Cultural adjustment

Loud is normal

A full Cantonese restaurant sounds like an argument three tables over. It isn't. Volume here is atmosphere, not conflict — the room that's loud is the room that's good. Adjusting your internal volume meter is the single biggest comfort upgrade of week one.

Tipping is not the custom

Restaurants, taxis, hotels: no tip expected, none owed. A nice meal doesn't need one, and offering can genuinely confuse. If someone goes out of their way — carries luggage up stairs, walks you to the right platform — the thanks is the thanks.

At the table

• Tea is a signal system. When the pot runs low, lift the lid and rest it askew on the pot — staff read it as "more hot water." It's the oldest signal in the room and it still works.
• Pour for others first, then yourself. The youngest at the table pours for the elders, not the other way round.
• Chopsticks upright in the rice bowl reads as funeral incense. Rest them on the holder, not the bowl.
• Declining is one syllable. "M̀h sái" — no need, not for me. Said with a smile, it declines the fifth dish the room is pushing and buys you the one you actually wanted.

Queues, space and being looked at

Metro queues form at the door markings and people let arriving passengers out before boarding in — it's more orderly than most Western systems, not less. Personal space on crowded transit is simply smaller. And if you're the only foreigner on a street in a less-touristed district, staring is curiosity, not hostility; a nod and a hello usually gets a grin back, and being asked for a photo is a compliment, not a hassle — you're allowed to say no with a smile.

Practical bits

Carry tissues — public toilets often don't provide them, and squat cubicles exist alongside sit ones. Receive business cards and gifts with both hands. Take your shoes off if a host asks. And learn the two magic phrases early: "xiè xie" (thank you) and "m̀h sái" (no need) will carry you through a week of small kindnesses you want to decline gracefully.