I'm so angry - so unprofessional and rude!!!!!!!

[gato]

Regarding her ID card:

1) I guess she never envisaged needing it outside of Taiwan

2) We live in the UK where ID is not carried as widely as it is in a lot of countries

3) Psychologically she would be very reluctant to acknowledge needing her Taiwanese ID card in China as she views them as totally seperate countries

Did she have another ID with her for the flight? Since you mention that she's not British citizen. She wouldn't have a UK passport, either.

I assume that Taiwanese would carry a Taiwanese passport with them when they travel overseas, but perhaps the airport agents here wouldn't have accepted a Taiwanese passport though they insisted on seeing a Taiwanese ID.

[pookie]

Slight delay in my reply. Wow still seems like yesterday.

She had both Taiwanese passport and UK ID also, but they insisted on the Taiwan ID card. Niether of must mind that so much, it was the way in which they insisted that bothered her.

Well, if I go to two resturants both staffed by natives of the country concerned I'm definitely going to make comparisons, particularly when they backup my previous experiences also. I feel this is very different from comparing a breakfast bar and a dinner resturant.

She's now British and will be using her new passport as much as possible

Thanks for the responses as always.

[jbradfor]

How much of the bad treatment was due to her being Taiwanese? I wouldn't be surprised if they treat everyone like that.

but because Western culture does not approve of treating people with disdain because of their salary level.

This may be true today, but it certainly wasn't true 100 years ago. So don't feel so smug, if you were born 100 years ago in an upper-class family you would treat all the "little people" just as poorly.

-As a US citizen, there is 1 thing I always carry in the US... My drivers license. (Official ID)

-Usually carry, Social Security Card (Not official, but it stops alot of questions)

-As an American in China, I carry my Drivers License and my Passport and my residence permit.

It's not recommended to carry you SS card with you, in case you lose it. Identity theft reasons.

[spruceblue]

man, my sympathy for your experience. could imagine how bad this is.

would like to share some of my view. me a chinese.

first, all chinese people experience stupid bureaucrats their whole lives. in my experience, the government people 30% are ok, 30% rude, 40% in between, and very few ever smile. it's about the same when you go to a state owned bank, phone company, airline, or the like. this is just like a lousy china town restaurant from which i won't expect too much at all. are they especially bad to Taiwan people or overseas chinese? i really don't know.

then, talking about my seven years in Philadelphia and DE area, i seen rude people in banks, airlines, dmv... perhaps the areas i live in was not representative. I feel at least 10-20% are bordering on rudeness. we did talk about Chinese treated worse and all, but my wife and I tried to laugh it off. I joked often that we are Chinese and not bothered by non smiling stuff, which my wife may not take as funny at all.

i do feel good during almost every trip from US to China. there are things to enjoy and more than canceling any bad feelings. people spat on the street (did someone above mention spitting in a restaurant? I rarely if at all see people do it these days indoors); many shout at waiters (and managers as well); infrastructure and service could be bad outside major cities. but i still think people are generally ok. Beijingness are certainly warmer than New Yorkers in my opinion. (Shanghai is a bit more New York perhaps.) I traveled to beautiful mountains and rivers, visited ancient relics, and quite enjoyed the restaurants (for God's sake, don't ever think China town food/service represents the real Chinese food. ask local Chinese friends where to dine.)

i feel ok too living in DE right now. there are good and bad things here. a neighbor would not give me 3 min laundry grace period and threw all my wife's underwear out of the dryer just yesterday. a driver shouted *ss*ole at us (honestly i was not bad on the road and could not think of any reason he was angry like that). we talked about frustrations living and traveling in the US. but mostly it has been enjoyable. we will eventually move back to China, and will sure come back to visit. (by the way, our time in UK has good and bad turns too.)

guess i was wandering too far. just try to say that your wife and you could still try to enjoy China if you ever decide to visit again, together. don't make some single experience spoil it for ever. I rather believe most chinese are very dear to people from Taiwan, if they throw away politics/prejudice. It's a very sad situation, really, that people harbor bad feelings towards each other, all the more when they are actually so close. we should be sick when either them/us attack the other side, by mouth or missile alike. it's not the way the world should be.

anyway, please, cheer up. wish you could come visit, and really enjoy it.