From: lhughes@b11.b11.ingr.com (Lawrence Hughes)
Subject: Re: Information on travel to Taiwan
Organization: Intergraph Corp. Huntsville, AL
Date: Thu, 8 Oct 1992 15:10:12 GMT

In article <1992Oct7.143136.29087@lth.se>, matsbror@dit.lth.se (Mats Brorsson) writes:
> 
> I will be traveling to Hong Kong and Taiwan in December and I have a
> few questions I haven't been able to get answers on around here.
> 
> Will it be cheaper to buy computer accessoires in Hong Kong than in Taipei?

Computer gear (and most other consumer electronics) were suprisingly expensive
when I was there (about 4 years ago?). I could actually buy Taiwanese stuff
for less here in America than I could there. If you have contacts at the
factory, you might can get a "deal", but if not, don't expect to see really
great prices. Bummer. Hong Kong may be a completely different story - haven't 
been there yet - I do know friends that have gotten good deals on (non copy
protected) DAT recorders in HK, though. Also 35mm cameras.

> I have a noname notebook made in Taiwan which I plan to upgrade whith 
> more disk space. Is it best to do that in Taipei (or other places in Taiwan)
> or in Hong Kong?

Possibly in Computer Shopper... definitely check prices in that before you go,
you might be suprised. Could be a REAL pain to return a dead unit later, too,
if bought overseas.

> Any other information on travelling in Taiwan is gratefully accepted.
> Especially information on activities going on in December.

Be prepared for some of the finest food anywhere - especially seafood. If you
don't speak Chinese, try the Mongolian BBQ restaurants - no language required,
and the food is GREAT. Also beware of truly BAD air (I had to go to Taiwan U
med center after I got "subacute rhinitis" just from breathing the stuff for
two weeks). Also drink only bottled water. Beware of Shao-shin wine, especially
when offered by smiling Chinese hosts - they love to get Westerners sloshed.
Do go by the Chaing-Kai-Shek memorial and park - quite impressive. My favorite
memory was a day spent wandering around the National Palace Museum, and I only
scratched the surface in one day. See Lung Shan Temple and Snake Street (which
is nearby). The "pink light district" near Snake Street is worth a walk
through too - I'd put it up against Amsterdam's red-light district anyday -
just be sure you only "window shop" - there are too many VD clinics in the area
for my tastes...

I used a cheap trick to get around - I took an English/Chinese map of Taipei
and copied the Chinese characters next to the places I wanted to see onto a
business card, showed that to a taxi driver and was off to the right place
everytime - kept hoping I wasn't showing them something that said "see other
side of map"... or got one line in the right place and said something nasty
about his mother... afterward, showing them my "hotel key card" got me back 
home every time. Sometimes you gotta be a little clever when that far out of
your culture... DO NOT try to make sense of the street names - the few that
are in latin characters all sound and look the same, and are translated in
different ways at different points along the same road anyway. It is usually
easy to get a student to show you around, in exchange for getting to practice
his/her english on you, or ask you about "the west"... it is completely safe
to wander around anywhere in Taipei at any time, even by yourself. This is
perhaps the most civilized place on Earth, IMHO. Oh yes, "barber shop" is a
euphimism there, similar to "massage parlor" in the U.S.... I kept wondering
why a barber shop needed so many young female employees, or hucksters at the
door trying to lure you in...

The weather will likely be a bit cool, but definitely not cold - this is a
tropical country, after all. It may also be a bit wet this time of year.

>    /Mats
> 
> -- 
> ========================================================================
> Mats Brorsson                              internet: matsbror@dit.lth.se
> Dept. of Comp. Eng., Lund University       phone:    +46-46-104931
> P.O. Box 118, S-221 00 Lund, SWEDEN        fax:      +46-46-104714

Sorry - just noticed you aren't from the 'states. I don't know what your
situation is with regard to buying PC hardware cheaply in Sweden... my
comments assumed you were starting from here. All other comments are still
applicable... Enjoy your trip - envy envy envy...

Larry Hughes - uunet!ingr!b11!lhughes
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