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Thread: Would you mind if a Chinese asks you such questions?

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[quote=JABAROOTOO,301139]Yes, 
Your teacher is correct.  We value our privacy and in our culture it is not appropriate for a stranger to ask these kinds on questions.

However, you may ask a visitor to China,  questions like these listed below, always keeping in mind that it is 'polite to ask first' if the person would mind answering some questions.

Questions that are OK to ask a stranger once you have SAID hello and introduced yourself

Q: Hello
A: Hello

Q: Are you visiting China or do you live here?
A: visiting/ live in ...............(city)

Q: I hope you are enjoying your time here.
A: yes/no

Q: Where are you from?
A: .I'm.......................(nationality)

Q: Would you mind if I asked you some more questions??
A: yes/no

If you get a 'yes' answer, you might follow-up with questions like

How long have you been in China?
Are you here with friends or family or on your own?
What kind of work are you doing here in China?
Is this the same kind of job that you have back home?
What do you like about China?
What, if anything don't you like about China?
Can you speak Mandarin?
What's you favourite place in China??  (Great Wall, Shanghai, villages of Guizhou)

Some of the topics below can be covered from following up on the second question on my list.  The others would be seen as impolite although I do answer some of them in most instances but I get very bored after being asked these same questions over and over again.

The 'age' question was a big issue especially when asked by five year olds.  I tell them I am five or six because most of them cannot count past that in English anyway.

But I understand for some people it is hard for them to judge our age and knowing how old we are helps them to address us respectfully in Chinese.  however I think it is obvious to most people who are younger than us and so it should not be a question for this reason.

We only discuss these topics with people who are friends and others who have gained our respect

NOT VERY APPROPRIATE
<Will you mind if a Chinese person asks you about such topics as your age, your salary, your marriage status, your address, religious belief, your experience and your whereabouts>

This list is not exhaustive    Please feel free to add more ideas.....................it may help some of you who would like to 'befriend' a foreigner but  either don't know how to begin or put them off by inappropriate approaches.[/quote]

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