one of the characters that i admired about foreigners is self-confidence. i’ve seen many heavy girls who were courage to show theirsleves with hot clothings. and many foreigners i’ve seen were good at using body language to show what they wanna express and done things in their ways without fear of other ppl’s thoughts. they just be therselve without fear. i wonder why they are afraid of telling ppl about their ages? i thought foreigners have lots of self-confidences and accept the ways they are. can’t they accept theirselves ages? if i were 60 years old, i would tell ppl my true age even i think it’s really old. for i accepting this truth. and i know no matter i tell ppl or not, they can know this from my face!! :loco: :loco:
You must also understand that its rude for foreigners to ask people’s age … so you shouldn’t have asked them in the first place.
You also use the term “foreigners” very broadly. If you’re really suggesting that all people who are not from Taiwan keep their age a secret, then you possibly need to re-think your opinion on this issue.
teggs
We could just as easily ask, “Why is it not acceptable to say things like ‘Be careful on that ladder or you’ll break your neck’ in Taiwan.” It’s completely acceptable in the West. Why would anyone have a problem with something so simple?
(The answer, obviously, is cultures are different.)
Terry, what would the problem be with your example?Taiwanese people are constantly telling how to run my life, especially where my kids are concerned.
I understand there was a time, even in the west, when people who had attained a certain age were accorded a bit of respect, for having survived if nothing else. As I approach middle middle age I’m keen to see a return to those attitudes. To that end I’ve been interupting the usual yuck yuck over my age with a bit of straight talk. All things being equal I’ve been kicking around longer and will get a bit of respect for that thanks very much. I’m forty six.
In that example you’re basically inviting them to die - taunting death.
Brian
I have no problem with people asking my age, but that is because they all expect me to say 30. I love watching their jaw hit the floor when I tell them I’m 43.
Yes I like it too when the locals are always telling me that you have to respect your elders.
Many 40 year olds always ragging on me about that. It’s so good that when they finally ask my age and I tell em I’m 44 that they can now listen to my opnion, shut up and fuck off.
I don’t need anybody telling me how to run my life :raspberry: . Cept’ maybe the missus 
[quote=“Satellite TV”]
Many 40 year olds always ragging on me about that. It’s so good that when they finally ask my age and I tell em I’m 44 that they can now listen to my opnion, shut up and fuck off.[/quote]Oh yeah. :uhhuh: Same happens to me all the time.
I remember a hilarious story of a Taiwanese student in Canada. She went to someone’s house and started asking questions about all the family photos, “who’s that?”, “is that your daughter?” etc., on and on. All the answers were like “she died of cancer”, “we’re separated”, “we haven’t spoken in 20 years” etc etc. She learned her lesson. One down, 23 million to go…
Simply put, it’s a cultural thing.
Bollocks… 
they consider it rude amongst their own kind… they just think that social rules don’t apply to foreigners… :loco: :loco:
Bollocks… they consider it rude amongst their own kind… they just think that social rules don’t apply to foreigners… :loco: :loco:[/quote]
I wasn’t commenting on who does this or doesn’t do that, but in fact replying to the topic question, refering to why it is a ‘secret’ amongst certain foreigners to reveal their age. In the West, it is inconsidered impolite to ask. The same goes for inquiring about one’s salary.
[quote=“Mianbao”]Simply put, it’s a cultural thing.[/quote]Gee, you got any more great insights like this one?
What kind of nonsense is going on in here? In my office, none of the Taiwanese girls, regardless of how well-preserved they may be, will tell their age.
I, a furriner, however, have no problem telling my age. I’m 42.
I’ll be 29 this month. Again.
Quite often mixed gatherings will have age brought up as an ice breaker.
I don’t think ages are ‘secret’ for foreigners, and I don’t mind telling people my age in America. However, sometimes when taiwanese acquaintances find out we’re younger than they expect, they mock extreme surprise, pretend to fall over in shock, or go on and on in Chinese about how ‘old’ we look. Because I don’t appreciate this reaction I often won’t answer questions about age.
I am 30
One day my husband was chatting with some friends in Taiwanese, when suddenly the conversation must have come to someone’s 30th birthday to approach soon. To comfort the one, he told him not to worry about it (‘come on, that’s nothing!’) and to have a look at his wife, who was 35 already (whereas he was 28 by that time)…
It was funny to see how embarrassed everyone was about it, even though they knew I didn’t understand any of their words. They felt sorry for me because of my age and most of all because of my ‘rude’ husband.
Humor, it might help to understand that in some Western cultures, youth is prized far more than age and wisdom. If it weren’t so, the plastic surgery industry would go bankrupt.
People in the cultures I’m familiar with (including Taiwan) make all sorts of judgments based on age (e.g. “I’m not going to hire anyone over 40, because that person won’t have the energy of a 30 year old”).
You see a great deal of age discrimination in Taiwan, particularly in how hiring decisions are made, so I’m guessing that plenty of Taiwanese people are hesitant to mention their ages.