By Freakyqi
Updated: 2007-07-04 15:21

As a foreigner, I expect things to be different here, and I honestly don't feel offended by a lot of the different habits. But some are not healthy for OTHERS.

Smoke and spit if you want, in fact my son is badly congested sometimes and tells me he feels he HAS TO spit, I try to discourage it, but whatever but wait until I have passed on the street to expel it, not exactly when I am closest to you!

Have you ever seen someone spit in the sunlight, where you can see all the little particles flying in the air? I don't want to inhale someone else's germs! Spit far away from others, and not in the middle of the sidewalk, maybe off to the side so we don't all step in it.

Sometimes when I see someone walking toward me and they have just sneezed or coughed or spit, I hold my breath as I walk through the area. I've seen it, it stays in the air a while in a big sphere, sort of. I will walk around that invisible sphere if I must, call me crazy if you want.

Maybe there can be signs up all over Beijing that say "Spit and blow smoke off to the side please" (of course I'm kidding, but it's at least polite HUMAN courtesy, in any country).