| On the subject of giving gifts, or what situations gifts are given in… The first is visiting a customer. The next is going to someone’s house as their guest. Taiwanese also give gifts at the Lunar New Year and on other major holidays. Now, as for what to give… Generally, there aren’t any particular restrictions. That is, you give gifts that are in line with the recipient’s tastes. Now, let me offer an example. If you are visiting a client, you could give a few of your company’s products, souvenirs or some specialty items. Now, if you’re visiting to someone’s home, you can generally… fruit is very common. You can also bring a cake, tea leaves, or imported spirits, or some local specialty from your hometown. Now, we also often given gifts at the Lunar New Year and on other major holidays. Now, for example, at the Mid-Autumn Festival, we give moon cakes. If a company is very generous it will print up calendars for its clients. Now if we’re talking about gifts to friends, there’s no particular restrictions. There is one taboo: you don’t give clocks or umbrellas. That’s because clocks suggest someone is attending a dying family member, that is, they suggest that you are seeing someone off at the end of their life. Umbrellas suggest that you and your friend will be separated.
[Note: The associations of clocks with death and umbrellas with separation derive from the homophonic links between the words.] | 说到送礼呢在什么样的场合送礼，那第一个就是拜访客户的时候。再来就是当你到别人家里做客的时候。那啊还有就是逢年过节的时候，台湾人都会送礼。那至于送什么礼呢？一般来说没有特别的限制，那就是依照啊你送礼的对象那他的偏好。那啊举个例来说，如果你去拜访客户的话，你可以啊送有你们公司商标的一些商品，纪念品，或者是说啊特产。那还有你去别人家里做客的话呢，你可以啊通常来讲，水果是很普遍的，那你也可以带蛋糕，茶叶啊，或者是洋酒，或者你们家当地的特产。啊那就是还有逢年过节的时候，我们也常常会送礼。那啊譬如中秋节的时候，我们会送月饼。那啊公司很 厚的话呢，它们会印制一些月历送给客户。那如果送给朋友的话呢，就没有特别的限制。那有一个禁忌就是呢：啊就是不要送时钟还有雨伞。因为时钟就是送终：代表说就是你要送去世的人的最后一程。那送雨伞的话呢，代表就是：啊你们会你跟这个朋友会分散。 |