Face the music

As I opened my blog page, I only just realised my recent posts haven't made their way trough for some reason. However, I'm back in China and the holiday is almost over, tomorrow I'll head back to the classroom for another term of battling with the tones and stroke orders.

Yesterday the whole block near our place was filled with outrageously off-key karaoke singing. The kind that makes your hair stand right up on your arms and wish for a divine interruption in the form of a power cut. Still, it was just another Chinese karaoke party, maybe for the opening of a new restaurant or to honour who knows what spirit.

In any case, it got me thinking of the ever-so-important Chinese concept of face. This idea of not losing face is always present here, whether it's the students not daring to raise their hand in the classroom in fear of a wrong answer and thus face loss, or avoiding at all costs putting other into embarrassing social situations when dealing with people.

So, here's my question: How come when it comes to karaoke singing the Chinese have no problem at all performing the most horrible off-key screeching renditions of the cheesiest pop songs, as loud as they can?

This is not embarrassing?!?!?

:)