12 Oct, 2007 in Taiwan by Fili An Tags: Taiwan;

Foreigners and Locals : Do Taiwanese like foreigners in Taiwan?

The other day I was reading a fascinating post by the wonderful Wangjianshuo about an encounter between foreigners and locals in China. Things heated up pretty quickly, and local aggression against foreigners soon surfaced. Here’s a little from what was said there :

The Foreigner

The foreigner was very upset, and used the top of his voice to shout to the safeguard. Obviously he didn’t know Chinese and this is something he said:

"Keep your F*** hands out of my driver." "You hit my car. I will call police. You need to go to jail!" "You are over. Bye bye" "I took your photo. You cannot run away. You are done!". Something like that, and I could not hear it clearly.

The Crowd

Very quickly, the crowd gathered and this was their comments:

"Get out of China, foreigners!" "This is not 1930s. You go away." To the driver: "Why you a Chinese work for Americans like a dog? You betrayed your country". To the driver: "There are enough people like you before liberation. You are not a Chinese." "Now China cannot beat American. That is the reason they dare to beat our people here."

What’s even more interesting, is what the blogger wrote about it :

I’d like to make it fair for everyone. For people who are foreigners and reading this blog, I want to explain the reason why there are such a strong power hidden there. The current education about history is, foreigners invaded China and pull the country into half a century of poverty and humility disaster. People feel very proud of the current strong country that history may not repeat itself.

If you ask me, as an independent thinking (I hope so), I think the current nationalism education is dangerous. If someone can fight for something just because of hate of another country, or they were told this is a conflict between his/her country and another country, that can be very dangerous. That is the case in Japan and Germany in WWII.

Now, things are very different in Taiwan, I would think. On the surface, the first impression is that there is something about the local attitude towards westerns that is very respectful, friendly, warm and welcoming. It is the Taiwanese stereotype and it is accepted. In one of our classes one of the professors did a curious survey in class and asked "what do you think about Taiwanese friendliness? how many of you think Taiwanese are friendly to them?". Looking at the class it was obvious that the students who found the Taiwanese to be friendly were the western looking bunch while so of the Asian nationalities were indicating some resentment towards how some Taiwanese accept them. The professor concluded – "it is my own impression that Taiwanese are polite and friendly-looking towards westerns only", which I found to be a somewhat shocking admission. I could see some similarities to Israel and so I would emphasis that it’s wrong to stereotype the Taiwanese about their stereotypical attitudes towards nationalities.

But, there’s something more than that. Among foreigners who’ve been here for a while there is some sort of agreement that this Taiwanese friendliness and politeness is not because of genuine admiration for all that’s "white", but rather some sort of a tool to somehow confine the foreigners’ response, something like a "golden trap". First time I heard this, I thought it was hilarious, but this idea keeps coming up and not always as a joke. I sometimes do feel that some of the older generations have mixed feelings towards everything that’s western, especially when it comes to academics. On the one hand it is accepted that authority, as far as academic publishing, financial resources and political power is concerned, lies in the west, however – there is more respect to how things are done locally, sometime rejecting western attitudes and ways of thinking as irrelevant. Which might result in a strange combination of trying to pull off something that goes by western standards with a Taiwanese way-of-thinking, and results are interesting.

I don’t think anything like what was described here from China might happen in Taiwan, but I’ve already felt some of the resentment that some of the Taiwanese feel towards the foreigners. The most obvious and disturbing issue has to do with money, and the fact that I – and the other foreigners here – get a scholarship to study here while Taiwanese have to pay what they consider to be "alot". In the first two weeks, there was not a class or event that we had that we were not reminded of how fortunate we are to be part of the program and that we should know that some of the Taiwanese complain about this often. It was also mentioned more than once, that last year there was a physical fight between foreigners and locals in the dorms over this issue. In one of classes the lecturer was joking around with this issue, making me feel a little bit uncomfortable, and then – he turned to the Taiwanese students and asked them if any of them would like to complain about this. Everyone laughed and thought it was really funny, but suddenly, one of the Taiwanese said "Yes, I have a lot to complain", took the microphone from the professor and started a 10 minutes monologue about his feelings towards foreigners in the program. I was honestly quite confused. He said his friends care about the money issue, but he doesn’t, what he does care about is that we don’t make an effort to blend in, expecting that the Taiwanese will make all the effort for us. "Why", he wondered out loud, "do you always say TingBuDong TingBuDong and not try to learn to speak our language?". The professor, maybe realizing the mistake he did, was watching from aside and waiting for this to finish. I knew this guy, he was a friendly and outgoing Taiwanese guy, but hearing him talk I realized that there is some emotions running in the background, and this was coming from a Taiwanese making an effort to go to an international student program.

