Unit 2 Receiving Guests
Though very common in business activities, receiving guests is very important. Your initial encounter with a person from another country may decide whether you can leave a guest a positive or negative impression. No matter you are the head of a company or someone else, you represent the whole organization once you go to meet the guests. The first impression is made only once but may be remembered for a long time. Think of all the elements that go into making a first impression, such as your manner of dress, your professional appearance, the color of your tie, the way of shaking hands, amount of eye contact on introduction, the position in which your hands put or the time when you present your business cards. But of course, first of all, you have a good command of language skills.
Situational Dialogues
Dialogue 1
Miss Gao Feifei, a staff member of Overseas Sales Department,
Xi’an Meihua Furniture Import & Export Corporation. She comes to the
airport and meets Mr. Bill Robinson.
Gao： Excuse me. Are you Mr. Robinson?
Robinson： Yes. I’ m Bill Robinson. I’m from the United States.
Gao： How do you do, Mr. Robinson? I’m Gao Feifei from Xi’an Meihua Furniture Import & Export Corporation. Please call me Feifei.
Robinson： How do you do, Feifei? Nice to meet you.
Gao： Nice to meet you, too. Welcome to Xi’an. Our general manager is very sorry for he is unable to meet you in person. He will visit you later. We hope you enjoy your stay here.
Robinson： Thank you, Feifei. I think I will.
Gao： You’re welcome. We’ll host a welcome banquet in your honor tonight.
Robinson： It’s very kind of you. I’m looking forward to it.
Gao： I believe you’re tired after such a long flight. Shall we drive to the hotel directly?
Robinson： All right.
Gao： Have you got your luggage?
Robinson： Yes, nothing is left behind.
Gao： Then let’s go. Our van is waiting outside.
Robinson： Ok.
Dialogue 2
A few minutes later, Feifei and Mr. Robinson are on the way to the hotel.
Gao： Is this your first time to visit China?
Robinson： Oh, no, I’v already made several trips to Shanghai. But this is my first trip to Xi’an though．It is a lot larger than I expected it would be．
Gao： Yes. But it’s very different from Shanghai. You can find more interests of historical places here than in Shanghai. People compare Xi’an to a history book of China. What would you like to see when you are here?
Robinson： I hope to have time to visit the Museum of Emperor Qinshihuang’s Terra-Cotta Warriors and Horses when I am here. I always want to go there. I think it would be a real shame by coming all the way to Xi’an and didn’t visit the Museum. Do you think I have a chance to see it?
Gao： I’m sure it can be arranged. The Museum is a short distance from the city. We can make arrangements for the driver to take us out to visit it in half a day. I also recommend you to visit the Big Wild Goose Pogoda and the city. They cannot take you a long time.
Robinson： Yes, that’s wonderful. Would I have a tour guide to visit these places?
Gao： Don’t worry, I would be able to go along with you. Over the next few days, if you have any questions or problems, I will be right here to help you out. I can be an interpreter and a tour guide．
Robinson： Thank you very much．
Gao： My pleasure, I hope you enjoy your visit to Xi’an. Oh, have a good rest, Mr. Robinson. The banquet is arranged at 7：00 in the evening. I’ll pick you up at 6：30.
Robinson： No problem.
Dialogue 3
Bill Robinson is at the Front Desk in the holtel. He talks with the
receptionist.
Receptionist： Hello. Welcome to the hotel.
Robinson： Hello. I have a reservasion.
Receptionist： Your name please?
Robinson： Robinson, Bill Robinson.
Receptionist： Ah, yeah, you’ll be in Room 1258. I’ll need to see your credit card and also please fill out this form.
Robinson： Okay, do you need to see my passport?
Receptionist： No, your credit card is enough. Please sign here.
Robinson： Okay.
Receptionist： And here is your key. As you can see this is a modern key, so what you need to do with this is slide this into the door
with the holes facing the door and you’ll see a light come on and it will unlock the door, so that’s how you get in the room. The bellboy will take your baggage to your room.
Robinson： My room comes with one large king size bed, doesn’t it?
Receptionist： That’s right. You’ve ordered a single room with one large king size bed. We have everything ready for you. In your room we have a work area with a desk and chair. Luckily for you, this room has just been remodeled so it has new furniture and new wallpaper and it looks really nice. You’ll have one of our premium rooms.
Robinson： It sounds good. Thank you. Is there internet available in my room?
Receptionist： Yes, definitely. Our hotel has wireless network. So you can use you laptop anywhere in your room.
Robinson： It’s nice. Thank you.
Receptionist： My pleasure. Oh, plese take this card with you. It has our hotel phone number and address. When you’re shopping in the city, you will not get lost.
Robinson： Thanks.
Receptionist： The elevator is over there. The bellboy will show you your room. Have a nice day!
Dialogue 4
Gao Feifei comes to the hotel and picks up Bill Robinson for the
dinner.
Gao： Glad to see you again, Mr. Robinson. Did you have a good rest?
Robinson： Me too. Very good. This is a very comfortable hotel and I quickly got a recovery from my trip.
Gao： Wonderful. Then are you ready to go?
Robinson： Yes. Let’s go.
Gao： (in the car) The restaurant we’re going to is located in the
southern part of the city, close to our company.
