Driving a Scooter in Taiwan

One of the most exciting parts of this experience in Taiwan has been driving a scooter all around Taiwan. Most of the time it is wild, occasionally a little scary and sometimes ends up being just too insane to handle. The only rule with scooters here is that, as the cliche goes, there are no rules. For example, to turn left, you dont just turn left on a scooter, you have to drive to the other side of the intersection, and join the traffic flowing in the correct direction you want to go. So you end up having to wait at two lights instead of just one. For many Taiwanese this just isnt acceptable! So, they cross over to the wrong side of the road, wait at the red light and then start driving into on coming traffic to stop the need to wait at two lights. If you dont understand and are a little confused, dont worry, I am too - and I have been here driving for a while!

There is also no such thing as a red light here. When the yellow light flashes, that does not mean slow down, it means that if you are within a block of the light punch it full throttle, close your eyes and go. One time I was waiting my turn to go, being the good polite Canadian that I am, my light turned green and I waited for about 10 seconds for the rest of the scooters to finish running the red light so I could go. You would think that at this point horns would be honking, hands with certain fingers displayed would be waving with vigor, and the odd profane death threat would be shouted out....but that is just not the case. First of all, culturally, there is no room for showing emotion - especially not anger. It is seen as weekness. Second, nobody gets mad, because everyone knows that in the next 2 minutes, they will be doing the exact same thing!

My scooter is a rental. It is called the Jog 5o Basic. First, it is from the scooter company Jog - which is the lowest end of scooters in Taiwan. In fact it may be like comparing a brand new BMW to a 1985 Russian car. Secondly, it is the basic model - which means that it is the lowest end Jog out there. In addition, that little "50" in there means it is a 50 cc motor - the smallest motor out there. What I am trying to say is that as far a scooters go, mine is on the low end of the totem poll! The fact that I am probably the tallest guy in Kaohsiung (I am not even joking about that) is funny enough for all these taiwanese add to this that I am driving the smallest scooter available and the end result is that I get lots of funny looks!

I found a video on youtube that shows it pretty well, although this video is not in rush hour, so add about three times the scooters and that is what it is like for me driving home! All the streets you see are streets that I have been on, in fact been on often! the link is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUJF0omwviQ - enjoy. You can also YouTube "Scooters in Taiwan" or "Scooters in Kaohsiung" and see more fun!

So, the scooter is one of the best parts but also the most scary! It has brought me closer to God as I am in constant conversation with him while driving my scooter!!!!!! :)