What’s the point, then? I’m not sure. I think this issue is fascinating, but all I have are my small observations about things. One of the things that I enjoy about Taiwan the most are the people that I meet here and I really think that the Taiwanese people have amazing potential. As I told one of my classmates the other day – I have a feeling that one day the Taiwanese youth is going to explode with all that potential. It happened in Israel with the IT boom, as young talented IT and business folks made millions, shifting the focus from a holocaust-background surrounded-by-enemies traditional frame of thinking to a youthful sexy energetic and lively attitude. Somehow, the contradictions within the Taiwanese society give the feeling that the same can and might happen in Taiwan and China.

Do Taiwanese like foreigners in Taiwan? I think so, but I can’t be sure. Either way, this foreigner adores the Taiwanese in Taiwan ;)

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  • paiwan
    If you have anyone tell you to leave TAiwan and you look like an Aboriginal person, tell them to go the fuck back to China. This is what MY people in OUR country believe....
  • Monica
    I was born and raised in Taiwan. Came to the US 9 years ago for grad school and have been staying since. As someone grew up in Taiwan, I could tell you that "Knight Rider", "The A-Team", and "Airwolf" were my favorite tv shows when I was a kid.
    I watched more US tv series than Taiwanese ones. I listened to Madonna and Michael Jackson through the 80s. Before I actually started to learn English, I thought it must be a magical language because all the beautiful people speaking it on TV!
    In Taiwan, American pop culture was a major influence. Our idea about western culture was totally coming from American tv shows, movies, and pop music. Therefore, lot of Taiwanese thought American is the only representative of the western world. And the US, is the greatest country in the world with all the rich and beautiful people. Because that was the only thing we saw and heard about the western world. Even now, some of the Taiwanese still think that everything in the US must be
    better. All the Americans are richer and living a much better life than Taiwanese.
  • Mirrus
    As a post-note, I tip my hat to Fred for understanding reality and I congratulate James on his successful clown career. 'Dignity is so overrated these days, isn't it, James?'
  • Fred
    Taiwan is actually a wonderful, exotic land to live some of your life in. However, I can tell you from personal experience and observation that being a teacher here is extremely stressful for a non- Chinese person. I have a Master of Education Degree - a REAL one - a teaching license from the US, and 10 years of experience teaching here and in other countries. Now, what I can tell you all is that being a great teacher means NOTHING to these people. You, the foreigner, are hired as a babysitter more than an educator. Taiwanese/ Chinese people are very negative people - their brains are just wired that way. An ounce of bad always outweighs a ton of good. Much of the time, they place you in a room full of students that barely understand anything you are saying to them, and would rather just chat, gossip, sleep and have fun, than to listen to the foreign teacher whom they instinctively know they don't really have to respect or take seriously.And if the kids don't get a great score on their exams or they don't want to behave for you, it is YOUR fault. You are NOT a good teacher.They don't care about your teaching skills or your credentials, because it means nothing to them, because there is a wall of resentment, mistrust, tension, spite, deceit, and gossip you must endure to remain in good standing here. If you are a professional, licensed teacher with a good life and a good job back home, don't give it up to come here. You will only be wasting your talent,and be mismanaged by a handful of uptight xenophobes who won't respect you one bit.
  • Dominix
    It's more of a cultural difference than a "xenophobic" issue. The culture demands perfection - you don't get 99% right on a test, you get 1% wrong, and they only focus on that 1%. It's a culture that places a lot of stress on people.

