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Posts: 960

Shifu

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Q: Whats the story with the small towel over the pillow thing in China?

In most homes where I have slept they have a small towel or other piece of cloth that you HAVE to put over the pillow. There is already a pillow slip over the pillow and it often the zip up type and I understand that the towel on top is to keep the pillow slip/cover clean but why don't they just put another normal (the type with the fold under flap) pillow slip on instead of the towel. The towel annoys the crap out of me and is always slipping off so sort of defeats the purpose. Is this just an unlucky thing that I come across at the few family homes I stay at or is it widespread?    

12 years 25 weeks ago in  Housing - China

 
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Posts: 3025

Emperor

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You guessed right, it is to keep the dirt from your head and hair on the pillow case.  Pillow cases are more expensive than those towels used (usually less than 10 yuan), and in their minds help the po=illow case last longer with less washing.

 

It is pretty widespread, my GF got me initiated on this particular custom, and the reason behind it.

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12 years 25 weeks ago
 
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Shifu

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Never heard of it or seen it. Actually the only place I've seen something like that was at a hotel. 

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12 years 25 weeks ago
 
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It kind of goes along with having seat covers in a brand new car, sleeve covers for jackets and keeping the plastic on electronics. They want it to stay clean, even though it's never been dirty. Honestly, if the towel was new and no one had used it, I'd rather use that over the pillowcase, just in case. I don't know why, but whether I've visited someone back home or in China, they don't wash the sheets or anything before I use them...?

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12 years 25 weeks ago
 
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I think they are just too lazy to provide you with clean sheets and because of this are providing you with a courtesy....IMO.

I have only experienced this in massage parlours (the normal kind BTW)

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12 years 25 weeks ago
 
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Shifu

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that just a  kind of life custom. chinese people like cover something on seat, bed, pillow and sofa and so on. those cover things easy to change and wash. 

by the way, the towel on the pillow chinese name is "枕巾/ zhen jin", don't be confused with towel of washing. those are totally different things.

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12 years 25 weeks ago
 
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Shifu

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that might be ok...but leaving the bubble (or other) wrap on office chairs, bicycles and you name it..is just whack, looks weird as hell

philbravery:

welcome to China the land of wack

12 years 25 weeks ago
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manasyt:

thank you...year and a half now but will stay long I think indecision

12 years 25 weeks ago
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12 years 25 weeks ago
 
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I thought they just drooled when they sleep.

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12 years 25 weeks ago
 
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We went house hunting (for rent) a few months back and the owner had some sort of sticky paper covering all the cupboards. Hideous looking stuff. I went to pull the corner off to have a look at the cupboard and everyone in attendance blew a fuse and told me that it was not to be removed as the cupboards are expensive and shouldn't get dirty.

I said, "ok, if we move in can we remove the paper?"

A resounding, "why?" was the response. 

I said, "Because it's normal."

They said, "No. no the paper is never to be removed, the cupboards are too beautiful and must be protected at all times"

 

What the f'n point of that????

 

As Phil said, "The land of wack"

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12 years 25 weeks ago
 
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