I guess my thing would be:
1- asking questions but it making no difference in their minds.
2-being followed around the store,
3-traffic sometimes
4-greasy food
5-their need to practice english even though i can speak chinese
and many many many more
A good and interesting job, which makes it worthwhile to spend the rest of your days in Taiwan.
A wife and kids.
A good understanding of the Chinese language, which allows you to communicate efficiently with your environment.
A good salary, because money is exactly that what makes the world go round.
At least 5 smiles a day, because humor and laughter are the best medicine for a long life.
A few kisses from your loved ones, making sure that you will live at least 5 years longer than other people.
All those, small immaterial things, which make Taiwan sound like heaven on Earth.
Don’t misunderstand me. Sometimes, I’m really pissed off at Taiwan, but then I just think heck, tomorrow, there will be another day. Put a bright smile on your face and other people will smile back at you. A smile can do miracles. Don’t you think so?
I don’t expect it in Mos Burger but if I’m down the Ministry of Foreign Affairs I f…ing well do. Last time I was in there the silly cow dealing with me understood about 20% of what I was saying, and these people are meant to be the elite of Taiwanese society?!
And it’s always the parents wearing the helmets. “You Westerners just don’t care about your family”.
If security follows you, you follow security; works every time.
A couple people have mentioned poor hygeine in their lists. Care to elaborate on this? I am well aware of the issues around sanitation (meaning the gross lack of), but I’m not getting the hygeine thing.
1.Not using soap when washing hands after going to the bathroom.
2.Kids with rotted stubs instead of teeth because they don’t brush.
3.Deodorant or lack thereof.
[quote=“misscpu”]To begin, I would like to give you some background knowledge about Culture as a big C and culture as a small c. (Many of you might have known this, though, so please see this as additional information.)
[quote=“Bassman”][quote=“OutofChaos”]1. Traffic laws that give the right of way to the biggest and most powerful
2. Legal system that punishes the ‘rich’ non-Taiwanese regardless
3. Legal system that only holds non-Taiwanese accountable to contracts
4. Poor quality goods of limited variety sold at exorbitant prices
5. Food and health regulations that ought to be but aren’t
6. Food and health regulations that are, but not enforced
7. English translations of Chinese documents that lag by several versions
8. English translations of Chinese documents that are blatantly wrong 9. Non-Taiwanese who expect to be treated ‘just like’ Taiwanese
10. The emphasis on independence with no acceptance of responsibility, accountability, or culpability
OOC[/quote]
I’d love to know what no. 9 is supposed to mean.[/quote]
Well Bassman, don’t let it be said I passed on the chance to spread a little LOVE around, especially when it’s so easy.
Non-Taiwanese who expect to be treated ‘just like’ Taiwanese
My “concerns” for living in Taiwan right now are as follows:
How on earth can I get a date? (also number one reason for why I want to leave)
Will this store have shoes and clothes my size or will I have to shell out a few thousand dollars just to get a scarf that fits around my neck?
How am I supposed to learn the language when every chance I get to speak it, I either have someone trying to respond in broken English because they don’t think I can speak it or get insincere flattery about how great my Chinese is when we all know I speak like a 3-year-old (my main source for daily input)?
Am I going to take the plunge to leave before I get into “aw, I’m already halfway to a APRC” mode?
Overt, uninhibited and easily seen criminal gangs and organized crime. (You should have seen this gangster funeral I saw last week)
Cultural isolation
People whose only motivation for learning something is a test and not really about the skill involved. You can see this in English learning. Most people’s sole motivation ispassing a standardized test, not learning the language. How does this impact me? Well the same applies to getting a driver’s license here. I had ten years accident free driving in my country, but I still have to practice to pass the stupid, devoid of real world driving conditions, parking lot obstacle course driving test they have here before can get a Taiwanese license…because Taiwanese can drive so much better than anyone else in the world right?
Guess I’ve only got three today. Must like it here, huh?
Regarding the ‘insincere’ flattery, cut them some slack. Sure, it can be ingratiating to hear ‘Wow, you speak Chinese so well!’ after every half-assed 你好. But personally I prefer that to being pointed at and told “哈哈! Me no English-ee!” as they run away screaming. Giving someone a bit of face is their way to acknowledge that you’re a human being on their level. If anything, I think foreigners generally don’t do nearly enough to return the favor by giving others face.
I wrote this on another thread, but if you want to practice your Chinese, get the hell out of Taibei or any other large city. I live nearly an hour out from Taizhong city. I’m pretty tight with a couple of the night market vendors out here. The first time I dropped by their stalls, they’d be a little surprised at first that I could speak Chinese, but after the initial pleasantries, we could shoot the shit like normal people do. It’s great. The only disadvantage is that they seem to be a bit too knowledgeable of my personal life (‘Gee whiz, I haven’t seen that girl you’re with in a while. What’s the deal?’)
Contrast that with my experiences in Taizhong city, where people tend to flip out when I approach them. When I used go to a restaurant with my local girlfriend, the staff would never acknowledge my exsistence. The waitresses would avoid eye contact with me, never take my order, and I’d usually have to make a big fuss for them to even give me a menu. I remember trying to see a movie a couple months ago at Tiger City and the girl behind the counter looked like her head was about to explode when I said, ‘兩張.’ She looked at my companion desperately for help. Please! Help me! My English-ee is very poor!
Oh, you mean like Melbourne (Australia), where I came from.
Like Queensland (Australia)
Probably like Sydney (Australia).
I’m actually having difficulty believing that any problems Taiwan has are unique, or even as bad as the same problems in some other countries I’ve been in.
Could you continue your discussion on gansters on the gangster thread, and keep this one for concerns ? I would move the posts myself, but I don’t have all my buttons
[quote=“Big Fluffy Matthew”]Could you continue your discussion on gansters on the gangster thread, and keep this one for concerns ? I would move the posts myself, but I don’t have all my buttons
Love and kisses,
your Big Fluffy Moderator[/quote]
So, what you mean is if I type stuff here you have no control and can not move it. So, to continue off thread is there really an ignore button and how does it work when it is available