    This also translates to the work place. If a students doesn't do well, it becomes your fault, and that is the only metric they use to evaluate you. If you can't put up the results they expect from you (an expectation due to the culture), it doesn't matter what type of degree you obtained before.

    If you feel they don't respect you, it's because you "failed" to meet their expectations. They only respect perfection (or the closest thing to it since true perfection is impossible).
  • Interesting question, and I personally do not think that the answer is straightforward.
    I am from the UK and my brother and I have both been living here for 15years. I have a business here which deals with helping Taiwanese companies (re)brand for the overseas market, therefore all my friends and acquaintances are local.
    To me, the answer to this question can probably be applied to countries all over the world. Do British people like foreigners, do Americans? I grew up in France and as a UK kid, made great friends and also met a handful of anti-Brits. To me, it is a human trait to look at outsiders with a different slant.
    I read somewhere that, statistically, 1 in every person you meet will dislike you, whether they have a reason to or not...

    Coming back to Taiwan, I agree with all the comments above.
    My wife is Taiwanese and despite having known her family for 14 years already, I will never feel that I am totally part of the family.
    On the one hand, I get more attention and my corny jokes always draw polite laughter - which doesn't often happen in my home country!
    On the other, I am seldom involved with family matters/problems and am still to this day broadly paint-brushed with the stereotypical asumptions that Taiwanese have of all westerners, such as eating habits, being too open and so on. You probably have all experienced the same.

    However, I have always made the effort to integrate and avoid acting as if being white gives me a "God"-given right to being treated better or differently. I never assume that everyone can speak English and always make the effort to speak Chinese with my customers as well as my employees.
    I give respect to the older members of my Taiwanese family and I try to understand what makes Taiwanese culture so unique by joining in conversations with locals and understanding local issues.

    My point here, albeit a long-winded one, is that far from fully understanding Taiwan, I believe that Taiwanese are friendly to foreigners who show a willingness to integrate life here. If you learn a little Taiwanese and throw a few words around, you will find that even the most unpleasant, seemingly anti-foreign taxi driver will open up and tell you his life story.
    I find that too often, as westerners here, we get used to this "special" attention we get and start acting and talking as if we are the centre of attention. I am generalising here, forgive me, but one cannot answer this question without doing so. If we show an unassuming attitude to the people we meet in Taiwan, combined with a genuine interest in our Taiwanese counterparts, it is easier thereafter to go beyond the politeness and fake friendliness.

    As a footnote, I must say that for a country that mainly focusses on overseas markets and exports to the rest of the world, the Taiwanese are surprisingly naive (dare I say ignorant) about western culture and about the huge differences between different western countries. This is partly due to a severe lack of interest from most Taiwanese people to understand what goes on outside Taiwan beyond the usual stereotypes (French like wine, Americans eat hamburgers and the British are gentlemen, kind of thing). It is also partially due to the way local media portray foreigners in Taiwan. I have had the interesting - and enjoyable, I must admit - experience of appearing on a few local shows. The focus always seems on portraying the westerner as a bit of a clown, a curiosity or an oddity. The funny thing is, before each talk show I was asked by one of the production assistants to make sure that I make m answers funny, quirky and slightly exaggerated so that the audience gets its reassuring stereotypical white guy in Taiwan.
    I have no issues however, with that because I know that it is part of the local perception and who am I to get offended by it when it is generally harmless. The fun part is showing that you are playing along whilst demonstrating an understanding of local jokes and culture as well.

    To sum a long message up, YES the Taiwanese are generally friendly. YES the Taiwanese are sometimes fake in their friendliness. The question we should perhaps ask ourselves first though is: What are we doing to deserve that friendliness? Are we able to pick up on genuine Taiwanese gestures of friendliness? I have been here 15 years, and look forward to my next 15.
  • Dan
    James - what a level headed and pertinent response. I thank you for it. I've been here for 13 years or so and I agree with nearly everything you said. The Taiwanese do have mechanisms in place to distance other cultures - this should be expected in such a strong culture, made up by a majortiy with the same racial background and more importantly by a people who receive a universal, across the board education. But as the original post hinted at - there is a difference between the mainlanders and the Taiwanese. A pleasant difference (which is not to blame the mainlanders - they have been through what they've been through to entrench such attitudes). In general you will receive preferential treatment as a "white" ambassador for the countries of advanced civilisation, but at the same time you are guilty for said countries' decadence. This is all assumed - because it is taught as stereotype in the schools here.

