Taiwanese People

They're just like people everywhere. Some are good, some are bad, some are jerks, some are sweet, some want to help you out, some will hurt you.

But if you want some sweeping generalizations:
I have lived here for a year and have had perhaps 2 experiences where a Taiwanese person was rude to me. TWO. And I am a bumbling foreigner who doesn't speak their language and ALWAYS needs help and is generally doing the wrong thing at the wrong time in the wrong place. These people are NICE.

I don't know how it is in Taipei but I feel like a bit of a celebrity here. I get nods and bows from complete strangers, along with teenagers asking if they can take pictures of me. You will feel special. You will be stared at. A lot. I find the staring isn't bad unless I'm in a bad mood. When I'm in a good mood, I just smile real big and they usually smile back and drop their eyes. If I'm in a bad mood I get in staring contests with strangers that last for far to long to not be awkward. Thank god I'm rarely in a bad mood (now that I quit Hess)

People will go out of their way to help you. This isn't like at home where if someone doesn't speak the language we cluck our tongues at them. A lot of people want to practice their English and are really helpful and cool and nice.

You will find cultural differences (avoidance of direct confrontation, to name one) that may annoy you or you may think are 'wrong'. It's a different culture. To them, we're probably just as wrong. Roll with it.

People feel differently about beating dogs/children here. while it's not smiled on, it's perhaps more accepted. I still have a hard time with this.

I'll add to this as i think of things.