Taiwan despatch: A tale of two cities
With a standard of living higher than Western Europe and the US, Taiwan is distinct from China in many ways. Suyash Desai writes about grappling with the Chinese language even as he explores the cities of Taipei and Kaohsiung
It has been six months since I began living in Taiwan – an island country that was unknown to many Indians before the recent events involving the Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi’s visit followed by China’s military exercises surrounding the island. Most Indians, including some of my family members, thought Taiwan was a part of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). However, the recent events have ensured that everyone is now aware that Taiwan is an independent country. The island has thrived in the past few decades and is now one of the most democratic countries in the world with an exceptionally high standard of living. You only realise the importance of these indicators when you experience them by residing in such a country.


Taipei and Kaohsiung are the two most vibrant cities in Taiwan. Taipei is the financial and political capital, while Kaohsiung, an old city, which is a major port, is the southern capital. I get to experience both cities as I study the Chinese language at the National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung, and often visit Taipei to interact with Chinese scholars working on security and strategic issues in the Indo-Pacific region. Though the two major hubs of the small island country are separated by just 350 km, they are extremely different in demography, culture, values, way of living and approach to foreigners.
Located in the middle of rolling hills, Taipei, in the north of Taiwan, has a modern skyline often hidden behind white and grey clouds. Like Mumbai, New York, Shanghai and Singapore, Taipei is a major multicultural city. Though it offers a mixture of European, Chinese and Japanese cultures and has the most foreigners in the country, it cannot be called a melting pot as it maintains its unique Taiwanese identity. A foreigner-friendly city, most people here speak English. For someone interested in learning Chinese, Taipei is a boon and a curse at the same time as, even if you try to speak in Chinese, the reply often is in English thus providing fewer opportunities to practise language skills. However, Taipei has a young demography. This helps in learning the language in a relatable manner. I first visited Taipei after studying for three months in Kaohsiung. I had completed the beginners’ Chinese level and was entering the basic level. My vocabulary was limited but I could still do basic communication on the streets of Taipei. It boosted my confidence, and I started using the language more often outside the classroom environment.

Taipei is also one of the wettest cities in this part of the world and has no dry season. But this doesn’t stop tourists and citizens from visiting night markets or hiking in and around the city. It hosts the Shilin and Raohe night markets, the most famous night markets in East Asia. I was shocked and thrilled to see the variety of food these markets offer. Unfortunately, despite having lived in Taiwan for six months, I haven’t worked up the courage to try all that food! Similarly, the year-round rainfall is no obstacle to many hiking expeditions organised weekly in Taipei. But the city’s most important aspect is the connectivity it offers to the eastern coast of Taiwan from the Hualien and Taitung provinces - the untouched geographies with numerous hills on one side and the Pacific coastline on the other. This makes Taipei the most critical transit destination in Taiwan.
In comparison, Kaohsiung is an old city with an ageing demography. Located on the South China Sea, it was one of the major cities under Japanese rule from 1895 and benefited from Japan’s Southward policy. Thus, the city is an outpost of Japanese culture with at least one major Japanese food outlet on every block. It boasts of the world’s first fully catenary-free tram. It also hosts one of the country’s biggest night markets, the fanciest metro station, and enormous graffiti at a warehouse complex called the Pier-2 Art Centre and at the Kaohsiung harbour. The city also has an unusual temple, where entry is through a dragon’s mouth and exit through a tiger’s! The biggest attraction, though, is the year-round good weather. Unlike Taipei, Kaohsiung has warm weather due to its proximity to the Tropic of Cancer. The weather and the beaches make Kaohsiung a perfect place for water sports. The cost of living is relatively low but then so are the opportunities. However, Kaohsiung offers connectivity to Kending, the southernmost tip of Taiwan, to Xiaoliuqiu, a coral island in the Taiwan Strait, to Turtle Island, the only active volcano in the country, and to Orchid Island in the Philippine Sea. Thus, if Taipei is the hikers’ paradise due to the hills surrounding it, Kaohsiung is a sea lovers’ wonderland with seafood, sea sports and multiple islands to explore.

Like Taipei, there are perks and limitations to learning Chinese in Kaohsiung. Due to the older demography, it is sometimes difficult to interact with locals. Older Taiwanese generally speak with a heavy accent, which makes practising the language through conversation a challenge. Conversely, since the city has fewer foreigners the medium of communication is usually Chinese -- a significant advantage for language enthusiasts and students. Also, helpfulness, kindness and generosity are virtues that laid back Kaohsiung has in abundance in comparison with busy Taipei, where people are constantly on their toes. I had a firsthand experience of this on my recent return to Kaohsiung from Taipei. On the bus, my fellow passengers included an older lady and her son. When she learnt that I was in the country to learn the language, she had a three-hour conversation with me in Chinese about India and Taiwan – history, culture, food, tourism and much more. Since this was my first time on the bus, she made sure I got down at the right stop and accompanied me to the metro station. Her son also invited me to their house for Chinese New Year -- a lifetime experience that I’m looking forward to very much.

But beyond differences, the most important values that all cities across Taiwan promote are safety and security. I have seen students leaving the campus at midnight and returning in the wee hours every single weekend. My friends have dropped their wallets, passports and other valuables in the city only to have them returned untouched to the Chinese Language Centre. I myself have walked down city streets late at night but have never felt unsafe. This is probably due to the country’s extremely high standard of living. The population of Taiwan is about 23.9 million with a GDP per capita Purchasing Power Parity of $71,244. This is much higher than Western Europe and the US. It makes Taiwan one of the safest places in the Indo-Pacific region and a great place for foreigners to learn the language.
Postscript: A couple of weeks ago, I was on the local tram returning to the university after spending a day at the public library, which is no less than a five-star hotel. The tram was unusually overcrowded. I saw two things: One, the driver came out to enquire if everyone was fine because it was crowded. Two, the tram waited until the last passenger boarded. I compared this with the local trains in my home town of Mumbai and smiled.
Suyash Desai is a research scholar specialising in Chinese security and foreign policies. He is currently studying Mandarin at National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.