Many of us experience extreme culture shock when we first move to China. From the language and food, to the driving and climate, there’s plenty to get to grips with. But over time, we somehow learn to adapt. Before we know it, we realize we’ve picked up the local customs and habits. Here are six signs that you’ve fully assimilated to life in China.

我们中的许多人在初到中国时都会经历极度的文化冲击。从语言和饮食，到驾驶和气候，都有很多需要适应的地方。但随着时间的推移，我们逐渐学会了适应。不知不觉中，我们已经习惯了当地的风俗习惯。以下六个迹象表明，您已经完全融入了中国的生活。

You Take the Occasional Nap at Work

你偶尔会在工作时小睡一会儿

When you first came to China, you struggled to get your head around the fact that many of your colleagues took a nap in the office after lunch. If you did that in your home country, the boss would assume you’re nursing a heavy hungover and repeated offenders would likely get the boot.

刚来中国时，你很难理解许多同事午饭后在办公室小憩的事实。如果你在国内这样做，老板会认为你宿醉未醒，屡教不改者很可能会被炒鱿鱼。

A few years down the line, you still don’t have your very own fold-out bed or an alarm set to wake you up every day at the end of lunch. But, some days when work isn’t busy or you had a late night, you allow yourself a cheeky 20 minutes of shuteye along with the rest of your colleagues. When in Rome.

几年过去了，你仍然没有自己的折叠床，也没有每天午饭后叫你起床的闹钟。但是，在一些工作不忙或熬夜的日子里，你也会和其他同事一样，厚着脸皮睡上20 分钟。入乡随俗。

You’ve Finally Figured Out the Buses

你终于弄清楚了公共汽车

Once upon a time, the buses in China terrified you. They seemed to travel inside some mysterious vortex you couldn’t penetrate, and you had no idea where they were going, how to pay or how long a journey would take. It may have been 10 times more expensive, but you’d rather take a taxi.

曾几何时，中国的公共汽车吓坏了你。他们似乎在一个你无法穿透的神秘漩涡中旅行，你不知道他们要去哪里，如何支付费用，也不知道旅行需要多长时间。它可能贵了10倍，但你宁愿坐出租车。

Although you still take taxis on occasion, you’re now very familiar with your local bus routes and regularly use the service as part of your public transport mix. You know when the buses are coming, where they’re going to, and how to pay with the simple swipe of a QR code on your phone. You also know that taking the bus is saving you a whole lot of money in the long haul.

虽然您偶尔还会乘坐出租车，但现在您已经非常熟悉当地的公交线路，并经常将公交服务作为公共交通组合的一部分。您知道公交车什么时候来，开往哪里，也知道如何用手机扫二维码付费。您还知道，从长远来看，乘坐公交车能为您节省一大笔钱。

You Order Dishes to Share at Western Restaurants

在西餐厅点菜分享

At the start of your life in China, you were confused every time you went to a restaurant and the locals ordered a dozen dishes for the table. All you wanted was a bowl of noodles to yourself, but everyone else was happy digging into all the dishes on offer, including your own. As a result, you felt a great sense of relief whenever you got to go to an expat pub and order a simple burger and fries for yourself.

在中国生活之初，每次去餐馆吃饭，当地人都会为一桌人点上十几道菜，这让你很困惑。你只想自己吃一碗面，但其他人都乐此不疲地吃着所有的菜，包括你自己的。因此，每当你去外籍酒吧为自己点一份简单的汉堡和薯条时，你都会感到如释重负。

Now, you can hardly remember the individualistic eating habits of your former life. Eating together, especially at hot pot and barbecue restaurants, is just so much more sociable and fun. It’s even reached the point now that you find yourself ordering Western dishes to share among your friends when you go back to that same expat pub. Why choose between a burger and a pizza when you can have both?

现在，你几乎记不起以前生活中的个人主义饮食习惯了。一起吃饭，尤其是在火锅店和烧烤店，更具社交性和趣味性。现在甚至到了这样的地步，当你回到同一家外籍酒吧时，你会发现自己点了西餐与朋友分享。既然可以同时吃汉堡和披萨，为什么还要在两者之间做出选择呢？

You Go to KTV Sober

你清醒地去KTV

When you first came to China, you really enjoyed going to KTV. It was a totally new and refreshing experience for you, from the drinking, to the singing to the dice games. It was all great fun, as long as there was free-flowing alcohol involved, of course. You sure as hell wouldn’t be getting on the mic without a skinful of Dutch courage.

