陳豪這小伙子正在和他的同事美籍華人Mary在一個美國餐館吃午飯。兩人正在點菜。

(Office ambience)

C：Mary, 看到菜譜上的湯就讓我想起一句英文："As the ships sail out to sea, I spoon my soup away from me." 不過，我一直沒有弄懂這句話究竟是什么意思？

M：Oh, that's a little rhyme that helps children remember the correct way to eat soup.

C：喝湯還有正確不正確的呀？ 不就是一勺一勺舀了往嘴里放嗎？

M：美國人在正式場合喝湯時有一定之規。"I spoon my soup away from me" means you spoon the soup toward the front of the bowl and then bring the spoon back to your mouth.

C：(若有所思地)用調羹往湯碗的外邊舀，然后再把調羹收回來送到嘴邊。Why so complicated?

M：這樣可以避免勺下面的湯滴在桌布上或衣服上。

C：Mary，let's each order a soup and try it out. I'm hungry, I want a clam chowder.

M：Clam chowder with sea food and meat. It's too filling. 我不餓，要個清湯就行了。

(Soup arrives and they start to eat. Sounds of slurping)

M：陳豪，你吃得好香呀！ It sounds as if you're enjoying your soup..

C：It's delicious! 味道真好。

M：But I'm sorry to say that slurping is considered bad manners in Western etiquette.

C：聽說過西方人喝湯不能有聲音。這湯也太燙了。我吹吹再吃。

M：不要吹。If your soup is too hot, stir it slightly or simply wait.

C：又不能出聲，又不能吹。那我就用勺攪動攪動，等它涼一點。

M：陳豪，你注意到沒有，我喝的是清湯。我在勺的邊上往里喝。而你的clam chowder 里面有肉，土豆等，沒法從邊上往里放。

C：That's right。我的雜燴里好多東西，沒法象清湯那樣往嘴里喝。

M：This is a good restaurant. The soup is wonderful, we should come more often.

(Sound of spoon scraping the bowl)

M：Chen Hao，don't scrape your bowl. Just tip your bowl away from you to retrieve the last spoonful of soup.

C：把碗往外抬起一點，讓湯都到一邊去。Mary, what are the main points that I need to remember?

M：Spoon the soup toward the center or front of the bowl and then bring the spoon back to your mouth; slurping is considered bad manners in Western etiquette; if the soup is too hot, stir it slightly or simply wait; tip your bowl away from you to retrieve the last spoonful of soup.