My
Taiwanese friend told me on my first visit there that the island state is a
very safe country and was she right. A girl can walk alone at 11 p.m. and not
worry about being mugged or attacked. There are posters in the MRT advising
what to do in the event of sexual harassment. There are clear designated
waiting areas at train stations for females at night. I never felt unsafe or
threatened when I was there. They clearly respect the weaker sex there. There
are a lot of motorcyclists but everyone respects the law and no one would try
to mow you down. No mat rempit and no snatch thieves for sure!
Taiwanese
make life easy for everyone. It’s a tourist-friendly country with plenty of
helpful signs in both Mandarin and English. It’s a disabled-friendly country
with many ramps and facilities for the disabled, and also if you are travelling
with wheels like a stroller, trolley bag or even a bicycle. There are many
lockers at the Taipei Main Station, Taipei Main Station MRT Station, train
stations, even at Taipei 101! You can also find clean washrooms everywhere and
they are all free of charge. The washrooms there have two types of toilet: the
squat toilet and the sit-down ‘throne’ toilet. And you can refill your water
bottle for free on some trains and some buildings (airports, Visitor
Information Centre...) and have a choice of hot, warm or cold water at no
charge. I didn’t have to buy water at all over there.
The
island’s transportation network is comfortable, modern, reliable and very
efficient, be it the MRT, normal train, high speed train, even long-distance
and local shuttle buses. Everything runs like clockwork.
Taiwan
is a technologically advanced country. All the hotels, hostel and guesthouse we
stayed at provided free WiFi that’s fast, fast, fast!
Taiwanese
are generally very environmentally friendly and aware. It’s very clean; you’ll
be hard-pressed to find litter anywhere. I don’t know what fuel they use over
there but I sure didn’t see any black smoke emitted from any vehicle. If you
ever have any prejudice against the Chinese, about some of them being
unhygienic or spitting everywhere or littering, Taiwan and its people will
prove you wrong. I can say with confidence that in terms of cleanliness and
hygiene awareness, Taiwan is more ‘Islamic’ than Malaysia.
Taiwanese
are also conscious and aware of their health. You will find people walking with
their umbrellas or donning their big sun hats to fend off the sun everywhere
(unlike here, where I’ll be asked if it is raining whenever I carry my umbrella.
The sun did feel quite intense there and the locals apparently all know the
harmful effects of the sun and its UV rays (and don’t forget pigmentation!).
I
must admit I was a bit apprehensive while planning this trip as I recall from
my first visit to Taipei that the locals hardly speak any English. I was
worried that I would have problems travelling around, problems communicating
and asking for directions and enquiring about food ingredients, and worse-case
scenario, majority of signs in Mandarin. It didn’t help that the Taiwan
promotional booths at the MATTA Fairs (they participate at almost every MATTA
Fair) have brochures all in Mandarin. Well, I can tell you that while there are
those who do speak English especially among the young and surprisingly in other
cities. What I also found interesting was even the stallkeepers at the night
market in Kaohsiung could speak English but not their counterparts at Shilin
Night market in Taipei...
You
don’t have to worry too much about food as being an island, Taiwan is able to
offer you a choice of seafood (noodles, oyster omelette, sushi...). There are
also vegetarian restaurants (some are strict Buddhists) although we didn’t
actually manage to find any. There are also a few halal restaurants especially
in the bigger cities. Taiwan is also famous for its bubble tea and sweet
desserts.
Overall,
I’m glad I decided to revisit Taiwan. I wouldn’t mind a return trip either.
There is still a lot of Taiwan that I haven’t discovered. And like I said
before, why not? It’s a convenient friendly clean safe beautiful country to
visit. I dare say it’s comparable to Japan in terms of its beauty, safety, efficiency, modernity and cleanliness. What’s not to like?
|