Topic: hadleyj09 's blog 5 Things I Have Learned In China

I also appreciate your positivity and good attitude very much. I was the same way when I first arrived. I REALLY wanted there to be something great and interesting about the culture here. Something positive I could take away. Unfortunately I think the reality is closer to a blend of the worst of both east and west. Our materialism without our earnest idealism, their rigid thinking without the loyalty and selflessness. I agree with coineineagh that the Chinese tend to 'keep score' about a lot of things that we don't. I think for me the turning point in how I viewed locals is after a couple years I decided it wasn't my place to make excuses for them. It's not OK for someone to be ignorant or selfish or bad mannered no matter where they are from. I started holding locals to the same standard of being interesting, ethical and fun that I would hold a western person to. There are some really great people here, but they are in the minority.