Oh wait… thats not news.
But we love TAipei , Warts and all 
“he expected a modern capital with wide boulevards and glitzy skyscrapers.”
Well there’s the problem right there… he didn’t do his homework.
Ren Ai Rd and Taipei 101?
[quote=“Springfield”]“he expected a modern capital with wide boulevards and glitzy skyscrapers.”
Well there’s the problem right there… he didn’t do his homework.[/quote]
Your are right! shame on him for not having valid information on a subject perposely blacked out from the mass media for the last 50 or so years. If the CCTV is one thing it is a plethora of information on the situation in Taiwan. 
Just kidding man think about it most Chinese have no access to real information regarding the outside world or Taiwan esp , the filters are pretty harsh in Chinese media.
Wow, he must keep himself indoors quite a bit. He obviously hasn’t visited 90% of Taiwan.
Yes, indeed. Going by that they seriously have their work cut out re-educating those mainlanders.
Indeed! 
Is this article trolling for my kind of response, or is it a parody?
Basically that article is stating exactly what I talked about is this thread:
forumosa.com/taiwan/viewtopi … &&start=40
The internationally-educated mainlander is disappointed with the infrastructure. Not suprised that the Straits Times would chose to run with the negative story. Again, when I worked there, management figures loved to talk about how China was modelling themselves after Singapore. I guess when you’re a dot on the map (albeit one with great infrastructure and policies towards professional foreigners), you have to pump yourself up at the expense of others.
What do they expect, the KMT (government) never upgraded the infrastructure, why would they when the other side of the straight is planning to bomb you back to the stone age … they should be happy that they can set foot in Taipei at all … :eh:
They never updated it since Chang Ching-Guo. The current airports were all built under Chang Ching-Guo, which is why a lot of Taiwanese seem to venerate this guy (after from the white terror part), because under him things actually got done!
Meanwhile since Chen Shui-Bian couldn’t fly anywhere he thought it wasn’t important to upgrade th airports I guess.
No, they are talking about Songshan airport which Chen rightly did not want to be used for direct flights (and which was dying anyway with the advent of the HSR), given the security issues. Remember 911 anyone?
Using Songshan was Ma’s boneheaded idea.
There’s nothing new to Taipei being found wanting. The only reason Chen started to clean it up in the 90s was it was becoming internationally embrassing. Der Speigel wrote a scathing article describign the Taiwanese people as pigs and living in a pigsty. That did a lot to motivate people.
I’ve heard similar stories around the island. Lukang started to restore its temples after a Japanese team of journalists told them they couldn’t believe the conditions the Taiwanese let their gods live in.
Anyway, I welcome the criticisms. Our new mayor seems particularly sensitive to Taipei’s image so it’s a good time to be making them.
[quote=“Chewycorns”]Basically that article is stating exactly what I talked about is this thread:
forumosa.com/taiwan/viewtopi … &&start=40
The internationally-educated mainlander is disappointed with the infrastructure. Not suprised that the Straits Times would chose to run with the negative story. Again, when I worked there, management figures loved to talk about how China was modelling themselves after Singapore. I guess when you’re a dot on the map (albeit one with great infrastructure and policies towards professional foreigners), you have to pump yourself up at the expense of others.
[quote=“Straits Times”]
When Xiamen businessman Ying Jiming set foot in Taipei last Friday (4 July), he expected a modern capital with wide boulevards and glitzy skyscrapers.
But right off the plane, he found himself walking along a non-airconditioned pathway to the spartan arrival hall of the downtown Songshan Airport.
The city’s mishmash of tatty shophouses and high-rise buildings also left him less than impressed, he told The Straits Times two days into his Taiwan tour.
“I thought Taipei should be comparable to, if not more developed than, Beijing and Shanghai,” said the 44-year-old, who sported a pair of Gucci shades.
The disappointment expressed by Ying, one of 760 mainlanders on the historic inaugural cross-strait tour in Taiwan, might have been shared by a few of his fellow tourists.
Already, some mainland Internet forums have commented on how rundown (popo lanlan) Taipei is.
