First Impressions of Taiwan
Refreshingly beautiful and genuinely friendly
by Grace Payne
Picture Uptown Minneapolis. Except longer streets, smaller shops open onto the sidewalk, trees and plants everywhere, and an abundance of bright colors. There’s traffic but the soft breeze and mist in the air seem to soften the sound into mere oblivion. More people walk and bike on the sidewalk. Buildings go up high and the balconies of apartments are closer, with vines and clotheslines decorating the railings. There isn’t the same sense of busyness in the air like there is back home. Everything is calm. Everything is in its place.
That’s how I would have answered my boyfriend’s question of “What’s Taiwan like?” had I not been jet-lagged and trying to stay awake as I was getting ready for bed and he was getting ready for the day. But alas, not everything can go my way.
In coming to Taiwan, I’ve made it a goal to be mindful of my surroundings. Too often, back home in Minnesota, I have become comfortable in my environment that I just look instead of actually see my environment. Here in these first few days, I’ve been trying to pay more attention to all of my senses — seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, and feeling — in order to fully envelop myself into this new experience and new culture.
Even though it’s only my second day in this country, I’ve been noticing how the environment reflects its culture. In St. Paul/Minneapolis, buildings, apartments, and community space in general are much bigger comparatively. In a culture that values individualism, people don’t really want to be near each other. However, in Taipei, everything is much closer together and it isn’t seen as a problem. It is normal to be so close. Closeness cultivates a collectivist society, in which people value togetherness and think more in terms of a group — how their actions and decisions affect others and are affected by others.
How Taiwanese people value their environment is also reflected by the city being incredibly clean and lush with plant life. Rarely do you see litter anywhere, and everything is set up in an organized fashion. The sidewalks are lined with trees, there are many parks and green spaces, and almost every shop has plants, inside and out. There’s so much precision and green around that it’s almost easy to forget you’re in the city. I expected to be overwhelmed by being in a busy city such as Taipei, but the sense of peace surrounds me every time I step outside of my hotel.
The longer we’ve been here, the more I have appreciated the friendliness and graciousness of the Taiwanese people through their facial expressions, their interactions with one another, and their interactions with us. I think of the elderly woman on the metro who smiled at me and nodded as I let her go first to get off at our stop, of the college students at Truth church who welcomed us into their fellowship and took the time to explain things to us in English, and of the young baristas at a coffee shop who said “It’s okay” and “Don’t worry about it” over and over when someone spilled water at our table.
Before our arrival, I was concerned that I and our group as a whole would be a burden for the people we would interact with. But so far I have not experienced this negative feeling at all. Instead wherever we visit, people are more than willing to help. This welcoming spirit not only makes me feel more at ease but also shows their hospitality of embracing others in their country.
Overall, I could have never anticipated how refreshingly beautiful this country is and how genuinely friendly its people are. The beauty and friendliness have opened my heart to embrace everything I experience in this country: the sound of rain and Chinese being spoken, the aroma of different foods and shops as you walk past, the taste of dumplings and tea on my tongue, the feeling of stone sidewalks beneath my feet, and the feeling of tranquility in my soul.
