Are Taiwanese friendly?

I don’t tend to make a scene, but my mate said a few things quite loudly.

2 Likes

I have found people are friendly if you look presentable and are friendly everywhere in the world. Except Beijing. They are assholes there.

4 Likes

Oh god couldn’t agree more. Seriously fuck Beijing. Everyone has constant RBF.

1 Like

I refuse to ever visit Beijing, as much as I want to try that famous Peking Duck place and see the Forbidden City. I’ve just heard too much about the cold only-looking-out-for-myself attitudes of the people there, not to mention the cutting in line and lack of respect for personal space, the scammers, the pollution, general dirtiness, willful ignorance, etc.

1 Like

I’ve found that the more you travel south on the island, the friendlier people get. Kenting is the exception to this rule.

1 Like

People are shockingly rude there. It’s not like that in other parts of China I’ve been to so idk what’s up with Beijing.

1 Like

I lived in Beijing for three months. Didn’t even know the city was surrounded by mountains until the last month because the pollution was so bad. The cold biting wind in winter was unbearable. Forbidden city was a disappointment. Ever seen the Mona Lisa? Same experience. 5,000 Chinese people blocking every attraction but you can see everything above their heads.

I would say I enjoyed 頤和園 Summer Palace though because it’s a big park.

If I had to pick a Chinese city it would be Chengdu or Nanjing. People were awesome, some greenery and cool attractions, not overcrowded.

2 Likes

I mean, I wouldn’t give the people of Shanghai an award for friendliness either, but that’s the only Chinese city (not including HK or Macau) I’ve been to. I’ve heard horror stories about Beijing though, including from my own brother who made a pit-stop there on the way to my wedding… he said he wouldn’t visit again if someone paid him.

The unfriendliest people I’ve ever encountered in my travels though are in Israel, specifically in Jerusalem, specifically the Hasidim (I know that sounds a bit anti-semitic, but I’m Jewish and trust me they’re assholes).

1 Like

Easy there.

Whoa… Not this Canadian. Trust me, I’m very friendly.

1 Like

I had a great experience. I think people there are just more direct.
Duck was amazing (although great in taipei too) other food was great too. forbidden city was a tourist blitz sure but the buildings of the city are undeniably impressive. Summer palace was super cool and i had a bunch of chinese asking me for photos, which never gets old.

You definitely need to lower your expectations when travelling to china though, cha bu duo is a way of life and you will 100% encounter some bullshit.

Chengdu was great for me as well. Also the food was fantastic. Beijing food is garbage.

1 Like

It depends on a lot of factors. Taipei people are less friendly than outside of Taipei but then again, I wouldn’t call Taiwanese “friendly”. They have good manners and would not treat you bad for no reason and be willing to help as much as they can. Is it called being friendly? I don’t think so since its basic human etiquette. However, they are indeed more nicer to foreigners compared to other Taiwanese since foreigners are a thing of curiosity for them and Taiwanese are very self conscious so they don’t wanna risk spoiling their image in front of a foreigner by not being friendly. Sometimes, opinion of a random foreigner towards their country means much more to them than you would think. I mean look at some news.

2020 i hate this mask shit,
I see eyes and hard to judge friendly or not

People with masks not Easy to judge friendly or not
Lean towards not friendly

People without mask i automatically like more
Hense more friendly
And No mask and no umbrella bonus…
I

1 Like

I think it’s because we exist outside of their social hierarchy. We are neither below them or above them… we are just other so they’re not quite sure how to interact with us (beyond awkward questions about English).

4 Likes

You should move to the US then. A lot of people are not wearing masks and there’s tooooons of COVID. A great time had by all.

3 Likes

I should go to US to see if tw people are friendly? No thanks im happy here

2 Likes

How long have you been in Taiwan? I saw a Youtube video where this Korean guy was here on a postdoc. After a while he started thinking that the friendliness/ethics here was normal. Then he went back to Korea…

Depends on what they want from you, in my experience.

1 Like

I been here for two years. And yes ethics should be normal so yes there exists some countries where ethics aren’t been followed so well.

I was in a restaurant buffet at the Hyatt and a waitress pushed a mask in my hands And said wear this as I queued up. The 3 Asians in front and 3 behind me were also unmasked. I asked about them and she refused to ask them to wear a mask. Her manager also refused.

2 Likes