If they get too close to you, picking up a stone or having a big stick is usually a sufficient deterrent. Many indigenous communities have dogs freely running around their communities. While smoking marijuana is illegal, the cannabis product cannabidiol (CBD) is legal provided you have a doctor’s prescription, and it contains no more than 10 ppm (0.001%) tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive component that gives you the “high”. Foreign victims of a major crime in Taiwan are also advised to report the matter to their government’s representative office in Taipei. Like anywhere else in the world, women should be cautious when taking taxis alone late at night. Although they are generally safe, it’s a good idea to arrange to have a friend call you when you get home and to be seen making the arrangements for this by the cab driver.

Japanese occupation

They are not allowed on freeways even if they are capable of going faster than 100 km/h (62 mph) unless used for certain police purposes, but that just means you have to take the scenic route. This is not an extreme risk, although there have been incidents where women have been attacked. To be more safe, women can have the hotel or restaurant phone a cab for them (ensuring a licensed driver), have a companion write down the license number of the driver (clearly displayed on the dashboard), or keep a cell phone handy. Do not get in if the driver doesn’t have a license with picture clearly displayed in the cab. Taxis are also a flexible although relatively expensive way to travel to nearby cities.

• Otherwise, scooters are generally easy to rent in most major cities, with many such places being near railway or bus stations.
• Tour busses that travel around Taiwan have several TVs, primarily for singing karaoke.
• Taiwanese Minnan and Xiamen Minnan are both mixtures of the Zhangzhou and Quanzhou accents, so as a result, Taiwanese Minnan sounds very similar to Xiamen Minnan.
• Today the remaining indigenous peoples make up only about 2% of the population, while the other 98% are considered ethnically Han Chinese.
• It is issued by the Bureau of Consular Affairs, which has offices in Taipei and Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport.
• Drivers generally cannot converse in English or any other foreign language (such as French, German, Japanese, etc.) or read Westernized addresses (except for special Taoyuan airport taxis).

Major urban areas – population

Christianity, both Catholicism and Protestantism, has a presence in Taiwan, especially among the younger population. In addition, there are smaller communities of Muslims, Jews, and practitioners of other faiths. The freedom of religion is guaranteed in Taiwan’s constitution, and religious tolerance is a significant feature of the society.

Population distribution

The most widely spoken native language is Taiwanese Hokkien (also known as Taiwanese), a Southern Min dialect, particularly in the southern and central regions. Hakka, another Chinese language, is spoken by the Hakka people, primarily in the western part of the island. Taiwan is part of a larger archipelago that includes several smaller islands and islets. These include the Diaoyu Islands, also known as the Senkaku Islands, which are claimed by both Taiwan and Japan, and the Orchid Island (Lanyu) and Green Island, located off Taiwan’s southeastern coast.

• Democratization began in earnest through the 1980s and 1990s, culminating with the first direct presidential elections in 1996, and the first peaceful transition of power between two political parties in 2000.
• Although the two sides briefly united against Japan during World War II, they quickly began fighting again after the war was over.
• If you are planning on staying in Taiwan for a longer time, you should consider opening a Taiwanese bank account.
• Some elderly people do not speak Mandarin as they were schooled in Japanese or not at all.
• The quality of the hospitals in Taiwan is excellent and on par with, if not better than those found in the West.

Cities

Two island groups controlled by the ROC government, Matsu and Quemoy, lie just off the coast of China’s Fujian (Fukien) province. In the East China Sea, the ROC claims the group of islands it calls Diaoyutai, which also are claimed by Japan as Senkaku and by the People’s Republic of China as Diaoyu. Ancestors of Taiwanese indigenous peoples settled the island around 6,000 years ago. In the 17th century, large-scale Han Chinese immigration began under Dutch colonial rule and continued under the Kingdom of Tungning, the first predominantly Han Chinese state in Taiwanese history. The island was annexed in 1683 by the Qing dynasty and ceded to the Empire of Japan in 1895.
Thus, you can even take the faster trains with it (but not THSR) like the Tzu-Chiang limited express. The only disadvantage is that you will not have a reserved seat, which however is not an issue except on Saturday morning/noon and Sunday afternoon. The EasyCard also provides discounts on Taipei’s public transportation network, and likewise with the iPass on Kaohsiung’s network.
If you forget to tap the second time, you will only be charged a small initial fee instead of the whole journey, but unless you are at the end of your vacation to Taiwan or possess a second card, you should avoid having your card blocked. That said, most bus drivers and railway staff pay close attention to the tapping, so it is hard to miss. Indigenous Austronesian or “Formosan” culture has greatly suffered under multiple different waves of colonial rule. It is having a resurgence today, and efforts are being made to revive the culture through the introduction of the Formosan languages into the school curriculum. However, many aspects of it have been lost forever, which is evident in how the majority of the Formosan languages are extinct or moribund.

Drivers are usually happy to help, but may not speak English or any other foreign language. For visitors, it may be helpful to have your hotel or accommodation host suggest some routes for you and circle your destination on a map, then show it to the bus driver to make sure you’re on the right bus. Announcements are in English, but hopefully the driver will remember to tell you when to get off in case you miss it.
Your best bet for halal food is restaurants or stores serving the Southeast Asian community. There are many halal certification bodies in queenwin casino Taiwan, but the Chinese Muslim Association certifies most halal stores; Muslim visitors can contact them for more information. In addition, the Taiwanese government provides a detailed list where one can find halal food and accommodations.

The most popular traditional Chinese deity in Taiwan is Mazu, a Fujianese shamaness who is believed to have ascended to godhood and now protects sailors, as the Fujianese were largely a seafaring people. Most Taiwanese people follow a mix of traditional Chinese folk religions and Buddhism, and it is common to visit temples to offer prayers during important festivals or life events. That said, contemporary Taiwanese society is largely secular in daily life, and religion in general does not play a significant role in people’s work or political affiliations. Nevertheless, you are still expected to dress and behave respectfully when visiting temples. The Taiwanese are generally a warm and polite people, having been strongly influenced by Confucianism.