Tuesday, May 20, 2003

Back in the states, when I wanted something, I got in the car, drove to the store, and bought it. Have you ever been in a big North American city on foot, and you wander in to the central business district on a weekend, and you can't even find a vending machine?

No problem in Taiwan. You are almost never more than a block from a store. There are over 3000 7-11s in Taiwan, a country smaller than the state of Maryland. There are also thousands of Family Marts, a Japanese chain, Circle K, and a smaller number of local chains. One of my favorites is called "3Q". The Chinese word for "3" is "san" so when you say it, it's pretty much how they say "Thank you."

There are even a few places where I have seen two 7-11s directly across the street from one another. No joke.

The best part is, I'm never far from cigarettes.

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