Take 1 minute to read the following questions. Listen to the recording. Mark down useful notes and answer the following questions.

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Evelyn Bond
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1 Unit 2. Cultural Differences Part A. Listening (Total: 20 marks) Take 1 minute to read the following questions. Listen to the recording. Mark down useful notes and answer the following questions. Section 1. M.C. (2 marks each) 1. What is the meaning of fag in he s popped outside for a fag in British English? A. Cigarette. B. Young boy. C. Trouble. 2. What does fag mean in American English? A. Somebody who is homosexual. B. Cigarette. C. Trouble. 3. Where does the man in the conversation come from? A. Ireland B. Scotland C. England 4. Which of the following does the man consider himself to be? A. British B. English C. Not mentioned in the conversation 5. Which of the following places is not part of the United Kingdom? A. England B. Scotland C. Eire 1

2 Section 2. Fill in the blanks. (10 marks, 2 marks each) Use one word for each blank. According to the man, the Scootish, Irish and Welsh people would like to have their. They have an independent Irish now. They are still governed overall by the parliament, but they try to break away. And certainly in Ireland, which is known as Eire, they are not British. They are not part of the United Kingdom. It is all kind of. 2

3 Part B. Reading (Total: 30 marks) Read the following articles and then answer the questions. Passage 1 (20 marks) Source: By John Chen Date: April 3, 2012 How to be a Hong Kong local: 10 tips on faking it The cross-harbor cab wave, how to use "seven" and other quick ways to appear like we've lived here forever Stop sticking out like a teetotaler in Wanchai and try out these little tricks for blending in with the locals in Hong Kong. 1. How to hail a cross-harbor cab To get a cab that is willing to cross the harbor, you could do the obvious and look for one of the rare signs for a cross-harbor taxi stand. Or you could just randomly flag down cabs and have an awkward shouting negotiation through the car window with the driver who will be seated on the far side of the car. Or use the cross-harbor arm wave. Extend one arm in front of on-coming cab, use the hand and wrist to make an ocean wave motion, indicating that you want the cab to metaphorically brave the harbor waters. Yes, we know that cabs are legally obliged to take you wherever you want to go. A true Hong Konger knows that laws should be interpreted only as loose guidelines. See the recent chief executive (and election) dramas for further details. 2. How to speak End every sentence, in English or any other language, with a Cantonese final particle, such as: la, ar, wor, gar. For example: "Hong Kong is so awesome la!" 3. How to use an umbrella The importance of the umbrella to Hong Kongers can't be overestimated. Rarely exalted, often abused, regularly left at a bar or in a car, the underdog tool is a Hong Konger's best friend, come rain or shine. 3

4 People, particularly women, always have a little retractable umbrella on them that also has an anti-uv coating. The umbrella keeps them relatively dry during downpours. For a city that gets rain for six months of a year, its denizens really don't like to get wet. The other half of the year is usually hot with strong sunshine and the magical shield is pulled out again to block sunrays and keep the skin Fancl white. 4. How to document life S**t Hong Kong people say at restaurants: Oh this dessert looks so cute! Hold on, can you take a photo of me and this dessert? Do one more with the flash off. I blinked, take another one. Next thing you know, eight sets of photos with the same dessert but a variation of faces are uploaded to Facebook while the cake collects dust. Nothing in Hong Kong is more satisfying than flooding friends with photos of our food. It can be more satisfying than eating the food itself. So always ask if anyone wants to take a photo before setting your chopsticks into something. 5. How to ask for tissues Asking for Kleenex will get you nowhere. We know the little sheets of delicate paper for wiping fingers and noses as "tissue" (pronounced "T-see-u") or Tempo, the dominating brand in Hong Kong. Most self-respecting Hong Kongers always have a wad of Tempo at the ready, partly because newspapers and magazines come with a complimentary pack. Sometimes, promo folks hand them out at MTR exits just to make sure you aren't without. (Text cut here) 4

5 Questions Answer questions 1 to 7 using information from the above article. Choose the best answer for each question and write your answer in the space provided. 1. According to the passage, how many ways are there to hail a cross-harbour cab? (2 marks) A. One B. Two C. Three 2. Where do Hong Kong people put the Cantonese particles in every sentence? (2 marks) A. At the beginning of a sentence B. In the middle of a sentence C. At the end of a sentence 3. Why do Hong Kong people always bring an umbrella? (2 marks) A. To keep them dry on rainy days B. To block sunrays C. Both A and B 4. Which of the following do Hong Kong people like to do? (2 marks) A. Taking photos before eating B. Asking for Kleenex when they want tissues C. Both A and B 5. Why do Hong Kong people call tissues as Tempo? (2 marks) A. It is the dominating brand in Hong Kong. B. It is the only brand in Hong Kong. C. The famous brand Kleenex cannot be found in Hong Kong. 6. What do people have to do to make a cross-harbour arm wave? (6 marks) 5