    Which brings me to the point of racism - make no mistake it is as alive and well here as it is anywhere. Someone up above on this thread said it was not racism but in fact a sort of class thing, but if your class distinction is mostly determined by the way you appear then there is no real need for any other word. So what whities experience is a form of postive racism, wherein they are given privieleges, but priveleges which at the same time distance.Higher pay -but no say. Darker people (because associated with lower classes, "undevelopment") are not given the same leeway.

    I'm sure this happens in most countries. Either way - I'll take it coz as people said up above, overall the people here are really nice if you yourself just make an effort.

    Take a trip to China to practice your Chinese and you quickly find out what has happened to common courtesy.
  • mike
    I guess not.. I am sure that surprises you because you either,choose to ignore it or you don't speak chinese....I did not say that "western" countries were any better..I have nothing against the Taiwanese.
    They are honest hard working people with a rich culture. They just don't like having foreigners in their country.
  • Mike
    I think that about 80% of Taiwanese don't want foreigners living in Taiwan. I can't even count how many times someone has told me" This my Taiwan!Not America go home!"I am not an American.
    I think that the Taiwanese have no respect for foreigners.
  • Mike - that surprises me alot. I've never had anything that blunt. I did have some unfortunate incidents in other "western" countries. I guess you have all sorts in all places.
  • Everyone - thanks for your comments on this topic. It's all very interesting observations. ^_^
  • jjaoao
    first of all, the reason why we are more protected, is because it reflects how foreigners treated chinese in foreign country. first of all.
    u must understand that taiwanese and chinese value friends and family the most. therefore, if u want to be friends with taiwanese u must be the one that act first.
    i have live in US for 5 years and i can tell that it is also hard for us to make friends with the foreigners. and it is the same with westerners who live in taiwan. i can understand u guys r not being understand properly by us. but it takes time. if u guys really dedicate ur time into learning our language and try to understand us first. i can tell u for sure that we will come to understand u guys soon.
    i am sure westerners look at chinese/taiwanese with strangeness too, so i dont really see why u complaining about.
    i know it must be hard for westerners to fit in taiwan since taiwan have many cultures and dialects. but like i said before, it takes time. if u want to be fit in the society, u guys will have to be the one that act first.
  • Daniel
    yes jiao jiao.... you are right
  • Ace
    Let me quote two Taiwanese friends (females) on this who I talked to on different occasions and that do not know each other:
    "Taiwanese are really nice to foreigners" and later on "When Taiwanese people see a foreigner (males) they'll tend to think he was a looser in his own country and he came here to feel better".
    Here's an interesting contradiction.

    It corroborates what I think and my own personal experience. I'm an exchange student here and I've been living in Taipei for the past 3 month. At first I didn't understand why people were saying Taiwanese people are so nice as I've personally never experienced it here. What I did experience though is those stares Paul is talking about, and a general feeling of having to justify my presence here. I thought it was probably dued to the fact that I don't fit in the usual foreigner profile, I'm not that tall, I have light skin but very dark hair and a beard and I don't wear shorts. I guessed that's why guys stared at me on the streets giving me the feeling that I was a sort of macho benchmark for them.

    Talking to other foreigners in my study program after a couple of weeks I realized I wasn't the only one feeling this pressure. We went out a lot and what we feel is that in general Taiwanese people don't like foreigners. What we felt is along those lines: It's seen as good here to be the least asian looking as possible while still being asian or mixed but foreigners are no good. Mixed with asian being the best.

    I blame it on the fact that Taipei is an island so just like any island the national sentiment is strong and also that not many foreigners do come here. So being a sort of curiosity obviously some people will love it and the rest of the people will be scared while others will hate it.