[/quote][/quote]
I’ve thought about that and I’m not sure you’re right. Unless I missed it, there is no mention that these guests are internationally educated as opposed to having international travel experience. Given the way they smoke and act I doubt many of them have spent a great deal of time living in a foreign country.
In fact, their criticisms sound naive. “Oh, look this country’s capital is not as great as ours.” People with a lot of travel experience don’t usually make those kinds of comments, knowing travel is not a zero sum game.
Beijing and Shanghai are glitzier, have wider boulevards, but they suffer from far worse air pollution, water pollution, garbage collection problems, lack of sewage lines, public parks, to say nothing of the beggars, homeless, child workers, rip off artists, etc. Okay, we don’t have the fanciest city, but we are still a generation more advanced in terms of overall living quality. I’ll take rows of old shops over having itinerant workers sleeping in public squares anyday.
Well, Shanghai might look nicer when it comes to the new buildings in the city centre, but I hated it when I was there. There were people almost attacking you wanting to sell cheap copies of brand name stuff and beggars that would poke and prod you until you gave them something and then they’d be back 5 minutes later. Not a place I’d like to live in.
I’ve never had that experience in Taiwan and I feel a lot safer here in general for some strange reason. Sure, parts of Taipei and other cities here are far from pretty, clean or modern, but it takes time to change. Considering that if it hadn’t been for all the fires, I’m sure London would be a different place today. Even Stockhol had a crazy city architect who tore down all the old wood buildings in the 50’s and 60’s and cleaned up the city, but also managed to ruin a lot of the old building by making them “practical”.
Taiwan needs to get rid of the stuff that’s falling apart, and there’s enough of those building around. There might also be a need for a bit better building guide lines etc, but it seems like newer buildings here are actually quite nice. Hopefully they’ll also try to preserve the buildings worth preserving, as there are some faboulus old houses here, but they’re falling into decay which is really a shame.
Please remember the Mainland tourists were taken to such scenic locations as Panchiao and Chungli…
haha, places that taipei-ians think we need a passport to go to?? hahahaah Just kidding but heck? who wants to go there anyway??
Panchiao and chongli??? PAAAH
Be it ever so humble, there’s no place like home.
No, they are talking about Songshan airport which Chen rightly did not want to be used for direct flights (and which was dying anyway with the advent of the HSR), given the security issues. Remember 911 anyone?
Using Songshan was Ma’s boneheaded idea.
There’s nothing new to Taipei being found wanting. The only reason Chen started to clean it up in the 90s was it was becoming internationally embrassing. Der Speigel wrote a scathing article describign the Taiwanese people as pigs and living in a pigsty. That did a lot to motivate people.
I’ve heard similar stories around the island. Lukang started to restore its temples after a Japanese team of journalists told them they couldn’t believe the conditions the Taiwanese let their gods live in.
Anyway, I welcome the criticisms. Our new mayor seems particularly sensitive to Taipei’s image so it’s a good time to be making them.[/quote]
I KNOW they are talking about SongShan Airport and I also know how crap that airport is having taken flights there before.
But I am also talking about CKS(Taoyuan) Airport and TaiDung Airport and Kaoshiung Airport and all the other crap airports in Taiwan.
CKS Airport WAS completed under Chang-Ching Guo as I saw it on ‘reeling back the years’ Taiwan TV special, at the time it was supposed to be very modern and international like… What struck me was that it was the exact same as the present one (Terminal 1 I think), except that now it’s 30 years older and grimy as hell and really looks like the provincial barn that it is.
If the Chinese won’t do Taiwan should take it in hands to bomb their own airports and get building something that properly reflects the country in the 21st century. I’ve lived here nigh on 8 years and the Taoyuan airport is a f$%king embarrasment, the most they’ve done is put up some new signs every now and then.
Still one good thing about it, it is the only international airport I can clear customs and security in about 10 mins!! And before you get on your hobbyhorse I like Taiwan, the only reason I can figure the airports are in the state they are is because the govts and ministers are effectively confined to Taiwan everytime they get elected.
I refuse to give up my hobby-horse, thank you very much. 
