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Hello Kitty invades Taiwan maternity ward

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hahahhaahahahhahahah

and

hahah

Sorry, got that out of my system.

I love this ! Now, whenever those young mothers see Hello Kitty as they raise their manly boys (?), they'll be reminded of the agony of childbirth. Next step: Hello Kitty Contraceptives.

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I do believe they have Hello Kitty Rubbers.

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People need a dose of reality, you are having a baby, hello kitty is not reality... people live in dream worlds in this country.

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Even though I think a hospital's maternity ward turned into a Hello Kitty den is not exactly healthy, all maternity wards and children's hospitals I've ever visited do have cute blankets with teddies, trains and other cute motifs to soothe the children and create a more relaxing environment. Even the nurses' aprons are in pastel colors and sometimes in cute print fabrics. Blankets, walls decoration also tend to be warm and gentle. Because of the aforementioned I think a cute environment in a maternity ward is not strange AT ALL. Previous posters haven't visited a maternity ward or a the pediatrics ward yet, apparently!

Anyway, I think giving exclusiveness to Hello Kitty over an entire maternity ward is not all that gentle or a fit-all measure. There's still people somewhere who prefer rockets, horses and trains for their little boys.

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The decorative motif of the maternity ward and delivery rooms is not for the babies, as much as it is for the mothers--the women actually giving birth. I would not necessarily be made comfortable or relaxed by staring at "rockets, horses, and trains" even if I was giving birth to male triplets. Please keep in mind that this is a maternity ward, not a children's hospital. The babies will not remember if they saw Hello Kitty's face plastered on everything within eyesight, but the mother will remember that it was much softer on the eyes than stark white walls.

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I love trains ^^

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I do believe they have Hello Kitty Rubbers.

To avoid a repeat visit to the maternity ward?

I actually was present for the birth of a niece, so even though I haven't done it I've been there. I don't remember the birthing center decor being important, rather it was the demeanor of the doctor and nurses. They have to enthusiastically go through the same emotional, anxiety-inducing, joyous experience day after day with people who will only go through it, at most, several times in a lifetime.

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I agree with Betzee.

When you're busy with the most strenuous job of work you'll ever do in your life (that why it's called labour, folks!) the interior decoration is the least of your worries. Calm, reassuring doctors and nurses and a dragon of a midwife who keeps them all in place, is what's important.

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Thank you, Cleo, that means a lot given that I never gave birth. As difficult as it is for the mother, the trauma is no doubt greater for the child who is being ejected, if you will, into a strange environment. Not surprisingly, they're usually a little bit stunned after they come out. Still, it's nice to have someone on hand to provide the reassurance, "This is normal...."

Suddenly they are in a world where they find themselves reliant on others for their care. I don't know if it's true everywhere, but in American homes that have been visited by the stork, there is invariably laundry that needs to be folded since clean clothing is required after each little burble. And usually there is one, if not two, stressed out parents running around trying to meet the needs of an infant.

In the Taiwan I knew it was not like that. I used to walk through the marketplace where many of the female vendors had babies strapped on their backs as they sold chickens, fish, cabbage and other agricultural produce and poultry. When the child moved a certain way, well that meant it was time for a trip to the street drain where h/she would relieve him/herself. I admired the way they could swing them down and get them back up again with such ease.

Far from howling to indicate some type of unmet need, these babies exuded tranquility in a frenetic and noisy environment. Westerners might have seen them as developmentally delayed, but I think it was because their mothers anticipated their needs and fulfilled them promptly. After birth they simply moved from her abdomen to her back. Once they were ambulatory, they were lowered to the ground and older children watched over them as they played games in the market. When it was nap-time, there was a little bed behind the counter.

That Taiwan has been replaced by Hello Kitty. But I'm glad I caught it before it disappeared.

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Where's the outrage from mainland China about Japan meddling in its internal affairs?

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Not to worry, Nessie, mainland China's factories are probably working 24/7 to feed the "Hello Kitty" frenzy. I mean "hello kitty, china hello kitty, wholesale hello kitty" (as a www advertises).

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yikes. is it possibly to make lifetime customers any earlier?!

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eh, it's not like we haven't done it either.

i was born in Garfield hospital in Los Angeles and my parents said that everything had Garfield on it. From the hospital gowns, uniforms, and blankets, to everything Garfield in the gift shop. But there wasn't a mascot, at least i didnt think so.

if it's effective and positive for the people, then i dont see what's wrong.

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i was born in Garfield hospital in Los Angeles and my parents said that everything had Garfield on it.

Nice try, but it's named for Garfield Avenue. And it's in the section of Los Angeles County informally referred to as Little Taipei (小台北) so it's firmly in "Hello Kitty" territory from the perspective of cultural geography. The draw for non-Chinese (老外)is the chance to sample some fare from America's undisputed capital of Chinese cuisine, not to have babies.

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Oh God! Just when you thought nothign else could be emblazened by this adorable feline, she comes out in the Maternity Ward... of all places! :P

Here are some photos:

http://img.metro.co.uk/i/pix/2008/12/HelloKittyReuters_450x300.jpg http://cache.daylife.com/imageserve/02Al6kmd3Jg0r/610x.jpg http://www.nancarrow-webdesk.com/warehouse/storage2/2008-w48/img.428863_t.jpg http://www.nancarrow-webdesk.com/warehouse/storage2/2008-w48/img.429004_t.jpg

But on a better note, Here's a Hello Kitty Storm Trooper: http://www.saynotocrack.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/05/hello-kitty-darth-vader.jpg

n_n ~<3

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Oh God! Just when you thought nothign else could be emblazened by this adorable feline, she comes out in the Maternity Ward... of all places!

Thanks for the pix, the last is certainly a fearsome fellow!

To me, it resembles a children's hospital. I remember once reading a cultural awareness article for advertising execs detailing how "cute" is perceived differently by adults in Asia and the West. For example, it's difficult to imagine too many credit card holders in the West wanting the "Hello Kitty" image emblazoned on that all important piece of plastic. By contrast, it might go over very well in Taiwan.

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