Just yesterday, I was walking down the street and one of my students and her father pulled up next to me to give me one of their bubble teas. This is normal and incredibly kind of the Taiwanese to do for others. If it is raining, it is not odd for someone to pull up in their cars and offer to drive you home, even though you are a stranger. The crime rates are very low in Taiwan, and especially in Kinmen, so this is not usually dangerous. Of course, it is always good to be vigilant, but overall, safety can be expected here. This is very different than when I was in New York, where it was moreover expected to not interact with strangers on the street for safety reasons. Another cultural difference is bilingualism. In America, most people know English and generally speak only English during the day. In Taiwan, most people speak a mix of Traditional Mandarin Chinese and English throughout the day. From classrooms to bubble tea shops, people speak, read, and write a combination of both and close to fluently. Shop signs, for example, usually have English and Chinese translations on them (i.e. "come in" and "進來"). Even the movies play Western or English speaking movies, but with Mandarin subtitles. Recently, I watched Kung Fu Panda with my friends, and it had Mandarin subtitles. In America, it is usually all English. Likewise, in America, strangers usually come up to me and ask me what my race is. This is because I am considered a minority in America and look Southeast Asian. Many Americans do not know what Southeast Asians look like, and thus do not know that that is why I look like a mix of Hispanic and Asian. I have tan skin, black hair, and have East Asian features, but I do not have monolids.
