How do people in your country usually respond to noises?

Haha, well, I think the word I would use is ‘indifferent’. But maybe that’s the wrong word. Perhaps the way people respond to noise here is one of tolerance. A high threshold for noise; people don't seem to notice the noise around them, be it construction noise, crying kids, or traffic noise. And even if people do, they opt for ignoring it. For instance, the passengers on a coach won’t do anything or say anything towards the parent of a kid crying his head off. The reason behind this is something in our culture I think – minding your own business is saving yourself the trouble.

Anyway, I would say for the most part, indifference is how most people react to the cacophony of noises in my country.

• indifferent 漠不关心的
• tolerance 忍耐；容忍
• a high threshold for 高阈值
• opt for 选择
• ignore 忽视
• mind your own business 不管闲事
• save yourself the trouble 不惹麻烦
• the cacophony of noises 嘈杂的噪音

Which is exposed to more noise, the city or the countryside?

I think urban areas get much more noise because there’s always a lot going on in cities – construction, traffic, home decorations, kids, babies crying, and so on.

The countryside, on the other hand, is much more peaceful. Instead of all types of noises from all types of machines and traffic, one hears the sounds of nature, birds, frogs, and the like. Once in a while, some guy will start up a machine or whatnot, but generally, in the countryside, life is slower and the only real noise is the conversations emanating from the elders gathering.

• urban areas 城镇地区
• the sounds of nature 大自然的声音
• and the like 等等
• whatnot （由于拿不准而不指名）某种东西
• emanating from 来源于

What kinds of noises are there in your life?

In my daily life, hmmm, number one has to be the traffic out front of the apartment. I really notice it when there’s like a national holiday festival, like Spring Festival, when the road falls silent. Then you notice how peaceful everything is.

Also, since the second half of last year, I’ve been forced to listen to the heart-wrenching noise from a home decoration project in my building – noises ranging from knocking down the walls, and all types of drilling, to hammering. It usually starts at 9 in the morning and doesn’t stop until 12:30, then starts again at 2 and goes on till 6-ish.

I remember there was one period when the noise was too much to bear, I had to go for a walk every day for about 40 minutes. I couldn’t do anything at all if I stayed home!

But lately it’s gotten much better. Downstairs in the evening, another noise is from the kids playing. I don’t mind that so much, the sound of laughter isn’t a bad thing.

• falls silent 安静下来
• heart-wrenching 揪心揪肺的
• home decoration 装修
• drilling 钻孔声
• hammering 敲击声
• 6-ish 6点左右
• the sound of laughter 笑声

Do you think it’s good for children to make noise?

I think it’s natural for kids to make noise when they’re playing and enjoying themselves. However, children should be taught to be quiet in enclosed public places such as a library, a train, or a museum because noise can affect others in such shared spaces. To keep quiet is a form of respecting each other, but as I just mentioned about the kids where I live, outside they can be loud, but that’s what kids do. It would be weird if there weren’t any sounds from children.

• enclosed 封闭的
• public places 公共场所
• shared spaces 共享空间
• that's what kids do 小孩就是那样的
• weird 奇怪