The Land of Opposites

It is uncanny and all together flabbergasting but all of the following really are true, I promise.

1. Off is up on light switches.

2. You don't leave any appliance plugged in if it's not in use.


3. Pedestrians do not have the right of way this includes women, children and the elderly.

4. If you plan to meet at 9:00, your Chinese friend will be there at 8:30.

5. If you're going to be late you say, "I'll be there in 10 to 5 minutes." In which case your Chinese friend will have been waiting for nearly 40 minutes and will be wondering where in the world you are.


6. At the zoo, the trolley stops so you can feed the bears.


7. You can be in the cage with the baby lions.


8. Zoos smell bad here too, but sticking your fingers into the cage seems to be okay.


9. As Tim bundles, old Chinese men derobe and go for a dip.

10. When you ask a negative question such as "You're not cold?"
"Yes," means "No, I'm not" and vice verse. So, their intention here is "Yes, you're right; I'm not cold." But, as you can imagine, this subtly can cause some humorous confusion.


11. Bimbo refers to bread.

12. Red wine is refrigerated. White is served room temperature.

13. Beer is served either warm or on ice but not chilled.

14. Restaurants serve weak tea, no coffee.

15. Milk is sold in bags and is not refrigerated.


16. Tim takes his shirt off when he eats.

17. Men's shirts have buttons on the left and women's on the right.


18. This restaurant advertises a good smell, no guarantees on taste.

19. Pig's feet and duck heads are delicacies.

20. Belching at the dinner table is kosher.

21. Slurping of your soup is expected.


22. There are more elderly people in the parks than children.
Here's Tim, acting like an 80 year old again.

23. People walk backwards for exercise.

24. A "day off" means that you work extra before and/or after your "holiday."

I think that's all for now. We'll add to our list as we discover others.