Dongguan

1. Greetings and Key phrases

What are the most common greetings in your culture?

Greeting: 你好
Meaning: Hello / Hi
Pronunciation: nei5 hou2

Greeting: 早晨
Meaning: good morning; a greeting used in the morning
Pronunciation: zou2 san4

Greeting: 好耐冇见
Meaning: I haven’t seen you for a long time.
Pronunciation: hou2 noi6 mou5 gin3

What is a typical local phrase?

Phrase：你食咗饭未啊?
Meaning: Have you eaten？/ Have you had your meal？
Pronunciation: nei5 sik6 zo2 faan6 mei6 aa3 ?

Phrase: 唔該
Meaning: thank you/excuse me
Pronunciation: m4 goi1

Phrase：辛苦晒
Meaning: Thanks for your hard work./ I appreciate your hard work.

Pronunciation: San1 fu3 saai5

2. A day in your city

What are the most famous landmarks?

Which are your personal favourite places in the city (insider tip)?

Guomao Center / 国贸中心 – it’s located in CBD and is the biggest shopping mall in Dongguan.
(Contributor: Emily Xiong)

Songshan Lake / 松山湖 –The best place for weekend outing and also for cycling around the lake in Dongguan.
(Contributor: Iris Hu )

Xiaba Fang Bar Street /下坝坊酒吧街 – It is one of the villages in the Pearl River Delta region with relatively complete cultural preservation of Lingnan Water Town, and is known as the “Lingnan Water Town Culture Pan Museum” in Dongguan City. It’s also known as Dongguan Gulangyu, a place which is full of petty bourgeoisie atmosphere and with many nice bars and cafe.
(Contributor: Michael Chen)

Dongguan Intangible Cultural Heritage Museum / 东莞非遗展厅 – The best place to learn about Dongguan’s intangible cultural heritage.
(Contributor: Diana Yuan)

Nanshe Ancient Village of Ming and Qing Dynasties/ 南社明清古村落 – The historical witness of Nanshe Village in Ming and Qing Dynasties. If you like Chinese history and ancient architecture, you shouldn’t miss it!
(Contributor: Amy Hu)

Is there any interesting way to get around in your city/country?

Hiking or by bike to get around the city and travel by high-speed train to get around the country.

What items should I not forget to bring when traveling to your country?

Sunscreen products eg. sun glasses, sun hat, sunscreen lotion as Dongguan is hot & humid in summer
Umbrella as Dongguan often rains in summer
Power bank
Smart phone and download local APPs like WeChat and Baidu Map (E-payment is super popular in China)

What should I avoid when travelling to your country?

Wearing shorts in temples.
Sticking chopsticks in the rice bowl
Giving watches or clock as a gift
Wearing green hat

3. Culture

What is the traditional and the modern costume/dress in your country?

Traditonal: Chirpaur for women and Chinese tunic suit for men

Modern: casual or business leisure clothes which everybody can buy in H&M, Zara or similar clothes store / brand

Do schools require uniforms in your country? If yes, what do they look like?

Almost all primary and secondary schools in China require students to wear uniform during the school day, which is usually divided into summer and autumn and winter uniforms according to the seasons. The design and color of uniforms is vary from school to school.

What music (and dances) represent your local culture?

Canto-pop songs

One fun fact about your country

One out of every four smartphones made in the world is made in Dongguan.

What famous invention or something interesting is originally from your country?

Firecrackers
It’s originally from China and has a history of more than 2500 years. Chinese people have a tradition to set off firecrackers during the Spring Festival, wedding celebrations, various celebrations, temple fairs and other occasions, especially during the Spring Festival. On one hand, it is a symbol of good fortune and on the other hand Chinese people think it can exorcise evil spirits.
Medicated oil / 风油精
The mint oil is very useful for curing car sick, dizziness because of the heat and mosquito bites. it’s a medicine that’s really usual for Chinese families in the summer.
Warrior sneakers / 回力鞋
Priced at around 20 yuan a pair, have a history of 40 years in China.
But in Europe, a pair of Warrior sneakers costs around 50 euros (about 500 yuan) — 25 times more than its domestic price. Many Hollywood stars are beginning to wear the Warrior sneakers, including Orlando Bloom, who played in The Lord of the Rings and Pirates of the Caribbean.

What are the special colours in your country/culture?

The special color for Dongguan is Dongguan Blue / 东莞蓝.
Dongguan has eliminated a large number of highly polluting factories to make room for the development of new and environment friendly industries. Now the air quality standards have been greatly improved, and the sky is often blue.

What are the lucky and unlucky numbers in your culture?

Lucky number in Chinese culture:
With pronunciation of ‘Ba’ in Chinese, no. 8 sounds like the word ‘Fa’, which means to make a fortune.
Unlucky number in Chinese culture： 4 – Number 4 pronounced sì, is considered the unluckiest number of all. Because it sounds very similar to the word for death (死).