Really interesting to know that there is also a city of Pekin(g) in Illinois, USA:

China used to be far away, the country at the bottom of the world. Certainly that must be how it seemed just 20 years ago in a place like Pekin, Ill., a city of 34,000 residents on the Illinois River that took its name from the Chinese capital in the 1820′s. According to local legend, Pekin is directly opposite Beijing on the globe. The high-school teams there were still called the Chinks until 1981, when they were renamed the Dragons. A smart and forward-looking decision, it turns out: as is happening throughout the United States, the Pekinese have in their own local ways grown inextricably linked to the Chinese of today. They are now connected not by an imaginary hole through the earth but by the world’s shipping lanes, financial markets, telecommunications networks and, above all, the globalization of appetites.

Source: The Chinese Century, by Ted C. Fishman, the New York Times, July 4, 2004.

On October 2, 2006 China’s main tourism authority and the central government’s Spiritual Civilization Committee jointly issued guidelines for Chinese tourists. The guidelines are lists of clear and simple behavioral etiquettes for people intending to travel domestically and internationally, including those “dos and don’ts” tips such as speaking quietly, respecting queues and putting litter in bins, and no spitting. (More on this from this news report Shanghai Daily : Tourists told to polish up act, not only their shoes).

These guidelines are probably the first of its kind in China, and they are in fact parts of the recent official advocacy for more dynamic developments of Chinese culture around the world.

According to a Xinhua report, “Chinese tourists made 31 million trips abroad in 2005, with that number expected to rise to 100 million by 2020″.

2006年10月2日，中央文明办、国家旅游局今天联合颁布《中国公民出境旅游文明行为指南》、《中国公民国内旅游文明行为公约》。以下为全文：

《中国公民出境旅游文明行为指南》

• 中国公民，出境旅游，注重礼仪，保持尊严。
• 讲究卫生，爱护环境；衣着得体，请勿喧哗。
• 尊老爱幼，助人为乐；女士优先，礼貌谦让。
• 出行办事，遵守时间；排队有序，不越黄线。
• 文明住宿，不损用品；安静用餐，请勿浪费。
• 健康娱乐，有益身心；赌博色情，坚决拒绝。
• 参观游览，遵守规定；习俗禁忌，切勿冒犯。
• 遇有疑难，咨询领馆；文明出行，一路平安。

《中国公民国内旅游文明行为公约》

营造文明、和谐的旅游环境，关系到每位游客的切身利益。做文明游客是我们大家的义务，请遵守以下公约：

• 维护环境卫生。 不随地吐痰和口香糖，不乱扔废弃物，不在禁烟场所吸烟。
• 遵守公共秩序。不喧哗吵闹，排队遵守秩序，不并行挡道，不在公众场所高声交谈。
• 保护生态环境。不踩踏绿地，不摘折花木和果　实，不追捉、投打、乱喂动物。
• 保护文物古迹。不在文物古迹上涂刻，不攀爬触摸文物，拍照摄像遵守规定。
• 爱惜公共设施。不污损客房用品，不损坏公用设施，不贪占小便宜，节约用水用电，用餐不浪费。
• 尊重别人权利。不强行和外宾合影，不对着别人打喷嚏，不长期占用公共设施，尊重服务人员的劳动，尊重各民族宗教习俗。
• 讲究以礼待人。衣着整洁得体，不在公共场所袒胸赤膊；礼让老幼病残，礼让女士；不讲粗话。
• 提倡健康娱乐。抵制封建迷信活动，拒绝黄、赌、毒。