Robinson： I’ve seen a lot of construction here. What are they?
Gao： The one now you can see is the subway construction. It’s really a large project. The city will have two lines in two years.
Robinson： It’ll solve the traffic problem.
Gao： Right. Like many other cities, now Xi’an also has a lot of traffic. More and more people have their own cars. It’s really convenient to go out but leads to the serious traffic problem.
Robinson： Is that the city wall?
Gao： Yes. It’s decorated with lights. But it may looks more splendid at daytime. The city wall is one of the symbols of our city. It represents one of the oldest and best preserved Chinese city walls. Construction of the first city wall of Chang’an began in 194 B.C. and lasted for four years. That wall measured 25.7km in length, 12-16 m in thickness at the base. The area within the wall was 36km2. The existing wall was started by the Ming Dynasty in 1370. It encircles a much smaller city of 14km2. The wall measures 13.7km in circumference, 12m in height, and 15-18m in thickness at the base.
Robinson： Great! I hope I can visit it later.
Gao： We’ll try to arrange it.
Words and Expressions
initial encounter初次见面 leave sb. an impression 给某人留下印象
go into涉及，成为 banquet n. 宴会
pick sb. up接某人 front desk前台
reservation n. 预约 bellboy n. 行李员
remodel v. 重新装修 encircle v. 环绕 包围
Notes
1. Overseas Sales Department海外营销部
2. in person亲自……
3. the Big Wild Goose Pogoda： （西安）大雁塔的英文译名。大雁塔建于唐代永徽三年（公元652年），是玄奘为藏经典而修建，塔身七层，通高64.5米。被视为古都西安的象征。
4. king size bed特大床
5. premium rooms顶级客房
6. wireless network无线网络
7. bellboy： 行李员工作范围：协助住客搬迁行李；代客交收信件、包裹、便条及电报等。
8. city wall城墙。西安城墙为中国保存最完整的城墙。
9. We’ll host a welcome banquet in your honor tonight. 我们为您举行宴会。host a banquet, 设宴；in one’s honor, 以某人的名义，为某人。
Language Skills
1. Greeting Visitors
Excuse me. Are you Mr. Robinson?
Nice to meet you, too. Welcome to Xi’an.
We hope you enjoy your stay here.
2. Giving advice
I believe you’re tired after such a long flight. Shall we drive to the hotel directly?
We can make arrangements for the driver to take us out to visit it in half a day.
I also recommend you to visit the Big Wild Goose Pogoda and the city wall.
3. Making promise
I can make sure it can be arranged.
Don’t worry, I would be able to go along with you.
We’ll try to arrange it.
4. Expressing wishes
We hope you enjoy your stay here.
I hope to have time to visit the Museum of Emperor Qinshihuang’s
Terra-Cotta Warriors and Horses.
I hope I can visit it later.
Exercises
1. Translate the following into English orally.
1) 请问您是威尔·汉德生先生吗？
2) 早上好，欢迎光临我们餐厅。
3) 行李员将带您去您的房间。
4) 您休息得好吗？
5) 不用担心，我会陪你一起去的。
2. Translate the following into Chinese orally.
1) Goodbye and I’m looking forward to seeing you again soon.
2) I’ll need to see your credit card and also please fill out this form.
3) Our manager has asked me to come and meet you and hope you enjoy your stay here.
4) May I see your passport, please?
5) When would you visit the Big Wild Goose Pogada?
3. Topics for discussion.
1) What preparation do you need to make before you receive guests?
2) Have you ever received a foreign guest before?
3) What do you think are the proper topics for people who meet first time?
Role Play
Find a partner and act the following roles according to the situation described：
Situation： Mr./Ms Zhang comes to the airport and meets Mr./Ms
Largerfield.
Role A
You are Mr./Ms Zhang, deputy managing director of a clothing company.
1) Ask Mr./Ms Largerfield if he is the person you’re waiting for.
2) Tell him/her who you’re and what purpose you come here for.
3) Mention why the general manager is not able to come.
Role B
You are Mr./Ms Largerfield, a purchasing manager of a clothing Import & Export Company from the United States.
4) Greet him/her and tell him/her about yourself.
5) Show thanks for the person who comes to meet you.
6) Mention you’re suffering jet lag from your trip.
Tips for Business Etiquette
How to Receive Foreign Guests?
Usually you should let the guests walk on the right. It is polite for you to open the door for him or her and let them go through the door first. On the formal occasion it is best to dress in black or blue. Don’t be humble and pushy, but show respect for them and their customs. You must be punctual and keep your promise. When shaking hands, you can use a little strength, but not too tightly. You should always use ‘please’,‘thanks’ in your talks. Get ready to help your guests whenever they get in trouble.
The following elements should be considered when hosting a foreign delegation.
1) Be aware of your visitors’ background and prepare to meet them as soon as they arrive.
2) Make sure you understand your visitors’ objectives and their desired
itinerary.
3) Contact the departments to be visited.
4) Make suggestions to enable your visitors to best use their time.
5) Draft a receptional proposal which covers the following：
a) meeting the visitors at the airport or station
b) interview/meetings/field visits
c) reception/dinner/ceremony
d) hotel/transportation/security/communication
(adapted from： http://jpkc.szpt.edu.cn/2007/ swyy/article_content.asp?id=394)