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Q: Do you dislike foreigners in China?
Whenever I see another foreigner, and that's pretty often, they always just blank me or look down as if they're ashamed to acknowledge me or something. Do foreigners in China want to be the ONLY foreigner here in some sort of "look how revolutionary I am" sort of hero worship? It seems they do not like to see that other people, thousands of other people, are doing exactly what they are. Perhaps it is diluting their "achievement" to see others here as well.
Don't get me wrong, I do not expect them to see me and run up to me and shake my hand and offer me out to dinner, but they do not even look at me. They are firmly set on the pavement in front of them. Then I got to think about it, and I realised that I do not like most foreigners here, and it's because of things exactly like this.
When I am in my native UK, I see Chinese all the time and they are always willing to talk/help their countrymen, they are always in huddles, always together, that's really nice to see. They seem to want to share in experiences, but foreigners in China seem to be the opposite, they want the glory of travelling in China all to themselves. They need to realise that it's no longer special to be a foreigner travelling/living in China, you're not going to get a medal for coming here - thousands have done it before you and thousands will do after you.
This is not really a rant, more of a general wondering because this has happened to me on so many occasions. It's eiher this or the over-arrogant foreigners that try to show you how much they know in Mandarin or about local customs by speaking that bit louder or doing things that bit faster in order to catch your attention...it's pathetic, and reeks of desperation. I'd actually respect them more if they came up to me and said "look, i'm going to be showing off in a minute, can you just watch on and clap after I've finished".
Anybody got any stories or thoughts like this? or am I alone?
I've had another foreigner (another American in fact) chase me down in the local supermarket before. I guess he saw me from a distance, and couldn't believe there was another foreigner in this little town. It was a bit weird to say the least...exchanged contact info, and never heard from him or seen him again.
Anyways, after 2.5 years here, I've developed a bit of tunnel vision or horse-blind syndrome when walking around. I know where I'm going, what I need to do....so I just set to it. All the random "hello!", "laowai!", and other utterances and dumbfounded looks get ignored. This also means any sightings and acknowledgements of fellow foreigners gets ignored as well. I'm guessing I'm not the only foreigner in China with this M.O.
lightend:
iv lived for 2 years in a place where there were for 1 year, no other westerners, the second year there was 1 but i didnt like him much,
when i moved to hangzhou and there were foreigners every where (heaven on earth, so many potential friends and drinking buddies)
I have said hello, or good morning or god evening to every one i have past but got very little in return. some people say hello back, otheres just ignore me.
while some times I am zoned out and on a mission to get somewhere, if someone says hello to me I will normally respond. if its a westner I will say hello back, If its a chinese person and they say Laowai, I will reply with Zhongguoren (or if im feeling argumentative, then reply with bu shi, wo shi yinguoreen, ni shi laowai, I have made a kid cry by insisting he was the foreigner before. (bad day at the office))
I always wanted to learn "your powers of observation are astonishing" to shout at people who shout out laowai.
I don't dislike them, I truly hate them. Every last one. Yes, that includes you.
True in a way...or colleagues in the Uni that will NEVER hang out with anyone...some of them are my neighbors, see 'em only in the elevator...it's pretty lame
I don't try to avoid other foreigners, but when I am out walking around I am pretty focused on not getting run over, so I might not see them.
I would say I am neither here nor there about meeting other foreigners like myself. If I see some I usually nod my head or something, and depending on their disposition they will nod back. Sometimes that leads to a conversation, sometimes not. I think I've gotten over feeling like a foreigner. And my Chinese is good enough to feel like I fit in. So...
If I see another foreigner I will attempt to make eye-contact and if it is returned I will nod or say hello. If they avert their eyes, (as some do) I will respect their obvious wish for privacy. Doesn't hurt me, (or my feelings) either way.
Hugh.G.Rection:
But were not in the 'pen'.
I know China has more restrictions than some other countries but I wouldn't call it a prison.
Foreigners in China come in every shape, size, color, nationality and state of mental health as there exists on the face of the earth. Some are quite exemplary and reflect well upon their countries of origin; others are reprobates and were shames at home and are shames here. I make no generalizations as to the foreigners that I meet except to say that I take each one as individual, liking some and disliking others.
