Comments on: Taiwanese Efficiency

By: The Things from Home We Miss the Most | Doubting to shuō: Chinese, Investing, EFL and Being a Geek in Taiwan

Wed, 04 Apr 2007 15:26:31 +0000

[...] Taiwanese Efficiency [...]

By: tommy525

tommy525 — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 19:01:14 +0000

I live in san francisco and our MRT , called “BART’ Bay Area Rapid Transit forbids drinking and eating too, and its over 30 years old.

By: Jeanne Wang

Jeanne Wang — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 02:40:02 +0000

RE: Howard…I’ve used the subway in Tokyo and it’s old and not as modern as the subways in HK and Taipei. That’s understandable since Tokyo got their subway first. Also how are the trains(subway) cleaner or more orderly in Japan that “you can’t put into words”. The MRT in Taipei is very clean and I always saw people lined up to enter the trains. “weird barbarian land where people don’t understand the concept of a line”. In Taiwan you can see lots of line ups especially for food…for that dumpling restaurant or for noodles at A-Chong etc; without anyone cuting in. My Father who is a senior always had people offer him their seats on the MRT. “Like so many things the MRT is a cheap knock off of the Japanese version” Taipei needed a subway system so they built one and it was built by the French. Some MRT cars have the exact same layout as the subway cars I saw in Paris. You also decribe the people in China as “animals” wow. You have a lot of bias no doubt influenced by Japan. I think it’s sad to travel to all these incredible places that you’re fortunate enough to do with a closed, arrogant and ignorant mind. What a waste.

By: Robert

Robert — Sun, 21 Jan 2007 05:09:44 +0000

I have to say that that is one of my favorite things about living in Taiwan. I have to make it clear that I’m saying that not as an American, rather as an American who lived in France — where nothing gets done without a rally, a protest, two strikes, a referendum, and an enquiry in to whether or not anyone will be offended by said action.

When my girlfriend and I changed our internet companies in Paris, it took TWO MONTHS to get up and running. They don’t even have someone come and install it. They mail it to you, and get you to do it yourself!

Moreover, tech support isn’t free. So when you’re internet, phone, and cable aren’t working, you have to call on your cell phone and pay while you’re on hold!

God! My blood is boiling just thinking about it.

By: battlepanda

battlepanda — Fri, 19 Jan 2007 08:33:22 +0000

Hmm. I wouldn’t say that New York’s subways are very clean at all. I take your point about the water. It does seem draconian.

I think it’s the food part that bugs me. I really do think that inevitably someone will start to bring in messy food even if chewing on some gum or a chocolate bar won’t really do much harm.

By: GaryAlbright

GaryAlbright — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 07:53:53 +0000

Although Taipei’s MRT system is “punctual, clean and comfortable”, some of the rules are simply draconian. A Taiwanese friend of mine was caught drinking mineral water at a station and fined $1000. Is that really necessary in a city where summer temperatures reach 40 degrees? Other countries’ subways (eg. Tokyo, Korea, Toronto, New York, London) were very clean when I rode them, despite allowing drinking and eating. Why are Taiwanese commuters any different? Is the 差不多／隨便 attitude is so ingrained that without a zero-tolerance policy, commuters would leave garbage on the floor, and spill food and drinks all over the seats?

The Japanese represent the antithesis of 差不多. But while the cleanliness, civility and perfectionism are admirable, you pay for them. Want to get an internet connection? They won’t bash in your door, but you will have to wait weeks if not months to get it installed. If you move into an apartment, you are guaranteed a certain quality - as Howard noted, “There wouldn’t BE an apartment like yours in Japan.” But it will cost you indirectly in the form of “key money,” a non-refundable deposit to the landlord, often equal to 3 or 4 months rent. Their perfection, like the MRT’s, comes with a significant cost.

By: Mark

Mark — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 19:14:16 +0000

… and I wouldn’t have had anything to blog about!

By: Howard

Howard — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 15:13:40 +0000

The point is, there wouldn’t BE an apartment like yours in Japan. It would have been properly designed to begin with, and installing a phone line would have been simple.

By: Mark

Mark — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 13:56:07 +0000

Though I’ve never been to Japan, I was a Japanese major and I had more Japanese friends than American friends my last two years in school. I can see where you’re coming from about Japanese culture not embracing the 差不多 (”good enough”) attitude, but sometimes I like that attitude.

If I’d gotten the same work on an apartment like mine done in Japan, could it have been done for about $20 USD, and done within 20 minutes? I highly doubt it. If I’d been in Japan, it probably would have cost ten times as much and been a pain.

The commuters on the subway in Shanghai were pretty obnoxious, and I’m also frustrated from time to time by those here. I suppose a lot of drivers here are a bunch of selfish jackasses, too. It’s not that bad, though.

By: Howard

Howard — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 10:06:40 +0000

That just doesn’t make sense. I lived in Japan before coming to Taiwan. Unlike the Chinese, the Japanese do NOT have a “good enough” attitude. They shoot for perfection in their cars, in their clothes, in their electronics, in their interior decorations and in their manners. People drink on the train all the time, though. Even beer!

The Japanese trains are so much cleaner, quieter and more orderly than the Taiwanese ones that I can barely put it into words. When I first got here, it felt like I had left civilization and entered some weird barbarian land where people don’t get the concepts of lines or yielding seats to the elderly. The trains make squealing noises too, especially from Guting to Dingxi. But they have stupid rules about drinks on the MRT. It’s just missing the point, entirely. Like many other Taiwanese things, the MRT is a cheap knock-off of the Japanese version. Don’t even get me started on scooter drivers!

It is a heck of a lot better than the mainland, though. People there are ANIMALS. I have no desire whatsoever to see what the subways in Shanghai are like.