阅读理解。
It tastes just like chicken away from home, and eating is more than just a way to keep your stomach full.
It is a language all its own, and no words can say "Glad to meet you...glad to be doing business with you..."
quite like sharing a meal offered by your host.
Clearly, mealtime is not the time for you to say, "No, thanks." Acceptance of the food on your plate means
acceptance of host, country, and company. So, no matter how difficult it may be to swallow, swallow. Or,
as one experienced traveler says, "Travel with a cast-iron stomach and eat everything everywhere."
Often, the food offered represents proudly your host country's eating culture. What would Ataiericans think
of a French person who refused to take a bite of homemade apple pie or sirloin? Our discomfort comes not
so much from the thing itself; it comes from our unfamiliarity with it. After all, an oyster has remarkably the
same look as a sheep's eye; and a first look at a lobster would remind almost anybody of a creature from a
science fiction movie, not something you dip in butter and eat. By the way, in Saudi Arabia sheep's eyes are
a famous dish.
Can you refuse such food without being rude? Most experienced business travelers say no, at least not
before taking at least a few bites. It helps, though, to slice any item very thin. This way, you minimize the
taste and the reminder of where it came from. Or, "Swallow it quickly," as one traveler recommends. "I still
can't tell you what sheep's eyeballs taste like." As for dealing with taste, the old line that "It tastes just like
chicken" is often thankfully true. Even when "it" is really rat or snake.
Another useful piece of advice is not knowing what you are eating. What's for dinner? Don't ask. Avoid
glancing into the kitchen or looking at English-language menus. Your host will be pleased that you are eating
the food he offers, and who knows? Maybe it really is chicken in that soup.
1. The purpose of the article is to _____.
A. introduce unfamiliar food
B. share the writer's personal experiences
C. suggest ways to overcome a cultural barrier in eating
D. advise on how to politely refuse to eat foreign food
2. According to the writer, people hesitate at strange food mainly due to _____.
A. the way it looks
B. safety worries
C. lack of information about it
D. the unfamiliar atmosphere
3. From the article we can infer that _____.
A. an American may feel comfortable with sirloin
B. one should refuse strange food after a few bites
C. English-language menus are not always dependable
D. one needs a cast-iron stomach to travel in any country
4. One may say "It tastes just like chicken" when _____.
A. showing respect for chicken-loving nations
B. greeting people with different dieting habits
C. evaluating chefs at an international food festival
D. getting someone to try a visually unpleasant meal
