Traveling Tips: Chinese Beliefs

by Angela - 8/23/2018

Hello my darlings, today I'll be sharing some tips on traveling to Asian countries especially on the Chinese beliefs/superstitions. I'm a Christian so even though I'm Taiwanese there are still a lot of these traditional beliefs that I'm not familiar with. I obviously don't believe in these superstitions, but I figured it will be useful to know while traveling so you don't offend people or look clueless.

Lucky & unlucky number

Every culture have lucky and unlucky numbers, and they are all different! The number 8 is considered very lucky in the Chinese culture and it is believed to bring you good luck if you run into it. 8 is associated with prosperity, happiness, and wealth because of the way it sounds in Mandarin. It is supposed to positively improve your life when you experience it. On the other hand, the number 4 means “death” because it sounds like the word death in Mandarin. So you won't find the 4th floor in Hospitals or a lot of buildings, they just skip the 4th floor all together. People tend to avoid having the number 4 in their phone number or address etc.

Broomstick

Brooms can help with religious purification and help you get rid of bad luck when you use one to sweep out your whole house. It is important that afterwards you make sure to beat out the broom so that you can avoid any curses.

On grooming

Staying clean-shaven will increase the respect that others pay you. Having a mustache is considered bad luck and can lower your place in society.

Dogs

Dogs tend to howl at night for a number of reasons, and most people believe that’s because they have such great hearing and can hear things that people can’t. Chinese superstition, however, attributes a dog howling during the night to the fact that someone will soon die, yikes!

Understanding the Chinese beliefs and superstitions is a fun way to learn about the culture. But nothing beats experiencing it first hand. To immerse yourself in the culture tailor made China tours and holidays are for you, since most people might feel a bit intimidated to travel by yourself to Asian countries because of the language differences.

Have you traveled to any Asian countries before? Did you encountered any cultural shock? I think my favourite thing about traveling back to Asia is the food, and I can't wait to go back to Taiwan soon! Have a great rest of the week my darlings!

Bisous, xx