Originally Posted by CDTraveler

I think most people can understand that the bigger concern is not so much 30 sets of cutlery but rather an understanding of what is a "souvenir" and what is not. If one eats in a sit-down restaurant, it is generally understood that the cutlery, tableware, cruets, etc. are not there for the taking. I wonder if those same folks would take home tableware from a restaurant in their homeland? Or does this behavior reflect a greater cultural difference, arising from the historic Chinese contempt from those "beyond the wall" mixed with half a century of communism with a recent dose of a market economy creating a confusion over the difference between "mine" and "yours?"