| Learning the language of a country isn't enough．If you see the manners of your foreign friends you will probably be surprised just how different they can be from your own． A visitor to India should remember that they are impolite to use the left hand for passing food at table．The left hand is for washing yourself．Also in India you might see a man shaking his head at another to show that he is disagreeing．But in many parts of India a rotating(转)movement of the head is to show agreement．In Bulgaria you shake your head to show“yes”－a nod to show“no”． In Europe it is quite usual to cross your legs while sitting and talking to someone even at an important meeting．But doing this could cause offence to a Thailander．Also touching the head of a grown-up is impolite．It's just not done in Thailand．  American informality is well known．But we Chinese are very likely to regard it as a lack of respect when we first encounter(遇见)it especially in the business world．The almost immediate use of first names upsets Chinese who are not used to it． We should not be surprised if Americans don't shake hands with us．They often just nod or smile．And they simply say“Hi”or“Hello”．Americans at a party are not likely to say“goodbye”to everyone when they leave．They just wave their hands or say something informal to the whole group such as“Well see you tomorrow”or“So long everybody”．Then they disappear no handshakes for Americans have different senses of timing and pace from us．We need to understand this if we want to understand Americans． Knowing about manners is useful when you are traveling but you need to know the language used to express for ritual(礼节)． |