manner in which the Japanese team were treated. Honestly. I don't think they would have been treated as badly if the game had taken place in Shanghai. I somehow don't see the same level of over-the-top-patriotism in my favourite city. Having said that, and much as I love the Mother Country, China is still quite weird.

I know that I will never understand China and I will never understand their culture completely and I will never really be a full-blood Chinese person. I don't know whether this has to do with my upbringing (likely) or whether, as I very very recently found out, it has to do with the fact that I am in fact 'mixed'. But I have grown to love the country that Hong Kong people love to hate.

Perhaps it is arrogance? Ah well. Back in the days of being a bartender, I hated the Mainland Chinese. Honestly. I had no intention of being nice to them, no intention of serving them at all. We'd all pretend to not speak Mandarin (well, actually, we didn't) and we'd try to kick 'em out of the bar asap. Yes, they had money to spend. But man, they were loud and they were annoying. Hmph.

Anyway. Maybe I'm being pessimistic but even though they have two years, I just somehow don't see how this plan is going to work. Or do I have too little faith in my own people?! Hmph. Rise up, Chinese people! And show the world we can host world class events. Geez. If this fails, it's gonna be an ugly bum show.

God bless.