I can, but I do not expose my AliBaba contacts. :)
Besides, Chinese salespeople and even some engineers have the silly habit of adopting Western-sounding first names for business communication, so you don’t get a real name in casual talk.
It’s a bit like Xi Jinping naming himself Timmy Jinping for easier diplomacy. I wonder why. :D
Another silly bit… I’m from Estonia. Back a few years ago, some Chinese gal decided that advancing business relations would be well served by sending me Ramadan greetings (note the cultural dissonance in a country where a Muslim celebrating Ramadan would experience difficulties).
I happily explained to her that we don’t celebrate Ramadan here, except for very few people. What I found out: Estonia in Chinese is “Àishāníyǎ”, which strongly suggests a place with lots of sand, so she guessed I was probably Arab. The language barrier is pretty high both ways. :)
I can, but I do not expose my AliBaba contacts. :)
Besides, Chinese salespeople and even some engineers have the silly habit of adopting Western-sounding first names for business communication, so you don’t get a real name in casual talk.
It’s a bit like Xi Jinping naming himself Timmy Jinping for easier diplomacy. I wonder why. :D
Another silly bit… I’m from Estonia. Back a few years ago, some Chinese gal decided that advancing business relations would be well served by sending me Ramadan greetings (note the cultural dissonance in a country where a Muslim celebrating Ramadan would experience difficulties).
I happily explained to her that we don’t celebrate Ramadan here, except for very few people. What I found out: Estonia in Chinese is “Àishāníyǎ”, which strongly suggests a place with lots of sand, so she guessed I was probably Arab. The language barrier is pretty high both ways. :)