Being a foreigner in Taiwan

Wow, it's been 2 months since my last blog :-)

2 months ago I got two blog topic requests. One about what it's like to be a foreigner in Taiwan and another one -- I can't remember coz it's been so long :-)

Before I left the Philippines, I asked some friends what the hardest thing was for them about being away from their home country. Here are some of the answers and my personal take on them:

1) Food. Missing Jollibee. - I'm not very picky about food. My brother used to say I can survive as long as there is a bakeshop nearby. I love bread, and I can get lots of it here. I'm not a big fan of sinigang and kare-kare, and I'm allergic to hipon and bulad. So I'm generally fine without them in Taiwan. All other Taiwanese dishes are almost Filipino, I think, because I seem to like everything. Taiwanese are big on vegetables, I noticed. And I like the wide choices of drinks (soy milk, milk tea, etc.) they have. But I DO miss Jollibee :-)

2) Standing out as physically different. - This isn't much of a problem for a Filipino in Taiwan. I know Filipinos have an idea of the distinct Chinese look. But if you come here, you'll see the wide range of Chinese looks, and most Filipinos would easily fit into that spectrum. In fact, people who don't know I'm a foreigner always mistake me for a Chinese.

3) Public transportation. - No car. No jeepneys. No tricycles. Taxis are expensive (P150 flag down rate) and the buses are few. What do you do? You walk. You find a church, bank and stores that are within walking distance and you walk to get there. Otherwise, you modify your definition of "walking distance," slightly increasing the mileage to include the place you want to get to, so you can walk to get there. :-) Actually, everyone either has a bike or scooter here, but since I'm only staying till January (this is another blog altogether :)), i thought I'd just walk.

4) Language barrier. - Ahh, there are two sides to this. There is something liberating about having a language barrier. It's hard to explain, but I think it's that I don't always have to listen or to speak. I don't have to answer the phone at the lab, and my teachers never call me in class. Plus, people are more inclined to do things for you by themselves so they don't have to explain them to you. And you can break the law, and blame it on the language barrier. Kidding :-)... BUT, there are times when you DO want to listen and when you DO want to speak. And when you wish people talked to you instead of elbowing one another, when you walk into the group, and urging one another, "You talk to her. -- No, YOU talk to her." :-) Many Taiwanese I've met are only as good in English as I am in Chinese. A note for Filipinos: We speak better English. But no matter, foreigners don't really care about how good our English is. So just talk to them :-)

5) Religious persecution. - There is religious freedom in Taiwan. I've met a lot of people here who find it hard to believe that there is only one God to worship and pray to. What about all their other gods? Also, here's something interesting: most nonChristian Taiwanese will drop their jaw if you tell them you go to church EVERY SUNDAY. You are truly righteous! :-) They are praised if they go to the temple twice in a year, I think. And what about Sunday picnics?

6) Being away from family and friends. - Ahh yes... This can only be explained by experience. If you've ever been away from family and friends, you KNOW what this feels like... We're certainly much better off now with internet and text. But somehow, distance still has a way of making you miss out on the latest tsismis (and I don't just mean showbiz balita). :-)