Taiwan: First impressions

All this will certainly be rebutted within a month

I thought I knew a lot about Taiwan by what my girlfriend has told me and from everything I've read online before I went on this trip. I was so wrong. Taiwan has to be experienced in real. You have to see it, feel it and smell it.

Now people may have all kinds of first impressions, depending on where they come from and where they have been. Most of the time compare all the things I see here with what I've seen in Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong before. Taiwan has many similarities with these three countries, but many things are uniquely Taiwanese here. Let me list some things that made an impression on me in these first 5 days and if you're new on my blog, please know I see everything with the eyes of a Westerner:

Taoyuan International Airport: That's the first thing you see in Taiwan. It's a very modern airport. It doesn't seem so big at first, it certainly feels smaller than the ones in Singapore, Bangkok or Hong Kong, but I'm not too sure. The walk from the plane to the arrival hall was pretty long. But there wasn't so many people. I guess that may be because of Chinese new year (CNY from here on).

Chinese new year in Taiwan: I always think that the best part of CNY is the time before the actual holidays, when you anticipate that first day with the reunion dinner and the first visits the next day. I arrived here at the 3rd day and it was raining all the time. It didn't feel very festive. Most people were inside, shops were closed, so I couldn't really experience the CNY the same way I did last year in Malaysia. Because I've been anticipating it with my ex's family, we cleaned the house, decorated it, we ate the reunino dinner together, visited family and friends. That's the real CNY. This time I just spend time with my girlfriend, but we celebrated the beginning of our love and life together. I must say that I've said "新年快樂" (xin nian kuai le or) "happy new year" few times to some people and everytime they smiled and replied "红包拿来" (hong bao na lai or) "now give me a red package". Haven't experienced that in Malaysia.

Taiwanese people in general: Very friendly and polite! A bit reserved at first, but they're willing to help you. Everywhere you go, be it a store, 7 Eleven, hawker, café, they will always say 謝謝! (Thank you!), which sadly wasn't always the case in Malaysia and Singapore.
And I've noticed that Taiwanese are not really kiasu, when it comes to public transport. The MRT (subway) has marks on the ground to show where people have to stand while waiting for the train to arrive. Nobody's pushing, everything goes smoothly, people alight in the middle, those who want to go in, stand on the side and wait. I like that. But then when there's food, Taiwanese can be very kiasu! Be it night or day market, especially in places where there's many food stalls at one place, there was always someone pushing me, while waiting for the food, there was no order. If the hawker demands a line, then people will stand in line. It depends. There's also tourists from China, who don't stand in line, but I can't really distinguish so far who's Taiwanese and who's from the mainland.

Taiwanese girls and women: They seem a bit quieter than their "cousins" in Malaysia and Singapore. Because it was raining all these days, most of them would wear boots, stockings and jackets. They dress up very well, use good make-up and take good care of themselves. I know many say Taiwanese girls are very beautiful, but for me there was not such a big difference from Malaysian and Singaporean Chinese girls. But I guess I haven't seen the cutest girls yet, since it's new year. Of course beauty is very subjective, but trust me, I have a good eye :-P You have all kinds of girls and sure, now and then a girl, that looks stunning passes by and you think: Wow! She's hot! That happened to me many times. Then I realized it's my girlfriend :-P

Taiwanese boys and men: The first thing I noticed is, that they don't take care of themselves as much as the girls here. And my Taiwanese girlfriend said the same. I'm talking about clothes, hairdo... Some guys wear very casual clothes here (jogging suit and sandals). Of course that doesn't apply to everyone, some guys here really look good and cool, remind me of some Tokyo street styles. You see that a lot when you go to Xinyi or Ximending. My area is located near factories, people who live here are workers and don't earn as much as the educated elites in the city center. I definitely need to explore more areas to allow myself a more comprehensive statement. So take all this with a pinch of salt, please :-)

Couples: I must share two funny instances. While I was on the bus, I saw a couple, where the guy would sit and the girl would stand beside him. I asked my girlfriend "Ain't that funny?" She said it's normal here sometimes. I thought it's no wonder the men here have a bed reputation. But then I saw a totally different thing on some other bus: The girl was sitting and her boyfriend stood beside her and caressed her hair. That was so cute, haha. Aside from these two extremes, most couples seemed pretty normal here, like everywhere else I've been. I definitely need to see more couples.

Food: is everywhere! Seriously. I thought Malaysians and Singaporeans are crazy about food, but in Taiwan, food can be smelled and seen everywhere. Every corner would have a small hawker frying some traditional pancakes or steaming dumplings, at least in my area. And even though it's not on every corner, the famous stinky tofu can be smelled almost everywhere (more about that one soon).

