Generally, I'd say there are about 2 to 3 scoots per every car in Taipei. How's that for a ratio?
Also, scoots are encouraged to weave through traffic to get in the front at redlights. There's even special "boxes" for the scoots to gather (you'll see these in the pics below).Now, getting down to the heart of the matter, our beloved PGO scoots simply aren't popular over there. As I posted in another thread, there are basically three main scooter companies in Taipei (Sym, Kymco, and Yamaha). Sym and Kymco probably are 1 and 2 in some order, with Yamaha as a close third. Everything else is a mere blip on the competitive radar.
I did find a few PGO's though. The BuBu's (Buddy's) are pretty easy to spot with their unique turn signals (especially from the rear). I never caught a pic of it, but apparently the BuBu scoots used to have a much different speedometer (more resembling the GMAX (Blur) than the current oval Buddy).
Another strange item of note, apparently the Taiwaneese don't like color very much. Almost all the scoots over there are black, grey, silver, white, or blue. There are very few vibrant colors similar to how we like our Buddy's.
Without further adew, here are the glorious pics of Taipei:
This is a pic of the sidewalk in front of computer giant "Asus". The sidewalk is typical of every company in Taipei. One person told me that more than half of the driving population in Taipei uses scooters as their main transportation.
We ate lunch my first day at the Taipei National University of the Arts. As you can guess, the students are pretty much all on scoots. Here are some pics from just ONE of the HUNDREDS of parking lots on this campus.
I also had my first Buddy sighting in this parking lot:
As you drive (ride) through the streets of Taipei, you never know quite what you are going to see. For example:
Here's another Buddy sighting:
And here's two more "Buddy" sightings, just different kind of "buddys". (Note the dogs in the tunnel)
For those of you wondering, that was an English Sheep Dog in the last picture. I couldn't get the camera up quick enough.
Keep in mind that scoots are the main tranportation for families in Taipei, so you'll often see things that wouldn't be considered "safe" here in the States:
Yes, that last picture is of a kid riding on the gas tank of a motorcycle.
Here are a couple of pics of the Taipei scooters in action in the city.
Now, here's a cool shot of the "typical" scooter store in Taipei. There are literally hundreds of these. If you don't see one, turn the corner. Most all of these stores are "mom-and-pop" joints that have 2 or 3 new scoots in stock, several basic parts, and a TV. The TV is so they'll have something to do for most of the day.
Here are shots of all the interesting scoots I saw while there. Note, even the cops ride scoots in Taipei.
Finally, I'll leave you with pics of the coolest scoot I have ever seen. I saw this (of all places) in the Taipei airport. This was in a COSMETICS company's booth. Apparently the company (Kiehl's) has a vast collection of vintage motorcycles. I don't know anything about it other than what the plaquard told me. It's a 1961 Harley Davidson Topper. Harley produced the Topper, it's only scooter, between 60 and 65. Some experts say as many as 8000 were made, but others say 3000. Only 100 are known to be in running condition. This one was found and restored by Bob Small (a southern Cali resident and retired Chrysler drag racing pilot). Enjoy....