Every time I run into Caucasians & say hello, they don't see me or pretend they don't see me. I'm fat & blond, so it's hard to not notice me. Africans & Arabs are very nice, they always say hello & smile. Sometimes they would ask me where I come from & what I'm doing in China which I don't mind sharing. So, I somewhat agree with the very first comment, we're too arrogant & self-centered. If I say hello to you it doesn't mean I want to hang out with you or want you to treat me to dinner. Just be nice to each other, Period.
bill8899:
Say hello to me! I'm nice!
Yes Arabs and Africans are friendly. I know an Arabic student who speaks Arabic, Chinese, English, French and Spanish fluently.
I hate him.
I live in Vancouver, there's loads of different ethnic groups all over the place. They don't walk around saying hello to each other. I can't picture anyone who doesn't know someone saying hello just cause they are the same race. If Chinese people here did that they'd never stop saying hello.
Only rarely have I ever been the first to recognize (by nod, smile or whatever) another foreigner. If one greets me, I greet them back. I wasn't in China to make friends or win some kind of popularity contest. I also wasn't some deluded schmuck who thought I was special because I lived in another country.
I was in China to make money and be with my family. This isn't to say I didn't have friends, both foreign and Chinese, I did. But, to me, the need to greet every foreigner I see seems a like a cry for help or a need to be acknowledged as a member of the elite "expat club".
When I see someone I know, I greet them. Strangers greeting me just seems a little creepy for some reason.
lightend:
I think you are wrong so I am one of the people who thumbs downed you.
Its not about being popular or what not, its about being polite.
people I meet who ignore others seem just as arrogant as the drivers here who will drive onto the sidewalk and beep at you to move out the way. (generally pass my daughter to my wife and get her to stand out the way while I point to the congested road and shout in chinese about a harmonious society. (get my wife and kid to safety first as you never know if its someone who will just run you over).
so to some up, I believe you are just arogant.
HAHAA
Xpat.John:
You can believe I am arrogant, I don't mind. You certainly wouldn't be the first to think that.
But let me ask, when you are in your home country, do you greet every person you see on the street? I don't. And if you don't do it in your home country, why do it in another country?
ElenaDob:
But we are not in Vancouver or New York. I live in Hefei where there aren't so many foreigners. If I were in Vancouver I wouldn't greet every white or black face I see. I do not greet every foreigner in Shanghai or Beijing, you would have to say hello every minute. I was pleased though, when an English-speaking man asked me where I came from & whether it was my first time in Shanghai. Maybe it's creepy, but i felt warm.
I didn't dislike other foreigners, I relied quite extensively on the support of my foreign friends.
I certainly wouldn't go out of my way to either ignore or acknowledge non-Chinese residents - like others have said, walking on the footpath in China could be something of an adventure sport. Particularly in winter, it often didn't leave much attention free for "hey! fellow foreign person! let's acknowledge each other" strangeness.
first of all loke, old major, noballs etc, you wrote that you see foreigners all the time, so why the hell would it be a big deal seeing another foreigner? anyone who is an expat knows that when you are somewhere like beijing or shanghai seeing another foreigner is different from seeing another foreigner in let's say Jinan. If you are seeing foreigners all the time, then it would stand to reason they are seeing foreigners all the time as well. so it is like seeing a chinese person. expats in general come from countries that are open to other countries. so we have developed and understanding that people are just people. chinese people do not have that luxury.
so when i see another foreigner it is just like seeing another person. but if eye contact is made , i give a nod. if i see an expat that looks lost i will ask them if they need help. I myself have never come across a fellow expat that wasn't willing to help me out. so comparing chinese "always willing to help a fellow countrymen out" with expats saying hello or acknowledging each other is foolish.
Your question fails : seeing foreigners often does not necessitate acknowledging them. expats are more sophisticated, we come from countries that allow us to travel to most countries (us passport = no visa req). expats in general have been to more countries than just china. expats come from countries that allowed us to be free thinking and independent. so we do not need to huddle up with other americans, brits, aussies (you are aware that "foreigner" does not equate to "countryman", you are aware that "foreigner" does not equate to "english speaking country")
I came here to experience china.
why compare foreingers in china to chinese in the uk? foreigner =many different countries . chinese = china (1 country) do chinese run up and talk to any chinese looking person in the uk????????
crimochina:
oh and by the way. i've been in chinatown many times. i did not see chinese running up to each other saying hello.. (to strangers) and how do you know the chinese people you saw "in the uk" weren't friends. so even when chinese people see other chinese people all the time, they do not run up to them saying hello. do chinese hate other chinese? the answer is clearly not.
