you say potato

a group of tibetan children led by a chinese man came through the pavilion today. my co-worker and i referred to the children as tibetan. the chinese man corrected us and said they were from "Xizang" - the China phrase for "Tibet Autonomous Region." he told us that our use of the name "Tibet" was greatly offensive. the three of us fell silent. we all three looked at the floor. i said, "well this is awkward."