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Between 20,000 and 200,000 Sub-Saharan Africans live in the Guangzhou region in China. Guangzhou is famous for hosting “Chocolate City”, the famous African neighborhood. In a country where being white is a sign of beauty, a black person walking down the streets can experience many funny situations. Marjanne Mabialah, a Junior Digital Marketer at the Gentlemen Marketing Agency, shares her story living in Shanghai.
1. The “Oh My Goodness” reaction!
Imagine you were walking in a metro station, and suddenly, you run into a Chinese person. He will be so surprised to see you that he will be staring at you until he loses sight of you.
A piece of advice: act as surprised as he is!
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2. The “You are so beautiful!” reaction
It is the type of reaction that puts you in a pleasant mood. Someone will look at you with a big smile, and will remind you how beautiful you are. And if you are able to say a word or two in Mandarin you will get a bonus. “You speak Mandarin so well!”, they will say.
A piece of advice: take advantage of the moment and show your biggest smile!
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3. The protective boyfriend
He is the kind of boyfriend that will pull his girlfriend against his chest every time you walk by them.
A piece of advice: walk close to them… really close.
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4. The incognito selfie
This is the ninja method the Chinese will use to take a picture of you. They will fake an urgent need to take a selfie, and then include you in the photo.
A piece of advice: act as if you haven’t seen anything, then strike a pose.
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5. The invasive selfie
Someone will take a picture of you, without even hiding, and with the camera’s flash right in your face!
A piece of advice: charge them 10 Kuai (Yuan).
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6. The scared child
As soon as he sees you, he will try to avoid you at any cost. Scared, he’s going to run to his parents and cry.
A piece of advice: smile! He will either be reassured, or he will find you even more scary.
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7. The clueless kid
This kid will stare at you for hours. No matter how many obstacles there are between the two of you, he will find a way to keep his eyes on you.
A piece of advice: engage in a staring contest with him.
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8. The “Where are you originally from ?” question
Many of you have heard this question before. As a black French woman, whenever Chinese people ask me where I am from and I answer Faguo (France), there is a bizarre sensation in the atmosphere. Then, they ask me if I am joking. “How on Earth can you be French?”. Then I am like OK, if you say so…
A piece of advice: now is the time to tell them the truth. You were raised by a family of lions in the jungle LOL…
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9. The Chinese who covers his nose
This is just uncalled for and it is not funny at all.
A piece of advice: do the same! Smell the person who is covering his nose.
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10. Being compared to a celebrity
This doesn’t happen only in China. People tend to believe that all black people look alike and that they are somehow all related. Don’t be surprised if a Chinese person compares you to a random black celebrity. They all had their share, Oprah, Diddy, Balotelli, and Obama…
A piece of advice: just say “yes that’s me!”
SEE ALSO : The 10 Most Popular African Countries For Chinese Tourists.
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