6 7. What are the two reasons mentioned in the passage to explain why most self-respecting Hong Kong people always have tissues at the ready? (4 marks) Optional Reading (Passage 1 continued) 6. How to tip Show your servers how much of a local you are and be stingy with tipping, or don't tip at all. A service charge is almost always included in the bill, so Hong Kong diners don't bother tipping unless the waiter did something extraordinary such as deboning your sweet and sour pork. Tipping is more about getting rid of loose change really. So people will leave HK$5.50 for a $500 meal. 7. How to order food Hong Kongers are very specific (picky) about what they want to order. The customized meal orders at a local diner rivals Starbucks coffee orders. The most commonly heard orders are "iced lemon tea with less sweetness no ice and lemon slices on the side" as well as "fish ball noodles with no greens plus beef brisket soup base." There's no chef snootiness to put up with here. 8. How to abbreviate One thing Hong Kongers have in common with Aussies -- we like to abbreviate. It's either because we are extremely lazy or extremely industrious -- we can't be bothered to say the full phrase or we need to fit in as many nouns as possible in a short amount of time. Either way, we like it low on syllables. The 7-Eleven convenience store is just Seven (pronounced "seh-fun"), Circle K is OK and the spam and egg sandwich is literally sp-egg-wich in Cantonese. Our favorite is saying "sorry" -- rendered as, simply, sor." 9. How to not hold up the line When it comes to commuting, it is all about not stopping. The body must be constantly moving forward. That is why train and bus schedules are committed to memory and it is also why it's imperative Octopus cards are always topped up and taken out ahead of time when one needs to pay. The idea is to pass nonchalantly through the MTR turnstile without having to slow down at all. Don't be the slowpoke tourist who fumbles to find the Octopus card at the bottom of your bag only after you hit the turnstile. Or worse yet, not have enough credit. 6

7 There's nothing more blush-worthy than the haunting, high-pitched beep of a rejected Octopus and the walk of shame away from the turnstile. 10. How to count with hands The best citizenship test as immigration officials will tell you, is to count in the local dialect. Take it up a notch and count in the local sign language. These three numbers can really show off your local know-how: six, nine and 10. The number six can be represented by holding up six fingers. If you're a gauche tourist. Hong Kongers like to do it elegantly and use the "hang ten" hand sign to symbolize six. Nine gets a graphic representation, by curling the index finger down to resemble the shape of the number "9." And to sweep your fruit vendor off her feet, make a cross with your index fingers to indicate that it is exactly 10 apples you want. The international sign for warding off vampires is the Hong Kong sign for the number preceding eleven. 7

8 Passage 2 (10 marks) The following is a short passage from a blog in which the author expresses his opinions on the previous article. Source: [1] Sad but kind of true, or maybe it s just the cultural difference? Not sure. I mean, sometimes I think those characters are pretty pathetic, really, like how they always try to prove that they are having a great time, or how they enjoy the lives, how they love being a Hong Konger in an international metropolis blah blah blah, but all I see is that they are just ordinary people trying to make a living out of whatever they do, and most of the time they hate it. They couldn t stand it, and they wish so much that things can change. Anyway should I care. [2] Well, what s more pathetic is that I seriously read through the whole article and is reposting it to my own blog even I know it s more like a try-to-cheer-you-up joke-like post after I scanned through the first line! [3] The writer ironically elaborates ten things that most of the Hong Kong people would do that make them stand out from the tourists: walking in an extremely rush manner as if they are in a speed walking competition; taking tons of photos in the restaurant and post them all onto Facebook pretending they had a very good time even the food sucks and they could barely stand it; and abbreviating everything trying to make it easier and save some time which turns out to make everything more weird, like the way they say sor ar. It is simply annoying. [4] If there s anything else that I can add to the list, wearing brand products is definitely on it. LV bags, Channel glasses, oh iphone is a must-have item, or else how can you possibly stay on the metro for nearly an hour! [5] Other than that, I think this writer really did a great job in summarizing the key weird characters of Hong Kong local people. Enjoy! 8

9 Questions Answer questions 1 to 5 using information from the above article. Choose the best answer for each question and write your answer in the space provided. (2 marks each) 1. How does the writer think of the characters of Hong Kong people? A. Positive B. Negative C. Neutral 2. What would the writer put into the list if there is anything she could add? A. Wearing brand products B. Walking very fast C. Talking very fast 3. What is the meaning of the word pathetic in paragraph 2? A. Casuing one to feel pity or sadness B. Inadequate C. Funny 4. The word it in paragraph 2 refers to A. Hong Kong B. Cultural differences C. The whole article 5. The writer thinks that iphone should be on the list. Why do people need an iphone according to the writer? A. They can have some entertainment on the MTR. B. They need to talk for business. C. They need to take tons of photos in the restaurant. 9

10 Part C. Writing (Total: 30 marks) Write about 300 words on the following topic. Letter: Write a letter to the author John Chen to tell him your comments on Passage 1 in Part 2. Do you agree with him that Hong Kong people have those habits? What would you take away or add to the list of How to be a Hong Kong local: 10 tips on faking it? Sign your letter C. Wong. Do not write an address. You are reminded of the importance of clear handwriting and the need for planning and proofreading. 10

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12 Part D. Speaking (Total: 20 marks) Find a partner or make an appointment with an ELLRC instructor to talk about the following topic for 1.5 to 2 minutes. You have 1 minute to think about what you are going to say. You can make some notes to help you if you wish. Have you ever encountered any cultural differences that make you feel embarrassed? Could you describe your experience? 12

Contents. Similes: as as 1. Connective: therefore 2. Connectives: either or and neither nor 3. Making Suggestions 4. Synonyms 5. The Passive Voice 6

Contents. Similes: as as 1. Connective: therefore 2. Connectives: either or and neither nor 3. Making Suggestions 4. Synonyms 5. The Passive Voice 6 Contents Page Similes: as as 1 Connective: therefore 2 Connectives: either or and neither nor 3 Making Suggestions 4 Synonyms 5 The Passive Voice 6 Asking for Information 7 Expressing Possibilities: might