你刚来中国时，非常喜欢去 KTV。从喝酒、唱歌到骰子游戏，对你来说都是一种全新的体验。当然，只要有酒喝，一切都很有趣。如果没有荷兰人的勇气，你肯定不会上麦。

But somewhere along the way, something changed. Like your Chinese friends and colleagues, you no longer need to be steaming drunk in order to enjoy KTV. You might decide not to drink some nights because you have a big day tomorrow. Perhaps you’ve even started going to KTV during the day or killing time in those booths at airports. Once you have the ability to sing in public without alcohol, you know you’ve become truly assimilated to China.

但不知从什么时候开始，情况发生了变化。像你的中国朋友和同事一样，你不再需要喝得烂醉如泥才能享受 KTV。你可能会决定在某些晚上不喝酒，因为明天还有重要的事情要做。也许你甚至开始白天去 KTV，或者在机场的包厢里消磨时间。一旦你有能力不喝酒在公共场合唱歌，你就知道自己已经真正融入了中国。

You Drink Hot Water, No Matter the Weather

无论天气如何，你都要喝热水

One of the most jarring things for a China newbie is being handed a glass of piping hot water on a scorching summer’s day. Just why? Not only did you find this seemingly magic beverage given as a cure-all for any ailment, but it was served as standard in restaurants and even offered in the gym.

对于一个中国新手来说，最令人不快的事情之一是在一个炎热的夏天，有人递给他一杯滚烫的热水。为什么？你不仅发现这种看似神奇的饮料可以治愈任何疾病，而且它在餐馆甚至健身房都是标准饮料。

The whole “drink hot water” thing became a running joke between you and your foreign friends, but at some point you noticed you started pouring hot water when you were feeling under the weather. It’s not that you genuinely believe it has any medical benefits. It just somehow makes you feel better. Even further down the line and you’ve started preferring hot water even when you’re not feeling ill and even when it’s hot and humid. When you start preferring warm beer, however, it’s probably time to leave.

整个“喝热水”的事情成了你和你的外国朋友之间的一个笑话，但在某个时候，你注意到当你感到不舒服时，你开始倒热水。这并不是说你真的相信它有任何医疗益处。它只是在某种程度上让你感觉更好。更进一步，即使你没有生病，即使天气又热又湿，你也开始喜欢热水。然而，当你开始喜欢热啤酒时，可能是时候离开了。

You Accidentally Speak Chinese in Your Home Country

你在你的祖国不小心会说中文

When you first came to China, you could barely speak a word of Chinese, let alone string a sentence together. It was so completely foreign and opaque you marveled at expats with even the most basic of commands.

刚来中国时，你几乎不会说一个中文单词，更不用说把一个句子串起来了。它是如此的陌生和难懂，以至于你对那些连最基本的指令都会说的外国人感到惊叹。

Today, you may not be fluent, but you’ve picked up a decent amount of words and phrases over the years that now roll off the tongue without a thought. These habits have become so entrenched that when you go back home for a visit, you sometimes find yourself slipping into Chinese. Maybe it’s a “You Zhuan” when directing a taxi, a “Gan Bei” when drinking with your friends, or even an innocuous “Hao De” or “Keyi” to a question. It’s not that you’ve become fluent or are showing off. You’ve just got so used to speaking Mandarin on a daily basis that you’ve started to think in another language. Muscle memory is a marvelous thing.

如今，您可能还不能说一口流利的汉语，但多年来您已经掌握了相当数量的单词和短语，现在可以不假思索地脱口而出。这些习惯已经根深蒂固，以至于当你回国探亲时，你有时会发现自己已经开始说中文了。也许是在指挥出租车时说的 "You Zhuan"，与朋友喝酒时说的 "Gan Bei"，甚至是在回答问题时说的 "Hao De "或 "Keyi"。这并不是说你已经说得很流利了，也不是你在炫耀。你只是习惯了每天说普通话，以至于开始用另一种语言思考。肌肉记忆是一种神奇的东西。

What are the other signs that expats have truly assimilated into life in China? Tell us in the comments section below.

外籍人士真正融入中国生活的其他迹象是什么？请在下面的评论部分告诉我们。