Editor's note: As China's economy booms, more and more foreigners come to the country to work, or travel. What are their impressions of China and its people? One of our forum readers from the US shares a few observations.

Teamkrejados (US)

Chinese people, unlike Chinese movies, do not come with subtitles:

Intellectually, I was aware of this, and you may be too. However, I spent a great deal of time in the States preparing for this Chinese adventure by watching Chinese movies with English subtitles so I could get used to the rhythm and pattern of speech, thus subtitles became an integral part of my understanding of Chinese dialogue. Also, I study Putonghua – the common language - and so I speak some Putonghua. Unfortunately, I cannot make head or tail of the regional dialect where I live. The older citizens speak the dialect; the younger citizens speak a mishmash of dialect and Putonghua. If I have to ask for directions, I usually approach a younger person. They are more likely to respond using the Common Language, and if I'm really lucky, they might even try out their English skills.