In the above cartoon, the son exclaims in excitement that he has found the characters his father engraved on the stone of the Great Wall years ago.

Visitors around, including foreigners, seem astonished while the father flushes with shame.

As a matter of fact, what the cartoon exposes is merely the tip of the iceberg.

Uncivilized behavior has generated nationwide concern.

Many tourists have the bad habit of inscribing their names on relics of historical sites, as is indicated in a recent survey.

In addition, spitting, littering, jaywalking, jumping the queue and talking loudly are among the improper behaviors.

They are not only a continuous annoyance in public but also a real embarrassment for China at international levels, due to the fact that more foreigners come to China and more Chinese travel or study overseas.

Therefore, it is imperative for us to take effective steps to eliminate, or at least reduce these improper manners.

First of all, it is practicable for travel agencies to distribute booklets of guidelines to tourists as a reminder of appropriate behavior.

Secondly, those who are caught violating regulations should be punished.

It is also of great significance that education in manners and etiquette should be strengthened in kindergartens and primary schools, so that the later generation may be aware of them.

There is no doubt that the uncivilized behavior will not vanish overnight: it might take us several generations to nurture the genuine civilization.