    I also met some nice Taiwanese people but I won't be like most of the people here stating how nice Taiwanese people are. To me they're condescending people than anything else and most of them feel threatenned by the presence of foreigner people. This fear leading sometimes to stupid incidents like brawl or pure racism.
  • I think it depends...people are so different no matter where are they from? as a foreigners to any country, we might have good or bad experiences and it could not say "all", as me a Taiwanese I like foreigners, and also I like to talk with people, all related about the personality, and communication is very important.

    When we really treat people in the right way, we don't care what language we use, or which countries that they are from, we just see a human's needs and we would like to do something for that. That what I think, peace,love...to a person who are with me.
  • Paul Greene
    I'm a Englishman (with a Taiwanese wife and mixed race child), living in Taiwan for almost three years now. At first I was very impressed by the friendliness and politess of many of the locals towards me. But with time I began to realise that this is mostly superficial, and yes like the author says, a way to control the interaction with the foreigner.

    The Taiwanese appear to be nervous of having any meaningful interaction with strangers, and unwilling to give anything away about their own lives to strangers. So while on the surface foreigners (from what I have read, it seems that this applies to "Westerners" only) is very polite, helpful and often appears preferential to the way the locals are treated, it's really just a way to keep the foreigner at a distance.

    On one hand life is made very easy for us here, and I've certainly never experienced anything that I could describe as racism or discrimination, on the other hand it can be very frustrating because I realise that whatever I say or do, I will not really be listened to to and the response towards me will be the same. The Taiwanese really are very skilful at controlling the foreigner's response in this kind of situation !

    But I can't complain too much, at least I have never been made to feel unwelcome in Taiwan. Which is more than I can say for how some comments made by my Taiwanese friends about treatment by local on their visits to European countries.

    One other thing, there is a very big difference between the attitude towards people in Taipei city and Taipei county/ further out of town. Walking in the Xinyi district, with my wife and mixed race child, I feel quite comfortable. There are quite a few foreigners around here and the majority of people would not stare.

    But for instance cycling along the Danshui river path, the majority of people who I pass will stare (in a rather neutral way, but it still makes me feel uncomfortable), particularly men and older people in general. And double the stares and attention (overwhelmingly positive, I must say) received because I have a mixed race child. If you just want to relax, not have unnecesary attention and be treated how you deserve to be treated, and appreciated for the person you are, then Taiwan can drive your crazy.

    After a while, you realise that the best option is not to think too much about the above, accept the situation, and enjoy the many positives about life in Taiwan.

    This situation will not change until Taiwan starts to attract foreigners in much greater numbers so we become less of a spectacle and more of a normal part of life in Taiwan. Having said that, is is difficult to imagine Taiwan ever being multicultural, in the way the we know it in the UK/ USA/ Australia etc .... It is quite common for Western men to marry Taiwanese women, but while they will probably be accepted by the woman's family their situation in society is quite ambiguous. Actually, society or a sense of community here doesn't really exist, the family is the only thing that matters here.
  • Mike - thanks for sharing your thoughts on that. What you describe makes sense and actually isn't that far off what I would explain about the Israeli mentality towards this issue.

    But, there is still something a more extreme in Taiwan that especially appreciates the west. Taiwanese are no where near familiar with the American pop-culture and entertainment business as most Israelis are, but there is still the initial assumption that what ever comes from the US/Canada is of higher-standard. It's interesting to note that - culturally, most Israelis and Europeans would highly disagree with that opinion.

    The most personal example I can tell is that most Taiwanese who see me and talk to me assume that I'm American or Canadian, and so the initial welcome I get is very warm and curious. Sometimes, quite often, the attitude changes when I tell them I'm actually not American, but that I come from Israel.

    An average Taiwanese aspiration usually has to do with either studying, working, or living in the states, with very few exceptions targeting Japan, some settling for the UK or Aussie. The most common question a western student, usually an American/Canadian, is asked by the local students is - "WHY (in God's name), would you (ever) want to (leave your amazing country and come) study here in Taiwan?".
  • Mark - for that, I think you have to start talking to the older folks. The guys practicing Taichi in the parks around 4-5am are not easily impressed :P

    (BTW - you should contact Akismet and ask that they remove you from their spam list. They'll fix that immediately.)
  • Mike
    Hello everybody! I stumbled upon this blog while I was web surfing on Google. I've visited some of the other blogs, and I would like to say I've enjoyed the "intelligent" discussions I've seen regarding Taiwanese issues. It's a breath of fresh air in comparison to the usual Taiwanese forums I visit. I'm a native Taiwanese raised in the southern city of Kaohsiung and educated in the American system.

