Eating and Drinking - "how to behave" ;-) by claudia1975
There are several rules if you are invited for a formal lunch or dinner at on of your business partner institutes, which you should try to obey:1) the highest ranking person will sit at the center place of the table - usually the chair, where you face towards the door. He / she will chose this chair first and the others will not sit down until asked to do so. He will tell the other memebers of the party where to sit and will place the second and third highest ranking member of the opposite party (foreign visitors etc.) next to him.
2) Clean your hands with the hot towels, which are served. Even if you have a cold: don't blow your nose in public or during lunch / dinner
3) The first toast will be spoken by the head of the table. It is then expected that you toast back sometime thereafter. Say some nice friendly sentences and then lift your glass. Don't drink beer or whine without toasting. It is not commom - like in Europe - that everyone just sips on his beer. Either all drink together or you sip your tea or juice.
4) If a new dish is served on the table it will always be tried first by the head of the table. Then he will turn the glass-tray for others to eat. Sometimes he will offer the first bite to his highest ranking guest.
5) Often, rices or noodles are only served in the end and only on demand. Try to eat slowly because at official banquetts there will be a lot to come. Soup is the last course and indicates that the meal will be finished soon
6) Keep the conversation pleasant. Heavy political topics, cultural misunderstandings or worrysome business issues are not a good topic during lunch or dinner.
7) The Chinese cuisine is really the most excellent I have ever tasted. Even if you are unsure: taste everything, mostly you will really like it and will miss out if you dont give it a try.
8) Chpstick-DONTs: dont hold them in a closed fist, dont lick their tips, dont be picky and look for the best piece of meat on the plate, dont use them to shov dishware around,
