During my trip to Ximending, Taiwan, I had a disappointing experience with the local bus service. I was trying to buy a bus ticket and asked the driver politely for the price. To my surprise, he replied in a very rude and impatient tone. His attitude made me feel uncomfortable and unwelcome. The board inside the bus showed one price, but when I paid, the driver asked for more money than expected. There was no proper explanation, and it felt like they were just trying to take advantage of tourists.
I also noticed that the bus driver didn’t bother checking the QR code properly when I scanned it. If there was an issue, he did not say anything or help out; he just waved me off rudely. To make things worse, the bus was delayed and when I asked about the reason or how long the delay would be, the driver gave me an annoyed look and mumbled something offensive in Mandarin. It was shocking to be treated that way as a visitor.
Later during the ride, I was not sure when to get off. I politely asked the driver again, but his answer was sharp and disrespectful. Instead of giving clear instructions, he looked frustrated as if I was bothering him. I expected Taiwanese public transport staff to be more helpful and tourist-friendly, especially in a popular area like Ximending.
This experience left a bad impression on me. I understand that not every trip will be perfect but showing basic politeness and honesty especially towards tourists should be a must. It is unfortunate that such a beautiful place had its image spoiled by the behavior of just one rude bus driver. I think this is my first time to Taiwan and my last time. I can guarantee their service would not last long for their business.
Serene Lau (serenelauhn@gmail.com) is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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