Do I need to speak Chinese during travelling in Taiwan?

Can Taiwanese speak English? I got some problem in communication while I was travelling in Hong Kong especially I orderred local food. Only little can speak or understand English. I don't worry for hotel & shopping centre. Most of them can speak English. But sometimes, I do love to venture with local people in each country.

Public Comments

1. I'd recommend learning the names of your favorite foods, like chicken vs. pork, etc... Taiwan has lots of night markets, it's very easy to point and say 2, or whatever. Try to go to restaurants where they have picture menus, that'll be the easiest. If you go to a sit down place and your waiter doesn't speak english, you'll be in for an interesting time.
2. Ni Hao mi no speeca engrish...
3. I would agree with the prior answer too. Picture menus and learning a few of the basic words would be a good thing. Something that I learned while living there and traveling to more rural areas, was to take a pen and paper. Sometimes drawing out and/or writing it out is helpful. They may recognize the written word or picture easier. Biggest thing---don't forget to take a travel guide with you. Many times they have phases in the back and that can be helpful too! Good luck and enjoy your time in Taiwan. I really loved it there and can't wait to go back again one day!!!
4. In the big cities, people will either be able to speak enough English to help you, or they will find someone who can, or some kindly passer-by will step in. Taipei in particular is a very foreigner-friendly place, and easy to deal with if you don't speak Chinese. You will find in the country that many people not only do not speak English, but that will speak Taiwanese and even aboriginal languages instead of Mandarin Chinese. I think you will also find that people will be as helpful and as kind as they can, and try to help you get by and get around. I am surprised by your comment about Hong Kong. I found English to be widely spoken and understood there.
5. In major cities, you will able to find people who could speak some English. There are Taiwanese, who went abroad to get education in English speaking countries, such as the US, Canada, England, Australia, etc. In a way to promote the learning of English, the Taiwanese government and the Education Department have established policies and pour resources to foster English learning. Hopefully, you will have a pleasant trip in Taiwan.
6. Taiwanese are friendly,no need to worry,people spoken English, if you have to someone guide you when you are in Taiwan just ask,they will glad to help you & foreigners.
7. most ppl don't know any english here. you need to speak chinese.
8. if you think that people in hk speak little english then cut that in half in taiwan. people here try to speak english but most do so incoherently. you can get by without speaking chinese if the restos have picture menus, otherwise you'd have to be creative. you'd have to be fluent in chinese to make sense of all the choices anyway. my advise is to do some research before coming over so that you know what to expect travel.yahoo.com/taiwan
9. I feel obliged to answer this question as I was recently in your situation. First, the food in Taiwan is not quite what one might expect. There are many street vendors selling "finger foods". Night markets are the best place to sample Taiwanese food and venture with local people. Second, if you had trouble ordering food in a more international city like Hong Kong, you will certainly have trouble in Taiwan. I recently traveled to Hong Kong and found many more English speakers than in Taiwan. With that said, the people in Taiwan are very friendly and willing to "battle through" the language barrier to help in whatever way. Many people will even have a good laugh if language becomes an issue. Furthermore, English in Taiwan is still relatively new, so in general the younger generation's ability to speak English is much better than the older generation's ability. With that said, I currently live in Taiwan and speak little to no Chinese or Taiwanese. Don't worry too much and if problems arise...make the best of it.
10. if u know how to speak chinese then why not use , but in taipei , vendors are trying to speak english just to be come u as their costumers , dont worry , some vendors have their own english words , even taxi drivers they know little engish,but many drivers know how to speak english , just like the bus driver of bus no 518, thy know how to speak english very well
11. I know some people who are quite fine with out Chinese while living here. I prefer to know some of it myself, things get done faster if you do. But you can get by in the cities pretty well. If you are out in the rural areas you should bring a pencil and some paper to draw pictures of what you want, or else if there is something specific you need ask someone with english and chinese together to write out what you need in Chinese. Generally language isn't a huge problem as long as you can smile and be patient. But it can wear you down after a while.