    Here's my perspective of the issue. I think. . .that a majority of the society tend to be pretentious, especially up north. For example, they prefer to see themselves higher up in the social ladder as oppose to their southern counterparts. It should be needless to mention how some view the Taiwanese aboriginals then.

    People like to think they fare off better than others. I think this is true in all societies, but in Asian countries, it is magnified. I don't know if any of you have observed on Taiwanese media the following: encouragement of plastic surgery, slim figures as the only accepted body shape in society (flood of diet pill commercials as opposed to training/exercise informecials in the US), super light skin tone as a symbol of elegance, brand names (Gucci, Prada, so on), and the rest. I live in the states and I have not seen these matters so over-emphasized. It's like the media is persuading the viewers that it's okay to be shallow.

    It gets me when someone or some group tend to degrade certain social groups to feel distinguished. For example, as mentioned earlier, I don't see why northern Taiwanese always stress and remark on how uneducated that southern Taiwanese tend to be. Sure, a majority of the southern population are farmers. Sure, Tainan and Kaohsiung may not be as "international" as Taipei. Does it mean that they are brain dead and can't make wise decisions?

    I believe that education broadens an individual's perspective of things. However, I also believe intelligence "must" go hand in hand with adequate wisdom for one to apply them properly. The actions and behaviors I have observed of these so-called educated people only showcase how uneducated and prejudice they are.

    My apologies for digressing so far. Going back to your question: "Do Taiwanese like foreigners in Taiwan?" My answer is "yes, but selective." A perfect example would be Asian attitude towards black people in the past. If it weren't for the NBA, music, and the movie industry, I believe the majority of Asia would still hold some bias towards them today.

    As a response to Todd and fiLi: Why do you think they treat your SE-Asian friends so differently? I don't think it's a matter of racism. My opinion would be it's the working of their superior complex. Westerners have advance technology, wonderful movies and music, and are excellent in sports. What about our SE-Asian neighbors? This is what I think is buried deep in their head. Indonesians do our housekeeping, Vietnamese are replacements when we can't seek Taiwanese brides, and Thai(s) work our construction sites. This is sad seeing how ignorant the society could be in certain aspect, yet so acceptive in others. But I wouldn't blame the people. It's the media and societie's fault for not properly educating them on these matters. I bet if your SE-Asian friends were gorgeous looking women, the scenario would be totally different.
  • I think it goes much further than that, especially when it comes to Indonesians, Vietnamese, Thai and other less developed countries. I've seen some of those interactions between Taiwanese and my SE-Asian friends, and sometimes I felt that if I had someone respond to me that way I would feel offended and upset, but they took it as nothing out of the ordinary. :S
  • One day during our language class at Shida we were discussing how Taiwanese treat us. The two westerners in the class (myself and a gentleman in his mid-40s) had mostly positive things to say, while our non-western classmates complained that Taiwanese are often impatient with them when they try to speak Chinese. It is very true in Taipei, a person I am talking to in Chinese here will have a look of amazement in their face as I struggle through whatever I have to say and usually compliment my Chinese afterwards, whereas my Indonesian classmates complained that on several occasions if they were struggling to say something correctly they were often cutoff by the listener who would tell them that he or she didn't understand.
  • I'm sure it could get old, but I'd like to meet some Taiwanese who aren't easily satisfied about foreigner's Chinese skills. I enjoyed the Dongbei bluntness I was subjected to last time I stayed with a friend in mainland China.
  • "Most of the Taiwan scholarship offer 1 year of Mandarin studies before the degree studies, which I chose not to take."

    the same with me, as one year of LEP (Language Enhancement Program) counts towards the scholarship nomination (and i was hoping to get a PhD-funding for 3 years instead 2).

