A surprising cross-culture (跨文化) food—Pasta (意大利面食)

As a boy from Italy, I remember one thing when I was on vacation in China. It shows me how food can cross cultures. A Chinese friend took me to a restaurant in Beijing to show me a popular dish. It was a bowl of ban mian. It was delicious, but I couldn’t help feeling I ate this dish before. It was just like Spaghetti Bolognese (意大利番茄肉酱面) with Chinese characteristics (特色), so I was surprised at the dish.

When I ate ban mian, it made me think about the history of pasta. The Italian explorer (探险家) Marco Polo brought back pasta from China in the 13th century (世纪). Spaghetti Bolognesc shows that after it arrived in Italy, this kind of food didn’t stop changing (改变).

My grandma told me throwing (扔) the spaghetti on the wall (墙) can help to see if it’s cooked well. If it sticks (粘住), then it’s ready to eat. But if it falls, it still needs time to cook. Is there ban mian on the walls of the kitchen at this restaurant? I thought to myself. Through this, I learn food can cross cultures and change over time.

3 . Body language is very important in our life. Gestures (手势) mean something in one country, but they may not be the same in another. Now let me tell you several body gestures in different countries.

Eye Contact (接触) In Japan

“Look at me when I’m talking to you!” You can often hear it from your parents. It is polite to look at someone in the eyes when talking to them. In Japan, however, you won’t hear something like this. In most countries, eye contact in a conversation is an important part of your culture (文化). However, eye contact in Japan is rude. The Japanese don’t look at each other in the eyes when they talk.

In India, Shake Your Head Left-Right

When you want to say yes, you shake your head up and down. Well, it is not the same in India. In India, when you want to say “yes”, you shake your head. But you don’t shake it up and down, but left and right. It is very amazing, right?

Bow In Korea (韩国)

In some East Asian countries, such as Japan and Korea, a bow means politeness and respect (尊重). The more you bow to your speaker, the greater your respect is. In Korea, when you say “Hello”, “I’m sorry”, “Thank you”, and “Goodbye”, you should bow at the same time.

5 . Tea and coffee are two of the most popular drinks in the world. However, people usually like one more than the other. These drinks also have very different uses.

Tea drinking started in China over 4,000 years ago. Tea is made from leaves. These days, some people drink tea for health, using it to help with stress or losing weight. However, most people in tea-drinking countries think of tea as more than just a healthy drink. In fact, tea drinking in some countries is a part of the culture. In Turkey (土耳其), tea is always there when people meet. Whether in someone’s home or an office, tea is always offered as a way of welcoming. In the UK, homes and office s usually have tea time. Tea and other dishes are served at tea time in the afternoon. It is a way of relaxing with friends or co-workers (同事).

Coffee came much later than tea, just over 1,000 years ago. Coffee is made from beans. Something in the coffee beans makes a person feel active. Most people do not drink coffee to relax. Instead, they drink coffee to get going. Many people drink coffee in the morning to help them wake up. Others will also drink coffee during short breaks in the afternoon to keep going through the working days. Some people may visit coffee shops just to meet and talk with friends. However, many people in coffee shops drink coffee while working on their computers.

Is tea or coffee more common in your country? Between the two, which do you like to drink more?

Eye Contact

Eye contact means looking into another person’s eyes. This is a very important part of body language.     1     Eye contact can show feelings such as friendliness, interest and understanding.

In Western countries, using eye contact in conversations is very important. If you do not use eye contact, Westerners may think that you are not listening.     2    

However, in many Asian countries, looking down when talking with an older person, like a teacher or a parent, is polite.     3     For example, an Asian person might look down while listening to a Western speaker. The Western speaker might think this person is not interested in what he or she is saying.

Not using eye contact can cause problems, but using too much is not polite either. In many countries, watching other people, especially strangers, for a long time is impolite.     4     In fact, in Japanese culture, people are taught not to maintain eye contact with others because too much eye contact is often considered disrespectful (失礼的).

In conclusion, understanding cultural differences in eye contact and other forms of body language is important. Knowing these cultural differences and adapting our communication styles, we can build stronger connections with people from different cultural backgrounds.     5    

7 . Mr and Mrs Smith have just opened a small restaurant. In order to ________ customers, they put a notice in front of the restaurant, which said “Meals on the ________ for Three Days.”

A foreign student happened to ________ by the restaurant on the second day.   And he didn’t know much English. It was lunchtime and he felt hungry. “Well, here is a restaurant. I’m going to have something to eat.”

He saw the notice when he was walking to the restaurant. “American people are really ________. They even eat food on the house! But how can I get onto the ________ of the house?” He said to himself.

He looked around and found a ladder (梯子) ________ the tree nearby. He was very glad. But as he reached the top of the house, he heard someone shouting at him. “Hey, what are you doing up there?”

Mr Smith was looking at him ________. And a policeman was beside Mr Smith.

“Doesn’t your notice ________ ‘Meals on the House for Three Days’? Is it just a joke?” the foreign student answered.

After hearing this, both Mr Smith and the policeman ________.

“Don’t you know what ‘ON THE HOUSE’ means? Look it up in the dictionary.” the policeman suggested.

Actually, that means the restaurant provide drinks or meals for ________ and you don’t have to give money.