10. No more beautiful landscapes.
I grew up in Maine, so I'm used to natural beauty. But Taiwan's landscapes are like nothing else I've
ever seen. I'd never been to the tropics, and I've spent very little time in the mountains, which make
up at least a third
of Taiwan. I actually never thought I was the landscape type, but I could get used to living here.
And besides public recycling, recycling is also made very easy at home, at least where I live. Using the example of the public recycling bins, you sort your garbage into three bags--trash, recycling, and compost. That's right, they collect compost too. I was told that this was used in three ways--pig food, nutrient-rich soil, and for toilets. I have no idea what the last one means, but I hope it's something good. Why wouldn't it be? No one wastes food here--no one. It's going to be hard to make the transition back the most wasteful country in the world. (Speculation, but who's gonna disagree?) In Taiwanese convenience stores and supermarkets, you pay a few cents for each plastic bag. The first time someone tries to double-bag my groceries, I think I'm going to scream.
8. No more taking my safety for granted.
Guns are illegal in Taiwan. For a moment, imagine a world without guns. Doesn't that sound nice? I
never once felt unsafe on the streets of Taipei, day or night, and not just because of the gun thing.
I'm not worried about physical danger mainly because the people here give off the impression that they
would never allow it. I don't see people with criminalistic attitudes, not even that much on
TV. Like in other countries out here, violence is something to gawk at in American movies. Okay, I'm
exaggerating...of course Taiwanese movies have it too. It's hard to put my finger on what exactly makes
the atmosphere different in the States. People have written books and made movies on this topic, so I
won't bother trying to be clever here, just say that I haven't worried about drive-bys or terrorist
attacks.
Counterpoint: On the other side of the coin, lawsuits don't seem to be as popular here, and when people and companies aren't as afraid of lawsuits, they can get away with so much more. First of all, I love the night markets and all, but everyone sees the flies walking on the meat and the pathetic stray dogs wandering around. The food ingredients are often in crates on the ground, and it doesn't take much imagination to guess how hygenic the food preparation is. But you know what? Not everyone is as paranoid about germs as Americans, and people are often willing to put up with a little grime to get a bargain. Within reason, of course.
A month or so ago, while I was shopping a sale rack in the alley at my favorite clothing store, I got hit on the head with a ladder. Apparently there was construction going on across the alley, and two guys dropped their very tall aluminum ladder directly onto my head, knocking me into the clothing rack. I'm only guessing, because I had my back turned, so I had no earthly clue what had pushed me into the rack and onto the ground. My first split-second guess was that a building had fallen over, or possibly a bomb went off (forgetting I'm in Taiwan, of course). Anyway, a construction man apologized and asked if I was okay, but no one seemed particularly worried. Suing didn't even cross my mind, even though I was indignant about the whole event, and maybe it didn't cross theirs, either. Again, I'm just giving my own impressions, and my impression is that things are more carefree here. But as you can see, a carefree society has its advantages as well as its drawbacks. (Getting hit on the head with a ladder: not fun.)
7. Relief from bad music.
It's sometimes charming to listen to Chinese oldies, but besides that, I often find myself wishing for
the first time that I had an iPod. The music they pump into stores and buses is oftentimes horrible. Not
always--I bought a CD here because of a couple songs I heard in a shop. But in case you don't know this,
let me enlighten you--Chinese pop music is 100% love songs. Except that one song about orcs, but that's
way less than one percent. And now that I understand a little more Chinese, I can tell just how
cheesy this music is. I actually still like quite a few songs just because they have catchy tunes, but
I have been known to give up learning the lyrics to a song because they were so...not me. I don't think
I could sing a song with such cheesy lyrics while keeping a straight face (and my self-respect).
Obviously, Chinese-language pop music is not all you hear here. Naturally, they import English-language music too...but for some reason, they're stuck in the '80s. Besides the recent hip-hop you'll hear coming from trendy boutiques, everything is '80s--the cheesier the better. Last time I went to a restaurant playing American music, I recognized at least five songs from my closed captioning days--and I captioned music videos from between 1984 and 1991. These were not good memories, either. Needless to say, I am excited about the relative improvement of the music I am about to be surrounded by.
6. Conspicuous lack of dogs...but return of cats.
Besides a few skinny, dirty dogs that hang out at night markets, the dogs in Taiwan are cute and
plentiful. If I wanted a dog before I came to Taiwan, I want one even more now. But it will be nice
to see my favorite cats again. I only saw a few in Taiwan, and they were all skinny and dirty and hanging out
around night markets.
5. Conspicuous lack of motor scooters.
Motorcycles and especially motor scooters are just so common here. What will it be like to see one
motorcycle every couple weeks?
5/6 Combo: Dogs on motor scooters. More common than cats. This is something I will truly miss--I wish I'd taken pictures.
