China Law Blog - F-ck China Culture Lessons. Give Me Anthony Bourdain With No Reservations. - Comments

Ben

Dan — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 08:43:03 -0800

Couldn't agree more: great show and great advice.

Hunxuer

Dan — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 08:43:03 -0800

Agree 100%.

Bourdain is unpretentious, humble when in the homes of locals hosting him and respectful of local culture.

Hopefully he and whoever is the next American president can recover some of America's lost cred "W" & Co. shit away the last 8 years...

William

Dan — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 08:43:03 -0800

Some advance preparation is great (e.g. language study or at least chopsticks skills), but I agree, eagerly taking part in the culture is probably the best way to make people like you.

b. cheng

Dan — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 08:43:03 -0800

Love Bourdain, love the show, and agree with what you said. There is a problem with the show, though, its okay if you don't know where he's traveling to, but the 2 episodes he did in China, he really stuck strictly to the tourist path (at least in Beijing and Shanghai).

Totally unrelated, I recently came across the dvd box set of the first (and I think only) season of the tv show inspired by his book, Kitchen Confidential, in Shanghai and have been enjoying it thoroughly.

JoshuaT

Dan — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 08:43:03 -0800

Of course you are right about this and the only people who would say otherwise are those out there teaching the courses. I have been living in China for six years and my connection with "the people" comes from "being real," not from anything I have read in any book.

Will Lewis

Dan — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 08:43:03 -0800

Dan, I totally agree with you on this. Having sincere fun builds a great network. But ... I've found that some knowledge of Chinese culture adds to the fun. I'm sort of waiting until I finish the book, but I might just wait until I get back to the States to write a post on The Journey to the West. Dude, first off, this book, and especially Sun Wukong, is just plain old awesome. Second, The Great Sage Equaling Heaven is always fun to talk about (I think I confused and bored a lot of my friends in the States with tales of the Protector of the Horses exploits), and there's not a Chinese person I've met that isn't excited to share their opinion on any of the characters in the book. So I guess I'm saying mostly the same thing: genuine enthusiasm for the culture and eagerness to learn about the culture are what counts, and nobody but Westerners who think they know Chinese culture better than you really cares whether you use one hand or two hands to accept someone's business card.

Cindy King

Dan — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 08:43:03 -0800

Interesting post, seeing a different culture is one thing and understanding it another. The 'understanding' part is related to what I do in my business.
Knowledge of Chinese culture can be important when doing business, but make sure you understand that the culture requirements differ in the different regions - just like they differ in the North and South of France or the East Coast/West Coast of the US.