Both Bryan and I love eating hot Chinese breakfasts at the food stalls in the narrow streets of Shanghai. They serve delicious noodles, wonton soups, buns and pancakes. Despite his appreciation for these culinary delights, however, Bryan has found it impossible to stand the noise of fellow diners slurping their soup. At one point, Bryan thought he would bring earplugs with him to these breakfast forays, so that he could truly enjoy his breakfast.

Finally one day, one of Bryan's joint venture partners told us the logic behind slurping. The gentleman said, "I know it is considered rude to slurp in Western culture, but I really can't drink my Chinese soup without slurping. Western soups are typically very thick and are served lukewarm. So it is possible to put a big spoonful of it into your mouth without getting burned. But Chinese soups are meant to be served piping hot. If you put a big spoonful into your mouth, you would totally get burned. But if you put just a tiny amount in at a time, you can't taste the flavor of the soup. The only way to taste the soup and not bum your mouth is to slurp. Slurping allows cool air to rush into your mouth at the same time that you take in the soup, enabling you to simultaneously drink it hot and not get burned."

Bryan and I thought his explanation was really insightful. It could explain why the only acceptable slurping (albeit very quietly) by Westerners is when they drink hot coffee. If they took too big of a gulp of a very hot beverage, they would surely bum their mouths and throats.

Although Bryan can now understand why Chinese people slurp hot soup, he still finds it difficult to get accustomed to the noisy eaters next to him.

(selected from 101 Stories for Foreigners to Understand Chinese People by Yi S. Ellis and Bryan D. Ellis, published by China Intercontinental Press in 2012)