So the mintue you went thru customs you left your civility in the customs? Come that kind of attitude i have seen in like minded foreigners is so defeating. How is it that if you should share perhaps 2-3 mintues of your day saying ‘hello’ ‘how are you’ speading good will, or just offering a kind smile going to deter you from your studies. Its one thing to not want to actively involve yourself with other foreigners because you are focused on accomplishing a goal, but it’s whole other thing to snub them because you think your goal is who you are…
[quote]
Now that I’ve been here for longer I tend to understand a bit more, and I’m much more intersted in talking to fellow foreigners, really like hearing their reasons for being here. I’ve always found foreigners to be nicer than Taiwanese people, even if you do speak Chinese, some Taiwanese just can’t get past the foreigner thing.[/quote]
So, after being snubbed by the taiwanese, the foreign ‘thing’ looks good huh?
I found it strange with foreigners here. I always used to talk to people in the supermarket queue back home or greet a fellow walker in the park; or even smile if I happened to make eye contact in the street with a stranger.
And people used to do the same with me.
Many foreigners here spend all day gorping at their feet incase they accidently make the mistake of looking at, God forbid, another foreigner.
Many foreigners here spend all day gorping at their feet incase they accidently make the mistake of looking at, God forbid, another foreigner.[/quote]
It is bloody dangerous to walk around without looking down - ref. “the sidewalk thread”.
That said, I always try make eye contact and attempt a friendly nod if I see another foreigner the few times I lift my attention from the obstacle course.
I have been out of luck lately, and my friendly nods have been met with blank stares - well, maybe they all were businessmen visiting only for a few days, not having any desire to aknowledge any stranger they meet on the street.
[quote=“Edaren”]When I first got here I was all about snubbing the foreigners, I’m an exchange student here so I had in my mind that I had to experience the culture, and foreigners weren’t part of that. I’d smile if someone nodded at me, but then I always complained about it to my friend. "What the hell is the nod for? Does it mean: “Why hello there, I notice that you are not Asian, neither am I. That is nifty.”
Now that I’ve been here for longer I tend to understand a bit more, and I’m much more intersted in talking to fellow foreigners, really like hearing their reasons for being here. I’ve always found foreigners to be nicer than Taiwanese people, even if you do speak Chinese, some Taiwanese just can’t get past the foreigner thing.[/quote]Edaren -
The change you are experiencing has a name, its called…“Growing up.”
As I have said before in similar threads on this topic, if I didn’t know you back home, I wouldn’t acknowledge you so why would I do so in a city of 3 million people? Just because you’re not Taiwanese? Congrats, here’s a cookie.
I don’t walk down the street to make friends. I walk down the street to get from point A to point B.
On the same point, however, if someone on the street looks lost, be they Asian or foreigner, I try to help the best I can.
Just and only saying “Hello” if you intend to begin a conversation with me can draw suspicion, but accompanying it with something like “Hi. I see you’re reading _____. Is it any good?” will get a more friendly response. Have a reason to talk to me other than just because I’m not Taiwanese.
Of course, being black, I don’t often have white people just come up to me. As much as people like to think they’re unbiased, they still carry some baggage from home. I have also been guilty of such on occasion. When an ABC tried to get my attention (by saying “Hello” and following it with nothing else :fume: ), I just ignored them thinking it was just another local trying to squeeze a free English lesson from me and a chance to laugh at the laowai when all I was trying to do was read.
Rule of thumb, at least if you think you might bump into me one day and would like to get a friendly response, don’t try talking to me solely because I am not Taiwanese. Actually have something to say.
I usually go with the downward nod, stupid little grin, and averted gaze manuvere. That way I can acknowledge people without actually engaging them in conversation which, in fact, is horrifying to me. If you happen to witness such a display rest assured, it is a panic attack, not autism.
Nama, I appreciate the warm reception, and I think you’re slightly mistaken concerning some of my reasoning. In America, unless I knew the person, I wouldn’t say hello to someone on the streets, or give them a nod, or even a smile. Why would it be any different in a foreign country? If someone I didn’t know on the streets in America randomly said hello to me, I’d find it a bit weird. Perhaps there is some agreeance here that foreigners should be greeting other foreigners, but maybe you guys weren’t at the airport handing out flyers concerning that procedure when I arrived.
And I hardly view this as a matter of not having civility, if you say hello to me, I’ll still say hello, I’d just find it a bit odd. If I wasn’t “civil,” you would say hello, and I’d start grunting and flinging my excrement at you. Also, if I wanted to spread good will, I’d say hello and talk to more than just foreigners, it’s a bit biased if we’re only allowed to spread this good will stuff to other foreigners.