I must say the food is very diverse and generally delicious. Of course I'm a Westerner and some things are not really my favorite, but I've tried everything so far, yes, even the stinky tofu and duck's blood. I think for Malaysians and Singaporeans this food tastes far better than to Westerners, so it's no wonder, that Taiwan has become one of their favorite destinations.

Traffic: Is running smoothly. The roads, especially where I live, are cramped with motor bikes, the sidewalks are narrow, hawkers are squeezed in between. Sometimes you have to walk on the road, but the cars always mind the pedestrians, so it's safe. It's somewhat like Singapore, but let's rather not mention Malaysia here :-P There's many crosswalks with an animated cute green man, typical for Taiwan. There's also many crosswalks, where you can cross diagonally (the so called pedestrian scramble), which is very convenient when you cross those wide roads, especially near Taipei 101.

Transport: Let me tell you how I see the transportation in Taiwan.

- I should start with EVA Air, the Taiwanese airways, that brought me here. The flight was smooth, the stewardesses were really nice and the food tasted great. Before I used to fly with Qatar Airways. I must say EVA is at least as good as them, so thumbs up.
- Once we've left the airport, we took a bus. That one was great, but there's also a different kind of buses in Taipei county. The ride with them may be a little bumpy, but it's ok, since they're the cheapest way of transportation here.

- I also had the pleasure to take the high speed train. It's really impressive. It's long, slick and dynamic. Inside it's very quiet and it runs smoothly, as if you were on a plane. We went 255km/h, but I haven't felt the speed at all.

- All cabs here are yellow. The drivers are polite, they drive safely and don't talk to you.

- The Taipei MRT is excellent. Comparable to Singapore and Hong Kong. I will write more about the transportation in a separate post.

Architecture: You have all kinds of buildings, it's a real mix. Apart from Taipei 101, I haven't seen anything comparable that would blow my mind. I live in a typical traditional Taiwanese neighborhood, with hawkers, cramped motorbikes, narrow streets, where people hang clothes everywhere (something I will do, too). Let's be honest: It's not the cleanest here, but I'm ok with that. My apartment is very nice from the inside, I have internet access, water heater, a TV, a big cupboard, couch and a big bed. And the landlord is nice. I don't need more. But the building looks old from the outside, the stairs and walls have some cracks, maybe because of typhoons and earthquakes? I don't know. But aside from my area, I've only been in the city center and that part is totally different: New modern buildings, but not really skyscrapers as seen in Singapore's or KL's downtowns. The roads are wide there, almost like boulevards. It's clean and neat. I definitely need to see more of Taipei and Taiwan.

Entertainment: I've only been to a night market and besides food, they have all kinds of games there. It's not really my cup of tea. I hope I can experience more than that and go to a pub or club some time in the future.

Prices: Are quite high. Most of the things like food and drinks are between 50-150NTD, which is between 1-3€ (5-15RM). The hawker is the cheapest of course, but it's more expensive than the Malaysian. Here are some of the prices for you to compare (as on 20. Feb 2010):
(NTD: New Taiwan Dollar - €: Euro - RM: Ringgit Malaysia - USD: US Dollar)

A bus fare for a certain distance: 15TWD (0.34€ - 1.6RM - 0.46USD)
A MRT train fare: 2oTWD (0.45€ - 2.1RM - 0.62USD)
A high speed train fare Taoyuan to Taipei City: 160TWD (3.65€ - 16.9RM - 5USD)
A cinema ticket: 270TWD (6.15€ - 28.5RM - 8.4USD)

Coffee (Latte): 50-90TWD (1.15-2€ - 5.3-9.5RM - 1.55-2.8USD)
Traditional pancakes at the hawker: 35TWD (0.80€ - 3.7RM - 1.1USD)
A portion of stinky tofu: 45TWD (1€ - 4.75RM - 1.4USD)
Instant noodles in supermarket: 20TWD (0.45€ - 2.1RM - 0.62USD)
Bubble tea: 25TWD (0.57€ - 2.6RM - 0.77USD)
Ice cream: 20TWD (0.45€ - 2.1 RM - o.62USD)
A menu in McD: 110TWD (2.5€ - 11.6RM - 3.4USD)
A pack of cigarettes: 65TWD (1.5€ - 6.9RM - 2USD)

Life in general: Life's fast-paced here, Taiwanese seem to work hard and don't complain about it. Everything's well organized, seems to be running smoothly. But that's the case in every modern country. Once I know the system from the inside, I will be able to tell more about it.

Mindset: I have no observations in this regard, haven't gotten to know many Taiwanese so far. Been introduced to few, but we didn't go beyond a small talk. I will need a lot of time to understand that better.

There's so much more to see and experience here in Taiwan. First impressions are mostly deceiving, but there is some truth in them. I try my best to be as objective as possible, but I have flaws and I know that some things will be rebutted soon. I'm surely gonna blog about where I was wrong, where I got a wrong impression of something.

What do you think about all the things I've shared with you here?