Dislike....there is no reason to dislike something...disliking someone is like bringing them into your personal life. No need for that don't know them don't matter, but disliking someone is not something that I need to do. Even the people that did the most dispicable things just ignore and move on from there...
DAMN FOREIGNERS IF THEY AIN'T AMERICAN I AIN'T INTERESTED
Most of the white foreigners I've encountered have been very unfriendly or rude. When I meet new people I'm cautious yet optimistic. On the other hand, most of the Africans and Middle Easterners are very nice. Most of the Indians I've met have been great too.
My liking or disliking someone is based on their behavior, not on whether they are "foreign" or "local".
crimochina:
exactly!!! this is the type of question my chinese friends have asked me. because i don't run up and talk or wave to foreigners i don't know. so that means i must hate them. because all foreign people are from "foreign country" so that is the same as chinese people in "foreign country"
Weird. I guess I am lucky. I have found other ex-patriots and the the local nationals to all be really great. Oh, there is the occasional person who looks at you like you are from another planet, but you can even get that at home! I am one of those people who have never had a problem making friends with people, and I don't take it personally if someone doesn't speak to me. If it is all that important that you be acknowledged by someone then why don't you just go up to them and introduce yourself? The worst that will happen is that they might not be warm and fuzzy with you. If you are confident enough to leave your home land and travel to another country then you should be confident enough to not care one way or another whether someone you don't even know wants to be best buddies with you!
LAR:
"Oh.....................another planet." That's the kind of stupid look that I get from the Chinese from time to time! Orientals are really good at that..being xenophobic and all. The South Koreans are the exact same! Peas of a pod.
Yes, perhaps I shouldn't expect too much from other foreigners. It's not so much that they don't say hello or nod, it's that they purposely keep their head down, then when they are passed me, their head goes up. I've watched them do it, and not just to me. It just seems a weird mentality to have, which I why I assumed they acted like that because they wanted to feel superior and unique, so when they see another foreigner, it disrupts their arrogance for a moment.
sometimes it happens at a bar or dicso club where few chinese girls and many foriegners
Blaine, no I don't dislike foreigners here for the most part. I thank God for them, especially living here!!!!! Just move on bro. I've met some pretty nice foreign expats during my time in Asia. Sure, we're not gonna hit it off with every fellow Westerner that we meet . That's just life.
Absolutely, because foreigners are so...well, foreign. And besides that, they may be packin' heat, 'cause everyone knows that all foreigners carry guns.
MissA:
Not all foreigners, just Americans.... the rest of us stab people.
giadrosich:
Hehehe! Only if you've just eaten. That way, you have more energy, and, you work off calories! 
I don't have much in common with most foreigners I meet.......I'm not a psychopath/compulsive liar...I don't sleaze down to the bath house on my days off.....I don't like getting completely wasted.......I'd rather have a friendly conversation than make smug smart arse comments.........and so on..
giadrosich:
And yes, we are thankful you don't have much in common with us. That way, we can spot you a mile away by your proud and haughty gait, and avoid you!
I can only speak for myself and make assumptions about the rest. In China I'm not that friendly in public primarily because lets face it the Chinese society is not a friendly environment. When you go out you need to watch out so you don't get run over by someone or have someone break in front of you in line etc etc People here are not happy to see another person out because it just means more people to compete with for the seat on the bus or more people to have to avoid being run over by. Not matter you are Chinese or a foreigner nobody is really happy to see anyone outside. I hate that it is like that but that is the state of society. I don't want to be like that but the society influence is very strong.
Now talking about foreigners specifically I would say I'm much more interested in meeting Chinese and making Chinese friends. Sure, I'd like to help a fellow foreigner but I find most difficult to become friends with. Many seem proud,judgmental, impersonal, senseless and/or just downright weird. And I guess it does take a somewhat weird person to want to make the journey to come here.
