Kissing a goodbye to luck, say NZ's guidelines

:00AM Saturday August 09, 2008
By Lincoln Tan


Do not embrace or kiss Chinese people and do not share a pear with others, because it is considered bad luck.

These and other pointers are intended to give New Zealand Olympic athletes the social edge while they are competing in Beijing.

A handbook prepared in New Zealand by the University of Auckland's Confucius Institute advises against "exposing inappropriate body parts of the body" and to "be very cautious in political discussions".

It has also suggested not to give clocks as gifts to the Chinese because it sounds like the "end of life" in Mandarin.

"[The book] is to give the Kiwis an advantage to better understand and appreciate the Chinese culture at the Games," said Nora Yao, director of the Confucius Institute.

"As we understand, the New Zealanders are the only team in the world to have the guidebook."

It also gives an introduction to China and a guide on how to pronounce common Chinese words, greetings and introductory phrases such as "hello", "thank you" and "I am a New Zealander".


The guidelines, which Ms Yao said had been posted on the New Zealand Olympic website, follow China's attempts to tell its own citizens about appropriate behaviour.

DOs AND DON'Ts
* Do give a brief handshake and smile when you first meet someone. Do not embrace or kiss Chinese people, and there is no need to bow.
* Do behave and wear appropriate clothes in public, but do not show strong emotions or feelings or expose inappropriate parts of your body.
* When someone pours you tea, say thanks by tapping the table about three times with your second and/or middle finger, but not too loud as it might mean you are angry with the waiter.
* Do remember to bring some tissue or toilet paper when you go out, because there won't be any in most public toilets.
* Do build good networks and relationships or "guanxi" with the Chinese, but do not intentionally criticise others because once "guanxi" is broken, it takes a long time to mend.