China is known as a state of etiquette and ceremonies. Many proverbs have been passed down from generation to generation such as “civility casts nothing” or “courtesy demands reciprocity” and so on. Once upon a time, a man went on a long tour to visit his friend with a swan as a gift. But it escaped from the cage on the way and in his effort to catch it; he got hold of nothing but a feather. Instead of returning home, he continued his journey with the swan feather. When his friend received his unexpected gift, he was deeply moved by the story as well as the sincerity. And the saying “the gift is nothing much, but it’s the thought counts” was spread far and wide.
It is common social practice to introduce the junior to the senior, or the familiar to the unfamiliar. When you start a talk with a stranger, the topics such as weather, food or hobbies may be good choices to break the ice. To a man, a chat about current affairs, sports, stock market or his job can usually go on smoothly. Similar to western customs, you should be cautious to ask a woman private questions. However, relaxing topics about her job or family life will never put you into danger. She is usually glad to offer you some advice on how to cook Chinese food or get accustomed to local life. Things will be quite different when you’ve made acquaintance with them. Implicit as Chinese said to be, they are actually humorous enough to appreciate the exaggerated jokes.