4. Three words: Tax and tip.
Tax and tip don't exist in Taiwan. Like much of the world, tipping is already included in your bill.
Naturally, this destroys the idea that a waiter gets paid more for better service, but everyone knows
tips are mostly random anyway. As for tax (also included in product or service charges in Taiwan),
I never really noticed that extra couple bucks my whole life, but Willy insists it will haunt me now
that I've been spoiled for six months. And one more detail--even with that extra tax and tip, food and
clothing are still much cheaper in Taiwan. My wallet might be a little tighter than usual for the
next few weeks. Too bad it's December....
3. Significantly less aggressive salespeople.
When you walk into a store in Taipei, people will start talking to you. If I recall correctly, American
salespeople tend to let you do your own thing, and if you want help you will probably have to ask. This
is hard to imagine after what I've experienced over the last six months. In Taiwan, it's like dealing
with a walking infomercial every time you stop on the street to check out someone's wares. Except this
infomercial has the advantage of even more personal persuasion tactics, and I sometimes find it hard to
walk out of a store without making a purchase. Not that I've ever been guilted into buying
anything, but still--expenses aside, I'll be looking forward to the more carefree shopping that
awaits me in the States. Except Radio Shack.
2. Completely different fashions.
We've got a new one here in Taiwan this winter--boots with shorts. This is something I can do without.
I caved and bought a pretty small jacket (comes down much higher above the under-layer than I used to
allow), but there is no way I will ever be caught dressed in shorts and boots. Even the faux
version--shorts and knee-highs with matching shoes. It just looks ridiculous. Most of the time, I can blame
strange fashion trends on the weather--Taiwan's winter is not nearly as cold as I'm used to, but much
more humid, so it's natural that the fabrics and styles would differ from what we wear out west. I
guess the shorts and boots phenomenon fits this pattern, as well as the Taiwanese penchant for what I call "fake
doubles"--shirts with fake collars, straps, and/or sleeve extensions that create the illusion of wearing two
different shirts. (Even if it does look cool, who wants to wear two layers in the summer in Taiwan?)
On the other hand, I've seen some fashion accessories in Taiwan that I never even imagined before. Motorcyclists usually wear masks to protect from the pollution (I've heard your mouth turns black if you don't), and these tend to be pretty creative, especially for the ladies. (I bought myself one just in case I ever decide to get a motor scooter.) Motorcyclists and others also sometimes wear arm covers, bulky circles of fabric with elastic bands, to protect your arms from tanning if you're wearing short sleeves while riding your motor scooter or working outside. In the same vein, parasols have made a comeback here in Taiwan (did they ever go out of style?), and there are many shops dedicated to cute and creative umbrellas here. This is caused by (and continues to make possible) an excess of women and girls who, absolutely fearing the sun, carry umbrellas all through the summer, even making an effort to open them when walking between awnings. One girl I met asked me why Americans don't like to use umbrellas, even when it's raining. My response was that Americans do indeed like to use umbrellas when it's actually raining, but unless we're at the beach, that's the only time we use them, crazy. (I hope they're taking vitamin D supplements.)
Another thing I'll really miss about the clothing here is the sizing. In the U.S., I'm usually a small or extra-small, with a pants size of about 1. In Taiwan, it's not that common to find size tags, because everything is about the same size--mine. When I'm checking out a clothing rack on a streetcorner, I don't have to worry about everything being too big, like I do in the States. I don't have to shop in the kids' section--in fact, I can't possibly shop in the kids' section, because they have kids' sizes there, and I'm not a kid. Sounds so reasonable, doesn't it? I mean, I appreciate the wide range of sizes available in the States, and the fact that people at either extreme can opt to go to a specialized store, or not. But I see now that there are also advantages to a population with one characteristic pretty much across the board. That being said, forget about bra shopping in Taiwan. Talk about kids' sizes....
1. Ah...the fruit.
The only reason Willy likes traveling is the food, and since Taiwanese life is so near to his heart,
he wanted me to experience the food like he did. However, since I don't eat meat, that puts a lot of
dishes off-limits. Ah, but not the fruit. Bananas, grapefruits, grapes, melons...they all taste just
right, and they're all available on streetcorners in juice form for a buck or two.
I liked fruit before, but I was pretty set in my ways about it--always had a love-hate relationship
with starfruit--and I had trouble learning to like some of the tropical fruits I encountered in Taiwan.
But now that I know I won't be able to buy guavas off the street anymore...it's a sad day. I'm
still not fond of mangos and papayas, but I learned to love the guavas, dragon fruit (pitaya), golden
kiwis, pomelos, various oranges and grapefruits, java apples...as well as the idea of confronting a
completely weird fruit I can't even comprehend how to eat. I saw my first persimmon last week. It was
bizarre. I guess when I get back I'll be able to identify those strange fruits I ignored in supermarkets
before...I just hope the guavas are half as good.
THE END