4/14 3-4pm
Friday I spoke with Yueyang on the phone. She's been really busy with midterms, so our next "sessions" will most likely be done this way. We got on the topic of giving gifts. In China, gift-giving is a huge part of their culture. She said that her family was invited to a wedding and gave the couple $1,000 for a gift. This is not unusual! She said it's very stressful when someone announces they're getting married, having a baby, or going to college. It's obligatory to give people monetary gifts and can be very burdensome for families. Another example is when someone dies. Friends give their friends money to handle burial/funeral costs.
She said it's much nicer in the U.S., because there's a list of items (a registry) where people can choose which gifts to give their friends for weddings/baby showers. I told her that sometimes, you can get an invitation to a wedding/baby shower and choose not to go. Some people don't get a gift for the family, which can seem a little rude, but it's not mandatory, especially depending on how close you are with the friend/family. I thought it was definitely an interesting topic to learn more about!
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