Culture shock? No! Culture rocks!

Welcome to the show again!

I am afraid, though, today there is not much to see. My laptop is on strike, the windows starting data is damaged. So with my laptop's operating system on vacation, my many pictures are inaccessible and I can only write to you, unsupported by images. (Yes, the rather aliterate among you should stop reading by now -  there are no shiny pictures to come, you can skip the whole text ;) )
Thus, I have to abolish my initial plan to tell you about my recent trip to Hualian, because I cannot let words go about it without adding some pictures of its magnificent nature. As I still have to revive this little blog here, I will for now resort to formulating my observations, ideas and thoughts on Taiwanese culture. The post about Hualian is in stocks! (In case I ever get my old friend running again...) But now, let me tell you of some cultural experiences in this strange place far from my home.



老外，你好！
"Laowai, ni hao!" - "Hi there, foreigner!". Strange thing to say when you see a random person of obvious foreign descent out in the streets, hun?
That is what I think, too. And it is even more disturbing, when you start trying to figure out whether the speaker intended the term laowai (foreigner) to sound informal and friendly or pejorative and hostile. It can be used in both ways. So I felt quite irritated when I had just barely stranded in the local train station of Taoyuan, an hour after my arrival in Taiwan.

However, I soon noticed that this is a pretty popular thing to do in Taiwan and that probably I should get used to it. Some of the farm's visitors (especially the slightly drunk ones^^) also like to greet me, saying 哈嘍 a loanword from the English "hello" but the sound being incredibly more close to the German  greeting "hallo". Consequently, my German reflexes trick me and I respond "Hallo!". And what follows is a really awkward silence. My Taiwanese counterpart does not know English or is afraid to speak, waiting for me to say something - preferably in Chinese. But they got me totally confused. "Hallo!" - German mode activated. Engaging in conversation. Your next choices: 1. Wie geht's? (How are you?). STOP brain, cut it! English, Chinese, anything but German, concentrate!
I am not sure, whether others can read these inner conflicts on my face, but I am most certain that it must make me look absolutely dumb. And I feel dumb. Especially, when I leave things at that and hit he road, because the awkwardness is unbearable as the silence continues.
At least, I can say that so far I have not been dumb down to the point of completely messing up and starting to stammer in Japanese. That only happens when I want to thank people for something. "Thank you." - "How about we make that a beautiful はい，謝謝" Hai (Japanese yes, indicating confirmation), xie xie (Chinese thank you) ~_~

Another thing that these situations never fail to remind me of is something I read a while ago on an Australian guy's blog about Germans. That is to say, we do not like small talk and it is reflected in our culture and language, which misses any vocabulary fit to do small talking. I think he has a point in this. Every day, I have been repeatedly challenged in small talk situations and I am sad to admit in most I did not have a single clue as to what I could say and failed miserably.

Which is twice as regrettable, as many Taiwanese seem to combine two very interesting characteristics that make them great conversational partners: apparently limitless curiosity and no constraint to give way to it, except their reluctance to speak English. Hence, as soon as they know I speak Chinese, people will start talking to me. In Chinese. Very fast Chinese.
I have always been under the impression that Chinese is spoken exceptionally fast. Now I think it is just impossible to speak slowly in Chinese. Even after saying "Please say that again slowly", words still flow like water over a waterfall. Still, they talk to me and that gives me the chance to practice my Chinese, so I feel very grateful for their efforts.

For foreigners, I think, it is quite easy to live here. People are surprised when you find the way to any place just sticking to signs and relying on maps. But all signs are both in Chinese and English. They are surprised when you get off at the right train station. But all announcements, explanations and traffic maps are available in English. And they are surprised when you find what you are looking for in a shop. But most products feature descriptions in English in even bigger font than Chinese.
And if you do not know how to go on or what to do, there is always somebody you can ask. Even if they do not understand English, somehow you can make them understand and they are very kind and patient with you.

Sometimes I wonder if my understanding (some basic) Chinese makes them be even more kind and patient. A ticket vendor at the local train station even went out of his way, walking all the way from his office to the platform I was on, to let me know that there was a train about to leave for the place I wanted to go. And he would not leave until I had three times assured him that I would take a later train so I could stay with my company until their train would leave. I guess, moments like these are what makes people say they feel "touched". (Taiwanese people really LOVE the phrase "to touch the heart")

I assume, now is the time for me to adopt that little craze about the phrase and say: The ticket vendor's care touched my heart.

Thanks for the fish, sorry for the absence of pictures and see you next time!

Niklas