Terminal 1 is an embarassment but II is rather spiffy.
Taitung Airport? That’s a fantastic little regional airbase. Has a great tropical feel.
A living-in-the-west Cantonese friend came to Taiwan with his mother and sister. Just a 5 day stay. His mother was so disappointed with the first impression she got of Taiwan and Taipei, she wanted to go on to Hong Kong right away. She expected Taipei was just another Hong Kong island kinda city…
[quote=“Muzha Man”]I refuse to give up my hobby-horse, thank you very much.
Terminal 1 is an embarassment but II is rather spiffy.
Taidong Airport? That’s a fantastic little regional airbase. Has a great tropical feel.[/quote]
Terminal II is spiffy in comparison to the doghouse that is Terminal I, that’s about it.
You are right about Taidong Airport, it is very tropical feeling, nice place. Feels a bit like Hawaii in Taiwan (pity same can’t be said about Taidong City, but I digress). I took a plane from Green Island to it and what a great little flight that was.
MuchaMan, the more Taiwanese see how these things look in foreigners eyes the faster they will fix them up to show the best face of Taiwan. Nobody goes to opera night without their best suit. The same should be said of an airport. I remember very well the shock of driving into Taoyuan city from Taoyuan airport the first day I landed here… ouch, what a bad first impression. If the guberment can’t figure out that the airport is a pile of stinking d$%gy poo, then what hope is their for this nation. I’m not going to be waiting another 8 years to find out.
[quote=“headhonchoII”][quote=“Muzha Man”]I refuse to give up my hobby-horse, thank you very much.
Terminal 1 is an embarassment but II is rather spiffy.
Taidong Airport? That’s a fantastic little regional airbase. Has a great tropical feel.[/quote]
Terminal II is spiffy in comparison to the doghouse that is Terminal I, that’s about it.
You are right about Taidong Airport, it is very tropical feeling, nice place. Feels a bit like Hawaii in Taiwan (pity same can’t be said about Taidong City, but I digress). I took a plane from Green Island to it and what a great little flight that was.
MuchaMan, the more Taiwanese see how these things look in foreigners eyes the faster they will fix them up to show the best face of Taiwan. Nobody goes to opera night without their best suit. The same should be said of an airport. I remember very well the shock of driving into Taoyuan city from Taoyuan airport the first day I landed here… ouch, what a bad first impression. If the guberment can’t figure out that the airport is a pile of stinking d$%gy poo, then what hope is their for this nation. I’m not going to be waiting another 8 years to find out.[/quote]
I agree with you which is why I have said I welcome the criticism from Chinese tourists because it may just embarass the gov into pushing for changes. Not starting to think about changes as these things have been in the works for years. But pushing to actually get them done.
But one reason I do get on my hobby horse is that a quick google search in many cases would show people that the things they wish to be done, are being done, or are in the works. There is a fantastic design for a new airport. Why exactly it hasn’t been implemented I am not sure. I used to know but forget. Probably something to do with the KMT holding back budgets.
As for embrassing the gov, go for it. Do you know one of the big reasons Chen started cleaning up Taipei in the 90? A really embarassing article in Der Spiegel that said the Taiwanese were pigs living in a pigsty.
Disagree about terminal II. The sections I have seen are as modern as most airports out there. But yeah, overall, the airport is a joke.
Well, Terminal 1 sucks, but there’s nothing wrong with Terminal 2. Try any of the old terminals in Heathrow and you’ll know what a really shitty airport looks like, even SongShan is nicer than some of them. I can’t walk straight in parts of the Heathrow terminals and I’m not that tall… They’re grubby, dirty, old and just plain nasty, not to mention overcrowded. Of all the airports I’ve been to I think the only place worse is Manilla and that speaks volume for how good Heathrow is…
But yeah, they could do with cleaning up a bit here, get rid of those buildings that are collapsing on themselves etc. Maybe someone should teach the Taiwanese that a lick of paint can do wonders 
Even new places here look all too similar to eachother, don’t the architects here have any kind of training? Or is just that it’s good enough if you can rip off some classic European design and incorporate it into a tall fugly building? I don’t get it…