Funny, but more and more I get Taiwanese sitting next to me on the bus, even if some do feel moved to remark, “Weiguoren” as they sit down. Might be my vibes/advancing age, been here 15 years.
Had a newbie from Ohio, working at Hess on the floor below, engage me in the elevator. A rarity.
Did you engage back? Or surface topics, like “hey, how about that humidity?”
Sure, I asked her if Hess was hell on earth or not.
I will sometimes randomly get this (like the bus is over crowded, people jammed in tight like sardines). There’s only one last seat right next to me, but no one will sit there. I like when that happens though because there’s more room for me. But Idk maybe I’m just ugly. Anyway somedays it’s like that and on other days, people are too desperate to sit down
Last week on mrt, a black guy got on carrying a basketball, space opposite 3 seater end of carriage 2 taken, he plonks himself down on unoccupied seat, next stop one passenger gets off, leaving one Taiwanese girl sat next to him, she immediately slid across to vacant seat so not next to him.
He did not look happy especially as a lot got on and seat next to him was only one left vacant.
Yeah this exactly what happens to me sometimes. But other times no one seems to care so I start to wonder if I’m just imagining things. I think it depends which bus I’m on in which area and at what time.
I thought this was common practice for young girls, my niece would do this in the UK if she was sat next to a stranger.
I was out and about on the streets of Taipei yesterday evening and I did notice a higher number of new wàiguó rén faces than usual.
You have to be cautious in the U.K., saying that you don’t want to offend one of the usual nutters travelling on underground.
Get a knife in your back.
I’m quite slim, to the point where it takes some getting used to for some people.
Anyway last time I was on the underground in London, I had an empty seat next to me. A group of ladies came on the carriage, one of them quite big, anyway she sat down on the seat next to me, but then immediately got up and waddled back to her friends where she said loudly “don’t wanna sit there, he’s too skinny”
I thought it was pretty funny. Very rude, though.
Bunch of thin-shaming bigots… 
I don’t even see foreign English teachers anymore, I feel like they are an endangered species.
In fact I barely see any Westerners at all on my frequent travels.
I’ve been seeing a lot westerners about past 2 weeks, Sunday a two whole western families, mum, dad 3 young kids at Da’an park, mum, dad, grandparents and 3 children at Wulai.
Wulai family in Taiwan registered SUV so I’m guessing live here grandparents made a visit.
I will be there in a couple weeks, looking acutely Western and most likely feeling endangered if traffic hasn’t improved in the past 20+ years. Looking forward to being an old newbie for a while. Although I guess 2 weeks just makes me a tourist.
I see so many. It depends where you are. I think there are a load of Latin American students at a not-so-great university near where I live, but I see more generally here in New Taipei than I did in Wenshan, maybe because the rents are cheaper out here/more students, so more schools.
There’s been a return of foreigners, groups of students, even tourists. I’ve overhead Japanese and Korean on the MRT.
Oh and the “no hands ma” furriner riding a YouBike down Roosevelt is back.
There is a bunch down South, another bunch in Yilan, some in MTC, fewer spread all over Taipei and New Taipei.
This happens every year, this time of year. Bar the past three.
I used to live in Xindian could count the ‘foreigners’ on your hand. Doubt it is any different now. Was in Taichung and Hsinchu recently all I saw were a few solitary middle aged folks, crickets there aswell. Back in the day I would remember running into groups of English teachers anywhere in Taiwan, almost never happens now. MORE STUDENTS these days, yes of course. But I still didn’t see any obvious ones.
Huh? Loads of “foreigners” in Xindian. You should try Sanchong.