quick tips about getting around in taipei if you can't read or speak mandarin

(Taipei, Taiwan).  I think some Americans traveling to foreign countries have a tendency to assume that people will speak and/or understand a little english wherever they go.  I didn't realize until I was planning my trip to Taiwan a few years ago that my husband was one of these people.  On that particular trip we were staying at an apartment and not a hotel so I repeatedly asked him for the address in chinese, but to no avail.  He couldn't comprehend why the english address wasn't sufficient for a taxi driver.  I finally asked him if he thought people in Taiwan understood english and he looked at me as if I were being silly, because he couldn't imagine why people in Taiwan would not understand english.

(sigh)

I had to explain to him that people in Taiwan speak mandarin or taiwanese, and english is rather uncommon.  In recent years Taiwan has been promoting tourism and you can see that in the growing amount of english signage at tourist sights and the addition of more "western" style toilets (as opposed to "eastern" style toilets which are set into the ground and where you have to crouch over the opening).  Despite the improvement, that does not mean the local people can speak or read english well, if at all.  However, that doesn't mean it's difficult to get around because luckily most people in Taiwan are friendly and there are great transportation options available (especially in Taipei).



subway:  Like most major cities (other than Los Angeles), the subway system in Taipei is super convenient, affordable, and, in this case, clean!  The maps are very clear and the stops are listed in both chinese and english which makes it easy to understand.  We took it to Beitou/Danshui for a hot springs and beach adventure, as well as to Longshan Temple for some sightseeing and street food.

train: The high-speed trains were also super easy to take.  We took it from Taipei to Kaoshiung and was impressed by the cleanliness, the comfort and the speed.  i think the trip took less than 2 hours!

taxi:  Taxis, however, are a slightly different story.  Don't get me wrong - there are lots of taxis and the rates are cheap, but you need to know a few things before taking them.

• First, most taxi drivers do not speak or read english so if you have a location in mind, it would be best to have it written out in chinese characters.  The easiest ways to do this?  For your hotel, grab several business cards to give to your driver.  They will usually have the names in both english and chinese. For tourist sites, carry a map with both english and chinese and you can point to the location (or ask your concierge to write it out in chinese characters for you).  Unlike Japan, where the japanese name is usually phonetically translated to english (e.g., Kyoto should sound like Kyoto in japanese), most of the chinese names for hotels or sites sound nothing like the english names for the same places (e.g., Green Mountain in chinese sounds like lwee san in mandarin, or Royal Taipei Hotel sounds like lou-yeh phan dian and literally means "old man hotel").  Thus it's unlikely for the taxi driver to figure out what you are trying to say if you only have the english name.
• Second, the traffic is hideous in Taipei and there are very 'loose' traffic rules and lanes so most taxi drivers perform their jobs as if they were competing in an extreme sport.  Just remember to buckle up and hold on!  On a good note, despite the speedy weaving through traffic and alleyways and other paths that i was pretty sure wasn't intended for cars, i've yet to see an accident occur.
• As a random side note, tips aren't expected.  Like most european countries, I would just round up to the nearest TWD (taiwan dollar).

private driver:  This may seem luxurious but it's actually not that expensive to hire a private driver.  You can arrange this through your hotel or if you happen to like a taxi driver, you can ask him his rate for an entire day and it's possible to bargain.  We actually researched the internet and got recommendations for a particular driver.  His english wasn't great, but he took us all over Northern Taiwan for about $100 USD for the whole day.

 All in all, it was pretty easy for us to  get around Taipei despite our inability to read chinese or to speak mandarin well.  But with a bit of planning and some practice, we were traveling around taipei like pros!  I wish Los Angeles had such great transportation options!