"Taiwan is not abroad", says Chinese Tourist

Kenting National Park (source)

On March 1 a mainland Chinese traveller protested when she was classified as a "foreigner" (外籍) during a booking procedure at Taiwan's Kenting National Park.

The tourist had applied for an entry ticket to Longkeng and Nanrenshan Ecological Reserve Areas. Recently a new entry booking method has been introduced, limiting the daily number of visitors. According to the new system, 100 Taiwanese and 50 foreign nationals are allowed to visit the two areas each day. Tourists from mainland China are classified as foreigners.

According to Taiwanese media reports, yesterday a mainland woman from Guangdong Province protested. "I don't think that coming to Taiwan means going abroad", she said. She argued that Taiwan's culture is similar to that of the mainland and she could speak with everyone whenever she went. "Taiwan is part of the mainland" (台灣是大陸的一部分), she added.

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