Living in another country helps you realize just how different cultures can be. I'm often surprised at the honesty of people here. Students think nothing of telling me that I pay too much for my apartment, or that what I'm eating is not delicious.
People are also surprisingly open about their personal issues. The first time I met her, one student told me that she was engaged to be married, but she thinks she'll leave her fiance because he's not good looking. Another student said that he cries every night because he feels lonely. How do you respond to that?
In the US we'd keep these things to ourselves, but here in China, it's all part of a normal conversation. Sometimes it makes me uneasy, but I'm learning how to take it in stride.
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