Most tiles these days are plastic, although bone sets occasionally show up. Ivory sets are rare and, we hope, endangered. There are also tiles for the East, West, North and South tiles or winds. Like cards, the tiles may be used to play a variety of games. The most popular use of the tiles is for the game also known as Mah Jongg.
People play regularly with their cronies and mingle play with talk.
It's fun to listen to a game in progress. Animated conversation in, say, Mandarin rises above the distinctive sound of the tiles. Then, during the play the voices go quiet as tiles are picked up and snapped down in quick succession. At the end of the round of play, shouts, cries, and laughter signify the winning of the hand. Chattering voices and clattering tiles resume as the cycle repeats.