Relationships between people are much closer in China than in the West. When I was in China there was one thing that greatly attracted my attention: every time I returned to my dormitory all my close friends would ask me, "Where have you been?" Or if I bumped into a fellow student in the street, he was certain to ask me, "Where are you going?"

On hearing such questions a Westerner would think that the person asking them was being too curious and discourteous. To a Westerner, the purpose of his going out is wholly within the sphere of his individual privacy into which other people, and even close friends, should not interfere.

But the Chinese perspective on this is different. Obviously they feel that this kind of question is not an intrusion into one's privacy but an expression of friendship and concern. So now I have cultivated the custom of asking my fellow students, "Where are you going?"

There is a particularly lovable thing about the summer in Taiwan that should be raised in this diary. Under the arid sun, on the streets, in the parks, and on the campuses of National Taiwan University and other universities can be seen beautifully colored flowers. These flowers are not the same as common plants because they move about and they are probably five times the size of ordinary plants--but common plants are no match for the beauty of these migrant plants which are purple, red, blue, yellow, and green colored suns--their stalks are pretty girls and they float around rootless like duckweed. I was originally afraid of the heat, but these welcoming flowers stopped me feeling hot.

I used more passport-size photographs over an eleven-month period in Taiwan that I had over twenty-seven years in Switzerland. For a beautiful girl or handsome man to almost every day stick their photograph on a card is, of course, quite interesting, but for most of us it can be a little troublesome.

For example, one day I wanted to apply for a swimming ticket in National Taiwan University, but they said that I needed two photographs. "O.K. I will come another day," I said to myself.

The next time I took two photographs. After a physical check-up I went to the swimming pool, but my photographs had been used up in the examination and the pool attendant still wanted another photograph. He said, "This photograph must be 2cm." That afternoon I returned with the 2cm photograph. He looked at the photograph with a dissatisfied expression and solemnly said, "You should have used a gloss finish." Finally, he pitied me and said, "So-so, it will do. Come back tomorrow afternoon." Since then I have always carried a lot of 2cm passport-size photographs.

In Europe there is a stereotype of Asia, and especially China: China is a very mysterious country. Many books and people have all said that wherever you go in China there are things that are impossible to understand.

After one year in Taiwan I found out that this was not in fact true. Of course, sometimes I would see things that I had not seen in Europe and the attitude of Chinese people seemed a little strange at times. Nevertheless, with a detailed look, these things can all be understood.

Of course, you must always ask Chinese people "Why?" I think those kinds of Westerners that I spoke about above are either too lazy to investigate reasons, cannot speak Chinese, or are "frogs in a well."

It seems that the Chinese people are the most diligent in the world; such sayings as "Everything it inferior, only reading is superior," are not just words. Whatever people want to study, above all is language. No matter who I met, they all immediately wanted to study English, German and French with me. If they were fellow students this was only normal. Nevertheless, taxi drivers and sales girls, souvenir sellers, barbers, the daughters of insurance company directors--as soon as they saw this foreigner they saw an opportunity to practice their language.

When I came to China I passed through Belgium. A cultural attache from the R.O.C. embassy came to meet me. I immediately knew that he wanted me to teach him French while waiting at the airport, so I counted with him in French from one to one hundred.

It can be seen from this that Chinese people are good abroad and at home--a truly diligent people. Because I also consider myself a diligent person, when I am among these people I am as happy as a fish in water.

[Picture Caption]

Professor von Senger hopes that the Western media will no longer be caught in the dead end of Eurocentrism.