    well, but perhaps this language comprehension is an obsession of small nations like we are? say, Chinese generally don't speak English (as well as Italians, French, Russians). we have Russians living in Estonia over 40 years and still monolingual.
  • nice post. I think your take on this is right... in that it is tough to know the real feelings about Taiwanese about foreigners. I hate generalizations, but I guess to have an opinion about this issue means that I'll have to generalize. In general, Taiwanese seem to like foreigners, but I usually feel like their affinity for foreigners is based on one of the following reasons: For Americans in particular, the USA has been Taiwan's biggest backer v. China forever and Taiwanese do appreciate that. For Taiwanese who have studied/lived abroad, they appreciate the difficulty of leaving family and familiarity. For English ability. In many churches, people are thankful that foreign missionaries have come to Taiwan to share. I don't think that their seeming affinity for foreigners is fake, but I think there are some other motivations listed above.

    I am a fan of Nebraska Cornhusker football (a college team in the USA). Nebraska fans are widely known to be "The Greatest Fans in College Football". It is a well deserved title. However, I now wonder if the actions of many of the fans are dictated more by trying to keep that honorable title rather than by acting naturally and having those actions result in an honorable title/label.

    Application to Taiwan? Taiwanese (and all asians in general) are "famous" for their hospitality. I often feel like the warm welcome I receive here is based more on Taiwanese being careful not to ruin that image rather than genuine desire to be friendly with me and get to know me. So... the honorable title/perception is guiding action rather than altruistic action leading to a perception.

    I definitely don't feel much hostility here, though. Outside of some occasions when I feel people are talking about me, the only time I could really mention was a time when my wife was accosted by some Taiwanese when going to visit the doctor several years ago. It was at the Adventist hospital in Taipei and at the time you could pay a little extra and get an appointment at a specific time instead of having a number and just having to wait for your number. My wife used that option (to get a specific time) and when she showed up and was allowed in to see the doctor in front of several people who had been waiting, she was verbally abused (as were the nurses) for getting special foreigner treatment. The nurses did explain that my wife had paid extra for that service, but that led to even more verbal abuse about how rich foreigners were. It was just an isolated incident and we don't think it represents Taiwanese people, but it was interesting to see some of the feelings that might lurk below the hospitable and friendly image.
  • Oh, that's actually very surprising. From the little I know, the Taiwanese government tries to encourage foreigners to study Chinese. Most of the Taiwan scholarship offer 1 year of Mandarin studies before the degree studies, which I chose not to take. That's really too bad :(

    In my own personal opinion, as someone who's been studying for a while but still hasn't made it to a good-enough level, I see learning Chinese as something essential to try and feel less isolated. It might cost me 400-500US$ a semester, it might be frustrating and a lot of work, but it gives me a sense of purpose here.

    With that said, having a local criticize me for not talking Chinese with him is awkward. I have a feeling it hides level of much greater frustration over something I don't understand than really caring whether I speak Mandarin or not. I would never imagine an Israeli asking foreigners, whether they've been staying in Israel for a day or 10 years, why they don't speak Hebrew. If anything, I would be surprised and extremely respectful should they make any effort to actually learn Hebrew :)
  • ehee, i was a little too optimistic. i've been here not over 3 but 2 years. but whatever, no big difference.
  • "Why", he wondered out loud, "do you always say TingBuDong TingBuDong and not try to learn to speak our language?"

    well, i have been here for over three years, but i do not speak Mandarin at all. and why is that?

    my 1st univesity required us to learn ENGLISH for two semesters. when asking for Chinese, we were first refused but then a year later were offered a class in Taipei (around 60 km from our location) with an overlapping agenda. there was no way we could take it.

    now in Kaohsiung, we were promised to provide Mandarin classes, but a month has passed and no nothing. just yesterday we got an offer with a schedule overlapping 100% our coursework. there is no way we can take it.

    any other options? Ming Chuan's tuition was so high (NTD 94 K in a year) we could not afford any private language lessons. and we always lived together with foreigners.

    sorry, folks. timbutong.
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