An Indian's First Impressions of Taiwan

I have been writing about Taiwan and the geopolitical whirlwind around it for a few years as a journalist, but this is my first time in Taiwan.

- VENUS UPADHAYAYA

I have interviewed a few amazing Taiwanese people and have met others at the New Delhi mission, but this is the first time I'm living with them and observing them as a society in their own land. And I must say they are a diligent race with a great aptitude for engineering! This is my first impression, at least! The world knows Taiwan more because of its semiconductors. My Taiwanese sources have told me that semiconductor technology is a part of their national security strategy.

In 2022, I interviewed TAITRA's Chairperson, James Huang and asked him about Taiwan's path to its present economic stature. James patiently told me about how it started from each home, from small units to become some of the best corporations in the world. He told me about how India needs to take its own "untrodden path."

Here in Taiwan, I was particularly struck by how few people exist in this country compared to India! How you see empty lands and paddy fields when you take high-speed trains from one city to another. There's a neat blend of modern with old; of technology and innovation with ordinary life. At times I have felt like being in a New York suburb—other times Taiwanese cities have reminded me of the skylines of US cities. There are 7-Eleven stores in almost every street of Taiwan, like they exist in Manhattan!

Imagine there are 13,000 7-Eleven retail stores in the US, while there are 6712 of them in the much smaller Taiwan! There's certainly some mathematics about the Taiwanese idea of its resilient economy!